SILCA PISTA PLUS

£109.99

Construction

Silca’s second-cheapest track pump further evolves the original 1962 Pista. ‘Plus’ denotes increased stability from the non-folding 208mm wide-cast aluminium base. The pump’s 30mm diameter, 54cm tall steel body houses the plunger with its turned ash handle. Such solidity weighs in at 1.54kg.

Ergonomics

Standing at 63cm tall, the Pista Plus requires you to bend further than most with the plunger rising to 110cm. The 21.8cm wide wooden handle is beautifully ergonomic and the foot rests are sufficient for maintaining stability throughout the 50cm stroke. Even though it’s mounted at ground level, the 64mm gauge’s black on red numbers are quite clear, but precise pressure control is limited.

Head

The relatively short 102.5cm rubber hose ends in a screwon alloy Schraeder head that has a push-on alloy Presta head with a slow-bleed valve screwed into it. This allows other Silca heads to be substituted, but this standard Presta one can be temperamental. Alignment of the head and valve is crucial, and can be affected by the long, in-line head and hose clashing with disc rotors and highly spoked wheels.

Inflation

Despite its irrelevant 220psi max pressure, we tested how many strokes the Italian leather plunger washer would need to inflate a 25mm tyre to 80psi. The spindly-looking, but sturdy 10mm diameter plunger and its smooth German linear bearings achieved the target in 31 strokes, alongside some wheezy cow noises.