Vital statistics: 171mm long, 84g and able to achieve 160psi. That’s Blackburn’s AirStik 2Stage Mini Pump, which comes packaged in a nice, sturdy box and features the US firm’s usual excellent standard of construction and finish.
It is attached to the frame in the usual mini pump manner via a bracket that sits under a bottle cage. Two bolts will hold it to the bosses in the absence of the cage and a rubber strap keeps the pump in place in the bracket.
The barrel and shaft are both aluminium for durability with some smaller parts available separately in the event the pump requires rebuilding. A cap keeps muck out of the chuck when not in use. There are two pressure settings attained via a switch.
The Blackburn AirStik 2Stage Mini Pump got a chance to shine this morning. Straight out of the bracket it struggled to inflate an inner tube outside the tyre, giving rise to a slight feeling of panic until the reviewer checked the instruction sheet and noted the two-position switch on the end of the pump. A quick flip to HIGH produced immediate results and, after some 200 strokes, the pump generated about 60psi. It felt able to get far higher and, no doubt, will reach the claimed 160psi – in time. As a quick way to get a road tyre hard, it falls short. As a light and effective way to do so, it works well and is unobtrusive on the bike.
But the LOW setting is surely for balloons.
Blackburn AirStik 2Stage Mini Pump £24.99
