Lezyne Digital Drive Pumps - Review

May 22, 2014 at 21:50
by Michael K.  
Pinkbike Product Picks

Lezyne Digital Drive

(Clockwise) "Digital Drive" refers to Lezyne's addition of an accurate, digital pressure display. The Shock Digital Drive pump on the left had a smaller barrel and piston that work to attain higher pressures. Wooden handles are the best.



Lezyne Alloy Digital Drive and Shock Digital Drive Pumps

Lezyne's slogan is "Engineered Design" and as such, their products are designed to function well and look good. The two Digital Drive pumps we review here are no exception:

The Lezyne Alloy Digital Drive is a high-pressure digital floor pump with a CNC-machined aluminum barrel and base, a steel piston, and a varnished wood handle. It is equipped with a claimed, 3%-accurate Digital Gauge, an ABS Flip-Thread air-chuck and has an extra long, nylon-reinforced, braided hose with a double-threaded, screw-on aluminum connector that easily docks with Presta and Schrader valves. The included "Speed Chuck" makes this pump compatible with disc wheels. Your choice of an anodized high-polish or black powder-coat finish makes this digital pump stylish and durable.

The Shock Digital Drive floor pump offers all the benefits of the Alloy Digital Drive pump, while pumping air at one-third the rate to and at a much higher delivery pressure to more easily service road bike tires and the inherently lower volume and high spring pressures of suspension components. The pump ships with a dedicated Shock-Thread screw-on-type chuck which allows removal without the shock or fork losing any air pressure.

MSRP for both pumps is $109.99. Lezyne also offers a higher-end variant called the CNC Digital Drive with lots more machined bits for $20 extra, and for those with a smaller budget, there is the Steel Digital Drive, with steel replacing certain aluminum elements for $20 less, and finally, the Sport Digital Drive which substitutes the aluminum base for molded plastic for another $20 savings.
Lezyne

Lezyne Digital Drive

Two styles of Lezyne's screw-on pump heads are shown; on the left is the Shock Thread Chuck, on the right is the standard Flip-Thread Chuck. Lezyne also sells other styles of pump heads.



Pinkbike's Take:
bigquotes Lezyne's Digital Drive series offers great performance in a good looking package. The 3% accuracy offered by the gauge means that at around 30psi you're within 1psi of the actual pressure plus the digital display is large and easy to read which puts you in better control of your pre-ride tire preparation. Having to replace batteries, on the other hand, adds complexity to a once-simple tool. The entire series of Digital Drive pumps are high-pressure designs, that seem better suited for road bikes; us mountain bikers will be left wishing for larger-volume barrels to get more air per stroke into our fat treads. The Flip-Thread Chuck is also going to be polarizing; those of you who prefer the secure attachment of a thread-on air chuck will prefer this system, versus those who like the speed of a more typical push-on or lever-type pump head. The presumed improved durability of a thread-on attachment over the rubber seal of a standard head may win some of you back. One thing we didn't get on so well with was the air-bleed valve smack in the middle of the Flip-Thread Chuck. While it works really great with a Presta valve, it doesn't seem so well thought out for a Shrader valve. We wish there was more material above or below the bleed valve as it was hard to unthread it without accidentally releasing some air - there just isn't enough gripping space on either end. This isn't a problem for a Presta; it's meant to release the pressure from the hose before unthreading. One observation we made was that if you run 99-cent Presta-Schrader thread on adapters, both pump heads will not engage the Presta plunger like a standard pump would. The Shock Drive, while potentially being overkill for a casual biker, was a great tool for filling up forks and larger volume rear shocks like the DB Air. The 3% accuracy is on par with best hand pumps, and getting the high pressures required by the suspension components was a relative breeze. The Shock Thread Chuck was also fantastic. None of our gripes with the Flip-Thread Chuck applied. - Michael Klimek


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37 Comments
  • 25 2
 How many strokes does it take until it blows?
  • 33 1
 it depends who is stroking...
  • 2 4
 Longer the strokes the faster it blows?
  • 6 5
 Does it swallow too?
  • 1 6
flag chyu (Jun 12, 2014 at 23:45) (Below Threshold)
 How does it taste like.
  • 3 0
 I have a mini drive and is the best I ever had. LOVE the threaded hose. No more 500 strokes to get 20 psi on the trail!!! Last time with my other backpack pump, I had to ask a friend to continue pumping because I didn't feel my arm anymore. Out in the wet and cold weather it makes a difference. HAIL to threaded hoses!!!
  • 2 0
 Yeah I have their pressure drive pump and I love the threaded hose a lot, it works so well compared to the clamp types. The casing is super sturdy and it's quite compact. Wouldn't trade it for anything else.
  • 4 2
 I was going to say something clever about the overwhelming invasion of too much technology into our daily (and simple) routines.....but then I realised that this is a great idea to keep your fork/shock pressure exactly where you want it.



And that is great.
  • 1 1
 Or you could just use a digital pressure reader and have consistent reading on whatever pump you use.

