Presta>Schrader Or Presta Gauge? | Workshop | Road | Forums - BikeRadar

Deisel Weisel · **Posted** Fri Nov 6, 2009 7:08 pm

I’ve got a rear puncture on my fitness bike. Sad

Tyres and tubes are about 15-20 years old, but I can’t afford to replace both tyres/tubes, so I’ve checked the tyre and it looks okay, so I’ll be replacing just the rear innertube.

Tyres are 37-622, which I think equates to 700-35? Apart from being so old, a contributing factor might have been me pumping them up too hard. Didn’t have a pressure gauge and didn’t know what pressure anyway. Now I’ve examined the tyre up close, I’ve found ’55 psi’ on them.

So the question is: do I get a Presta gauge (about £8 ) or get those Presta> Schrader convertors (been quoted £4 a pair), and use my car footpump and accurate car tyre gauge?

karlmoreton · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 9:34 am

presta gauge, with presta>shreader converter fitted, schreader gauge plunger might not reach presta valve let air out/record pressure.

Hope that makes sense, if not you'll end up buying both costing more in the long run.

Also the easier it is to check pressures, without fitting adapters that might get lost etc, the more regularly you are likely to check them. This means less punctures/rim/tyre damage so better all round. Very Happy

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andrew_s · **Posted** Sun Nov 8, 2009 12:02 pm

Having the tyres pumped too hard won't cause a puncture - it was probably just bad luck, and a bit of glass.
Check the tyre carefully for embedded glass, thorns or stuff, otherwise you may well just find that the replacement tube just punctures too.. If you do this as soon as you remove the punctured tube, you can find the hole in the tube and only have a short section of tyre to check (or two sections if you lost track of which way round the tube was).

In the long run, you are probably best off getting a proper bike pump with a gauge (like this), and training your thumb in what the right pressure feels like.
Too hard may blow the tyre off the rim, so the tube explodes with a bang, but the pressure would have to be much too high (well over 100psi, probably). Too soft will result in pinch punctures, where the tube gets trapped between the rim and the edge of a pothole and bitten through, and can also result in the edge of the rim wearing through the side of the tyre. It also makes random glass punctures etc a bit more likely as the tyre contacts the road over a wider track so you are less likely to miss the glass.

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