If you’ve worked on a high-end mountain or road bike for any length of time, you have likely cursed the Presta valve. This humble century-old invention is the bane of many a home and professional mechanic. What if there is a better option? [Seth] decided to find out by putting four valves on a single rim.
The contenders include the aforementioned Presta, as well as Schrader, Dunlop and the young gun, Clik. Schrader and Dunlop both pre-date Presta, with Schrader finding prevalence in cruiser bicycles along with cars and even aircraft. Dunlop is still found on bicycles in parts of Asia and Europe. Then came along Presta some time around 1893, and was designed to hold higher pressures and be lower profile then Schrader and Dunlop. It found prevalence among the weight conscious and narrow rimmed road bike world and, for better or worse, stuck around ever since.
But there’s a new contender from industry legend Schwalbe called Clik. Clik comes with a wealth of nifty modern engineering tricks including its party piece, and namesake, of a clicking mechanical locking system, no lever, no screw attachment. Clik also fits into a Presta valve core and works on most Presta pumps. Yet, it remains to be seen whether Clik is just another doomed standard, or the solution to many a cyclists greatest headache.
This isn’t the first time we’ve seen clever engineering going into a bike valve.
It’s mentioned in the comments to that video and worth repeating here that issues with Presta valves are often the result of over loosening the nut. You only need to give them about one full turn to add/remove air. This is both less fiddly than trying to fully unscrew them and makes them less susceptible to bending.
I still think Schrader valves are better if you have the choice but if you have a bike with Presta try this before you go through the trouble of swapping them out.
Schrader valves stay open as long as the pump is connected, so the pressure gauge works. Dunlop valves don’t, so the pressure gauge at the pump is useless. The needle goes up as you pump, and then immediately down when you stop, and the pressure at the pump is always higher because of the flow restriction of the valve, so you only get a rough guess at what the pressure in the tire actually is.
Presta valves behave the same way depending on whether the pump keeps pressing the valve button down, and the pumps I’ve seen just don’t have that mechanism, so it’s just as bad as the Dunlop valve. To make it work like a Schrader valve, you have to use the adapter and then pump it with a Schrader pump, which is to say you might as well use a Schrader valve in the first place.
If presta valves fail for you, you are doing something very wrong, I have never had a problem with them over the 10’s of thousands of miles ridden.
Presta valves can get clogged with sealant. and threads on the nut/core get corroded by sealant and make them difficult to unthread. And as shown the cores can bend. all of these things have happened to me.
I have a set of click valves but I have yet to install them. they seem like they would work well but that you need to have the head adapter with you at all times is kind of a deal breaker.
they’re expensive, but I prefer the Reserve Fillmore valves.
will a pump for a woods valve not fit a click ?
You don’t need the pump head adapter for the click valve. Normal presta head pumps work as well. I have been running the click valves on two of my bikes for about two months now and still use my old pump.
I was once 5ish miles up and into the mountains on a ride when a stick, kicked up by the front wheel went into the back wheel and broke off the presta valve stem of my buddy’s back wheel. A more-stout system would be very welcome… unfortunately, this isn’t that… I’ve also had many presta cores destroyed by sealant.
Silca’s Aluminum Presta Chuck is a game changer though, makes presta inflation so simple and reliable.
The stick could have also ruined your derailleur and frame by jumping slightly differently. Should you replace frame and derailleur also with something better?
I once dropped a wheel, it hit the side of the Schraeder valve and snapped it off. That was quite a pain because…
It was a car wheel, so the tyre had to come off to replace the valve. And yes, they are shiney metal valve stems on an OZ Racing alloy.
I’ve had a very similar incident. Rider ahead of me dropped his water bottle, kicked up and snapped my valve!
They work, but the chuck on my pump is a bit rubbish and it can be hard to remove without venting a bunch of air.
I’m keen to get a set of clik valves because they’re cheap, mostly backwards compatible, and it makes attaching and removing the air chuck a simple one hand job.
This is definitely not a revolutionary product but for $20 I’ll take the quality of life improvement.
I wouldn’t have a Schrader valve on my 25mm alloy rim – I’d be too afraid of the rim breaking at that point because of the much-bigger hole required.
I don’t understand what the fuss is about. I’ve never had any problems pumping up tires via Presta valves, whether using the manual pump that fits on my bike frame, or a gas-station pump via the little brass screw-on adapter I carry when I’m riding.
I’ll also add that when I’m changing a tube, I put a little air into it to prevent the tube from getting caught between the bead wire and the rim. (I deflate it before doing the final seating of the tire on the rim). When I had bigger wheels with Schrader valves, I had to use the pump for that initial bit of air. With a Presta, because the valve tip protrudes, I just blow it up as I would a balloon.
Yes, but where is my little brass screw-on adapter?!? And just recently purchased another 5 pack of the damn things!
