MTFCA Forum

I have a friend who just received his new Hartford tubes with rubber valve stems. He needs to know if they will fit through the wood felloe of his wheels? I know the ones made in this country ten or more years ago would not. That's really a shame too, because when Firestone and Monkey Ward were making tubes, they would fit.

I have had no problems w/ the Harford tubes myself--fit well, seemed to be of good construction and thickness.

Those rubber stems won't fit into the felloe of early Ts or even the wire wheels. The rubber stem is tapered and fat at the base, can't pull it up into the clincher rim. Most everytime have to overdrill the hole for the valve stem with a step drill.

Here is a just bought new Hartford rubber stem, can't be placed in a clincher all metal felloe.


Here is a new just delivered Hartford brass stem tube, that fits great.

On this Hartford rubber stem, had to drill oversize hole, and knock out the bushing to get the tube to set fully in the tire casing and clincher rim.


Looks ok with the accessory brass cosmetic cap for rubber stems.

I wonder if they're making the stems wider. I don't recall ever having to drill a hole to make a stem fit. Or maybe I'm having an attack of Oldtimers.

Hartford Tubes like any other RUBBER stem tube availible today USE a modern stem
Stem on a taper
NO will not fit in a stock wood fellow rim
Taper reamer or drill will release the wheel
Not a hard thing to rectofy

I finally found a stick on rubber stem to salvage an otherwise excellent old stock Olympic butyl tube, the ones that hold air. it was too damaged to take a replacement clamp-in original metal stem. The taper is greater than the original rubber stem. I may have to enlarge the hole in the demountable rim. The stem may be too short to clear the steel felloe, but I have quality all brass valve stem extensions to get around that. When I fit the period correct Dill dust cover with the sliding thread, you will never know what's under it.

Allan from down under.

My friend says the Hartford tubes have the same incorrect rubber valve stems the last USA tubes had. The tubes made back in the sixties had a 1/2" rubber valve stem made by Schrader, and will fit snugly into a wood felloe. The flange of that tube says Schrader 35. It would be nice to know if Schrader still makes that 1/2 rubber valve stem?