yet another ridiculous pump issue.

this time it's the portable one. got a flat today, went to pump it up to try and see where the hole is since i can't find it with my eyes. got a new portable pump, schwinn. i can't get any air into the tire, except maybe a little tiny bit. as soon as i get a little air in, it escapes immediately. i have tried all different positions on the valve. locked and unlocked, etc. i looked at the website it gave on the pump but it is of no help. i haven't even tried to change the tube yet because i figure if i can't get any air in this tube at all, then i will most likely not do it right with the new tube and break the valve or something and then waste even more money that i don't have on yet another new tube that i will probably break again.

so i am getting a ride home from work today instead of riding home myself, all because i am not smart enough to use a portable pump. yay for me.

any suggestions? please don't say buy new pumps. can't afford them!
i am so lame!!!!! why did i have to pick such a pain in *** sport. why don't i like to jog?

whoa nellie -I understand you are frustrated, but strung all together like that, its really hard to figure out what exactly you are doing here.

You got a flat - you are trying to pump up the flat tube to see where the hole is right? If there is a hole and the hole is large it can be difficult to impossible to get the tube to hold enough air to do that - its not that your pump doesn't work or that you are doing any thing wrong. Try your pump out on a new tube - its unlikely you will break it and you will get to see how your pump works.

The first thing that comes to my mind is what kind of valve do you have on your tube? If it's a presta valve, it's kind of skinny with a little metal thing sticking out the top, you have to unscrew the top of the metal thingy before you can pump in the air. If it's a schrader valve, it's a little fatter and doesn't have anything sticking out of the end. Your pump might be set up for presta valves and won't seal properly on the schrader valve. Or to confuse you more it could be just the opposite, set up for a schrader valve and won't fit the presta. Most pumps will go either way. Hope this helps, not confuses you. :o bikerHen

it turns out that i was using the pump wrong. well, if it had come with instructions, i think i would have figured it out since i always study the instructions forever before i do anything.

it turns out that i had to unscrew the pump and take some sort of part out and then put it back in another way. i went to a bike shop and asked someone to show me. i would have NEVER figured that out myself.

then today i got another flat. this time it was the rear tire. i got everything done and then couldn't get enough air into the tire with the pump, even tho it was working much better this time. i got as much as i could in, but i don't think it's enough. i flagged down another cyclist who told me i was doing it right, but those portable pumps aren't made to fully inflate the tire. he got enough in to finish my ride but now i need to go home. i am planning on stopping at an lbs along the way to have them fully inflate it with a real pump, if they are open.

i havent bought any of those co2 things because it sounds kind of pricey since they only work one time. isn't there an easier way to put air into a tire on the side of the road?

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Originally Posted by inatree

it turns out that i was using the pump wrong. well, if it had come with instructions, i think i would have figured it out since i always study the instructions forever before i do anything.

it turns out that i had to unscrew the pump and take some sort of part out and then put it back in another way. i went to a bike shop and asked someone to show me. i would have NEVER figured that out myself.

then today i got another flat. this time it was the rear tire. i got everything done and then couldn't get enough air into the tire with the pump, even tho it was working much better this time. i got as much as i could in, but i don't think it's enough. i flagged down another cyclist who told me i was doing it right, but those portable pumps aren't made to fully inflate the tire. he got enough in to finish my ride but now i need to go home. i am planning on stopping at an lbs along the way to have them fully inflate it with a real pump, if they are open.

i havent bought any of those co2 things because it sounds kind of pricey since they only work one time. isn't there an easier way to put air into a tire on the side of the road?

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I recently had the same issue with a frame pump, so don't feel bad. I hadn't used it in years, and couldn't for the life of me figure it out. I also made a trip to the lbs, feeling stupid.

And, I also recently had a bad luck with co2 inflators! I went through both my cartridges, and still had the flat. I finally started walking, but a nice guy (with 2 little kids in the truck) pulled over and gave me a ride. So, it wasn't really bad luck in the end.

This is part of cycling. You can have a pump, cartridges, tubes, patches, and still not fix the flat. You then have to figure out how to get home. It's not always easy, you may have to walk, or count on the kindness of strangers, or call a cab. It can be frustrating, or it can give you new faith in yourself and humanity. It's part of the adventure, and at very least, good for a post here.

Oh, and the co2s are for emergencies. After you use one, your tire will lose most of the gas pretty quickly (in a couple of days). You'll have to let it out, and pump with air.

Road Morph pumps are made to completely inflate your tire!
I'm sorry you are having so much trouble. I dread having a flat tire!

It's a learning curve. Hey, in the old days, there weren't instructions for lots of things and you had to learn from other people. Now there's so much more STUFF though!

I've learned the two thingies that have to get switched between Presta and Schrader valves 'cause I have both. This is good 'cause my floor pump isn't working -- I put the head on the valve and the tire pushes back and throws the handle up in the air... and I don't have the strength to push it back down. Gonna try it on another tire, I suppose, but it means maybe my airhorn isn't busted after all...

Wednesday I rode by a guy walking his flatted bike (chatted a bit; he didn't have a spare tube or the stuff to fix things), then passed another guy in town riding on an almost flat tire... and then two miles later heard & felt something on my tire and stopped and rolled it slowly to see what was stuck... oh... a nail head. Still had air, though, so I rode *fast* for two miles but did have to walk it the last half mile. I *like* big thick touring tires. (They're also easy to get on and off the wheel, and don't take that super-high pressure so it *is* easy to fill it up wtih the frame pump.)

I have to admit that I use CO2 while out riding roads for the simple reason that I can't use a hand pump up to high enough pressure for my road tires (lack of upper body strength). So I have a standign (floor) pump for pressurizing my tires pre-ride, then the CO2 for road emergencies. Although at the end of the day due to funny things with gas, you will need to repump the tire with air (which is mainly nitrogen and oxygen).

I have a crappy Schwinn floor pump that, for the life of me, I could not figure out how to use when I first got it. I actually googled "crap schwinn floor pump" and found several topics dealing with the very issue I was having. (Turns out you gotta really cram the head of the pump down onto the tube valve in order to get a good seal.) I still use the pump 'cause I'm too cheap to buy a decent one, but it works okay now that I've gotten the hang of it.

Don't fret -- you are not lame, and you are not alone! :D

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Originally Posted by Biciclista

Road Morph pumps are made to completely inflate your tire!

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Best pump ever. Comes with a little gauge as well as a place to put your foot for leverage. It is the next best thing to not having a flat :)