Also, this just makes it extra hassle, extra fiddly, when compared with Schrader valves.
Solid tires all the way!
Oh yeah, the worst of all possible worlds. Crap rolling resistance, and a terribel ride!
I have them on my fixie!
Ha! 😂 Brilliant. They’d it would forever to wear down solid tyres doing skids by pedalling backwards.
My answer to the the fixie arguement is always “I hope you’ve a set of raised harley style handled bars, some spokey dokeys, a flag pole and maybe one of those old Kelloggs reflectors there for nostalgia value on that bike!”
Solid tires tend to wreck rims
You must live in an extraordinarily good neighborhood. I’ve never had a frame-mounted pump last more than a year before it was stolen.
I pull it off and put it in my backpack, along with my water bottle and lights. I never ride without a bag of some kind unless I know I won’t be leaving my bike unattended. Even then, I’m often carrying other things and need the bag anyway.
https://xkcd.com/927/
In Italy we also have the Regina valve, which is quite common for city bikes https://it.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Valvola_Regina
I’ll have to add that one to the list. Moving to NL and the Woods valve still being so common was a shock, and a challenge for my existing pumps
Here in Germany most bicycles use Dunlop/Woods valves. I have switched to Schrader just because it’s easier to get a decent pump for it. I don’t think I have ever noticed a Presta valve on a bike.
On the flipside, the cheap pumps you get at the supermarket work better with Dunlop valves and often not at all with Schrader valves, even if they technically have the correct head for it by flipping the little plastic thingy inside the nozzle. They don’t seat properly and getting any air in is incredibly difficult.
I once had that displeasure when I lost tire pressure on the road and had to buy one of those three euro specials because they didn’t have anything else.
It’s sturdy — I’ve never had any issues with them (though I’m just a casual biker). The only minor downside is that, to inflate the tire, you need to fully remove the valve cap. It’s small and easy to misplace. Interestingly, the cap is also used to deflate the tire: when partially unscrewed, you can press it against the valve core to release air. When fully screwed in, it seals the valve. That said, the valve still works fine even without the cap.
I think it combines the best of both Presta and Schrader valves — it has the compact size of a Presta and the straightforward mechanism of a Schrader. Plus, it includes everything you need to both deflate the tire and seal the valve, all built into the cap.
Oh, whew, just weird high end bike stuff. I was worried this was going to blow the lid off of big Schrader or some such.
ZERO
That’s how many times I have bent, or even seen a bent presta valve.
And I worked in a bike shop for 5 years.
I have seen plenty of mechanical horror stories.
It’s always fun wrenching on someone’s bike and knowing the only tool they own is a vice-grip.
Or working on a bike after someone used the lock Tite that needs a torch to remove.
But I have never seen a bent presta valve…
🤣🤣🤣🤣
Fortunately I have both a vice grip and a Crescent wrench.
This ^
Me, 40 years riding a bicycle, almost everyday.
“Solution” article/youtube video searching for a problem.
You’re less clumsy than I am. :)
But as the video mentions, you can also just straighten it back out. And the next inner tube comes with a new one anyway.
I think that might have been my bike with the vice-grip though…
I installed Click valves on my tubeless road bike a few months ago. I’m an instant and complete convert. Besides the stated benefits here, I can attach a pump and top off the pressure in much less time and effort. It’s much easier to adjust the pressure to get exactly what I want. And for tubeless, the higher flow rate makes it much easier to seat the tire. It also leaks far less. As far as I’m concerned, this is a much superior design to presta.
Probably just autocorrect, but it’s Clik valve, not Click. Also, for anyone looking to try them out, they’re sold by the pair, so you only need to buy one set of adapter cores or new stems per bike, something I wish I had realized before buying twice as many as needed.
You are correct, sorry about that!
Not a fan of Presta valves. I’ve not had any bend, but have has the inner cores unscrewing with the pump attachment on the side of the road – which is a PITA.
Also, had the inner cores unscrew when undoing the lock nut – again not great when it’s below freezing and you’re on the side of the road.
And even when they’re working correctly, Presta are fiddly – especially in the winter. IMO there should only be two valve types:
1) Schrader.
2) Schwalbe Clik valves – if for some reason a wheel manufacturer can’t physically fit Schrader.
It’s times like this where I realize. . . I’m not really into bikes. I don’t think I’ve seen anything but a Schrader valve on any tire I’ve encountered in my life.
schrader’s are the bog-standard, simple and basic valves you’ll find everywhere because they Just Work. nothing at all wrong with them.
as the video says, you’ll find presta’s on a lot of bikes because some bike rims are just physically too narrow to fit a schrader, and they got popular in cycling way back when, and cyclists are that weird combination of stupidly conservative while also stupidly fashion-driven.
and as most of the commenters here say, the video overstates presta valves’ fragility. i, too, have never seen one bent or damaged. they’re fiddly to use — and i might try out that clik system just because of that — but you’d almost have to be trying to damage one.
