Originally Posted by
desconhecido
!. Presta valves are not finicky.
2. The Shrader valve is an American invention, not German, though Shrader was a German immigrant to the US.
3. As noted above, adapters are cheap and readily available and can be stored on the end of the presta valve.
4. The thing I find better about the presta is that one need not compress a spring in order to get air into the tube and it is, in my opinion, easier to get a hand pump to work.
I see no advantage to the Shrader at all.
Yes, you're right, Mr. (Herr) Schrader was a naturalized citizen of the U.S.
I've never FUBAR'd a Schrader valve, but I have a Presta. It's overly delicate and complicated IMNSHO. It works, they have some advantages, but I've found the Shrader to be more robust.
The spring in the Shrader is tiny... you have trouble compressing it? Weird. Might just be a difference in what you're used to, I don't know. I grew up with Schrader's on everything and adapted to the occasional Presta when they began to spread like mold. I have more trouble getting those things lined up and functioning properly, though I know that's just because I've used them far less.