Valve stem hole???

[ryan]

I laced 1981 rims on 67-72 hubs for my 1969 flh. I chose to do so because they are Harley rims and not aftermarket. They have the small safety valve holes, which the 69 had large valve stem holes.
My question is, should I drill the rims for the larger valve stem holes or just leave the holes alone.
Thanks

[hogchild71]

Ryan
Leave the rims alone. Use tubes with steel stems.
Fred

[PRG]

Howdy sir,

If I was given the option I would definitely go with the larger stem hole permitting use of the rubber stems. When you look at tube construction in this area - depending on manufacturer - you will not only see the stem is very robust but most importantly it has a vulcanized overlay to the tube around it often a couple inches in diameter reinforcing it. On the other hand, steel stems have a very small base flange bonded to the tube relying on a compression ring and nut to add integrity.

I removed a rubber stemmed tube from the rear wheel of my Knuckle that had been severely cocked and loaded on one side to the extent it had cut a groove in the stem. In 10 plus years of previous owner use it had not yielded. Yes, pre-safety rims have more of a tendency to tire creep than modern ones and, unlike smaller section width British rims, 16’s are pretty good about not doing it. Every stem yield I’ve had on road machines in the last 40 years occurred with steel stems. If you elect to drill be sure to chamfer the underside edge.

[ryan]

Thank you for both replies! I know it should not be that hard of a decision, but I keep rolling around in my thoughts about the drilled holes not having chrome on them and maybe causing the chrome to peel over time. Grant it, I would take extreme care by step drilling the through a couple layers of masking tape, drilling outside-in and using lots of coolant. I would also chamfer the inside and paint the drilled surface to protect it, but still worried about peeling.
Not too sure this matters, but I will be running a sidecar with aftermarket speedgrips on the bike and a nos speedgrip on the car.