Words & Image Lester Perry
We’ve all got our favourites; there are some items of kit that just keep on working and seem to never die. They become a staple in ‘ride life’. They may not be the fanciest, most stunning-looking, have a ‘name’ brand, or even cost much money, but they just do what they are designed to do to a decent level.
Inanimate objects strangely become a vital piece of our experience. For some, it’s a bike, a favourite kit, or even the music listened to while riding. In my case it’s a pump. Yes, a pump.
I don’t even remember when I got this little beauty, but it must have been early 2013 or before, as it came with me on the 2013 Trans Provence (multi-day enduro, now called the Stone King Rally). I know I won this pump as a spot prize at an event at some point; it’s so long ago I don’t even remember what sort of race it was, what bike I was riding, or even where it was. Strangely though, I do remember feeling disappointed when I won the pump. I can only assume it was a bit of a booby-prize amongst a sea of higher-value, more sought-after items.
It’s a reasonably unassuming piece of kit, but I’ve mounted tubeless tyres with it, and it does double duty to pump up my ride-on lawnmower’s slow leaking tyre. If there’s air to pump it’s up to the task and it’s always there when I need it, no issues or niggly problems. From time to time it seems to disappear and hide out of sight causing me some stress thinking I may have left it behind in a trail head carpark somewhere.
I’ve had scathing comments from friends who were underwhelmed when I presented them with it after being asked, “Bro, you got a track pump?”.
Little did they know how solid this little pump is, and oftentimes jeers turned to positive comments.
The pressure gauge gave out at some stage and I’m sure it wasn’t even remotely accurate before it finally conked out but, thankfully, the pump didn’t skip a beat, and I still check my tyre pressure with a gauge, so no real loss there.
Although the logo has been rubbed off, I remember it being some brand that didn’t hold any weight, just a generic pump with a logo screen-printed on the side of it. I can’t imagine its retail value was much north of $50 so, even if I had paid for it, I’d be super pumped with the value I’ve had from it; it’s cost per use would be totally laughable!
I’ve had scathing comments from friends who were underwhelmed when I presented them with it after being asked, “Bro, you got a track pump?”. Little did they know how solid this little pump is, and oftentimes jeers turned to positive comments.
Recently, the pump got really hot when used for more than 30 seconds or so, and the action became quite sticky. So much so that I figured it was heading for the big yellow plastic bag, never to be seen again after our next ‘Rubbish Day Wednesday’. It was at this point that regret set in. This pump has been with me on this journey of life for so long, to just scrap it without a second thought seemed wrong, almost immoral – why couldn’t I give it another shot? I dug out some suitable grease and a screw driver and, for the first time ever, disassembled the pump, carefully cleaning and lubing all the seals and moving parts. So dirty were the internals, I’m surprised it worked at all!
I’m kicking myself for waiting so long to service the pump. Post-service, it still works but it’s not quite as smooth as it was before its hiccup.
Once the damage is done, there’s no coming back from it – niggles of the damage will remain.
I’m sure there’s a lesson in all of this, maybe it’s a case of not upgrading or trading up just for the sake of it, or perhaps it’s to stay on top of servicing rather than waiting for an issue to finally service something. Chances are once the damage is done, it’s done. Lucky for me, my favourite pump keeps on working, and if I keep up to speed with a more regular clean and lube routine, who knows how long this thing could go for!
