Topeak Roadie TT Mini pump

The Topeak Roadie TT Mini pump is simple and effective, with a pleasingly solid metal build. Tyre inflation is quick and it's unobtrusive either in your pocket or the frame mount, but it's a solid rather than flexible hose mount, and it's Presta-valve only.

This aluminium pump is 90g and 16.5cm long, meaning it fits comfortably into your jersey pocket. While noticeably bulkier than a CO2 system, it's light and certainly doesn't feel like it's weighing you down. It compares well to the competition, too, only ceding 11g to the impressive Birzman Mini Apogee Hand Pump and coming in 9g lighter than the Fabric Nanobar.

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The aluminium body feels really sturdy and has a neat twist-lock mechanism that stops the pump arm extending while in your pocket, while the milling that boosts grip is another nice touch. The pump also comes with a simple frame attachment to secure it alongside your bottle cage.

The head attaches directly to a Presta valve, and feels very secure in use thanks to the aluminium locking lever. While ideally I'd prefer a flexible hose for awkward angles/reducing stress on the valve (especially when your arms get tired), that would only add complexity, cost and weight.

The same goes for a head capable of fitting Schrader valves – plus that's something few committed roadies will miss anyway.

This 16.5cm mini pump is surprisingly quick at getting your tyres up to an acceptable pressure to ride home. I was impressed that after 90 seconds the pump achieved 40psi in my 24mm tyres, which is just about enough to ride. A further 90 seconds took them to a pretty firm 75psi.

Three minutes is good. The Fabric Nanobar takes five minutes to reach just 55 psi, and while Topeak's own Pocket Rocket almost matches the the TT, it's considerably longer and chunkier too.

The TT stands for Twin Turbo, in reference to a two-chamber barrel Topeak says 'compresses huge amounts of air into a smaller-diameter inner barrel to deliver more air and higher pressure with less strokes'. I would agree it works well, and 31.6cc per stroke is good – the Fabric Nanobar is 20cc, while Topeak's Roadie DA is only 36cc thanks to a dual-action stroke working its 18cc barrel.

Topeak also claims a maximum inflation of 160psi for the TT, which I have no desire to check... I'm not aware of any cyclist who wants a tyre at 160psi, but even if you do, you will need extremely strong biceps. Pumping up towards 100psi becomes tiring, and out on the road most will settle for 75-80psi.

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Overall, I really like the Topeak Roadie TT mini pump. It looks good, slips easily into jersey pockets and performs well. Despite not possessing a flexible nozzle attachment, the pump secures to Presta valves really well, inflates tyres quickly and offers a strong build for a good price.

Verdict

Simple and effective little pump with a great metal build