off-road.cc

Topeak's Microshock shock pump is an absolutely minimalist and lightweight tool that's perfect for sticking in your pack in case you need to make a trailside adjustment. With a tiny stroke and no gauge, it won't replace a proper shock pump, but it's an essential bit of kit for the on-trail shock tweaker.

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Weighing in at just 47g and a smidge under 200mm long, it's much more compact than a normal shock pump and it will nestle alongside a mini tyre pump barely noticeably. The handle has a twist locking mechanism to stop it from popping out.

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The action is a bit smaller than a normal pump at 80mm of movement but it's the skinny diameter body that means that it takes quite a bit more pumping than usual to inflate a completely flat shock or fork, but it's fine for just popping in a little bit to stiffen things up. Topeak say it's good for 300psi, but I suspect that will be quite hard going as things get fair stiff at around 250psi.

This valve allows you to isolate the shock from the pump

The valve head itself is a rather neat mechanism that allows you to attach the black part pump fully to the valve before you twist the silver part to engage it. That means that you don't lose any pressure when you take it off and it also acts to isolate the pump's chamber from the shock. That means that when you can make sag adjustments - the only way you'll know what you're doing - without the volume of the pump's chamber messing with the sag figure. It probably doesn't make a huge difference, but I suspect that if you're the sort of person that takes a shock pump on every ride then it will to you - quite rightly in my opinion.

It's extremely minimalist, but does the job

On the downside, there's no way to bleed air from your shock or fork using the pump, so the only option there is carefully using something pointy directly on the valve. That is an acquired knack and if you go too far, you're in for a whole lotta pumping. You also need to make sure that you keep the valve head clean, as it gets covered in oil and starts to attract dirt if you don't - and pumping fresh grit into your suspension is a poor idea. However, that bit of maintenance apart, mine has lasted ages with no sign of giving up any time soon.

It's not without its flaws, but if you're a terminal suspension tweaker that wants to travel light, then it's a must have bit of kit. For everyone else, it's probably not the most crucial bit of kit, but you'll be extremely thankful you do have it when you need it.

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