Truflo’s Electron Compact Electric Pump is one of the cheapest and lightest electric pumps on the market, with only one thing that marks it down compared to the competition.
Electric mini pumps have been all the rage of late, giving the traditional hand pump a good run for their money. Truflo’s Electron Compact ticks an awful lot of the boxes, coming in as one of the lightest and cheapest. Does is all add up though?
Photos by Pete Scullion.
Key features:
- Accurate & Fast Inflation ±1 PSI
- Large Digital Display
- Approximately 3 inflations from flat (test case 700 x 38c hybrid tyre to 50psi)
- USB-C Rechargeable Battery
- Charge time approximately 40 minutes
- Capable of seating tubeless tyres
- Integrated LED Light
- 118g
- Max 120psi
- £49.99 RRP
- Freewheel.co.uk
Mini electric pumps are all the rage these days, with many forsaking their standard hand pumps for the size and convenience of these wee wonders. At only 118g claimed weight and £49.99, the Truflo Electron Electric Pump is streets ahead in terms of both price and weight compared to the competition. It is, admittedly, a noisy affair, getting towards electric strimmer levels.
Claimed accuracy is +/- 1psi, which, if you’re using an electric pump to reinflate, rather than top up, will be more than enough for most. The large digital display also combines with an LED light for those low light situations where things have gone wrong enough that it’s getting dark and you’ve no lights. Once you’ve used all your juice, you can get it fully charged in 40 minutes by the supplied USB-C cable.
Setting up for topping up or fully inflating is easy. Simply screw on the supplied hose, set your chosen pressure limit and press the power button. On mountain bike tyres, the rise in pressure is steady and on my test model, seemed to be slightly behind that of the feel of the tyre. Regardless, this was a plugged hole both at the bead and on the tread, so it just needed to put air in the tyre, we weren’t looking for accuracy.
Far lighter and smaller than even the smallest hand pump, the Truflo Electron is a boon for anyone looking to downsize their kit. There are two downsides I can see, one is potential and the other is very real. The potential is for the battery to go flat if it’s cold out and it has lost charge during periods of it not being used. The small seize of the pump is offset by the potential need to carry something to charge it with.
The other is noise. At 83dB, this is anything but a quiet pump. It’s a mere 13 less than the electric strimmer my local trail association operates. That said, assuming you’re not intending to carry out clandestine military operations with the pump, this shouldn’t be an issue. There was always going to be a trade-off somewhere with a product this small and wallet-friendly, and I think I’ll take the noise on this one.
You can check out the Truflo Electron Compact Electric Pump over on the Freewheel website here.
