Flashlight shining into an opening in a tiled shower wall, showing the brass valve body and white cartridge stem

Faucet & shower cartridges

Pfister shower cartridges: which one do you have?

6 sources checked

Quick answer

Behind most single-handle Pfister (formerly Price Pfister) tub/shower trims is one of two valve families, and their cartridges don't swap. A turn-only handle means the 0X8 pressure-balance valve and the 974-5299, which replaced 974-042. A pull-to-open handle means the 0X9 Avante valve and the 974-292. The stamp on the brass valve body confirms it.

Two valve families

Handle does this	Valve	Cartridge
Turns only	0X8 pressure-balance valve (also JX8, VB8, JV8 bodies)	974-5299 (replaces 974-042 / 974-0420)
Pull to open, turn for temperature	0X9 Avante valve (volume control)	974-292 (S74-292, 974-2920)

In Pfister's own Home Depot answers, the 0X9-010A is the pull-and-turn volume-control valve and the 0X8-310A is the turn-only pressure-balancing valve. Pfister says that to switch from one to the other you have to change the valve behind the wall.

Read the stamp on the valve

With the handle and escutcheon off, look at the brass valve body. Pfister's part pages name the bodies by their stamped codes (0X8, JX8, VB8, JV8, 0X9). That stamp beats any guess based on the trim.

What about 974-041?

People often lump 974-041 in with Pfister's shower cartridges. The two retailer listings we checked describe 974-0410 as a hot and cold cartridge for WR2-5, a two-handle Roman tub faucet, not a single-handle shower cartridge. One is a Pfister dealer; we couldn't load Pfister's own page for this part. Either way, don't buy a 974-041 for a single-handle shower until you've matched it to your model.

Retrofit trim can hide the brand

Some Pfister valves sit behind trim from another brand or behind a generic retrofit plate. Pull the trim and look at the valve stamp. If you still can't tell, start with identify your shower valve brand.

Sources

Fetched and checked 2026-10-21. Part numbers change; confirm against your own valve and the maker before buying.