Pump it up – The Airbank Puffer Pro
One of my favourite accessories is my electric wing pump, the Airbank Puffer Pro. Whilst it is not that onerous pumping up a wing manually an electric pump has a number of benefits which make them worthy for consideration as part of your winging equipment.
I’ll explain what I see as the key benefits of an electric pump, then explain more about the specific pump that I have.
In a nutshell – benefits of an electric pump
Pumping up a wing manually is not especially arduous or time consuming, so why bother with an electric pump?
- It saves a bit of time whilst setting up. I start my pump inflating my chosen wing and put my wetsuit on while the wing pumps up.
- More accurate wing pressure. The digital monitor and constant inflation from the pump means that you are taking the guesswork out of wing pressure. Therefore you are more likely to get optimum performance from your wing.
- If you get an inflatable board you will want one. I bought an inflatable board for travel and later a Gong Hipe Cruzader as a light wind board. The extra pumping and pressure needed to inflate a board really brings an electric pump into its own.
- One pump for everything. The electric pump comes with multiple adaptors so it will pump up any wing as well as a board. At one point I had a mix of Duotone and Cabrinha wings and as the valve systems are different I needed to remember to take both pumps.
- Makes you less reluctant to switch wings. In the past when I have been thinking I might need to change down to a smaller wing I have decided against it because of the hassle of pumping up another wing. With an electric pump I’m more inclined to pump up the alternative wing while I have a break between sessions, which means I’m more likely to be using the optimum wing for conditions.
- Ideal for travel. A conventional pump is a big item to pack for travel and it’s even worse if you need to take two, one for an inflatable board and the other for wings. They are also one of the more fragile things you are taking and a broken pump might well put a damper on your winging holiday. The electric pump can easily be taken on a plane as part of your hand luggage, which gives you the guarantee that it gets there in one piece.
The Airbank Puffer Pro – Key Features
The pump I chose after some research was the Airbank Puffer Pro. The key features are:
- It is rechargeable and will pump multiple items before needing to be recharged.
- It has a lead to allow you to run it while connected to a car cigarette lighter if you do forget to charge it.
- There is a deflate mode which is useful when packing an inflatable board up.
- It has a digital display to set the required pressure and it cuts off once that pressure is reached.
- The pressure range is sufficient to handle the requirements both of a board (15 to 20 psi) and typical wing pressures (6 to 9 psi).
- You can switch the pressure system to bar if you prefer.
- The hose comes with multiple adaptors to fit different requirements. Note that they do not have an adaptor that works with Duotone wings though so that is something you need to buy seperately.
What you get out of the box
The pump comes with:
- A charging cable. It takes around 2 to 3 hours to fully charge from flat.
- A car cigarette lighter connector that would let you run the pump by plugging into the car if you had forgotten to charge.
- A hose with multiple adaptors for different valve requirements.
- A carrying case that you can fit everything into.
When fully charged the pump can easily pump a board (18psi) and multiple wings before a recharge is needed.
The pump is also acceptable for air travel and I have taken it as hand luggage both with BA and Easyjet.
Adaptors
The hose that comes with the pump has a moulded adaptor at the end that fits a standard inflatable SUP valve. There are a host of adaptors that can be connected to that to allow the pump to connect to multiple valve systems. The one that most people will need is adaptor 2 which creates a connection for a standard 2 pin connector that are common on many wings (e.g. Slingshot, Cabrinha, Gong). They do not have an adaptor for Duotone wings and as all of the wings in my quiver are Duotone I needed to buy a specific Duotone adaptor. This connects to the 2 pin adaptor 2 as shown in the picture. I was slightly concerned that having two adaptors between the pump and the wing might cause leaks but that is not the case.In conclusion
My experience with this pump has been very positive. For the reasons explained I think they are a useful addition to your wing kit. Regardless I hope to see you on the water soon, let’s go wingfoil.