Peaty's Holeshot CO2 Inflator is a unique, ultra-minimalist, and brilliantly designed tyre inflator that’s so intuitive to use it’s a wonder it hasn’t been done before, making it an ideal candidate for the best CO2 inflators you can buy.
Peaty's Holeshot CO2 Inflator - Technical details
Whilst beauty is in the eye of the beholder, it’s not usually the first adjective you’d associate with a bicycle tool. Nevertheless, Peaty’s new Holeshot CO2 inflator is a bit of a stunner! The clean lines and eye-catching anodised Chris King orange of my test sample, with its smart laser-etched Peaty's logo is certainly easy on the eye.
> Buy now: Peaty's Holeshot CO2 Inflator from Tredz for £29.99
Exquisitely CNC machined from 6061 aluminium, measuring just 45mm long and weighing a scant 14 grams on my scales - it’s more like a piece of fine jewellery than something you’d bung in your kit bag! Don’t let its diminutive size and feathery weight fool you though, this tool is built to last, with a bombproof all-metal build with no plastic internals to break over time.
Essentially, this little marvel's beauty is more than skin deep - it packs a formidable function punch that more than matches its looks. Not content with simply offering another generic right-angled inflator head, the boffins at Peaty’s Products ripped up the rule book with their Holeshot Inflator and its unique ‘straight line’ design. They claim the ingenious, ‘push down to inflate - release to stop,’ spring-loaded valve offers the fastest fill possible for easy bead seating, but remains ultra controllable should you only require a partial top-up. The inline design also ensures minimal stress on the valve stem since it's a direct vertical push compared to angled inflator heads that can bend valve stems if you’re in a rush or a little hamfisted.
Additionally, in another nod to efficiency, the inflator simply pushes directly onto the valve stem rather than screwing into place, saving valuable time in a race scenario where every second counts. Also included in the kit is a unique closed-base silicone freeze projector sleeve that completely encases the gas canister for safe use even without gloves.
My Holeshot kit came with 2 x 25g gas canisters included - each of which claims to inflate a 29 x 2.4 tyre to 34psi and will blast a 27.5er of the same girth up to 40psi in under 10 seconds.
Peaty's Holeshot CO2 Inflator - Performance
Obviously, everybody hates punctures, that’s a given I’d say. Advancements in tyre design, tubeless technology and the use of tyre inserts have helped enormously, but unfortunately, if you ride a bike, flats are going to rear their ugly head from time to time (normally during the wettest and muddiest ride of the year!) Needless to say, it’s a case of the quicker the better when it comes to getting rolling again.
I had high hopes for the Holeshot inflator - the thinking behind its straight-line design made sense to me and I prayed it would live up to expectations. I needn’t have worried, everything about it screams efficiency - from its ease of use to its speed of inflation. Simply screw the cartridge to the valve head using the small ‘wings’ for purchase, slip on the silicone sleeve to protect your hands, loosen the valve core, then simply push down - and whoosh!
I couldn’t believe how brilliantly quickly this teeny bit of kit takes a tyre from zero to hero - the flow is massive and near-instant which really helps to pop the most stubborn of beads into place. Not only that, but thanks to that clever valve, the delivery is also super controllable too, so it's easy to tickle in a little top-up without having to blow through a whole canister.
Thankfully, owing to the double O-ring seal and firmly sprung push valve, it's possible to leave partially dispensed canisters attached to the valve head for further top-ups if required. Something I found especially useful with the 25g canisters as I tended to only use roughly 2/3rds of one to fully inflate my 2.4 rubber to my preferred pressure - waste not, want not! The half-used canister will obviously always leak and empty over time, but if threaded snugly, this is at least good for another boost in the near future.
So, niggles… Not a lot really. The only negative I can think of is that the valve head will only work with Presta valves with no means to screw in a Schraeder adapter. Since nearly all tubeless setups run Presta valves, it’s not a dealbreaker. A universal fit would be nice - but it's just a design limitation of the super slick push-on arrangement that makes this inflator such a joy to use in the first place. Besides that, the inline design does mean spoke clearance is a little tight on my lad's 24-inch wheeled bike, but it's still doable (BMX wheels would be a no-no though). Seeing as the whole world is generally running 29er or 27.5 wheels on their MTBs, it’s not something I’m overly concerned about.
Peaty's Holeshot CO2 Inflator - Value and verdict
Whilst the Holeshot may not be the cheapest CO2 inflator on offer at £29.99, it is supremely well made and should last years, which is more than can be said for many cheap plasticky alternatives. It does also come with two gas canisters included and genuinely offers unmatched ease of use and pumping power in a tiny lovely-to-look-at package. A more affordable alternative is the Genuine Innovations Ultraflate at just £20 - but weighing in at 155 grams it’s more than 10x the weight of the sprightly Holeshot. It’s big and bulky too, far less pocketable than Peaty’s unit.
The Birzman Roar 25g set CO2 inflator at £27.99 is a good quality inflator with a solid CNC’d construction that shares a similar push-to-fill valve albeit in a more traditional right-angled configuration. However, Liam did find that the valve could be a little stiff to operate.
They say the best things come in small packages, and in this instance, I couldn't agree more. I think it's abundantly clear that I’m a big fan of Peaty’s Holeshot CO2 inflator - in essence, it's head and shoulders above any other CO2 inflator I've tried.
The spring-loaded straight-line design is so intuitive and faff-free in operation, it’s literally a joy to use! Not only is it beautifully compact and lightweight, but it also punches well above its weight in terms of performance with top-of-the-class inflation speed making it the perfect race day weapon. Its reassuringly sturdy aluminium build should provide many years of service too, making it a worthy investment. If you can overlook the ‘Presta only’ caveat and your toddlers don't run tubeless, it’s a no-brainer. Oh, and did I mention how pretty it is?...
1 comments
I own this, and agree it's an excellent piece of kit. This is the first CO2 inflator I've owned so I don't have anything to compare it to directly, but I did my homework before buying and it certainly seemed to tick all the boxes. My main motivation for buying was getting tubeless tyres to seat - I have one pair of wheels that are just a nightmare, even with an Airshot. But this delivers CO2 rapidly and seats them easily. Given you can control/stop airflow easily, I managed to seat four gravel tyres with one cartridge (albeit all to very low pressure). And given it's so portable, if I have a puncture mid-ride that leads to an unseated tyre, it should be possible to reseat the tyre in the wild - something that would certainly be impossible otherwise (there's still the bail out option of putting a tube in, but I would rather avoid that!).
Just one thing to add to the review for a fair price comparison: It's available with 2x 25g cartidges (as reviewed), but also with 2x 16g cartridges (£28) or as the head only (£25) (this option doesn't include the silicon sleeve).