I agree. I do 95% of my rides with a small group. Usually one guy will hang back and assist, while the others keep going at a slow enough pace to allow us to catch. But one thing is clear, everybody wants the darn thing fixed as fast as possible.

Thank you so much for all the responses. Very helpful and good points made by many. I'll think about it a little more but I think I'm going to get CO2 and a pump, either the Lezyne Road Drive or Pressure Drive.

Don't really want to spend almost $100 on one of the carbon mini pumps that were suggested when the mini pump (hopefully) won't see much use.

Thanks again!

That Lezyne pump you showed is a bit ungaining looking for carrying on a bike, but it would be easy to use than a traditional mini pump. Lezyne does make a great pump called the Road Drive, it has an eternal pull out air hose that stays hidden inside the pump, then that screws onto the valve stem then onto the pump. However that pump comes in 3 lengths, for ease of pumping get the largest size, the smaller sizes will make it more difficult to get up to proper tire PSI plus take a lot more strokes as the pump length gets smaller. Also Topeak makes a really fine pump called the RaceRocket HP which also has a hose stored internally. I own both and I can't really make a judgement call about which works best, I like them both. Also if you like the Lezyne you showed then consider the Topeak Road Morph G (the G means it has a built in psi gauge), this pump is like owning a mini floor pump and will easily get to whatever pressure you want, plus it's cheaper than the Lezyne, I also own that Road Morph G pump and it is the easiest of all the on bike pumps to use but like the Lezyne it is very large and ungainly.

I use the Road Morph G pump on my touring bike then throw in a mini as back up in my pannier. But the touring bike uses larger tires and using a mini to pump those tires up would take a lot of strokes so the Road Morph is faster and easier to use. The Road Morph is lot like the old school frame pumps but modernized to be what I call a half frame pump.

CO2 is great, but sometimes flats come in n+1 (n being number of cartriges you have).
I don't leave home without pump.

Most flats during goat head season on a single ride has been 6.

I threw the tires away after that..... And got new rims.

There are cheaper CO2 alternatives. Since you are talking about emergency repairs, if you get a CO2 inflator that does not take threaded cartridges. You can save a significant amount of money on cartridges by using BB/Pellet *** CO2 cartridges. All CO2 cartridges are nearly equivalent in the amount of CO2 contained, so they will all fill to the same pressure. The main difference in Bike/Tire cartridges vs. BB/Pellet *** cartridges is that the Crosman type have 1 or two drops of lubricating oil inside them. The oil does no damage to the tube and i have seen the cartridges online for as less than $0.40 each.

BigJeff also mentions "Food Grade" cartridges, but they are not required and do cost more than the Pellet *** type in bulk.

This would partially solve Ice41000's issue of not having enough carts, just carry three. If you get four flats in a ride, seriously dud, call someone to pick you up!

CO2 is obviously faster than a pump, so if you are not as lucky as Nachoman and ride with nice people, you will get left behind. There is one group shop ride here that will leave you behind in a heartbeat, even if its your first time and don't know the route.



PS: Why is the word g-u-n on the banned word list.

I thought about it more yesterday and ended up ordering the Lezyne Road Drive mini pump and Lezyne Trigger Drive CO2 inflator.

Ice41000 - I was always planning on having at least a mini pump but decided to pull the trigger on a CO2 inflator because as several people have mentioned, being stuck on the side of the road while pumping up your tire isn't fun.

WheresWaldo - I went back and forth on whether to get an inflator that took only threaded cartridges (like the one I ended up ordering) or one that took threaded and unthreaded cartridges (like a Spin Doctor I was looking at) but for as much as I'll need it I don't think the cost will be too high.

I'm not big fan of CO2 either unless I was in a race than I would use them otherwise no way. Why pay for air when you can get it for free? Why have a waste product when your done using it? Problem with those CO2's is that most riders when they have a flat throw the damn spent cart onto the side of the road where they fixed their flat! I see that schit all over bike paths and lanes including their stupid energy wrappers. Take your trash with you and stop being pigs out there those of you that do that nasty schit, and you know who you are.

I have this, haven't had a chance to use it but read some good things about it

Road morph pump

I was originally planning on buying that pump until I found out that it mounts onto the water bottle mounts (not to the side like others) or zip ties to the frame, which sounds so tacky.

rekmeyata - The way I see it, ideally you won't be using it very often so cost wise it won't bankrupt you. I'd rather get back to riding asap instead of getting an arm workout haha. In any case, I plan on taking the spend cartridges with me and either throw them away later when I see a garage can or recycle them when I get home. Like you said, I can't stand finding spend CO2 on the side of the path because someone was too lazy to throw it away like they should.

This really isn't a CO2 issue, but rather a bigger issue involving accountability. I carry my trash home unless it is organic and/or biodegradable. << Banana peels on the side of the road, energy gel wrappers go to nearest trash bin. Also as I mentioned, you can get the cartridges pretty cheap as long as they don't say bicycle anything on them.

