RCMoeur 

Whew. There's an "e" there.

smd4

You're a semi-elitist.

smd4

Something is definitely wrong. Possibly with your pump, but likely with your technique. This simply shouldn't be happening. Presta valves don't leak unless something is pushing down on the valve head. And this wouldn't happen using a proper chuck.

tFUnK

Sounds like there's at least some user error with the original pump but I love Lezyne and have two floor pumps for the house/garage and one mini pump for the ride. Never have to guess again whether I've got a good seal. Some regular flip chucks work great initially but over time the seal wears out and it becomes finicky. To be fair the Lezyne threaded chucks can wear out too but it takes longer to wear in my experience and they're easy to replace when needed.

shelbyfv

May be obvious to most, but a pump with a flexible hose can usually accept other brands of head with the help of a small worm gear hose clamp.

Iride01 

Perhaps the OP is pushing the air chuck too far down on the valve before moving the locking lever. The air chuck shouldn't engage the presta valve core at all. At least not on the ones that I've used. Air pressure alone is all that is needed to open the presta valve once it's unscrewed. It is a good habit to burp the valve prior to putting the air chuck on as sometimes they get sticky.

smd4

Funny you should mention that. I, too, always tap the presta valve once unscrewed, but in decades of doing this on my bike and others', not once has the valve been sticky. I don't know why I continue to do it, but I do. Probably another old bike wives' tale.

Iride01 

Not a wives' tale. I finally after all these years currently have a presta valve core that is sticky. Don't know why but it is. If I forget to burp it, then I have to put all my 175 lbs on the pump to get it to open. And that's not easy to do, so I usually take off the air chuck and burp it like I should have done originally.

shelbyfv

I always burp the valve and assumed everyone did until a friend was having (now that I remember) maybe the same issue as OP. Good call and maybe that will solve OP's problem.

rollagain

Try replacing the valve core?

urbanknight

While I would personally follow your advice and not drill out a hole, beng1 's claim that it has lasted 20 years seems to suggest it's not that big of an issue. I have seen rim models offer both presta and schrader versions, so I imagine at least those would be capable of being drilled out (if done properly).

RCMoeur 

I've used a Schrader-drilled narrow Rigida 1320 for 40+ years around here, along with other narrow rims (Mavic, Alex, Weinmann, etc.) with holes for chubby valves.

Several of these rims have failed, but at a sidewall or spoke hole, not at the valve hole.

urbanknight

I meant to respond to terrymorse 's comment about people drilling it out themselves at home, but yeah I get it.

terrymorse 

Based on photos of beng1 bikes, he's probably drilling out cheaper rims with plenty of metal to spare. Lucky for him.

But not all rims are beefy, and aluminum in particular doesn't last long when highly stressed. I repeat my caution against drilling out rims. Especially a lightweight road rim, such as the Mavic MA40:



Mavic Ma40 rim cross section

Of course, there will always be the requisite "I did this and it didn't fail" responses. Personally, I would not take the chance on such a repetitively stressed part.

urbanknight

Good point. It's a risk no matter who you are, but I would hope anyone attempting it would at least know what they're doing. I don't, so I won't.

ExtremeSquared

There is no realistic weakening from widening a hole in any but the narrowest road rims.

It's pretty common on the touring side of things for the sake of replacement tube compatibility, and touring loads push wheel components to their limits.

However, I personally recommend this over a drill. "Hand reamer." Hand reaming from presta to tight schraeder takes two minutes if you're being careful.

JenkemSuperfan

Can't quite because I'm new. An earlier user mentioned an adapter to use air chucks with frame pumps, where could I find one?

ExtremeSquared

Vaguely related to the original question...
Crank bros makes a screw on presta mini pump, sort of.
The hose-pump interface is click-in magnetic, so you just screw the whole mini hose onto the valve, then attach it to pump.
I'm testing the reliability of this pump now. It's hard to say whether it's a good / durable design.

rekmeyata

Lezyne floor and mini pumps are the best for the money, followed by Topeak. Sure, Silca makes a great pump, but they start at $150, whereas with the Lezyne you can get a similar quality steel floor pump for half the cost of the Silca, and like the Silca it's rebuildable. Lezyne mini pumps are the best in the world, they pump up tires faster than the competitors using less strokes to do so. If you want a frame pump, go with the Topeak Road Masterblaster, the Zefal frame pump was probably a tad better but it's no longer being made, and the Silca offering is way overboard on price. With a frame pump you do have to measure your frames inside dimensions from the seat tube to the headtube to get the correct fit.

79pmooney

See my post #24, last page.

rc5781

I can't believe I'm quoting and agreeing with shelbyfv but for presta valves I use a press-on with locking lever and it has never failed me.

May I recommend this based on a quick search from one of my favorite vendors:

https://www.walmart.com/ip/AUDEW-Bik...5?from=/search

sean.hwy

I have this pump to mount my tubeless tires. It works great for that. It screws onto the presta valve like you want. If I am not trying to seat my tubeless tires I never use this pump though. I find it a hassle to screw on the presta valve vs the other floor pumps that just kind on cinch down over the valve. This might work for your tire though.



Digital Pressure Over Drive 2.5