Airshot Tubeless Tyre Inflator – Review

by MARK · 18/05/2016

Airshot Tubeless Tyre Inflator – Review

Mark Tearle

The no fuss, clean and reliable tubeless tyre inflation tool.

Buy one. End of review.

Seriously though, there is no debate, to my mind, that this is probably the best tool I own. I’m not going to mince my words about, and this will be a short review: if you are a tubeless tyre convert then this tool is worth every single penny.

Airshot, is the end of tubeless faff finally here?

As fun as the guy in this video is, it doesn’t have to be this way with all the soap suds and sponges (though he is having some good luck getting those tyres to seat and seal with just a floor pump):

He’s clearly very experienced and the edited version of that film is just over six minutes long. Benefit of the doubt says he probably took a few minutes longer to faff about with one tyre and that’s not including prepping with the bucket and sponge, and making sure that log pile looked exactly just so. My experience with the Airshot is that this whole process can be done in well under five minutes, per tyre, with success seating the bead into the rim every single time. The success of the sealant in keeping your tyres inflated is all relative to the quality of the tubeless tyre you’re using and your sealant – sealant and tyres the subject of further reviews later on.

As with all seemingly simple devices, engineering and manufacturing wise, the execution of the Airshot canister, hose, valves and adaptors is probably quite complex. The finished product is compact, lightweight and will pack down easily into a bag or can be readily shoved into the boot of your car.

The process for inflating and seating tyres on the rim is really as simple as A, B, C:

A: place tyre on the rim (not forgetting inserting your tubeless ready valve)

B: add air to the Airshot canister using a floor pump. In my experience 90psi (6 bar) is more than enough, though the canister has capacity for 160psi (11 bar).

C: attach Airshot valve adaptor to your valve and turn the tap then wait for that reassuring pop and crack of the bead seating into the rim.

Sorted. Then add your sealant in whatever fashion suits you, as the man in the video or injected through the valve, and inflate the tyre again to your desired tyre pressure using your floor pump.

The Airshot comes with a sensible list of warnings on the back. Unless you’re the kind of person that runs with scissors then this is all reasonable stuff. The Airshot is only compatible with presta valves, comes supplied with instructions for use and an addition valve adapter if you are likely to inflate the tyre with the valve core removed.

I can’t vouch for the longevity of the device at this stage, I have used it dozens of times and it’s been absolutely consistent each time. It looks like it will last, the seals are tight and the taps, hose and valve adapters good quality (probably replaceable too). It’s a worthwhile investment and one that you will not regret.

Airshot – RRP £59.99 (available in the UK and Europe)