Originally Posted by
kingston
Depends on the setup. I have a big shop-compressor in the garage that I never use for bike tires, but the tanks on this little compressor fill in about a minute, and I can inflate bike tires in a few seconds. It's definitely more useful if I'm inflating a bunch of tires or installing new tires, seating the bead and inflating from zero. For topping off two tires on one bike it may be only a few seconds faster and probably not worth the hassle. I also use an hand pump if that's more convenient so it's not an either/or thing. I spend a few thousand dollars a year on my cycling hobby so a nice little compressor/inflator that will last a decade or more isn't that significant to me in the grand scheme of things relative to the joy it gives me every time I use it. I've definitely spent more money on things that are less useful.
Just to be clear I do have a compressor, and it is sitting next to my bike stuff. It is not a matter of cost, just convenience.
I use it for seating my fat bike tires. Thats about it bike-wise.
BTW, I should have said “floor pump” not “hand pump”.
In any event, to each his own.