Tyre pressure problem

[HENK]

Hi,
I have recently purchased a Dutch city bike. Using a track pump I inflated the front tyre to the correct 55 psi however when I tried inflating the rear tyre the pressure needle on my pump gauge just drops down to zero at each stroke? The valves are pictured. I've tried swapping the valves around and re-attaching the pump head but nothing helps?????☹

 

[Tim Hall]

That looks like a Woods valve. @mjr is the person for those.

 

[Pat "5mph"]

Hi and to CC.
I think you might have a puncture.
Either that, or you have not opened the valve enough, or not pushed the pump head far enough into the valve.
Some pumps are easier to use than others!
Would you like me to move this to the mechanics forum?

 

[mjr]

Good old woods valves. They're brilliant because the air doesn't ever have to come out the way it goes in. As with other sorts, pressure dropping to zero usually means the pump head isn't getting a firm seal on the valve, or a really bad puncture. Usually, a Presta/French/Road pump head will attach fine to a Woods valve, but a few won't. For those, you can either put a woods-to- Schrader adapter on and use the pump in MTB mode, or replace the pump head with a better one.

Unless the tyre's flat, in which case it might be that the top/deflation collar is open. If so, tighten the collar, and then it should be possible to pump it up.

 

[mjr]

Here's how it should work:

source

 

[Cycleops]

I see a lot down here, the Chinese seem to favour them for some reason.
They are usually problem free. If your pump inflates the other one the most likely explanation is you have a puncture.

 

[HENK]

Hi and to CC.
I think you might have a puncture.
Either that, or you have not opened the valve enough, or not pushed the pump head far enough into the valve.
Some pumps are easier to use than others!
Would you like me to move this to the mechanics forum?

Yes please

 

[HENK]

I see a lot down here, the Chinese seem to favour them for some reason.
They are usually problem free. If your pump inflates the other one the most likely explanation is you have a puncture.

It's definitely not a puncture

 

[Cycleops]

In which case might just be easier to get a new tube .

 

[HENK]

Thanks. It's a brand new bike. They gave me a brass adaptor to fit the woods valve which screws into the Schrader bit on my pump. I think this is causing issues.

 

[mjr]

Thanks. It's a brand new bike. They gave me a brass adaptor to fit the woods valve which screws into the Schrader bit on my pump. I think this is causing issues.

Screw the adaptor onto the valve first, then attach the pump to that. At least that's how all adaptors I've used have worked best. They might have given you a Presta-only adaptor by mistake which could be too long to form a seal on some Woods valves but I hope not - they're pretty rare lately.

What pump is it? Can you try attaching its Presta bit?

 

[mickle]

Woods valves are pointless and stupid. I have no idea why the Dutch and others are so attached to them. Replace the tube with one with a Schrader valve and don't look back.

 

[SkipdiverJohn]

Woods valves are pointless and stupid. I have no idea why the Dutch and others are so attached to them. Replace the tube with one with a Schrader valve and don't look back.

Woods valves are old-fashioned, but they work and they tend to maintain their pressure well. You can blame the British Empire for their proliferation even today. People have got into this habit of calling upright roadster bikes "Dutch", but in reality these bikes are inspired by the English roadster, once bike design had settled down in the early 20th century. All the countries that had some sort of British Empire influence, or were a popular export market for British bikes, tended to copy our style of roadster, including the rod brakes and Woods valve tubes. The Chinese will copy anything made elsewhere if it will work and sell, hence why they are still churning them out. In the developing world, these sort of bikes are still used as everyday utility transport, often grossly overloaded.

 

[Pale Rider]

Getting a pressure reading on a Woods valve can be difficult because the air doesn't blow back in the same way other valves to give the gauge something to measure.

So you are back to the (imperfect) thumb test.

Which is fine, unless you need to know the exact psi in the tube.

 

[mjr]

Woods valves are pointless and stupid. I have no idea why the Dutch and others are so attached to them. Replace the tube with one with a Schrader valve and don't look back.

They're so popular because they work so well. The mechanical check valve on Schraders is a flaw. Also, if you have road bikes too, then you can use a single head for both Woods and Presta valves and not have to worry about flipping small parts around (possibly dropping/losing some) on convertible single-nozzle pumps.