Back of the envelope 8 mile commute by bike each way times 5 days a week times, let’s say 40 weeks a year for a decade. That’s… holy crap 32k miles in the saddle.
Literally zero problems with a valve stem ever.
Like bikes themselves that’s about as perfect a mature technology as I could ever imagine.
Sadly now that I’m old it’s like one bike commute a month when the weather is nice.
So curious to see what the rest of tgh world calls thesse valves. Wasn’t even sure we where talkibg about the same thibg as I didn’t even recognize the names
Here in the netherlands we call presta the french valve, schrader car valves abd dunlop bike valvrs. I think …
Not that its any better, just weird custom. I suppose as a bike country its worth noting :)
I did 30 miles/day on presta valves for years with no issues. The valve cores did get bent occasionally but nothing to cause a problem.
And then a few months ago, had two fail on me.
If a better valve core isn’t expensive then why not?
Before I got hit by a car that ended my road racing “career”, I did a lot of roadbike racing, both on the streets (organized and alleycat racing) and velodrome racing. I’ve worked in my friends racing bike shop for many years. I’ve never seen a problem with standard valves nor have I ever heard of anyone having problems with that. I wish my motorcycles and my car had presta valves as I can’t stand schrader valves. Such a pain.
The only issue I had with presta valve was once I got an old bike out the shed, unscrewed it and the top just snapped off. Have to say prefer the alternatives, since their is definately a failure point in the valve head
All my years mountain biking and never once had any kind of issue with Presta stems. The benefit in mountain biking is the locking nut for the stem doubles as a rim lock of sorts and keeps the tube from rotating. Ever seen a Schrader valve sideways half into the rim? Exactly.
I’ve never once pulled the core out with the pump. If you’ve done that then you clearly didn’t reinstall the core properly or you unscrewed the tip nut too far and loosened the core. I’ve also never once bent a valve tip. Screw it down when you’re done and put the cap on. It’s really not that difficult.
i don’t run tubeless and i don’t use sealant and i’ve only once had a problem with presta valves…on a rental bike, the shaft had been bent and the stop to prevent unscrewing it too far had been eroded, and it dropped into the tube never to be seen again. i’ve never been able to damage one like that myself.
i have a lot of trouble with chucks though. the local bike shop has carried a variety of dual-use chucks for years. and all of them suck. the most recent one is good at presta but bad at schrader. i have had a lot of trouble over the years getting a good schrader-only chuck. i got what i thought was a foolproof one, it actually threads onto the valve, but it has succumbed to a well-known and uncorrectable failure mode! the others are all finnicky, work on some valves but not others. a variety of failure modes. very frustrating. i’m surprised more people aren’t fed up with schrader valves.
my favorite thing about presta is that it usually comes with a little nut you can thread onto the stem to hold it against the rim, so you don’t push it in when starting a 100% flat tire. if my schrader valves had that, that would fix probably half of my difficulty with schrader. my least favorite thing about presta valves is that a lot of rims these days have thick profiles so it pays to think a little about whether you want a long or short stem (when in doubt, go long).
I’ve had both those problems, chucks that don’t seal against the valve (so I wrap teflon tape around it to remedy that problem), and valves that lack the threaded nut to keep you from pushing them into the tire when there’s little or no pressure in it yet. FWIW, I’ve ridden over 100,000 miles, and maintained my family’s bikes too which might add another 100,000.
I’ve used this type of valves on my bicycle wheels for 30+ years, and I never found the things he’s complaining about a big issue. And he’s whining a lot about these simple things, so I stopped the video before it got halfway.
One reason I prefer presto over dunlop, is that you can mount (and remove) the tire without deflating the tire completely or removing the nipple.
I do agree with Irox, and: https://xkcd.com/927/
Lending a bicycle pump and then finding out the fitting don’t fit is a nuisance.
Small tip: When mounting the inner and outer tube, always put some air into the inner tube. No “pressure”, but just enough air so it barely touches the outer tube. This makes it easier to put the inner tube into the outer tube during mounting, and it prevents any kinks in the inner tube.
My gripe with schrader is only in the last decade or two have tolerances gone astray and the press very hard to get air going in is common on both cars and bikes. It wasn’t that way when it was all domestic. I had a presta bike once no problem it had a pump and connector. Skinny rims and finally a small piece of wood on the street had me give it up.
Following Seth bike hacks, (now Berm peak and Berm peak express) since the beginning, as a mountain biker glad to see him here!
I’ve been using presta valves for 35 years now and have never had a single issue, including tubeless applications. Just more marketing justification for new and overcomplicated products…
Yes, I use the nut that comes with presta. And, I use the cap after topping off the air.