The Honda PCX / Forza / ADV150 / SH Forums

Seems a really dumb question, but I can't fit a nice bike pump on the valve stem. That would be the simplest, cheapest way to top off tire pressure while the tires are cold at home. I went to a gas station and couldn't get the straight chuck on the stem. No room. I forced it, but then the pin in the stem got stuck open and bled the tire down to 10 pounds before I managed to stop it. You'd think after so many years of making small scooter wheels Honda would have a solution.

I looked at 90 degree stems on Amazon and some reviewers say they don't work with the rubber stems.

Thanks.

My gas station has a flex head that fits fine. I over inflate by 5 lbs or so and then used a race gauge with flex head with a deflator button to bring it back down to exactly the psi that i want.

Topping off the rear tire use to be a p.i.t.a.
Now I have two pumps that work:
1. A portable Slime pump with a chuck that Fits. See it on this thread: http://www.hondapcx.org/viewtopic.php?f ... t=air+pump

2. The other is a Black and Decker pump with a chuck that Fits. Model ASI500.
Both pumps have a smaller chuck lever. Nice! Easy!

This video shows the B&D pump:

Once the tyre is filled with air after fitting, I never check them.

gn2 wrote:Once the tyre is filled with air after fitting, I never check them.

Both tires were replaced a week and 200ish miles earlier and filled to 29/36 F/R. I checked them because they felt sluggish cornering and were really easy to balance at a stop light. Track stand on a scooter. Front was 24, rear was 26.

My rear goes down about 4-7 psi every few months and the front a couple of bar so worth checking every few months if not sooner. I use a portable 12v inflator and it works like a charm (bought one with an accurate guage). Fed up with the air pumps at local garages being out of service when I needed them.

gn2 wrote:Once the tyre is filled with air after fitting, I never check them.

I hope you're being facetious.

For myself, I check the pressures at least weekly. This helps avoid any issues.

I have a little foot pump at home and access to a regular air compressor at school. I also have my own air chuck and slide dryly air pressure gauge. It's a bit of a tight fit to get in at those valve stems, but I've managed so far.

honkerman wrote:I hope you're being facetious.

Nope.
I don't check tyres unless they start to look or feel soft.
Checking them lets air out.
If you don't check them the air stays in.
Other things I never check: oil level, coolant level, spark plug gap.
TBH I just don't do maintenance, I bought it to ride it, not fart around with it.

gn2 wrote:

honkerman wrote:I hope you're being facetious.

Nope.
I don't check tyres unless they start to look or feel soft.
Checking them lets air out.
If you don't check them the air stays in.
Other things I never check: oil level, coolant level, spark plug gap.
TBH I just don't do maintenance, I bought it to ride it, not fart around with it.

Well, it's your bike, you have to do what you think best. Personally, I'd rather be safe than sorry, so I err on the side of caution. I also put at least 320 miles on my scooters (between the two) every week for commuting, not including pleasure rides on the weekends. Most of these miles are on the PCX. Checking the air periodically is cheap insurance and an easy thing to do. I check the oil every thousand miles or so, and since the coolant reservoir is right there, it gets checked almost every time I lift the seat.

To be fair, your approach is pretty common for the majority of motorcyclists. It doesn't necessarily put the rider in immediate danger, but neglecting the little things can mean more wear and tear on the the various parts of the bike over time. I'm sure you know this and if you're comfortable with that, it's your bike and your money. I personally prefer not to waste money on repairs and parts I could have prevented by taking just a minute or two out of the day once a week or so just to check things over.

Lanesplitter wrote:Seems a really dumb question, but I can't fit a nice bike pump on the valve stem. That would be the simplest, cheapest way to top off tire pressure while the tires are cold at home. I went to a gas station and couldn't get the straight chuck on the stem. No room. I forced it, but then the pin in the stem got stuck open and bled the tire down to 10 pounds before I managed to stop it. You'd think after so many years of making small scooter wheels Honda would have a solution.

I looked at 90 degree stems on Amazon and some reviewers say they don't work with the rubber stems.

Thanks.

Yup, I had this problem and got an angled stem on Amazon and it didn't work.

But eventually I got my bicycle pump to work by opening the lever to the other side.

It's not obvious, but the wheel opening near the stem is asymmetric. It's still tight, but doable.

I find I lose a bit of air when the tire chunks against potholes, so I need to check and refill them fairly often.