Funny story, I had a guy come into our shop, who bought a CO2 inflator and a bunch of carts from another shop. He came in complaining about having a flat every morning. I asked him how he was filling his tires? I had to tell him not to use the carts for general inflation since CO2 leaks out of a butyl tube in less than 24 hours. He never went back to the other shop, they never told him what CO2 was really for.

I got the same one. Didn't read the fine print about the mounting, but decided to stick with the zip-ties anyway. It does look a bit cheap, but it is a very good pump. I ride with a couple of guys who have the Lezyne, which is better at pumping, but I don't like the screw-on nozzle, hence why I went with the Topeak.

I don't consider pumping a bike tire up to be much of a workout, if that was the case than riding a bike would probably be too strenuous to do as well.

WheresWaldo; thanks I forgot to mention the other con to CO2 and that is the fact they do leak out in 24 hours which means when you get home you need to completely drain your tire of the CO2 air and refill with normal air from a pump, or you find it flat and have to refill. You all can go ahead and waste your time doing that, but when I go home my tire is full of air for the next day and at the most have to add in 2 or 3 pounds.

Admittedly, I've never had to pump a tire with a mini pump but I'm sure my time will come soon enough. From what I've heard, a lot of the effort required to pump a tire up to pressure depends on the pump and how it is often difficult to get up to the higher pressure for road tires.

A non-issue for me, as I won't ride without topping my tire pressure anyway.

The bottom line is that you have to have a reasonable strategy for dealing with flats. Mine is to have my Topeak Race Rocket help in finding the hole, then use same to shape tube for mounting, inflate to 30-40 PSI, then top off with CO2 to desired pressure. If I do have more than two flats on the same ride, then the pump does full-time duty. More than three or four flats, I'll call for a ride.

The key is, just don't use those 'mini' pumps for a road bike. A road bike takes 100 pounds of pressure- don't get a pump that says it only produces 100psi, because though it maybe possibly will put out that pressure, it'll only do it with a lot of force. The recommended pumps in this thread- the Topeak road morph and the Lezyne road bike pumps- are all rated for 160psi and putting 100psi in a road tire is a breeze. The Lezynes in particular are so skinny and light that you barely notice them on your frame, and there's really no reason not to get the biggest model (the one that will fill your tire in the fewest pumps). They cost a little bit more than an old style mini pump, but you'll be glad you have one when you're stuck on the side of the road.

A short, fat 'mini' pump should only be used on mountain and cruiser bikes- bikes with fat tires that you typically run at no more than 60psi.

Hey Ben...

Good to see you got CO2 as well.

I carry two cartridges, and the pump is backup. Good to have levers, multitool, tube, boot, patch kit as well. In my case I also bring along a set of brake pads and a valve stem.

A lot depends on the appearance you want from the bike as well. Many people like the sleek and uncluttered look of a road bike. Many of the mentioned pumps fit on the frame and are rather large. That's one reason why mini pumps and CO2 are popular - they fit in your jersey or seat bag.

True.

I use to have the Topeak Road Morph (with in-line gauge) mounted on my road bike under my bottle cage. Great pump to get to 120 PSI easy, but it was just too bulky (like the small and sleek look of the Topeak RaceRocket) on a road bike. I do carry a Topeak Mountain Morph (even fatter than the Road Morph) on my mountain hardtail and run around bikes.

These were some of the reasons I decided to get the Road Drive. It's a pretty sleek design and is the same color as the primary color of my bike so it shouldn't be terribly noticeable or be an eyesore and it pumps up to 160 psi so I figured getting to 100-120 psi should be easier.

Many people mentioned the Pressure Drive which is very similar but tops out at 120 psi so getting near there would prove harder I imagine.

Thanks! Decided it was not going to hurt to have both and be set either way. I was planning on always carrying two cartridges, two tubes, levers, and a multitool, might see about a patch kit as well. What do you mean by a boot though?

I had a Road Morph and it worked fine but one day someone lent me their CO2 and I haven't used the mini pump since.

I have a Genuine Innovations Air Chuck. It is all metal and weights 17 grams. Very small and compact, works perfectly and comes with a lifetime warranty. There are cheap places to buy threaded 16 gram cartridges online.

Amazon.com : Genuine Innovations G2673 Air Chuck Elite Inflator : Sports & Outdoors

I'll never call for a ride for most repairs, in fact I've never called anyone for a ride for any repair on a bike (or on a car for that matter) in over 40 years of riding. I'm sorry to sound so mean but my wife is not my mommy, I'm not going to call her to come rescue her little boy, if I'm in the hospital that's one thing but so far I haven't had to call her for breakdowns or flats. Maybe that's why I've been married for 35 years, I don't mind going to help her because that's my job as a husband is to protect her, and part of that is dealing with stuff as a man and not to rely on her like a mother. Today's younger generation doesn't seem to understand that.

Oh boy, here comes the hate posts.

A boot is used when you rip a hole in the tire sidewall. not just a puncture, a good rip. The classic is you take a dollar and fold it up and cover the hole. I have a few pieces of cut to fit rubber... It prevents the tube from "herniating" through the hole and allows you to get home without making the call of shame.

Personally I run tubeless which affords me an extra level of resiliency...nevertheless in a worst case scenario I'd be installing both a boot and tube.