Topeak's new mega floor pump looks more like a fitness machine than a pump. Once you've heaved the three-kilo aluminium colossus onto your bike, you can tick off your fitness training for the day. But the Twinturbo should make it easier to inflate tyres. Topeak promises fifty per cent less lifting work thanks to two separate cylinders.
Topeak Joeblow Twinturbo - the facts
- Weight: 3 kilos
- Dimensions: 72 x 28 x 21 cm
- Volume/stroke: 858 cm3
- Output: 200 psi / 14 bar
- Pump head for Presta and Schrader + drain valve
Price: 199,95 Euro / www.topeak.com
With the Twinturbo, Topeak presents a completely new technology for floor pumps. The pump has two separate cylinders. When the cylinder is pulled up, the air is pumped from the larger reservoir into the smaller cylinder and compressed. When the handle is pushed down again, the compressed air flows further into the tyre. This should make it equally easy to inflate large-volume mountain bike tyres and high-pressure road bike tyres. Topeak promises a whopping 50 per cent reduction in workload with the new technology. Well, if that's not a promise.
Solid construction, large pressure gauge
For the hefty price of 200 euros, you naturally expect a lot from a pump. And at first glance, the Twinturbo does not disappoint: the cylinder and base are made of aluminium. The base stands securely on the floor and has a large rubberised surface on the top. The massive handle, on the other hand, is only made of plastic, but also has a non-slip rubber coating on the top.
A three-inch pressure gauge sits enthroned at the top of the Twinturbo. It is perfectly positioned and really easy to read. The air escapes from the 125 centimetre long tube via a very solid twinhead pump head, also made of aluminium, into the MTB tyre. The outlet can be varied between Presta and Schrader valve via a large thumb lever. There is also a small button for selectively releasing air.
The first test will show how the new Joeblow Twinturbo performs on voluminous bike tyres. We tested one of the first models directly from the BIKE Festival in Willingen brought along.
Stefan Frey
Editor
