Metal Valve Stems

Metal valve stems are just another of the many seeming insignificant items that are part of our daily life that are manufactured by the metal casting process. According to Wikipedia, “a valve stem is a self-contained valve which opens to admit gas to a chamber (such as air to inflate a tire), and is then automatically closed and kept sealed by the pressure in the chamber, or a spring, or both, to prevent the gas from escaping.”

Metal valve stems are most often seen on tires used on bicycles or motor vehicles. These valve stems come in a wide variety of shapes and sizes. There are short metal tire valves that are designed especially to withstand those road and off-road hazards that can actually rip a rubber tire stem right out of a tubeless tire.

There are valve stem assemblies that can swivel in any direction for ease of air servicing. The 80° bend angle is very handy when trying to air a tire that ends up with the valve stem located at an uncomfortable position.

Often valve stems are also finished with another metal such as a brass finish. Others are chrome finished and look terrific with custom or chrome wheels.

There are all-metal valve caps that were originally designed for high-pressure truck service. These are double-sealing caps that do not have to be removed to check air pressure, or to deflate and inflate.

There are also long valve stems that are used on dual-tire setups. This long stem passes thru from the inside tire to the outside allowing the inside tire to be easily serviced. There are even metal valve stem extensions that can be attached to a short valve stem on an inside dual to enable servicing.

One advantage of metal valve stems is that they aren’t going to crack and fail in the same way that rubber valve stems will. A while back 6 million rubber valve stems manufactured in China were recalled because of an increased danger of failing and letting the air out of tires while traveling at high speeds. That’s not a danger with valve stems made from metal.

For more information about metal valve stems