Can any hand air pump be used to add air to my FLHTP rear shocks and "anti-dive" front end, or is there a "specially designed" one for this purpose?

 

Any low volume, low pressure pump should work fine. What you don't want to do is go to the service station and use the air hose to fill the shocks/anti-dive.

 

The "specially designed" one that incorporates a pressure gauge is nice to have if you expect to continue using the air suspension, although it is on the pricey side (usually around $40).

 

Yea, I saw the $40 one, but I have a BBall pump with gauge. I pumped the rear shocks to 10psi and as soon as I removed it from the fitting, the air seemed to fly out........I can't seem to get a pressure reading on my tire gauge (low pressure 1-20psi)

 

I generally just use my compressor in my garage but really any will do. I found the more important tool is a low pressure tire guage that shows 0-20lbs or something like that. I generally set my progressive shocks to 7 lbs for 1 up. And the idea is to give it a small shot of air and then use you guage to bring down the pressure to where you want it by using the guage, each time you check it it will come down.

 

I never bought the proper pump and use a short bicycle pump (goes in a tool bag) with a car valve adapter hose and low pressure gauge. Yes, I lose some air when disconnecting the pump, also when using the gauge, but not enough to worry about. Sometimes I have 2-3 tries to get it right when changing pressure. This system has served me well for 22 years!

 

Thanks guys. I'll try it again tonight with the B-Ball pump, but , if I can't get a reading on my low pressure tire gauge, I may have a problem, don't you think?

I did try the gauge on my mower tire (9 psi) and it worked fine.

 

This thing works well for me and I usually need to check/adjust the pressure once a year

 

i bought the hd pump. it reaches into the lil hole in the end of my left grip for the air valve there, and having the no bleed off disconnect is nice too. its a nice product not cheap feeling. and i guess you could prob try airing up a tire with it in the wait for the tow truck?????

 

I use a old bicycle hand pump most of the time. I also use a 2gal compressor but only let it pump up to 30lb in the storage tank and then unplug it. This way I won't over pump anything.