Airing down at the trailhead brings too many advantages not to do it, but you can easily burn up 20 minutes listening to the hisssssss of your standard tire valve while you dutifully hold the tip of a screwdriver in place. There’s a better way.
After one too many extended air-down sessions, we knew that Powertank’s Monster Valves and Mini Monster Deflators would make a pivotal difference at the trailhead. Both types of valves drastically reduce the time you’ll spend adjusting air pressure and are easy to install.
What’s the difference between Monster Valves and Mini Monster Deflators? Size, utility, and cost. Monster Valves are beautifully machined from aircraft-grade aluminum in the USA. They’re called Monster Valves for good reason, as they dwarf a standard-size tire valve.
There’s a reason they’re called...
There’s a reason they’re called Monster Valves! Standard-sized valves can’t begin to match the flow rates of Monster Valves. Even though Monster Valves completely outperform standard valves, the standard tire valves still have an important function after Monster Valves are installed.
If you’ve got Monster Valves, you can air down quickly at the start of a trail, and air back up with mind-boggling speed at trail’s end. Mini Monster Deflators are made in the USA from brass, and offer a lickety-split way to air down from street pressure to trail pressure. Mini Monsters are for airing down only; you’ll use your stock tire valves to air back up. While Mini Monsters don’t have inflation advantages that Monster Valves do, they’ve got a couple of attractive features that make them the perfect solution in some situations. First, Mini Monsters are lower profile than Monster Valves. That makes them ideal for wheels that are also street-driven because they attract less attention. Second, Mini Monsters are less expensive than Monster Valves.
Whether you choose the original Monster Valves or go for the Mini Monster Deflators, you’re sure to experience monster value from these trailhead timesavers.
(Note: Powertank’s website features an excellent Monster Valve installation video.)
To air down with Monster Valves,...
To air down with Monster Valves, you unthread the red-anodized collar. There’s no need to uncover the valve core and no need to hold the valve core open with a screwdriver. Thread the anodized collar back down to lock in your desired air-down pressure.
Monster Valves call for a...
Monster Valves call for a Monster Chuck, an air chuck that’s capable of clipping onto the Monster Valves as well as capable of flowing the appropriate volume. The Monster Chuck will plug into existing airline fittings.
Both Monster Valves and Mini...
Both Monster Valves and Mini Monster Deflators use a 1/4-inch pipe thread, so you’ll need a pipe thread tap to install them into steel or aluminum wheels. Powertank carries a high-quality bright steel pipe thread tap for just this purpose. You’ll also need a selection of drill bits that step up to a 7/16-inch final size. Drill bits can be sourced locally through most hardware stores.
Mini Monster Deflators are...
Mini Monster Deflators are machined from solid brass in the USA. They’re for airing down only. Powertank offers them in a set of five under a single part number, but they’re available a la carte if you’ve got additional wheels. We needed six.
To use Mini Monsters, unthread...
To use Mini Monsters, unthread the knurled knob to release the air pressure, and thread it back down to lock the air in.
You’ll still use your stock...
You’ll still use your stock tire valve to monitor air pressure, and this clip-on liquid-filled gauge is the perfect companion for Monster Valves or Mini Monsters. Like the Powertank itself and the Monster Valves and Mini Monsters, Powertank tire gauges are made in the USA. Our 4Runner uses 40 psi for the street and anywhere between 15 and 30 psi on the trail, so we ordered the 0-to-60-psi version of the gauge. If you use higher street pressure, go for the 0-160 psi version. Either way, the clip-on valve chuck means hands-free use.
You’ll need to round up some...
You’ll need to round up some basic tools before you start. It’s also a good idea to support the chassis with a jack, even though you don’t need to lift the wheel clear of the ground. Monster Valves and Mini Monsters can both be installed with the tires mounted to the wheel and under air pressure. As you drill and tap, the internal air pressure will blow the chips away and leave you with a clean threading surface. Flying chips mean you’ll need to wear safety glasses. You’re likely to lose all your air pressure during the installation, so make sure you’ve got an air source handy. The Powertank is ideal, but if you’d rather save your CO2 for the trail you can use shop air instead.
There’s no hard and fast measurement...
There’s no hard and fast measurement for where to drill and tap the wheel, but you want to be far enough inward to avoid running into the bead bundle. See the black rubber in the center of the hole? This photo shows a big “oops.” If you’re not sure of where to drill, consider having one of your tires dismounted so you can make observations and take measurements before you start.
These American Racing Crater...
These American Racing Crater wheels are used for daily pavement duty as well as on the trail, so the stealthy Mini Monsters got the nod here. Drilling and tapping as far inward as possible worked fine, although we just barely nicked the bead in the process. With wheels like this, dismounting the tires first would have been the way to go.
These OMF-equipped Dick Cepek...
These OMF-equipped Dick Cepek DC-1 wheels are usually called on for trail duty, so we used Monster Valves on the DC-1s. Note the way that the OMF reinforcing ring shields the Monster Valve from trail debris. Before choosing our final installation spot, we made sure we had proper access for the Monster Chuck. Also note that the DC-1’s design let us install the Monster Valve right in the wheel’s drop center. This is an ideal location that’s far away from the wheel’s edge and the tire’s bead bundle.
When you’re inflating your...
When you’re inflating your Monster Valves, you’ll want to clip the hands-free pressure gauge to the stock tire valve to keep tabs on the pressure. The Monster Valve and Monster Chuck flow at such a high rate it will initially catch you off guard. Use the hands-free tire gauge when inflating or deflating with Monster Valves, and when deflating using Mini Monsters.
In addition to the Monster...
In addition to the Monster Valves and Mini Monsters, we’ve added a 2012 Powertank Comp System to our Powertank arsenal. This second system brings more flexibility when planning CO2 refills, and it means we can hit the trail with CO2 to spare and share. The new system features an upgrade to Powertank’s XP 400 Pro Series regulators, which work with either CO2 or nitrogen. The XP 400 regulators are liquid-filled for optimum shock and vibration resistance. Our original Powertank cylinder, on the left, is in good company.