Reminder: Don't forget to check your tire pressures!

I'm sure like me you sometimes check your tire pressures, although recently I've discovered I've actually been neglecting my tires.

All tires lose pressure over time, some slowly others quicker depending on age and state of repair, professional race mechanics say they have seen up to 30% pressure loss even overnight.

I was previously checking my tire pressures once a week at most and once a month more often. I've found checking my tires before EVERY country ride improves handling massively. I mistakenly thought that you could feel if they were too low by kicking or squeezing them, but with most of the Cheng-Shin, Sakura and Kenda tires we mostly use on Chinese bikes the carcase is just too hard to be able to tell the difference when squeezing them between 15-32 psi.

So by regularly checking your pressures your bike has less rolling resistance so less fuel costs, you'll get a faster top speed and acceleration and much more reliable safer, and more enjoyable handling. As well as reduced wear and better wear characteristics for longer tire life.

Attachment 3688

I use the above Airace cycle pump with a gauge, the Giant ones have digital gauges. They look too small for a motorcycle but they pump pretty well. Really worth 100 yuan outlay and the 3 minutes of your time before a ride. Although the gauges on handheld and floor pumps are known to be inaccurate so I might invest in a high quality gauge for increased reading accuracy.

Excellent, excellent advice!

I brought over a high quality pressure gauge from home, as I wasn't able to easily find one here. Has someone found a good quality gauge on taobao?

Pen tire pressure gauge.
http://images.tradekool.com/88297700/Pen-Tire-Gauge.jpg

Better put this in your riding bag. Can anyone help find it on taobao? Seems many made in China >> http://www.tire-gauge.com/pen-tire-gauges.htm

Edit: Not sure about quality, but here's what I found on TB http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=9832150857

Good tip ZMC, i have one of those and don't use it often enough...

Slabo, here's a cheaper one on taobao if you want, seems decent.
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=5707795042

http://d1.freep.cn/3tb_100530134635jn6d328680.jpg

However i'm wondering, is there much point in only having one of these? Wouldn't it be better to have a pump attached so you can add air after seeing that you need some?


These are kinda interesting, valve caps that alert you if pressure is too low. They are calibrated at 2.4 bar = 35psi. Quality looks questionable...
http://item.taobao.com/item.htm?id=7000383314

http://img01.taobaocdn.com/imgextra/...pg_310x310.jpg

A buddy of mine worked in a tire shop for an uber-anal boss, back in the 70s. The boss-man demonstrated why my $0.99 K-Mart special was worse than having nothing at all - its inaccurate readings were causing me to constantly over-inflate my tires (bad news). The boss' shop used to sell these $25 Austrian things (and back then $25 was a LOT of dough). He had a box of various shapes/sizes/brands of tire pressure gauges - and would happily demonstrate how many garden-variety gauges were giving readings +/- 10% of an accurate, high quality gauge. On a bike, that can be very important.

Interestingly, a couple of highly rated gauges are made in China. Check out these reviews:

Review # 1

Review # 2

Here's a mini article about tire gauges, albeit for RVs, but raises some good points:

Article

Accutire gauges are available on taobao. Less expensive than in the USA via some online shops.

Actually the Kmart specials are fine but they like any other tire pressure gauge must be checked against a known good gauge. I have several pressure gauges to test each other with included some digital ones. Any that are not accurate are thrown away.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Lao Jia Hou

A buddy of mine worked in a tire shop for an uber-anal boss, back in the 70s. The boss-man demonstrated why my $0.99 K-Mart special was worse than having nothing at all - its inaccurate readings were causing me to constantly over-inflate my tires (bad news). The boss' shop used to sell these $25 Austrian things (and back then $25 was a LOT of dough). He had a box of various shapes/sizes/brands of tire pressure gauges - and would happily demonstrate how many garden-variety gauges were giving readings +/- 10% of an accurate, high quality gauge. On a bike, that can be very important.

Interestingly, a couple of highly rated gauges are made in China. Check out these reviews:

Review # 1

Review # 2

Here's a mini article about tire gauges, albeit for RVs, but raises some good points:

Article

Accutire gauges are available on taobao. Less expensive than in the USA via some online shops.

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Here is the one of Review #2 on taobao!