Summary: Designed specifically for
motorcycles and stores the recommended pressures for one
pair of tires.
Background
If this Roadgear Programmable tire pressure gauge looks
familiar, then congratulations, you've been a
webBikeWorlder for more than three years.
I reviewed a nearly identical tire pressure gauge
sold under the Sears Craftsman
brand in April of 2006.
Roadgear recently sent their new Programmable
"Hi-Tec" Digital Tire Pressure Gauge and the Editor asked if I'd
like to do a follow-up. And being the tool freakster
that I am, of course I said "Yes!".
The Roadgear gauge addresses one of the comments I
had on the Sears model, because this one is specifically designed for
motorcycles.
The Sears gauge had an image of a car
and the front and rear tire pressures could be stored;
the Roadgear gauge features a motorcycle image on the
LCD and front
and rear tire pressures can be stored.
Like the Sears gauge, the term "programmable" does
not mean that the tires can be bled down to a programmed
pressure. It would be nice if the gauge had
that capability.
A truly programmable gauge might work by first
storing the recommended tire pressures in the gauge.
Then the tire could be overfilled slightly. When
the gauge is attached, the air pressure in the tire
would be released automatically by the gauge until it reached the
programmed pressure and stop.
That would probably take a level of sophistication
that would be significantly more expensive, however. Like the
Sears gauge, programming the Roadgear unit means storing the bike's
recommended pressure for the front and rear tire and
then using that as a reference only when filling the tires
with air.
Programming the gauge isn't difficult and it is
demonstrated in the
video below. It's a
matter of pressing the "Set" button to turn on the
gauge, holding down the Set button for about 3 seconds
to enter the programming mode, then using the up/down arrow keys to
change the
numbers.
While in programming mode, the gauge can also be set to read either
PSI or Bar.
Once the pressures are entered, the gauge is turned
on by pressing the "Set" button. the up/down
arrows are used to select either the front or rear tire.
When the gauge is in use, the tire pressures show at the
top of the display in large numbers and the programmed
pressure remains on the display for reference.
The Roadgear Programmable gauge can store the tire
pressure for the front and rear tire.
The Roadgear version has a
small built-in LED flashlight, just like the Sears gauge. The business end
of the Roadgear gauge is
made from metal and rotates 360 degrees and it also
includes a valve stem bleed button on the opposite side.
The shape and size of the gauge can make it slightly difficult
to fit on
some combinations of tires and valve stems. If the
valve stem is close to the edge of the tire rim on a car, as shown in
the photo below, the sides of the gauge can prevent the
head from reaching the valve stem in certain situations.
The orientation of the head can also make it somewhat
difficult to reach the 90-degree valve stems on the
Multistrada. It can be done, by it may take a bit
more twisting and manipulating to get the Roadgear (and
Sears) gauge in the correct orientation to seat on the
valve stem.
My favorite is still the
"original"
Roadgear
Digital Tire Gauge with its "L" shaped
head because the L
shape allows the head to fit on every valve stem
orientation I've tried.
My all-time favorite tire air pressure gauge, or the
one I use most often, is an Accutire gauge that for some
reason was never reviewed on webBikeWorld. It has
a big dial and a hose with a remote head, placed at 45
degrees or so. I can get that head on any valve
stem I've tried, on motorcycles, cars, trucks and
trailers. However, it's nowhere near as portable
as the original Roadgear gauge or even the new
programmable gauge.
Rotating metal head features a valve stem air release on
back (L). LED flashlight is included (R).
(L to R): Roadgear gauge as used on a car tire. Roadgear
"L" shaped gauge on car tire. On the 90-degree valve
stem of the Ducati Multistrada. On the valve stem of the
Carrozzeria wheels (review) of the GT1000.
The buttons on the gauge are not recessed.
One other feature that doesn't work for
me on the Roadgear gauge are the buttons, shown in the
photo above. They are
not recessed, nor are they flush to the body of the gauge, and
I noticed right away that whenever I took it out of my
pocket, the gauge light was on. I'm concerned that
this may prematurely run down the battery or damage the
buttons. On a tool like this, the
buttons really should be recessed.
The display is very bright, but like the
Sears gauge, I think it's probably overkill to have all
this technology simply to store the air pressure for two
tires.
The Roadgear Programmable Digital Tire
Pressure Gauge does come with an extraordinary 5-year
warranty however. Basically what this means is you
send it back to Roadgear with $5.00 (I guess to cover
shipping) and they'll send you a new one.
The gauge displays in 0.5 PSI increments
from 5.0 to 99.5 PSI, a wide range. Roadgear says
the gauge will compensate for temperature, humidity and
altitude variations. It has a claimed accuracy of
± 1%, which is excellent.
Like the Sears unit, this one uses two CR2032 batteries
and it has the same four tiny Phillips head screws that
must be removed to access the battery box. I think
the batteries on something like this will last a long
time, so it's not a big deal, although Murphy's law says
just when you need it most on a trip that the batteries
will die.
The gauge is very well made and feels very solid.
It has a rubbery soft-feel
coating all over. It weighs 106 grams, which is
two grams more than the Sears gauge. The
Roadgear
Digital Tire Gauge at weighed 46 grams when we
reviewed it.
wBW Video: Roadgear
Programmable Digital Tire Pressure Gauge
Conclusion
The Roadgear Programmable Digital Tire Pressure Gauge
is basically the same as the Sears gauge I reviewed in
2006, with the inclusion of a motorcycle icon replacing
the car.
It's still well made, has a rotating head, a large and backlit
LCD and a bonus LED light. The downside is the
same:
weight, size and cost -- this one is now $32.90 (the
2006 price of the Sears gauge was $24.99).
I'll repeat what I said back then: My favorite
portable "pocket" digital tire gauge is the
Roadgear
Digital Tire Gauge with the 90-degree bent head.
It's lightweight, small and hasn't failed me in 4 years.
I use it before every ride and it's always in my pocket
during a trip.
wBW Product
Review: Roadgear Programmable Digital Tire Gauge
Comments are ordered from most recent to oldest.
Not all comments will be published (details). Comments may be edited for
clarity prior to publication.
From "J.S." (2/10): "Having blown
through a couple of digital gauges, my only concerns
are:
1. No display backlighting. This is no big deal
until you check pressure in the dark or poorly lighted
area. This probably isn't an issue if the display
is vivid enough (but see #2, next).
2. The design beats many others but isn't
fumble-foolproof (see the opinions of the Accutire
version on Amazon) whether dial or digital. But
that can be made easier if the gauge has a "good
reading" audible beep for hard-to-reach-and-see
situations (once available on a Brookstone version of
the Accutire gauge, but no longer). A beeper also
reduces the importance of a good backlit display."
Editor's Note: The Roadgear gauge
shown above does have a lighted display.
From "R.T." (1/10): "Just purchased
this tire gauge. Easy to use, kinda'
fun.......makes you check your air pressures more
often!"
