Silca

I had been thinking about making the switch from a hand pump to an e-pump for some time. The clincher for me was when I talked to a mechanic during this year's Seattle to Portland at one of the mechanical support stations. He was using his Elettrico in lieu of a floor pump - he provided a strong positive review, saying he was getting 6-8 fills per charge. I bought mine when BTD had knocked off 10%. I carry my Elettrico on all my rides, in a jersey pocket or a handlebar bag. I also use it at home, and like the fact it quickly and accurately inflates (you dial in the number) my tires. I have yet to use it on the road, but am confident it will perform. BTW, I have never been a fan of CO2 cartridges because they are one-and-done, and CO2 leaks quickly from tires.

The Silca Sealant is a great product albeit it really comes down to proper use and keeping it refreshed. This new formula is injectable and is marketed as lasting 6 months. I have found it lasts 2.5-3 months max which honestly is on par with any other sealant. Silca also claims it can seal anything up to a 6mm, which I find really hard to believe. I have had 2mm-3mm holes barely seal, ie it was 50/50 if the tire would hold air after 24 hours and would need a plug. You also need to shake the bottle really well, since you do want to get all the carbon strands into the tire, since this really does help seal the holes. If you keep up with your sealant refreshes I think this is one of the best sealants, I just don't think you will make it to 6 months without your tire not having the protection it needs.

If you don't need to fully wash your bike, ie a dusty try ride or just need to clean off sealant, than this is a great product. The spray really gives the bike a nice shine while using ceramic coating to fling off future dirt. I keep a bottle in my car during winter rides to quickly wash off salt and grime. The solution has this car wash pina colada smell and it's pretty intense. Overall I rarely fully wash my bikes now since I use this spray most of the time. Not cheap, but what Silca product is, but nothing like this on the market believe it or not.

This is just an amazing system, once you combine it with a Silca hotpot which dials in the exact temps and some good Wax (Silca), however not a cheap solution by any means. If you are constantly prepping new chains than yeah, there are cheaper ways but if you are like me and only need to strip a chain from factory state maybe 1-2 a year, one bar is going to last you. I have found the initial use of the StripChip the wax isn't as hard as re-waxing, but only get harder as you constantly re-wax.