Lezyne Pumps — Beware of this Problem

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I really like Lezyne products. Their use of extension use aluminum (instead of plastic) and CNC machining is wonderful. I also think the aesthetics of their round symmetrical design on their products, including their lights. I prefer their mini-pumps to the Topeak models as it is more durable.

But, buyer beware, their screw-on pump chucks can be problematic with certain types of Presta valves or stems. Last year, while at an overnight stop on a tough 600K brevet in Southern Utah, my cycling partner only had the Lezyne CNC Travel Drive floor pump which had a thread-on chuck. The Presta valves in all my Kenda tubes are removable. Because of that, after topping off my tire, upon removing it, the valve came out, letting all the air out of the tire. After several panic-striken attempts, we finally found a pair of pliers and tightened down the valve and were finally able to fill my tire.

The same problem applies to their portable hand or frame pumps. I upgraded my Micro Floor Drive HP (shown in the lower left with the gold end) with their ABS (Air Bleed System) pump head, as this pump was unusable without it. This unit now comes standard with the ABS.

Yesterday, while on a solo 200K (127-mile) training ride, my front tire was suffering from a slow leak. I was on a different bike than I normally use for long distance riding, and had mounted on it a Lezyne Pressure Drive CFH mini frame pump. It is both a mini-pump and a CO2 inflator combined. After repeated tries using this pump, I finally gave up. Fortunately, I also had my my trusty Lezyne Trigger Speed Drive CO2 and was able to fill my tire up enough to finish my ride. The Speed Drive CO2 has a press-fit chuck end and NOT the threaded style…thank goodness.

Also shown in the photo (just left of the Presta valve) is my my off-brand floor pump hose end, which has been upgraded with the Lezyne Dual Valve Head which has a press-fit non-threaded chuck. It works great on all Presta and Schrader valves.

Summary: If your Presta valves are removable, don’t buy any Lezyne pump or CO2 inflator with a threaded chuck end unless it comes with ABS (pressure relief valve). Lezyne, in their product literature, suggests using LOC-TITE to secure removable Presta valves, but seriously, who has time for that?

 

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Author: Rando Richard

I’m an old guy (age 69 in 2023) who enjoys aerobic, endurance sports. I call myself a cardio-junkie. Perhaps the more appropriate term would be “ultra” endurance sports. Since I was a teenager I have always enjoyed “slow twitch” outdoor sports like backpacking, ice climbing, running, mountaineering, hiking, alpine skiing and randonnée skiing (alpine touring, backcountry skiing or skimo). In 2005 I starting running with more regularity — except this time it was not for the intent of getting ready for a mountaineering trip, but as an end to itself. From 2005 to 2007 I managed to eek out two seasons of ultramarathons — that is competitive trail runs up to 50 or 100 miles. Due to a nagging ankle injury from the 80s (an accident while ice climbing in the 1980s where my lower tib and fib were badly broken), I had to cease that grueling, but rewarding activity. I then migrated into ultra distance road cycling or randonneuring. The rides are called brevets (pronounced bruh-VAY, it’s French) and are minimally supported — they are similar to ultrarunning and backpacking where one must be self reliant. Although brevets are non-competitive, they do have have cut off times to qualify as a finisher. They are usually are done in groups, which can have a competitive slant to them. Today, I continue to participate in long distance cycling including some ultra-racing, randonnée skiing (a blend of cross country and downhill disciplines) and still get out on an occasional mountaineering trip. Since 1996 I have been designing, manufacturing and selling camera bags. That is Kinesis Photo Gear (kgear.com). In 2005 I started selling cycling bags under the Kinesis label and eventually expanded it to including other sports like SUP (stand-up paddle boarding and some skimo). Consequently, it become eoGEAR — the “eo” stands for endurance outdoor. My wife and I are empty-nesters now and we live and work out in the boondocks of central Utah, half way between Salt Lake City (great powder) and Moab (great red rocks). Well, I guess that is all for now. Safe travels mate! Perhaps I’ll see you on the road or trail. — Richard Stum

10 thoughts on “Lezyne Pumps — Beware of this Problem”

  1. I have experienced this in the past with my bike and helping other cyclists. Solved the problem by always carrying a presta valve wrench with me. The one from No-Tubes works fine. I always tighten the presta valve with the wrench before using a Lezyne pump. The positive screw on feature of the pump is worth the effort to carry the wrench.

    Mitch

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    1. Good idea Mitch, getting a Presta Valve remover tool. Iron Ride, I buy my tubes in bulk (50 at a time, as I sell them via my site or on Amazon) and they only come with the removable core. I think I will sell this pump and buy the kind with the ABS feature.

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  2. I’m glad to see someone pointing out this problem. I have been dealing with this issue for a while now. My solution was to stop buying tubes with removable presta cores. The problem with that is that they are harder to find.

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  4. Simple solution for the frame mounted pumps: unscrew the hose from the pump body THEN unscrew it from the presta valve. This accomplishes the same thing as the ABS feature.

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    1. Greg, that is also what the Lezyne rep said to do. I tried it in field, and at home, to no avail. If I can’t get it to work at home, how much worse I will be in a driving rainstorm in the middle of a 400K?

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  5. Richard,

    I confess to being a bit puzzled. I own 7 frame mounted Lezyne pumps in 3 different models: Carbon High Pressure (HP) Road Drive, Alloy Road Drive, Carbon non-HP Road Drive. Since I don’t carry Co2 I need for them to work and I have a mix of removable and non-removable valve cores.

    So I deflated three different tubes, two with removable and one with non-removable cores and inflated each to roughly 90-100 PSI. I was easily able to unscrew the hose from the pump body on all three. And I’ll confess I have the grip strength of a 5 year old (I’ve broken both thumbs with attendant ligament damage) so it’s not as though I have hands of steel or anything.

    I certainly believe you if you say you weren’t able to do it but I’m unable to replicate your poor results and will continue to use and recommend the Lezyne frame mounted pumps.

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  6. I’m not sure what the tubes were since I didn’t take them out of the tires, only deflated them. I have a pretty wide assortment ranging from expensive to cheap (conti’s, vittoria, performance bike, …).

    I have found it to be the case that with some tubes with removable cores the core comes out really easily while others are seated more firmly but I never experimented enough to be able to correlate this to a particular brand. All I can say definitively is that with a Lezyne floor pump there are some tubes where the core pops right out when the pump head is unscrewed and I have to seat it more tightly using a tool and some cores stay seated and I never have to mess with them.

    On the road though I’ve never had an incident where I wasn’t able to unscrew the hose first so I’ve never had a problem with the core coming out.

    I guess I need to have more roadside flats so I can experiment 😉

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