Friday, July 25, 2014

What's Up with Black Caps on Bicycle Tubes?

For a pretty price you can order all kinds of interesting Schrader and Presta caps.
Most of these are courtesy of Amazon, in case any in this collection appeal to you.
A hula girl on your bike, perhaps?
It's inevitable that whenever I pump a tire or change a tube I misplace the black valve stem cap. The cap is camouflaged on asphalt or, in the case of on the road repair, lost among grass. I'm often in a panic, running late for an appointment so I extract the stand up pump (heaven forbid I leave without adequate air pressure!), unscrew the cap, toss it on the garage floor, and quickly inflate my tires. It's no wonder caps are lost.

I understand why tubes are black. But could suppliers provide colored caps? They wouldn't have to match between wheels, just be offered in another color, not black or grey. And, for that matter, would you pay extra—presuming colors cost more to manufacture—for this option? I'd gladly pay 50 cents more per tube to keep caps on my bicycles.

9 comments:

  1. That's a good idea. I wouldn't pay no 50 cents for them though. Maybe 10. I would find a way to lose them anyway, I bet.

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  2. There are some really fun cupcakes, ladybug, and other fun ones available here: http://www.bikebelle.com/kategoria/26/valve_caps.html I've not ordered from them, but they seem really bright and different. Pricey? Yes, but fun too. :O)

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  3. Schwalbe ones are clear plastic. As in: totally invisible on *everything*!

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  4. I have a few of those pictured that I purchased at my LBS. I've also made my own from various objects and I've painted the standard black ones.
    I wouldn't want to pay extra for color when purchasing a tube though.

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    Replies
    1. What kind of paint do you use on the caps? That sounds like a great solution.

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  5. Don't bother with caps anymore, presta ones anyway.

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    Replies
    1. It's funny, but though I know it's unnecessary to use caps, I like using them - If I can manage to not lose them!

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  6. Perhaps a splash of some cheap colorful nail polish on your caps would help. I often use nail polish as cheap touch up "paint" to keep the paint chips on the frame I clean up from rusting again. Maybe a splash of color on the tube cap would make it more "discoverable".

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