Newbie Cylinder Question

I am about to order a cylinder from NW Pumpworks. However they have a standard tube which flares a 1/4” at the base for around $60 and another tube with no flare for $10 more.

They say the flare will give a tight seal but the non-flared will help more with length.

Any preferences or benefits between the flared and none flared tubes?

If I order a 1.75 inch diameter tube, with a 1/4 inch flare at the bottom, it seems like it would be tight but not uncomfortable for my girth of 4 7/8 inches.

Any help would be appreciated….Thanks!

I’m planning on buying the straightwall without the flare for myself.

I’m bigger at the base and the flare doesn’t seem like it would be a good design for me.

BTW, NW Pumps also make their straightwall tubes in 1/8” increments if that helps in selecting a better size. I seem to fall between the 1 3/4” & 2” and considering the 1 7/8” straightwall tube for myself.

I’ve read that the straightwall tubes suppose to give you a better length pull.

Also, I believe most folks select a tube that is about 3” longer than you erect length.

Hope that helps & Good luck :)

Thanks for the help!

I just ordered the non-flared 1 3/4 inch tube a few hours ago. I didn’t know they came in 1/8 increments. I didn’t see anything on the website about it and the guy I spoke to at NW Pumpworks never mentioned it. This is good to know for future orders though.

Based on the sizing charts, I think I’m probably alright with the 1 3/4 anyway.

So I call up Auto Zone to get a Mityvac pump, they are out of stock. So I can NAPA, they are out of stock. So I call CAP Parts, they are out of stock. So I call…….just about every auto parts store in the phone book. No Mityvacs anywhere in my area. I guess there are a lot of PEers around here!

I did find one place that has another brand for $28.00. I’ll check it out tomorrow. Hopefully it’s as good as the Mityvac.

Is there anything else besides the pressure gauge that I should look for on the pump?

NW Pumps doesn’t mention the 1/8” increments on their site. I learned about it from Mushroom here on the forum and emailed NW in they said they can do theat in the straightwall tubes, at least for the 1 7/8” size that I had asked about.

I know sometimes Auto Zone can get you the part in the next day from another store location.

I believe the Mityvac II with brake bleeder kit in case you ever want to try wet pumping is $25.99 at my local Auto Zone.

***Possibly Important****

Did you order the $5 male coupling from NW to go with your tube? It is my understanding that you will need this to hook up the hose from the Mityvac to the connection on top of the tube. You may want to check this out, so you will be able to hook everything up when you get it.

Good Luck :)

Just bought a pump made by OEM at an auto parts store. Now that I have it home, i can see your **possibly important** is important. No coupler.

Oh well, live and learn :(

One good thing about the pump is that it’s water compatible.

I think I’ll wait for the cylinder to show up to see exactly what I need for a coupler.

Thanks again for alerting me, better to find out now that in the middle of my first pumping session!

Brian13,
That’s usually my luck too, but hopefully everything will be smooth sailing from this point on! :)

I’ve been reading a lot of the info on the forum and pretty much decided to order the same tube you did from NW.

I plan to follow the advice of others on here and go with a low vacuum routine to hopefully avoid any problems.

Good Luck & Success to both of us!

Brian and Mr. Bulge, how did you like your NW cylinders? Did the straight wall work ok for you?

From their website, it looks like the standard “flared” tube is narrower at the base than in the body. If so, then the straight-wall model appears to be the same design as the LA cylinder at cockpump.com. Could Avocet or someone confirm that?

Also, I too have the Mity Vac pump, but no fitting. Does anyone know - are these fittings standard fittings that I could find at an industrial supplier of some kind?

The least expensive cylinders I’ve seen on the net are at Monsternuts.com - $50, but they look to be the same narrowed opening as the NW standard. Not sure that’s good.

ChuckR

The straight wall tube seems to be working well, however I had the flu for a week and didn’t feel much like pumping, so I really haven’t used it enough to draw a proper conclusion.

Definitely buy the fitting when you order the tube. NWPumpworks has them for $5.00 each. They are actually almost impossible to find in my area.

The straight wall tubes are said to be better for length

Hope this helps and good luck

Brian

ChuckR;

I have no personal experience with a tube than is not straight-sided. Just guessing, I’d say that the advantage of a tube which narrows toward the bottom would be in its keeping a tight seal, and the disadvantage of squashing the tissue of guys who happen to have more base girth than anywhere else.

Chuck,
I agree with both Brian and Advocet.

I have been dealing with a back problem on and off and have only used the pump 2 times. I hope to get on a steady program once I get feeling better.

Since I’m larger at the base the straight wall design is best for me. I believe that LA tubes are straight wall designed too. The main reason I went with NW was because they offer 1/8” increments, so I bought a 1 7/8” tube because I was afraid the 1 3/4” might be too snug and the 2” too big for any length pull.

The NW seems to be of good quality, but I never compared it to any others.

I believe that either the LA or NW tubes would be a good choice.

Good Luck!

get a good pump for $70 or less. I’m kind of experimenting with pumping and want to seriously get into it.