MTFCA Forum

In reading several strings on the various metal valve stems (Schrader, Dill etc.) I noted mention that Larry Smith had submitted articles to both club magazines, but that, at the time, they had not been printed. Were they ever printed? And if so, in which issue of which magazine?

Larry’s article “Assembling Original Metal Valve Stems to Modern Rubber Stem Tubes” is in May/June 2019 Model T Times, No.421, pages 24-25

There is this one;
http://sheepisland.com/cars/tech/metal_stems/

Ford specified 777's in later years for T's, but I believe in earlier years they used a longer one in the rear. I guess somewhere along the line they found out they didn't need to do that. Don't forget there are three companies that made the correct valve stems. Schrader, Dill, and Bridgeport. Firestone even made some. They are all good. I have no idea if Ford used Schrader exclusively. For myself, I use Schrader 888's, because they are 1/4" shorter than the 777's and are perfect for the job. They weigh less and won't throw the wheels out of balance as much.

Just to add a bit on the dust caps. The wire wheel used 3" long dust cap, as the standard valve stem stuck up higher since no thick felloe , like the wood wheel has.



Note height of the dust cap

Larry, the two valve sizes ended in October 1920 when the Ford obsoleted the larger size valve stem. That one was 3-3/8" long x 15/32" diameter (just shy of 1/2"). The remaining valve stem was exactly 3" long x 13/32". Just FYI.