Inner Tube Valve Stem Caps

[Dan Case]

Instead of high jacking the racing stem caps for sale thread,

https://www.saac.com/forum/index.php?topic=30790.0

I moved my comments over to the CSX2000 Series car section.

Cobra wise, street tires, black plastic caps were standard. That said, from the first production Cobra to the last customers could and did at times order race tires for street use. The whole topic of Cobras and original tires is very complicated. There were multiple street and multiple race tires made in England or America, while most were made in the U.S.A.

Valve stem caps were a Goodyear Tire and Rubber Company detail. Caps came with inner tubes and Cobras street and race, wire wheel or magnesium wheel, used inner tubes. Goodyear racing inner tubes were specifically marked heavy duty models and came with military specification metal caps with internal seal. You will see these caps in new race car pictures of Cobras and other Shelby American prepared racers. We find them in low mile unrestored Cobra tire and wheel sets when race tires were included.  They were widely used in civilian and military aviation inner tubes. In the 1970s and later I occasionally found the same model of Scharder® cap used in industrial hydraulic accumulator assemblies for high pressure nitrogen gas bladders. In the Schrader brand I was aware of the MADE IN U.S.A. marked caps connected with Cobras. A very knowledgeable historian told me that when GT40s received British made inner tubes during construction, there was a MADE IN ENGLAND marked version of the metal cap we are discussing. I have not had one of those in hand to study.

What valve stem caps were used on the Goodyear brand G8® tires used as standard equipment in Cobras before the middle of the CSX2101-CSX2200 contract, I have no idea.

Decades ago I obtained the entire spare wheel with a 7.35x15 low profile (thinks 65 series) speed rated American made Goodyear 7.35X15 3•T POWER CUSHION tire (see end note) still mounted. The early 1964 model Cobra was purchased with racing in mind and was said to have been converted to a racer immediately. The spare wheel got set aside for decades until I obtained it. It is the only original Cobra wire wheel and tire set I have had access to that MIGHT never had its air stem cap removed until I removed it for a picture session. Not a surprise really, it had a Schrader® brand black plastic cap on the valve stem. (Side Bar: A vendor has been selling new old stock ones like it on eBay® recently.)  When Dave Riley and Steven Juliano recommissioned CSX2416, Steven traded me out of the spare wheel assembly for that car. Before it left, I took a picture of the balance weight on the assembly.  Right or wrong, with only mint condition spare tire sample to go by, I obtained some new old stock Schrader black caps for our cars in case they ever get reworked. One cap goes with the one new old stock 1964-65 Cobra tire I found decades ago.



End note: There were three slightly different drawings for three slightly different molds used in two different tire manufacturing plants in two different states to make these special tires. There was also a British made version that showed up very late near the end of Cobra production.