Minutiae minute - best valve caps?

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I was out and about today and saw that I'd lost a valve cap. I don't have any spare!

Any suggestions for what I should get for a non tpms valve?

Can it possibly even matter?
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And how in [censored] did it come off in the first place?
 
Any old valve cap will do, just remember the tube of superglue, the drill bit and the dice/Lego characters/used .410 cases.

Gotta have distinctive valve caps now, dontcha?!
 
I've seen some made in USA, some Germany and some China. I'd pick the former two. However it's hit or miss what you'll find and parts stores will typically have what's cheapest.

I think toms ones are smaller by a hair - otherwise I'd say to try to find them so you have an o ring seal.
 
Originally Posted By: Olas
Any old valve cap will do, just remember the tube of superglue, the drill bit and the dice/Lego characters/used .410 cases.

Gotta have distinctive valve caps now, dontcha?!


The Porsche ones look good!
 
Originally Posted By: edwardh1
how about brands of valve stems? a neighbor has had issues with lexus rims leaking around the valve stems (blows soap bubbles


I had a wheel with a chronic leak at the valve stem. I'd have it replaced and a few months later it would be slow leaking again. I finally had the tire dismounted, removed the valve stem and cleaned the area. It looked like it was a bad casting in the valve stem area. I replaced the valve stem with one like this:

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And it hasn't leaked since.

Regarding valve caps, metal ones with a rubber seal are nice. That's what I have on my car, but my wife's just has the generic plastic caps.
 
I just stick with the ordinary plastic valve caps, after a couple painful lessons. I do like some of the metal ones, but there was a dissimilar metal issue on my G37. I checked tire pressure weekly, yet one still managed to weld itself on. The other painful lesson was the nice metal ones simply got stolen off my F-150. I have a couple hundred new plastic ones in the garage, so why I wasted time and money on something fancier, I'll never know.
 
For heaven's sake! Go buy a 4 pack (that's how they come) and take them, with the remaining 3 you have, to the pharmacy.

Have them weighed. Use the 4 which are closest in weight. Kira
 
I got the plastic ones in a bulk bag of some sort, as in the size shops buy, since that was for when the taxis were around.
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I don't think I'll ever run out. The same goes for valve cores.
 
Originally Posted By: Garak
Originally Posted By: Rand
almost all the metal ones can corrode to the threads which then requires you to dremel them off.

Or a vise grip; see above.
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The ones I were removing were on flat tires.

The valve stem would spin. The way the wheel was designed you couldnt grab the valve stem with anything strong enough to hold it (tried some small needle nose pliers)

Dremel it was.
 
I bought a 4-pack of "metal" ones (chrome-style plastic) from Kmart for 84 cents the other day. Seem solid enough.
 
Originally Posted By: Rand
Dremel it was.

Mine has TPMS, and the way it's designed it would be much harder to spin just the valve stems, which was fortunate, I guess. But, back in the day, with steel wheels, I would have just been able to remove the valve stem and start over with all new stuff.
 
My replacements come off abandoned bicycles. Seem to work

Motorcycle had stupid "bullet" style caps when I bought it.

Whoever put them on should have been shot with one.
 
I've wondered about those, too. I don't see as many on shelves since TPMS became common. I wonder how they'd work here in the winter, particularly with fluctuating temperatures and humidity levels.
 
Originally Posted By: Kira
For heaven's sake! Go buy a 4 pack (that's how they come) and take them, with the remaining 3 you have, to the pharmacy.

Have them weighed. Use the 4 which are closest in weight. Kira


I went one better.

Ebay had 20 for the same price as 4, so I'm all but assured of achieving perfect weight distribution.
 
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