Since the invention of the pneumatic bicycle tire, riders have been forced to air up their rides. At this point, there are several different bike pump head designs, but for Fernando Tages, the Founder of Radian USA/Chainlift, there had to be a better way. It’s a classic story, man gets tired of an issue he faces every day, and decides to find a way to fix it.
Tired of struggling with existing pump heads and losing air when removing the chuck from the valve, Fernando decided to put his 30+ years of product design and manufacturing to use and Radian USA came up with Zilch. That is, a pretty interesting bike pump called the Zilch.
It’s worth pointing out that this isn’t Radian USA’s first rodeo. We wrote about the brand in 2020 with their Chainlift device, which is a unique tool to help with bicycle maintenance. Now, with Zilch, Radian USA is poised to reach a lot more consumers with a patented pump design that looks like a home run.
The main goal of Zilch is to make tire inflation easier. Most pump heads either require you to force the valve through a rubber grommet or to use two hands to operate a locking mechanism on the chuck. Zilch uses a one-handed design that goes onto the valve with zero effort.
That’s because until you lock the handle in place, there is nothing to touch the valve. The Zilch head uses a patented auto-locking lever with a diametral seal design with two sides that squeeze onto the (presta) valve. When you’ve inflated the tire, a squeeze of the lever unlocks it, and prevents any air from escaping from the valve. Again, there is nothing touching the valve at this point, so you can effortlessly remove the chuck from the valve–no more struggling to remove the pump, only have it release and jerk your hand into the cassette teeth.
What about Schrader valves? Zilch works with Schrader valves, but you must use one of the included adapters. These adapters thread onto the Schrader valve and can be left in place without air loss. The same is true for Dunlop valves.
Packing a lifetime warranty for the pump head, the Zilch head is also fully user-rebuildable with replaceable parts.
Sold only as part of a complete floor pump or shop inflators, the floor pump has some interesting features as well. A quick docking feature for the pump head ensures that it stays in place on the pump handle and ready to grab at a moment’s notice. The pump handle also has an auto-centering feature to return it to the same position so the pump head dock is always there. A large triangular base helps to prevent tipping, and if it does tip, rubber ends on the handle should prevent damage. The handle also acts as storage for the included adapters for Schrader valves (2x) and a needle inflator.
Currently holding three patents in the U.S. and with multiple patents pending internationally, the Zilch pump head has also been recognized with a 2025 Design and Innovation award.
To get the Zilch off the ground, Radian USA is using Kickstarter and has already surpassed its initial goal of $40,000. With 27 days still to go, currently, you can get in on the Early Bird special with a pump for $95, which is $35 off the $130 MSRP, and with an estimated delivery in July 2025.
