One of the crucial bicycle parts needed for a tubeless system is the tubeless valve. The design differs from ordinary bicycle valves only in a few key points. However, due to the special airtight design, the tubeless valve allows you to ride your bike tube- and puncture-free. You can find out more here in our guide to tubeless valves.
Features Of A Tubeless Valve
Mostly Sclaverand Valves
Tubeless valves are in most cases Sclaverand valves because this type of valve has become established in cycling. This means that tubeless valves have the same properties as Sclaverand valves.
What results from this above all is the fact that tubeless valves are narrow like Sclaverand valves (6.5mm circumference). If you have a rim that is designed for wider bike valves (Dunlop or Schrader valves with 8.5mm circumference), it may therefore happen that the tubeless valve is too narrow.
Rarely, however, you can find tubeless valves with Schrader valve. These valves are wider and are therefore suitable for rims with larger rim holes. For example, NoTubes sells such special valves.
A Tubeless valve with Dunlop valve was probably not yet manufactured. If you want to convert a Dunlop rim to tubeless would be to check whether possibly a Sclaverand or Schrader valve fits in this rim. The probability that this fits but is small – because especially with tubeless the tolerances are much smaller.
Schrader valves differ only in the way of inflating – you need a bicycle pump with an auto valve hole. The vast majority of bicycle pumps also have such a valve hole – if you have a bicycle pump with two different valve holes, one of the two holes will be in any case for auto valves.
With An Unscrewable Valve Core
“Unscrewable valve core” – this is the common name for the fact that the valve core can be removed. This refers to the part in the middle of the Sclaverand valve that can be screwed open and closed. The fact that this part can also be unscrewed completely is a further distinction from ordinary Sclaverand valves.
There is a reason for this, of course. Normally, you put the sealing milk into the tire by unscrewing this valve core. But this is not the only option – you can also give the sealing milk on the inside of the tire while mounting the tire on the rim. This is necessary for MTB tires with Schrader tubeless valves. The disadvantage is that you have to let all the air out of the tire if you want to put new sealing milk in the tire.
The valve core is unscrewed with a special valve wrench for tubeless valves. This valve wrench is included with most tubeless valves or tubeless kits.
The valve core is sometimes also referred to as “valve core”.
Valve Wrench
To unscrew the valve core, you need a special valve wrench. This is usually small and made of plastic if it was included with a tubeless kit. Because this valve core may only be screwed in with very small torque – just enough so that it does not lose air.
There are also special and high-quality tools for this, for example, from Park Tool.
Build A Tubeless Valve Yourself
A tubeless valve can also be recycled simply from an old hose. However, this tube must have a removable valve core. That is, the insert in the valve must be removable to be able to fill the sealant in the tire. Alternatively, you can give your tubeless assembly the sealing milk directly when mounting the jacket in the tire. However, this is not for the “first time” with tubeless. Tips on this can be found in the tubeless assembly.
To build such a tubeless valve yourself you simply take an old bicycle tube. Cut out the valve and you can reuse this in a new tubeless project.