My topeak d2 gets used for bikes and cars and is ~2 years on 1 battery. On thing it doesn't fit is forks, but pump shock guages seem more accurate.
  • 3 0
 I picked up digital Shock Drive and it is so sweet. Takes no effort to pump up my rear X fusion hlr air, as well as the piggyback to 250lbs. I love how accurate it is.
  • 2 0
 I like to always use the same pump to check my suspension pressure, as every pump is calibrated differently. If I wanted to make trailside adjustments this setup wouldn't work.
  • 1 0
 I got the Sport Digital Drive (same thing as the Alloy Digital Drive, except with an ABS base) in replacement of my Blackburn floor pump, which gave me headaches from start to finish during like 7 years, and I love it for the most part. The digital gauge is the thing that won me over since I'm very picky about my tire pressure. It saves me time because I don't have to double check with a separate gauge and the pressure seems accurate. I also love the screw-on head, coming from a standard "intelligent" head -- even if it takes a bit longer to attach, it avoids bending the valve when you detach the head. It is indeed a bit hard not to let some air go when you loosen the head, but you get used to it. The air release thing is not very useful IMO, but all in all it is still an above average floor pump and the materials are of good quality, unlike some others pumps.
  • 2 1
 I bought the CNC Digital drive. Want to like it, but so far no go. Gauge didn't read pressure, neither button (ON/OFF and PSI/BAR) worked. I like the thread-on head for trail use, but not a fan in the shop. Slow to use, and is a knuckle buster with bladed steel spokes. I would love the air release button if it released air from the tire - but mine only releases air from the pump's tube, which seems pointless. Lezyne is shipping me a replacement gauge for the pump, and we'll see how it works after the swap. Construction-wise, its luxurious in the metally Lezyne way, which is great. If I did it again though, I wouldn't pay extra for a CNC'd handle with sharp metal edges.
  • 1 0
 I have a Lezyne with an analogue gauge and it is inaccurate too. I was just going to live with it but not after reading your post - off to my LBS I go. Thanks.
  • 1 0
 I've had this pump for a bit now. I like it. I don't love it. The quality is outstanding. My biggest beef is that there is no pressure release for presta valve so it's hard to dial pressure back. (the button on connector only lets air out of hose not tire) The digital gauge does not display .5 increments. it is whole numbers only. As far as accuracy I guess I haven't really checked that. I will now though.
  • 2 0
 That is correct. The pump head works very differently with Schrader valve vs Presta. With a presta it works to release the pressure in the hose so you unscrew it without losing any air. With Schrader it helps fine tune the pressure.
  • 1 0
 You could buy the Dirt Drive pump which is the 'high volume' model for mtb tyres and then you can now also buy the digital gauge separately to replace the needle gauge and fit it to the Dirt Drive to get the perfect pump for mtb tyres, a Digital Dirt Drive.
The only problem being that it would work out a bit expensive to buy the Dirt Drive pump and a digital gauge, at least around £80, £50 for the pump and £30 for a digital gauge.
  • 2 0
 Love Lezyne products... but not the price. I make sure I buy them when on sale at Backcountry or SAC.
  • 2 0
 Used one of these as a workshop pump for about 3 weeks until the hose blew out. Not as reliable as I hoped
  • 5 1
 id pump that hard
  • 1 1
 Hopefully better quality than their multi tool because the one I bought just blows for the forty bucks I paid for it. I bought a fifteen dollar no name one after and the chain break on the cheap one is 100 times better
  • 1 0
 Hi guys.

Does anybody had problems with a Lezyne pump in the past? And if you had a problem, how was the warranty handling?

Thanks in advance
  • 1 0
 SKF SAM pump for shocks. Lezyne Dirt Drive pump for dirt and digital pressure gauge for accuracy
  • 2 2
 The only one of these I have used unthreaded the valve cores from presta valves when you pumped up to high pressures (we were at a road race) wouldn't buy again.
  • 1 1
 Yeah, same thing happened to me on a tubeless valve. Not good. Do not buy.
  • 2 1
 thats why they have the air release button imt the moddle of the flip chuck now.
  • 1 2
 Mine is like what is in the picture. Still not a good design
  • 2 0
 lube with spit on the threaded core and they're less likely to unscrew when taking the pump off .
  • 1 1
 i bought the Axiom Kompressair G200A Floor Pump,same price +/- a bit,and this inflates my 26 x 2.5's on my DH,in no time.
Love the replaceable grips.
  • 2 0
 all these silly remarks are gonna make me blow my top!!
  • 2 2
 I don't care how good the pump is, I would never pay that for it, the money could go towards other things
  • 2 1
 It's true. at the end of the day all it does is blows up tyres and shocks. you could buy a lot more useful things with £65
  • 1 0
 Im getting pumped on all these reviews!
  • 4 3
 sexy pump....
  • 3 4
 Not as good as my Huffy one though.
  • 1 1
 ok there's a gauge .. how well does it work with tubeless?
  • 2 0
 Very well, no problem.







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