Review: Lezyne Alloy Dirt Floor Drive Pump

August 9th, 2012

Whether they’re in a busy bike shop or in a wet car park, floor pumps get both used and abused. Maybe it’s because they languish in the corner of garages, under stairs or in the corners of dark and dingy workshops, retrieved when their services are needed only to be put back when all you need on the trail is what ever fits in your hydration pack. Maybe it’s because they’re too big to fit into a tool box, but most likely because we stand on them in dirty shoes and quite often, in dirty places. My foot pump lives in the back of the van next to a container of ever changing tyres and gets more than it’s fair share of use. Getting knocked about and handed around during mid ride repairs and early morning DH tyre changes means that any pumps that live in the FJ mobile needs to be as burly as the task at hand…

Words & Photos: Olly Forster

The main thing about this pump that makes it stand out from a congested market place is that the Dirt Floor Drive is an MTB specific pump, designed to cope with seating high volumes of air in less time and making it perfect for the compressor-less tubeless tyre lover. With three model in the range, we chose the one in the middle with it’s polished grey, alloy body and wooden handle.

Features.

Although the addition of a wooden handle is primarily an aesthetic one, it also feels pretty good too, but with all the air that this spits out, your not holding it for long. Without adding a table of how many pumps deliver a certain level of PSI, all I’ll tell you is this is quick – 18 pumps to 30PSI from flat and yes, it does help seat tubeless tyres onto problematic rims!

With a maximum inflation PSI of 70, the Dirt Floor Drive is 100% MTB, so those of you looking for a pump to get your 700’s up as well, will need to look else where. Backed up with features like an over-sized and easy to read gauge, the anodized high-polished finish, the large foot rest, chunky barrel and general feel of this pump, all help to make this pump both stylish and durable.

The barrel, piston, hose, and connectors are all oversized to deliver double the amount air flow per stroke than a standard pump. This obviously allows tyres to be quickly filled and pretty much essential for seating tire beads on tubeless tire systems. On the end of the lengthy 1.3m hose lives the ‘Flip-Thread’ chuck, a unique part that allows the pumps head to slip over a valve without any need for locking levers. The hose being as long as it is, is also ideal for working in stands.

At the end of the hose we have two unique components making up the ‘Slip-Fit’ System. The first being the anodized red part known as the ‘ABS Flip-Thread Chuck – this is the heart of the Slip-Fit System. This component can be threaded directly over either a Shraeder or Presta valve by removing it from the hose via a threaded end – this contains another unique feature known as the ‘ABS’ or ‘Air Bleed System’. This is an in-line air pressure release valve activated by pressing the little black button on the red chuck. What this does is release the air inside the chuck when attached via thread to a Presta valve removing any risk of unscrewing the valve core from it and when attached to a Schaeder, allows pressure to be adjusted as per a regular air valve. Neat huh?

At the end of the Flip-Thread Chuck is another neat little addition in the form of this 90 degree plastic head adapter, known as the ‘Speed Chuck’. This is designed for quick engagement while being placed over a Presta valve – simply pop it over an unscrewed Presta valve, pump air in to the desired pressure and release any back pressure in the chuck via the ABS button, screw your valve core back down, dust cap on and your good to go.

In Use.

Grabbing the pump for the first time and the first thing that crosses your mind is just how much meat it has, and if ever there was an MTB specific floor pump, this is what it should feel like. Even with it’s portly dimensions, the Dirt Floor Drive is light in hand, due in part to it’s alloy construction, but it is also very compact as Lezyne have designed it to slip into those little spaces between kit bags and spares in the back of your transport.

Inflating tyres is what we want to know about and like I’ve previously noted, this does the job well and does it quickly. Pulling on the huge wooded handle and pushing down into the over-sized barrel with my foot on the large foot rests, it’s not long before your tyres are inflated and your back on the trail. Changing tyres as much as I do with product reviews and the like, also means I very rarely go tubeless – too much hassle if I’m honest (maybe I need more wheels…) but given the chance the Floor Drive helps ease the frustration of seating UST tyres no end, especially with impatiently waiting mates looking on and eager to get back on the trail.

The Chuck’s unique design is fantastic, although you’ll soon realise that you have to have the valve at the bottom and press down pretty hard on it for the ‘o’ ring in the Speed Chuck to bite on the valve and getting a good enough seal to avoid it flying off when you get over 20PSI. Talking of the Speed Chuck, it was the only part to die. The inner threads seemingly gave way just before writing this, but a little super glue and it was back to work and alternatively they are available for £9. Perhaps plastic wasn’t the ideal material for the job, but apart from wear and tear, I can’t isolate how it could get damaged?

It’s a big ‘ol beast of a pump!

There’s a video about the pump and CG’s in it!

Conclusion.

All in all, the Dirt Floor Drive pump is everything an MTB specific pump should be. It’s made using well thought out materials, manufactured to a high standard, incorporates some great features that work a treat and finishing it all off with a splash of polished alloy and varnished wood. Very nice indeed. In function it did everything it said it would do and after year of being bashed around in the back of a van, doing the rounds in trail center car parks on wet and muddy week ends and one dead speed chuck, is still going strong today.

The price might be high for some of us and it’s lack of oomph where road bikes are concerned might put some of us off too, but if you know road bikes are lame, like quality stuff and indeed, like UST tyres, this is the pump for you. £70 isn’t cheap and granted, there are some great pumps out there for half the price, but aside from the easily repaired/ replaced Speed Chuck, I really get the feeling this pump will be doing it’s thing and doing it for quite some time. Recommended and certainly worth considering if you need a new pump or are sick of struggling with your tubeless set up. Although ‘Lezyne Alloy Dirt Floor Drive Pump’ is a bit of a mouthful, just point at the beefy polished pump with the pretty wooden handle at your local Lezyne dealer, and your good to go.