Moto-Vated Insta-Pump
MOTO-VATED INSTA-PUMP
CW EVALUATION
Air rescue for flat tires?
IMAGINE A DEVICE YOU COULD CARRY in your fanny pack that would contain sufficient air to reinflate a flat tire. Got it?
Well, unfortunately, the Insta-Pump isn’t it. Good idea, but it’s just a bit wide of the mark.
The Insta-Pump ($13.95 from Moto-Vated Products, 3193 Wayside Plaza, Suite 13, Walnut Creek, CA 94596) is made of hard plastic and has two main components. One is a valve body, with the valve itself operated by a thumb lever. The second is a chamber, which screws to the valve body, and which is made to contain CO2 cartridges. Drop one in the chamber, screw the chamber to the valve body, and the Insta-Pump is ready to go.
Its problem, however, is that the CO2 cartridges it uses contain so little of the gas. We flattened the rear tire on a Kawasaki ZX-6, a 160/60-1 7 radial, and tried to inflate it with the
Insta-Pump. And tried. And tried. By the time we got to 26 pounds of pressure, we’d used five cartridges. A dirtbike tire-a 110/90-19 as found on the rear of a KTM 600—was easier to inflate. Two cartridges brought the tire’s pressure to a very ridable 14 pounds.
Most threaded cartridge-type inflators use larger gas bottles and are better suited for filling a totally flat tire. The Insta-Pump is handy for adding small amounts of air to underinflated tires, and its nonthreaded bottles are cheaper and eas> ier to find than the threaded variety.
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Even so, we didn’t find those pluses enough to offset the InstaPump’s basic flaw.
BMW LEATHER TOURING SUIT
A Beemer for the wearing
A GOOD LEATHER RIDING SUIT IS hard to beat for comfort and rider protection. And nothing looks as expensive and classy as leather does. That’s why BMW recently introduced two new leather suits to its already-extensive clothing line.
Designed by BMW with input from American riders and dealers, and made by Dainese, these suits are available in sport and touring designs in sizes ranging from 36 to 50 for men, and 6 to 12 for women. To ensure these two-piece suits fit properly, the jacket and pants can be ordered in individual sizes at no additional charge. And the jacket and pants can be ordered separately for those riders not interested in a complete suit.
We ordered a matched size 42 touring suit for our 5-foot-1 1-inch, 170-pound Senior Editor, and found that it fit him perfectly. The jacket has a generous cut that leaves room for extra layers of clothing in cold weather, but thanks to an elastic stretch section on each side, it fits well with or without underlayers.>
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The elastic sides and an extra-long tail effectively eliminate wind draft from the jacket’s bottom, while a two-way zippered front closure with snap-shut storm flap and velcroclosed collar prohibit wind intrusion at these vulnerable spots. The trouble spot is loose-fitting cuffs. A tighter cut at the cuffs and the addition of elastic to supplement the zippers would cure the problem.
Four large, snap-shut pockets are provided on the front of the jacket and there’s a zippered inner pocket, but, surprisingly, there are no handwarmer pockets. This $485 jacket doesn't have provisions for adding a cold-weather liner, either. But, in its defense, the BMW touring jacket still manages to be very warm. The leather is thick and there are closedcell foam pads sewn into its shoulders and at its elbows and foreams, which add protection in case of a fall and also help to insulate against cold.
For warm-weather riding, there’s a zippered air inlet below each armpit and a zippered exhaust opening under the shoulder flap. Additional venting is accomplished by opening the arm zippers, positioned on the top of each sleeve, and by opening the jacket’s front.
We really liked the BMW touring jacket. It’s very comfortable, provides excellent weather protection and looks nice. The BMW touring pants are a nice complement to the jacket. The leather used in them is softer than that used in the jacket, two zippered slash pockets provide carrying capacity, and an elastic stretch panel on each side of the waist keeps the pants snug. Wide belt loops are provided, too, and there’s a high back to help keep a rider’s kidneys and lower back warm. Additionally, the front of each leg is lightly padded for comfort and cold-weather protection. A zipper closes the fly and the leg openings, the latter backed by leather flaps. These stylish $310 pants, like the jacket, are lined with perforated nylon, and appear to be well made, with double stitches at stress points.
BMW’s new touring suit, available in blackonly, can beordered fromany BMW motorcycle dealer. At $8 1 5, it is slightly on the pricey side, but it nonetheless makes a good, versatile addition to any rider’s wardrobe, regardless of the brand of bike he owns. E3