My tyres always look and feel 'hard' but after several months, as stated, they lose air. When I fill them up I've learnt to put a few psi in extra as removing the portable inflators pipe lets out a couple of PSI (I checked this several times and that was always the case, a few and not more).
Some tyres/valves may not lose pressure, but many do. I check the oil every 3 or so months and the engine only loses a little so no need usually to top up between changes (once a year as I do just over 4000/yr).

gn2 wrote:

honkerman wrote:I hope you're being facetious.

Nope.
I don't check tyres unless they start to look or feel soft.
Checking them lets air out.
If you don't check them the air stays in.
Other things I never check: oil level, coolant level, spark plug gap.
TBH I just don't do maintenance, I bought it to ride it, not fart around with it.

homie wrote:

gn2 wrote:

honkerman wrote:I hope you're being facetious.

Nope.
I don't check tyres unless they start to look or feel soft.
Checking them lets air out.
If you don't check them the air stays in.
Other things I never check: oil level, coolant level, spark plug gap.
TBH I just don't do maintenance, I bought it to ride it, not fart around with it.

This reminds me...I do fart around on my PCX now that it has the new exhaust.

DailyRider wrote:

Lanesplitter wrote:Seems a really dumb question, but I can't fit a nice bike pump on the valve stem. That would be the simplest, cheapest way to top off tire pressure while the tires are cold at home. I went to a gas station and couldn't get the straight chuck on the stem. No room. I forced it, but then the pin in the stem got stuck open and bled the tire down to 10 pounds before I managed to stop it. You'd think after so many years of making small scooter wheels Honda would have a solution.

I looked at 90 degree stems on Amazon and some reviewers say they don't work with the rubber stems.

Thanks.

Yup, I had this problem and got an angled stem on Amazon and it didn't work.

But eventually I got my bicycle pump to work by opening the lever to the other side.

It's not obvious, but the wheel opening near the stem is asymmetric. It's still tight, but doable.

I find I lose a bit of air when the tire chunks against potholes, so I need to check and refill them fairly often.

I've read that using 90 degree stems will offset the balance of the rim/wheel. Is there truth to that? I refrained from doing that for that reason.
I solved the problem by using either of the above pumps I mentioned.
I turn the rear tire till the valve stem is at the 4 o'clock position (the stem is easily accessible).
I just got this air guage from Roadgear, it's perfect (imo) in every way!
http://roadgear.com/programmable-digita ... -p-41.html

I doubt it will matter at the speeds we run....

Be responsible to yourself and to others. Care.

Keep your tires inflated to the proper level.
PCX front 29psi - rear 33psi (check your manual if you carry a passenger, add stated psi).

I do not lose air when I check my pressure. A very good tire guage and a bit of experience keeps this from happening to me. I may hear a "psst" of air but that's about it! I certainly didn't lose a pound in that short "psst!" In total, I maintain 13 tires at proper inflation. Experience is the best teacher

My PCX tires get checked before each ride and topped off when necessary. Front loses more quickly than rear. If you have the right tools the job's done in no time.
Be safe, and not sorry....top them off, ride your machine and get where you're going
Your Life..."LIVE" It!

gn2,....Really? Yer tires are gonna "fart!"

gn2 wrote:

honkerman wrote:I hope you're being facetious.

Nope.
I don't check tyres unless they start to look or feel soft.
Checking them lets air out.
If you don't check them the air stays in.
Other things I never check: oil level, coolant level, spark plug gap.
TBH I just don't do maintenance, I bought it to ride it, not fart around with it.

Other opinions are available.

I check my tyres about every two weeks and usually they are down a couple of pounds. I use a standing bike pump with a universal valve fitting to bring them up to pressure.

If the rear tyre is down more than a couple of pounds the ride feels squirmy, it's particularly noticeable when cornering. Not a good feeling.

Riding home from work a couple of weeks after I got her, I noticed that Natasha seemed a little "mushy" in turns and when on uneven pavement. Sort of like the tire "skipped" to the side about 1/4" or so when riding over a crack. This troubled me a little, as it felt somewhat unstable. So I stopped at a quickie mart to add a little to the tire pressure. After going to four different places upon discovering that it takes $1.25 just to get the thing to come on where one can check pressure, much less add air, I was getting a little frustrated. So I went the next morning to Home Depot, and got this:

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-120-Vo ... lsrc=aw.ds

Never had a bit of problem since, and it works quite well. The gauge seems accurate, (it tracks with my regular pressure gauge) and it's always at the ready.

Is this a US thing - only hear of problems filling up tyres from US garages