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Blackburn Floor Pumps


BLACKBURN TP-1 FLOOR PUMP

The Blackburn TP-1 is a floor pump with air pressure gauge. Made in Taiwan, the TP-1 has its gauge mounted near the handle, at the top of the compression tube, rather than in the base for easy reading. The TP-1 is a single action pump compressing air only on the down stroke. The compression tube is made of aluminum. Both ends of the compression tube are closed off with molded Black plastic caps which seal the compression chamber. We were unable to open the compression chamber to look into the plunger assembly, but the plunger shaft itself is made of Black colored steel. The "T" shaped handle is made of molded Black plastic which threads onto the plunger shaft. Both sides of the handle come from the factory covered in closed cell foam grips which absorb some of the hand shock during use. The gauge reads up to 160 PSI or over 10 barometric atmospheres. Blackburn mentions that it can easily pump up to 150 PSI. The air hose measured 36" long and seems to have the molded Black plastic air chuck permanently affixed to the end of the hose. The air chuck uses reversible internal fittings to accommodate both Schraeder and Presta valves which are factory set for Schraeder, and has a thumb lock to assist in making a tight seal around the valve stem. A hose retaining clip is molded as a part of the lower compression tube end cap while the thumb lock on the air chuck slides firmly in near the air gauge on the upper end cap keeping the hose tidy. The base for the TP-1 is molded of Black plastic as a separate piece which slides over the lower compression tube cap, and with a 45¡ turn anti-clockwise, it is locked on. The TP-1's plastic parts are Black with Red accents while the aluminum compression tube remains Silver. We found 1 full stroke displaced 305ml of air (305 centiliters). It took us 36 strokes to bring a Dart HC to 40 PSI on a Mavic 231 rim, and 23 strokes to bring a 700 x 25c Continental SuperSport Ultra on a Mavic Open 4 CD up to 90 PSI. The TP-1 is 25 1/4" tall, and not that it matters but it weighs 1341 grams. Made in Taiwan. $ Price in Catalog

BLACKBURN TP-2 FLOOR PUMP

Made in Taiwan, the Blackburn TP-2 is the second of Blackburn floor pumps with air pressure gauge, but in this case it's more traditionally mounted on the pump base. The TP-2 is a single action pump compressing air only on the down stroke. The compression tube is made of machined aluminum tubing, with a brushed, anodized outer surface, and both the exterior of both ends threaded. The base is of a cast in one piece of non-ferrous metal, probably aluminum. The base on the current TP-2 is painted Black, the early models of this pump had the base painted White and the base had a tendency to crack and break off in the area of the foot hold and compression tube. Blackburn good naturedly replaced these, and we discover the base is now Black in color. The compression tube threads into the center area of the base, with the foot hold on one side and the air hose on the other. The air hose threads into the base is 38" long with a Black molded plastic air chuck permanently fastened to the end. The air chuck has internal pieces which reverse to accommodate either Presta or Schrader valves, it comes the factory set for Schrader valves. The most recent versions of this pump have come with a thumblock. The air gauge has a dial face that reads from 0 PSI to 160 PSI graduated in 5 PSI increments. The upper end cap on the compression tube is made of molded Black plastic which screws on and threads down over the compression tube. The upper end cap has a plastic clip fitting which retains the air hose folded against the pump when not in use. The plunger assembly is made with a Black, hollow, steel tube for the plunger shaft. The piston element is made from molded plastic with a cup shaped rubber "leather". The handle is made of molded Black plastic, with Red ends and uses foam rubber grips over the areas of hand contact. The TP-2 is Silver and Black with Red accents. We found that 1 full stroke displaced 210ml of air (210 centiliters). It took us 35 strokes to bring a Dart SC to 40 PSI on a Mavic 231 rim, and 24 strokes to bring a 700 x 25c Continental SuperSport Ultra up to 90 PSI. The TP-2 is 25 3/4" tall, and weighs 1146 grams, $ Price in Catalog





In-depth Information About Metals

Aluminum
Aluminum is extracted electrolytically from bauxite ore. It is made by the electrolysis of aluminum oxide which is found in larger concentrations within bauxite ore. Bauxite is a mixture of the hydroxides of aluminum, together with other impurities such as oxides of iron, titanium, and silicon. Bauxite is produced by the weathering and change of aluminum silicate rocks usually found in tropical and semitropical regions where climate has produced an accelerated weathering process. Bauxite is not a rare ore and is widely available in the US, the Caribbean, and Europe. Approximately 4 pounds of read the full article...

Beryllium
Beryllium is a specialty metal that is steel-grey metal in color, with an extremely low density, making it very light weight. At 1.85 grams to the cubic centimeter, its density compares to that of magnesium. It is also a high strength metal, making it possible to design light weight, thin membered parts with ahigh stiffness. A column made of beryllium to support a load placed directly downward on top of it, will have a greater load carrying capacity, and be lower in weight than any other metal of equal size.

Until the 1950's beryllium was used read the full article...

Titanium
The element titanium was discovered in 1763 by an English cleric, William Gregor who was an amateur chemist with an inquiring mind. It was in the black sands of Cornwall that he discovered the new element that had up to that time, attracted little scientific interest. A few years later, an Austrian, Klaproth, extracted the same element from an ore widely known as "rutile", which is a mineral consisting of titanium dioxide (one titanium atom, two oxygen atoms), that is a reddish-brown substance with a slight metallic luster. While rutile is the highest grade read the full article...

Metallurgic Hardness Testing
There are three types of tests used with accuracy by the metals industry,they are the Brinell hardness test, the Rockwell hardness test, and the Vickers hardness test. Hardness is the property of a metal which gives it the ability to resist being permanently deformed (bent, broken, or have its shape changed), when a load is applied. The greater the hardness of the metal, the greater resistance it has to deformation. Since the definitions of metallurgic ultimate strength and hardness are rather similar, it can generally be assumed read the full article...


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