Joe Blow Sport Floor Pump Problems

That happened to me.  I never figured out what was wrong...just got a new pump.

Argh.

I'm glad it's not just me.

Yup...I too, had problems with our JB Sport pump. Some kind of leak in the head somewhere. Air would not go into tire at all. I returned it to Performance Bike and they gave me a new one, no questions asked. The new one has been fine, so far.

I had something similar happen with my Joe Blow Sport pump, as did my neighbor. We think it may have been the valve on the tube, not the pump. Changing tubes may fix it, but even with the same tube I found if I unscrew the valve then press it down 2 or 3 times, releasing air, it will pump with no problems. Maybe that's the cause, maybe not.

I really like this pump, especially since Perf. store had it for $ 24.99.

Good luck.......hope you get it to work.

Thanks! We've pretty much resolved to buying a new pump today. We unscrewed and rescrewed everything, tried it on multiple tires and spare tubes. And while it fills it with air, the needle doesn't show the psi. We've had it for a while, so it's probably passed its lifetime anyway.

Solved! Make sure the Check Valve at the bottom of the pump is inserted correctly.  Unscrew the rounded nut just above the foot rests, pull out the spring and black thingy.  The pointy black thingy (check valve) must be inserted first, pin in first, then spring behind it, then small black rubber O ring.  One of my four kids (or me?!) must have switched it, because spring first. it would not pump (bounced back and gauge said zero after every pump).  Put it in black valve first, and it worked like new.  If this does not work for you, it is possible that you need a new check valve, about $3.

^Do this^

I have had mine for five years and it will do this once every year and a half. Just take out the check valve and re-seat it. That always fixes the problem for me.

Just buy a floor pump made by Specialized. I've had mine for 11 seasons, and inflated tires over 2500 times. I had to apply grease when the piston started scraping the tube, but the nozzle still works.

You don't have a complete seal. It's either the valve that's sticking (quite likely), the seal in the pump head is liking (wears out over time, but easily replaced) or the hose is leaking (check the compression fitting at the base of the pump).

Thanks so much for sharing this information dauhaus!!!

I know this thread is about a decade old, but after having my Joe Blow bike pump work perfectly for so many years, it had this problem today where it wouldn't fully pump my tire, the pressure gauge didn't work properly, and the handles would push back up with the more air pressure I tried to fill in my tire.

I took the whole bike pump apart, cleaned it, and looked for any defect, tested each piece, put it back together and still had the same problem.

I was disappointed as I really like the pump and it's performed great over the years. After taking it apart, I could see and appreciated all the quality metal parts they used to build it.

I was close to scrapping it, and buying a newer model, but I decided to search one last time and found that these are symptoms of a dysfunctioning bike pump pressure valve.

A few more links led me here.

I tried as you described, this time making sure to insert the pointed end of the valve first, then the spring, then the washer, and it worked like new! Who would have thought it was so simple! The Joe Blow pressure valve under the round nut above the footrest was so easy to access!

I wish I would have found your informative thread first. It would have save me a lot of time and frustration. But at least I know more about bike pumps now, and have a clean like new working pump, without having to buy another one.

It's amazing that you can post something on the internet, and it can help someone else, even years later.

Anyway, I was so excited and grateful, I just wanted to say THANK YOU.