Not many people get the chance to make their dreams a reality, but Josh Poertner’s passion for cycling led him to create the SILCA SuperPista Ultimate- a next-generation bike pump. The former technical director for Zipp and creator of carbon-fiber wheelsets believes that the bike pump is the most important tool that a cyclist uses and even a slight alteration in the pressure of a tire could significantly affect the rider’s experience. After realizing that the floor pumps that most people use on their bikes are inaccurate, he committed himself to creating the world’s finest floor pump.
The SuperPista features an 800 gram base that won’t easily tip over; it’s also one of the thinnest bases available in the market ensuring that no stability is lost when using it with cleated cycling shoes. The pump has elastomer feet to give it a good grip on the floor. The SuperPista’s dial is a high precision, CNC-machined aluminum product located above the base of the pump. The pumps design keeps its more sensitive pieces off the ground. A powerful magnet ensures that the aircraft-grade stainless steel chuck stays at the end of the air hose when not in use.
The SuperPista Ultimate’s gauge is created from metal (instead of regular plastic) and uses laboratory-grade internal components to stabilize the gauge’s mechanism and needle. The durable gauge is accurate to within 1 percent of a tire’s true pressure a vast difference from the 5-percent accuracy offered by other pumps.
But all the precision comes at a cost. The SILCA SuperPista Ultimate Bike Pump is priced at $450, almost 10 times what you would pay for a regular bike pump. Is it worth it? According to Poertner, the answer is yes. He explained, “We didn’t set out to make it this expensive. We just believe in finding the best way to do stuff.” He also added, “I like to joke that if all goes well, you’ll pass your passion for cycling and your SILCA to the next generation, so our charge is to design and build products worthy of heirloom status.”
Available at – Silca.
[Via – Mens Journal]
