[CR]Silca floor pump vs. modern wonder

(Example: Humor:John Pergolizzi)

From: "garth libre" <rabbitman@mindspring.com>
To: <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>
Date: Tue, 1 Jan 2002 19:06:58 -0500
Subject: [CR]Silca floor pump vs. modern wonder

Some women do seem to have trouble pumping tires up to high pressure using my old trusty Silca floor pump (not sufficient weight or force or something). For Christmas my beloved Marta received a high dollar Blackburn TP-5 floor pump. For some time we had been going to various bike shops trying out floor pumps to see if she could find one that she could easily get to 110 or 120 lbs. Nothing was much different then the Silca we have at home, or even as good.

RB cycles on South Dixie had some monstrous aluminum thing called a TP-5 Blackburn. Bingo! She was instantly able to pump up her presta tire to 150 lbs, and she only stopped because at the gleeful rate she was going she was going to collapse the rim or blow the tire off! No one even sells this thing because of the high price. It bears no resemblance to a Blackburn TP-4 or a TP-3 or any other floor pump I have ever seen and everything about it spells innovation, amazing ease of use and engineering perfection. I have used it for about a week now, but I find myself strangely drawn back to the naked simplicity of my old Silca. Does this mean that I am hopelessly lost in classic limbo? I love my 60's electrolux vacuum cleaner, Pentax P1000 camera, tube audio amplifier, beach home restored to 1951 splendor, and dt shifter bikes. Garth Libre in Surfside Fl (my cat Peppercorn got diarrhea from the loud fireworks show that the town of Surfside put on last night- poor boy)