Firefox Foot Pump

Bicycles can have any of three types of valves on their tubes. Schrader, Presta or Woods valves. Road bikes usually come with Presta valves. They are thin with a nut on top. If you loosen it, you can release the pressure by just tapping on the tip. This is what my Scultura 200 has. Woods (or Dunlop valves) are our good old bicycle valves. I believe all Dutch bikes have this type of valves. Geetanjali's ladies' Hero has this type of valve. The other type is the Schrader valve that even cars have. My converted Hero has this type of valve.

This effectively means I have all the three types of valves in my house !!!

One of the first things I had to buy after Someshwar set up my bike was a Firefox floor pump and this review is for that. 

Supratim had recommended the brand. On his advice I took the one with a pressure gauge. The precise name of this model is Air Pro. They have a small carry along model too. But I chose the stand up traditional style floor pump. My bike needs 120 psi air pressure in the tyres. And it is best to be self sufficient because the automotive tyre repair shops may not have the nozzle for presta valves. Also it might be dangerous to use them on the super thin tubes. Because the total volume of air in them is ridiculously small and it would be easy to blow off tubes there. 

Since my previous experience with a bicycle pump is some 40 years old and I had a particularly bad specimen that never worked (keeping it tight on the valve itself was a major challenge) I was bloody impressed by this pump. It has an alloy barrel. The foot-peg is plastic. So is the handle. They seem cheap Chinese but they work. The pump is well made and doesn't seem it's going to come apart.

From zero to 120 psi, my 700x23 road tube took about 15 full strokes of this model. It gets hard from 80/90 psi. But if you are strong enough, it should not be a problem to pump it as hard as 120. The pump is officially rated for 160 psi. Frankly I don't think it can do that. Even at 120 it is really really hard.

Presta valve

The nozzle in this pump can be used to pump both Presta and Schrader valves. Or so I have been told. Initially I thought this was a lie. It's not. It can certainly pump up my Presta and Woods but not my Schrader. There is a reversible nozzle. One side is for Presta/Woods. The other side is for Schrader. Changing it from Presta to Schrader is a little tricky. But it does work. I will probably write a separate how to for that some time later.

The Woods valve on Mampu's Hero

So my pump can be used to fill in air in both my Merida Scultura 200 with a Presta valve and Mampu's ladies' Hero with a Woods valve and also my Hero MTB with a Schrader valve. But in real life I use the Good Year compressor. 

Schrader valve

My Scultura loses air pressure if I leave it idle for a week. The pump is quite a help for me. It locks fairly easily on the valve with a thumb key. And then all you need to do is just pump hard. 

As with most such items, the worth of this pump will be evident after at least one year's continuous use. I have used it only a few times so far. It has been hassle free. I shall review this review after a year. 

Incidentally the better international brands like Topeak or Crank Brother etc are not easily available in India. But this internationally unknown desi Firefox brand serves its purpose pretty well. I am sure its a Chinese import.

Before going out on a long trip, I will need a smaller carry along pump. This is too big for a long trip. I wonder if I can use the Firefox branded small pumps. Once I do that I shall review that too.

I have asked Goobs to bring me a few Presta to Schrader adapters from the US. Once that comes along, I can use the foot pump for all three types of wheels.

Additional Points Worth Remembering

I have used the pump for a few months now. Let me write down the experience. It is not so much a review as a how to for myself. I tend to forget things and have to once again go through the entire learning process. 

The nozzle can inflate two types of tyres, as I said. For Presta valves the side of the interior nozzle (green plastic) that has a tiny little spring should be facing up and come in contact with the valve when you are trying to inflate. Otherwise, if you have the pointed side up, then it will press out all the air from the tube !!! The pointed side is for Schrader valves. But just changing that green plastic is not enough. You have to reverse the other rubbery small cylinder also.

Point number two to remember - the locking mechanism works by pressing the thumb lock up or down. When you press it down it is unlocked. When you push it up it is locked. This is a bit counter intuitive. But that is how it is, universally.

The steps are as follows 

1. Unscrew the cap off the cycle valve. 
2. Loosen the nut on top of the valve and test by tapping on top. A little air will gush out with a pssst sound.
3. Align the nozzle vertically above the valve and press it in with the thumb lock in the loose position. It should go in and click lock itself somewhere. You can feel the click. The spring inside the green plastic should be absolutely vertical. 
4. Pull the thumb lock up and start pumping.
5. 0-100 psi took me 30 pumps. 
6. I filled close to 120 psi.
7. Once you take off the nozzle don't forget to tighten the nut on the valve.
8. If you have OCD like me you will go back to check it again and again :-)