Silca makes three single action floor pumps, the least expensive is known as the "Pista" or Track pump. The Pista has largely steel construction, The base is made of cast steel extending on one side for your foot to apply downward pressure against the pump's up stroke. The compression tube is made of steel with the base end of the tube made air tight by the welding of a steel end cap that has a single 5mm in diameter air exit hole that seats with a seal over a cast and small machined brass reservoir that delivers the compressed air through a check valve to the air gauge and air delivery hose. The compression tube end cap has two threaded holes to receive two bolts that pass up through the cast steel base and the machined brass reservoir which tightly pull and seal the major components together. The reservoir has an air pressure gauge mounted on the top which reads up to 240 PSI or 16 barometric atmospheres. Exiting the side of the reservoir is the air hose which is 31" long and uses reusable compression, spring clips to fasten to the block and to hold the air chuck, so replacement of the hose should it become necessary, will be simple and easy. We've found the hose material available in auto parts stores as the type used for fuel line. The air chuck is machined from brass and has no thumb lock. It is Silca part number 24.4 and has inner reversing parts that permit it to inflate either Presta or Schraeder valves, though it comes from the factory set for Presta valves. Silca makes another air chuck for Presta valves only, which is available separately called the Art 24.0 and is listed below. The plunger assembly follows traditional construction. The plunger shaft is made from steel rod, threaded at both ends. The reservoir/gauge end uses washers and a nut to hold in place a cup shaped piece of thick leather for the piston. A Black molded plastic cap closes off the top end of the compression tube and is held in place by two screws passing through the compression tube into the cap piece itself. The handle threads onto the plunger shaft and is made of Black molded plastic. The handle has two recesses molded into it for the air hose to snap into when not in use. This is the pump our service department depends on when hand inflating a Presta tube. The Silca Pista weighs 1463.5 grams and we found that 1 stroke of the pump delivered 225ml of air. Black only made in Italy.
$ Price in Catalog
Replacement Silca gauge for any of their floor pumps, reads to 240 PSI $ Price in Catalog
Silca's medium sized track pump is the Super Pista which is a slight variation of their Pista pump and uses all the same design principles of the Pista. The cast steel base is made a little smaller, and the cast machined brass reservoir block with its internal check valve is also slightly smaller, though both function the same as those in the Pista model. The pressure gauge mounted on the top of the reservoir block reads up to 220 PSI. Like the Pista, the Super uses a steel tube for its compression tube, both are 30mm in outer diameter, but the Super Pista is longer at 60.5cm tall, the Pista model has a 50.5cm tall tube. This longer compression tube will deliver a greater volume of air with each stroke, so the inflating process takes less time. The air hose is 35" long and the Super Pista comes with the machined brass Art 24.4 air chuck to fill Presta or Schrader valves. The plunger assembly is the same as the Pista using a longer plunger shaft, though the handle is vastly different. The handle is turned on a lathe from hardwood and held in place on the plunger shaft by a lower steel nut with two concave washers that surround the handle, all held tightly by a machined brass cap nut on top. The Super Pista has no provision for cinching the air hose to the pump when not in use. It took us 41 strokes to bring a Dart HC to 40 PSI on a Mavic 231 rim, and 24 strokes to bring a 700 x 25c Continental SuperSport Ultra on a Mavic Open 4 CD up to 90 PSI. The Silca Super Pista weighs 1504.5 grams and we found that 1 stroke of the pump delivered 300ml of air. $ Price in Catalog
The final variation of the Pista is the Magnum which is fashioned just like the Super Pista pump including air, base, gauge and wooden handle that are all used with a larger in diameter and longer steel compression cylinder. The compression tube is 65cm tall and 40mm in diameter delivering a large volume of air with every stroke. The Magnum comes with the 24.4 air chuck so it can be used with either Presta or Schrader valves. The Magnum compression tube is Dark Blue with the hose and other metal parts Black. It took us 16 strokes to bring a Dart HC to 40 PSI on a Mavic 231 rim, and 11 strokes to bring a 700 x 25c Continental SuperSport Ultra on a Mavic Open 4 CD up to 90 PSI. The Silca Super Pista weighs 1504.5 grams and we found that 1 stroke of the pump delivered 525ml of air. $ Price in Catalog
The Silca Art 24.4 is made as a possible replacement for the Art 24.4 which comes on the Pista model, though many shops and ardent cyclists buy it separately to replace air chuck on many other models of track or floor pump. The reason is its beautiful machining and ease of use. The Art 24.4 fits well in the users hand and easy to use. It will only work with Presta or Schrader valves. It relies on a three replaceable, internal washers that are reversed to make it fit the other valve type. For these reasons, this is the replacement air chuck of choice for hand pumps in our service department. The Art 24.4 weighs 55 grams. $ Price in Catalog
