The Advantages of a Presta Valve Stem

In the good old days, every bike was the same; and when you had a flat, all you had to do was push your bike to the nearest gas station with an air pump and fill up your tire. Cars and bikes used the same type of valve, called a Schraeder valve. Now technology has had an impact on almost every aspect of our lives, including riding a bike. The introduction of the Presta valve stem, also called a Skinny or French valve, has made the task of pumping up your bike tire just a bit more challenging as your local gas station won't have the valve connector on their air hose. But according to some avid bike riders, the Presta valve has actually made biking, in general, better. Primarily used on road or high-performance bikes, the Presta valve has some advantages over the traditional Schraeder valve.

  1. Strength

    • Decreasing the width of the hole where the valve stem goes through the rim helps maintain the strength of the rim. The skinnier the valve stem, the smaller the hole in the rim and the less impact the stem has on the rim strength. Presta valves are much thinner than Schraeder valves. Bike racers are constantly looking for new ways to make their bikes faster. One way to increase speed is to reduce the amount of surface area of the tire actually touching the ground, which reduces friction. The way they do this is by making thinner rims. The disadvantage is that the rim gets weaker and weaker as the width goes down. A skinnier valve stem does not need as big a diameter hole to go through the rim, thus maintaining more strength. Thus, the advantage of a Presta valve.

    Durability

    • Constructed of metal, the Presta valve tends to more durable than the traditional valve which is often made of plastic. Also, the plastic cap that you need with the traditional valve (and often lose) is not necessary with the Presta valve.

    Inflation

    • Inflating a tire with a Presta valve can be easier because the force required to push the air in is lower due to the smaller diameter. If you have ever had to inflate a tire out on the trail with a small hand pump, then you will realize just how important this feature is. Also, the Presta valve does not have a spring-loaded valve so a simple pump with no valve opening device can be used.

    Drawback

    • One drawback of the Presta valve is that your local gas station's air stand won't have a valve that will fit the Presta valve. You will need to have an adapter which can be purchased at most bike shops for only a couple of dollars. For avid riders this is probably a minor inconvenience compared to the advantages provided.