Answering Rick’s CO2 Pump Question

Jim’s Tech Talk

By Jim Langley

Last week we answered three questions about CO2 pumps. Thanks for sharing your tips and recommendations in the comments. Here’s that article if you missed it. Be sure to check it out if you don’t know what a CO2 pump is because we cover that too.

Today we’re answering another related question because I should have included it in the story last week. 

“Snap connectors”

The question is a from a reader named Rick, who asked,

“The ‘snap’ connectors discussed several newsletters ago have become more interesting to me. If they are as ‘easy on – easy off’ as they appear on the video, I might consider trying them. What’s holding me back is that there doesn’t seem to be a fitting for CO2 inflators. Did I miss it somewhere?”

I didn’t understand what Rick meant by “snap connectors” so I reached out to him and he explained enough so that I can answer his question here.

My reply

I realize now Rick, that you’re talking about the new valve technologies we wrote about from Muc-Off and Schwalbe. 

Here’s that article:

New Valve Technology From Schwalbe and Muc-Off

Also, Sheri has already tested and reviewed the Muc-Off valves here (yay, Sheri!):

Muc-Off’s New Big Bore Tubeless Valves and Road & Gravel Sealant Quick Review

Muc-Off Big Bore valves

To answer your question, the Muc-Off valve is the same fit as a Schrader valve so CO2 pumps will work fine as long as you have a Schrader head/fitting for the pump.

Schrader to Presta valve adapters

If your pump is Presta-only, you just need a Schrader to Presta valve adapter that screws onto the Presta valve. Presta to Schrader adapters are easy to find. But the Schrader to Prestas aren’t as common.

The ones I use are from Cantitoe Road (about $9). Here’s a link: https://www.cantitoeroad.com/Schrader-to-Presta-valve-adapter and some photos showing how it works. Both types of valve adapters are handy to carry along on rides just in case.

Schwalbe Clik valve

As far as I can tell, the Schwalbe Clik valve is designed to be inflated with a special pump head made for the Clik valve. The good news is that it will work with a standard Presta pump head with a compressible rubber grommet inside. It will not work with a threaded pump head.

The bottom line is that you’ll be able to use CO2 pumps on these new valves, which is a good thing. Thanks for the great question Rick!

---

Jim Langley is RBR’s Technical Editor. A pro mechanic & cycling writer for more than 40 years, he’s the author of Your Home Bicycle Workshop in the RBR eBookstore. Tune in to Jim’s popular YouTube channel for wheel building & bike repair how-to’s. Jim’s also known for his cycling streak that ended in February 2022 with a total of 10,269 consecutive daily rides (28 years, 1 month and 11 days of never missing a ride). Click to read Jim’s full bio.