Fumpa miniFumpa

The miniFumpa is about the size and weight of a mini-pump, but makes getting tyres up to pressure a literal blast. If you can't be doing with mini-pumps, wobbly tyre valves or sore arms, the miniFumpa might be for you.

• Pros: Small and light, fits in a pocket, inflates tyres much faster than a mini-pump
• Cons: Price, no charge level indication

Back in 2015 I wrote this about the four-star review'd Birzman Apogee Minipump: 'A quick review of the figures: 150 strokes to get to 60psi, where resistance starts to be felt. Then an extra 20 strokes per 5psi from there on, so for 80psi you're a few minutes and 220-ish easy strokes. At around 95-100psi it starts to get noticeably hard to pump, and to get to 110psi you're looking at around 350 strokes or three minutes of work. Beyond 110 abandon all hope of sympathy from your now-cold/bored/departed riding partners, and get thee to a CO2 shop.'

> Buy this online here

In the intervening years, nothing much has changed. Mini-pumps might be a bit lighter, but fundamentally if you need to get a tyre to north of 80psi you'll be there a while. And with every one of those 220+ strokes the valve head is wobbling around, becoming increasingly looser, likely to spill air, or in the worst case break off, leaving you stranded.

This is faff that some people find both annoying and possibly literally painful – getting a tyre to a decent pressure can leave your hands and arms sore. The pneumatic tyre is the one aspect of cycling that is still largely in the dark ages. Nothing has fundamentally changed in over a hundred years, until tubeless came along, but then that's a totally different kettle of sealant that's still at the enthusiastic early-adopter end of the curve – and I write that as a champion of road tubeless.

So if you find yourself beside a road or trail staring at a flat tyre, unless you call a partner/taxi, at some point there's going to be a pump involved. Thirty years ago, when frame pumps were de rigueur, getting going again with 100+psi in your rubber was the bat of a metaphorical eyelid. With frame pumps all but history (thanks, hydroformed and carbon tubes) and pocket-sized mini-pumps the norm, the issue of shifting air hasn't gone away.

Yes, CO2 canisters are one 'solution', but they have their own issues and are both strange and scary to the vast majority of cyclists, so I'm going to disregard them for the purposes of this review. And you can't fly anywhere with them. On the other hand, you can certainly pack the miniFumpa for your next sunny cycling escape.

So if mini-pumps or CO2 aren't the almost-perfect answer, what is? I'd posit: the miniFumpa. Hailing from Down Under – land of thongs, Vegemite sandwiches and more ways to die than you can shake a deceased Kookaburra at – the miniFumpa has a really basic, clear mission: to shift air into your Presta-valved tyre, fast. Fumpa promises to replace any batteries that die (unlikely, granted the use case), and by the look have a great customer service ethic.

Easily disappearing into a jersey pocket, the miniFumpa is about the same volume as a mini-pump (122cc). That's about the same volume as a carefully folded 28mm 700C inner tube, or half the size of a 26in mountain bike tube. Weighing 185g, the miniFumpa is a bit heavier than a mini-pump, but only by a swig of water or two so nothing noticeable. Going out for 3-4hr rides I entirely forgot it was sitting in a jersey pocket.

Charging the miniFumpa took 80 minutes via micro USB, the red light button going out once charged. There's no indication of how charged it is, but with such a short charge time, popping it on to top up before a ride wasn't a hassle. That button is what you press to start and stop the air – it's that easy.

In road.cc laboratory condition tests* the following results were observed:

For a 23mm tyre, getting to 90psi took about 40 seconds. For 100psi, about 50 seconds.

The miniFumpa was good for two 0-100psi 23mm inflations before the thermal cutout shut things down and prevented turning back on for a few minutes – which was OK, because by then it was getting pretty hot to hold.

Once things had cooled off, it was good for another 100psi, then a fourth attempt stopped early as the battery was done.

Looking at more practical lower pressures, it was possible to get no fewer than five 23mm 75psi bursts out of it, each taking just 30 seconds. For comparison, it took 2 minutes using a mini-pump to get to just 60psi.

The theoretical miniFumpa maximum of 120psi was exceeded – 2 minutes of pumping giving just under 130psi. Clearly it's the higher pressures that suck the battery, so if you're rolling a lower 40-50psi in fatter rubber (and why wouldn't you?), the miniFumpa is even more of a sell. Indeed, used outdoors in official road.cc anger, several mid-ride tubeless-sans-sealant top-ups followed by two successive full 35mm now-inner-tubed tyre inflations** were not a problem.

> How to choose your tyre pressure

Inflating 26in mountain bike tyres was also no issue – it took 50 seconds to get 30psi inside, and the battery was good for four of these.

Aside from road- or trail-side use, the miniFumpa is very handy to top up normally tubed as well as tubeless bikes that need inflating every week or so to keep the bead seals sound. You don't want to drag a track pump around for this, especially for bikes/wheels in hanging racks. The miniFumpa makes this chore easy.

Yes, you can get these pressures with a £30 track pump. But that doesn't fit in your pocket or suitcase, and requires two sound arms and a good back to use, which are not available to all. And no, not everyone relishes the Popeye-forearm-inducing mini-pump effort, which often ends in heads popping off valves and swearing in front of a group of increasingly cold riding mates.

> Buyer's Guide: 15 of the best pumps and CO2 inflators

If your needs are greater than the miniFumpa's means and you don't need pocket-friendly sizing, the full-fat Fumpa Pump might be an additional thing to consider.

Yes, £109 is a fair chunk of change for a 'pump'. But that misses the point that, unlike a track pump this also fits in your pocket, and unlike a mini-pump requires no effort whatsoever. For those without the ability or inclination to use a mini-pump, the miniFumpa is a great option.

* Meaning The Spaniel is in her bed and there's only been the one pint consumed beforehand

** don't ask

Verdict

A great answer to the mini-pump or CO2 cartridge, with fast, easy inflation guaranteed