Hello all,
I hope you are all keeping well in this newly changed World.

Here is a short story of a small cycling misadventure:

Yesterday I thought I would go out for a spin on my Raleigh Grand Prix. As ever, I pumped up the tubes, to get the best out of the ride. On the rear tube, as I approached what I would consider the right pressure I heard the dreaded hissing of escaping air. I faffed around for a bit, cursing throughout, before removing the rear wheel and tyre. The tube, a Sunlite 700 x 20-25, 27 x1", did not owe me anything: I have been using it and its front wheel twin, for about 8 years. The air was escaping from a small tear at the base of the valve stem, where it's glued to the tube itself. I think the small waggling around of the valve stem that happens when I use my Zefal pump had fatigued that point in the tube. The valve is a Schraeder and there is no lock nut on the valve stem. (On the Michelin tubes I used many decades ago there was a lock nut. This makes the stem position more stable.)

My wheels are 27" and have chromium-plated Sturmey Archer rims. The tyre is a 27" x 1/4" Kenda. So it seems that the failed tube was the wrong size anyway.
I have just ordered a pair Of Continental tubes, of the correct size this time. Because I wanted, for an obvious reason, to have a locknut on the valve stem I was compelled to order a tube with a Presta valve: the tubes with Schraeder valves did not have a lock nut. I also ordered a couple of Presta-to-Schraeder adapters, to give me more flexibility when needing to inflate my tyres.

Have a I made a sensible purchase? I see on the Sheldon Brown website that Presta valves are not as robust as Schraeders but they are easier to inflate.
Sheldon Brown