PDW Shiny Object: A Pocketful of Pressure When You Need It

Outfitting my bicycle for trips longer than around the block, has lead me to more gear valuable for the Practical Prepper living in the real world.
In this case, a pocket sized tire inflator.
The bicycle world knows it as the Shiny Object, by Portland Design Works, but you'll call it a miracle maker the first time it saves you a tire change on a dark lonely road, some cold rainy night.


The Shiny Object uses threaded 16 Gram CO2 cylinders to fill bicycle tires, but any Presta or Schrader valve tires can get a fill up from this shiny wonder too!

It may take a two or three CO2 cylinders to bring a Motorcycle, truck, or car tire up to pressure, but ATV's & smaller trailer tires can get topped off & back to civilization in no time.  Toss a Shiny Object and a half dozen CO2 Cylinders in your Go Bag, or Glovebox, & you'll have enough wind to fill valve equipped inflatables with ease.

The Shiny Object has a built-in adjustable cut-off valve, so it's not a single use proposition either. Use it to fill sleeping pads & other inflatables over & over & over. The solid alloy device is ruggedly built, and the complete kit comes with a CO2 Cylinder and leather sleeve. Cylinder's get frosty cold when they discharge, and the vegetable dyed leather sleeve keeps the frost from your fingertips.  The Shiny Object is not intended to replace regular tire pumps and the like, but rather, serve as a quick fix tool to get you home or further along safe & with minimum effort.
With every gram of weight, and every cubic inch of space important considerations with gear you pack out, you immediately see the real value in this handy, hardy, pocket of pressure. The PDW Shiny Object is available at finer Bicycle shops, as well as online. Including HERE.  

Crank Brothers M-19 Multitool Review

Making the case to take up bicycling again was a no brainer... I needed to get back in shape & it's a great low-impact sport that only requires a little exercise, includes beautiful scenery, and once you learn, you never forget how to ride. Plus, it fits the self-reliant philosophy of reliable sustainable transportation.
Getting my 30 year old road bike ride-worthy is one thing, KEEPING it ride worthy ON THE ROAD is another. I need tools to take with me as I ride, otherwise I'd risk hiking back home, lugging a broken bike.

Fortunately there's a wide selection of handy multitools available for cyclists,as an alternative to towing a roll-around tool box. This review is of one of these mini-wonders that for me, offers the most bang for the buck...(definitely a "best bang for the buck" kind of guy)

There are cheaper & more expensive tools, but one brand in particular... Crank Brothers... is the cream that rises to the top of the Cycling Industry, offering serious top-grade bike parts, accessories & tools, and of their multi-tools, one model offers the most tools of all... the M-19.
Imagine carrying all common metric allen wrenches, bristol keys, phillips & straight screwdrivers, 2 nut wrenches, a chain breaker, and all the common spoke wrenches that fit most bicycles, and fit them all in your pocket. That, in a nutshell, is what the M-19 delivers, in a package smaller than your wallet, WITHOUT taking a big bite out of it too!
I'm ready for the road, now that I got me a pocket FULL of tools!  available here