Thread: Stoke to Broke: sheared schrader valve woes

long story short...

Stoke!
Finally found a sweet deal on an 07 Enduro SL, my size and my budget (cheap...)
ive been slowly going through it last few months, repacked bearings, fresh oil, slick honey, etc...

Broke!
went to check fork "spike valve" psi, and hear a hiss... valve threads sheared right off when i unscrewed the cap...
Specialized E150 fork, (XL frame, 1 inch extended end cap), 08 fork internals, compression/rebound cartridge side
sheared the threads right where the internal ones for the valve stem stop




options i see

1. local spec ed dealer wants $150ish for a new cartridge, way outside my budget...
2. possibly found a blown cartridge from a dude on empty beer for $30, waiting on pics and more info from him, about a week till he gets back to me with info
3. valve extender with internal valve? does this exist? only ones i can find extend the current valve and dont have their own internally
4. machine shop, new internal threads for valve core, machinist wasnt convinced it would work but willing to try
5. jb weld, clean up threads, throw valve core back in, maybe put a sleeve over the sheared portion and throw the extender on to air it up, see what happens...
6. other thoughts???

bike gurus input appreciated!

Did you call Specialized directly or try a different dealer? In my experience, Specialized is willing to bend over backwards to keep customers happy with stuff like this, even outside of warranty. I've seen people (as in more than one) bring a bike in for a busted frame that was several years outside of warranty coverage (rear triangle) and Specialized replaced it with the latest equivalent frame. In one instance, a guy brought in a 2002ish Enduro for a broken chainstay and it was replaced with a 2008 Stumpjumper (current model when I worked there).

clean up the remaining external threads on the valve and screw on a schraeder valve extension. Seems like it'd work fine.

an extension like this would probably work: http://www.motionpro.com/motorcycle/partno/08-0132

maybe use some teflon tape on the threads to help get a better seal.

otherwise, I like #4.

Originally Posted by toast2266

maybe use some teflon tape on the threads to help get a better seal.

Rectorseal is better than teflon tape.

dickey - didnt try direct route, im in pretty good with my local spec. shop and best he could do was a full cartridge, no parts available anymore, im not the original owner and the warranty expired last year on the suspension bits on this bike... will try another shop though and fire off an email and phone call as well

toast - thats basically the same extension i have, top right in second pic, no valve inside it, it just pushes on the existing (or not in my case) valve to open/close it, if you know of any with an actual valve i would be stoked though!

machinist wasnt super convinced it would work, he was concerned since the internal threads actually come out from the internal diameter of the cap, so cutting new ones there isnt enough material to make much threading

to make matters worse my buddy has been taunting me with his new ibis mojo hd all week
finally some nice weather and i cant even get a first ride in on this damn thing, ugh...

Originally Posted by forty

toast - thats basically the same extension i have, top right in second pic, no valve inside it, it just pushes on the existing (or not in my case) valve to open/close it, if you know of any with an actual valve i would be stoked though!

machinist wasnt super convinced it would work, he was concerned since the internal threads actually come out from the internal diameter of the cap, so cutting new ones there isnt enough material to make much threading

ahh, gotcha. Could you cut internal threads for the valve into the extension, rather than into the broken fork piece itself?

that thought also crossed my mind, although i cant figure out how to gut the extender to tell, im pretty sure its fairly hollow inside and wouldnt allow any threads to be cut, it feels like crap metal as well...

all good ideas, keep them coming if you have more

found a brass extender with valve inside, but now how the hell do i adapt it...
sunshine this weekend, not stoked to have the bike out of commission
insight form gurus???

Is that brass extender designed to screw into the female threads of a schraeder valve, or onto the male threads of a presta? I'm assuming the former or you'd have screwed it on and would be out riding right now.

The high risk answer is to cut the original valve stem to a point at or just below hwere it reaches its maximum diameter, bore out to teh appropriate diameter, then tap new threads to fit the adapter. If this fails, you are totally and completely screwed because you will have destroyed what's left of your valve stem.

Are the remaining threads on your stem the same diameter and pitch as the threads on the adapter? If so, you could try to find a threaded rod connector (like this: this, also called a coupling. It's theoretically possible you'd find such a thing at your local hardware store. You need the connection to be air tight under pressure, so teflon type tape is the very least you would need, and if it were me, I'd probably look into pipe dope used on natural gas lines, pluse an o-ring sandwiched between stem and adapter (or just epoxy it all together, epoxy solves everything).

brass is larger than it looks, larger threads are same diameter as the inch long extension portion of the broken end cap valve
one side is 1/4'' threads (larger) and other is standard schrader
a 1/4'' to schrader coupler would be prrrrrfect...

modifying the broken end valve is last on my list, would rather add to it then take away from it

empty beer guy sent me pics, has almost the right part, his doesnt have the inch of extension before the end valve, from a smaller size frame...

im guessing i could use it fine and then run a valve extension with a nut on the end to basically act as a stack height adjustment, does that sound plausible?

Tap the inside of the 1/4" end to schraeder dimensions. According to wiki a schrader valve has a .305" outside diameter tapped at 32 TPI. If you can find a tap in that size, I'm sure there's plenty of folks here can talk you through tapping a hole.

Mags to the rescue!!!
JoshP hooked it up!

E150 for parts, AFR shock, and 60/70(?)mm stem showed up tuesday


Rebuilt fork, fresh oil, slick honey, and a valve that holds air!
Swapped my 08 high volume AFR can for the 07 smaller one and gave the shock some love
Switched the 100mm stem with the shorter one, perfect with the new 720 bars

The result...


Took a pedal around the block to get a rough sag/pressure setup, fork is butter, shocks plush with a linear ramp up in open and decent platform when firmed up, steering feels sweet
Need to bleed the brakes and dial in the 2x9 front d' swap, taking it on a short lap tonight to get things sorted then planning a solid ride for the weekend
STOKED!

I cant thank Josh enough, hope some Karma comes your way, earned it!



...If anyone with an E150 stumbles upon this thread and is in need of parts/info/etc get in touch, it was a pita to track down and I have an abundance of parts now if they are of use to others...