|
|
1" Steel Threaded Headsets. What a concept!
Last Post 08/03/2014 11:57 PM by 79 pmooney. 7 Replies.
|
Sort:
|
|
 Prev Next |
You are not authorized to post a reply. |
|
79pmooney
Posts:3180
 |
| 08/03/2014 01:07 AM |
|
I just took out the threaded collet-style Chris King out of my good ti fixie. That headset had been driving me nuts. It took thousands of miles for the seals to loosen up enough for really confident no-handing, yet every few hundred miles I had to tighten the bearings or listen to it jarring every time I hit rough road. And yes, it could be me and my ineptitude with this headset that was similar to adjust to a conventional headset but quite different in concept. But the adjustments made by pro mechanics and the Chris King factory (they are right here in Portland) went the same distances.
Went to replace it with a new $33 Tange Levine I had, Got the headtube cup and cone on, then found the fork crown I had was a 27mm and I needed a 26.4mm. The shop I called (that knows headsets very well, they rebuild older bikes) didn't have a Levine in 26.4 but had the lesser model, also with the seals at half the price. Since even the $8 OEM with no seals at all is also a quality headset (as long as you keep the dirt and water out), I was OK with that.
Ended up leaving the Levine top race intact. the mid-price bottom race intact, then finding a very tall aluminum Tange locknut in my box to accommodate more steerer stack than I had washers for. Complete mishmash. Tightened the cup by hand to what felt right, tightened down the locknut. Still felt right. Test ride? No rattle at all, perfect no hands. 20 miles later, still perfect.
So, what do I end up with? A headset that costs far less than the King. One that adjusts first try to perfect and that I can expect to need to do nothing with until next spring. (Actually that is not true. In a week or two, I will break it down and replace the retainer and balls with loose balls bedded in LOTS of boat trailer grease.) That should go an easy 5-10,000 miles with perhaps couple of adjustments.
And the moral of this story? I should have requested a Tange Levine headset to start with when I ordered the frame in place of the standard King. Even if I couldn't get a price break for a headset that costs 1/3 as much. Then the steerer would be cut to that headset and stack would never be an issue. I put a Tange Levine in my Trek commuter in its early years. I have done most of 16,000 on that headset. Probably adjusted it twice.
The day will come when I will have the good ti bike steerer threaded and cut down. I will see if I can have Ticycles make a faceplated quill stem. Then I will have the best of all worlds. Easy bar on and off. leaving wrappings and levers in place, really quick, easy stem height adjust and a trouble free, almost adjustment free headset. Drawbacks. Well you need two quality 12" headset wrenches; well under the price difference between a "good" headset and the Tange.
Ben
|
|
|
|
|
dkri
Posts:95
|
| 08/03/2014 11:30 AM |
|
For Road, headset bearings are almost incidental. My bike is probably 15,000 miles old, it's on it's second headset. Just a good, but not fancy, OEM bearing set. Threadless. 1.125" top, 1.25" bottom. Takes about five minutes and a crisp new $20 bill to replace every several years.
On the other hand, I've gone to a mountain bike race with a brand-new headset, and left a few hours later with a completely unusable one. In that venue, the extra splash for a real good one is worth it. But you're still going to replace them way more frequently than you would on the road. |
|
| formerly dkri |
|
|
79pmooney
Posts:3180
|
| 08/03/2014 12:39 PM |
|
dkri, my gripe with the new road headsets I have used so far is about how often I have to adjust them. I or others adjusted the King collet-style (Gripnut?) HS probably 20 times or more in 8000 miles and was ridden many miles not quite in adjustment. The threadless HS on my good bike requires adjustment every time I move the stem spacers, ie 2-6 times a year. Times 6 years? That's about 2 dozen adjustments.
So in 16,000 miles, I have done close to 50 adjustments on these two bikes! On my Peter Mooney I have done probably 15. And that would include a fork bending crash, a new fork a year later and 30 years of use. (46,000 miles.) The rest of my bikes are not that different from the Mooney. Twice a year if it is getting ridden a lot and acting cranky. Most of my bike I have no idea when I did it last.
Yeah, I know that if I just left my threadless stem height the same, I could eliminate quite a few of those adjustments. But bar height is just one of those adjustments that wants to change a lot. For different levels of conditioning, for different rides. Over one hundred miles, bars go up a cm. Really windy, down. Cycle Oregon, solidly in the middle. Those rides could all be in the same month. That's more HS adjustments than I used to do all year on my racing bike when I was putting on the long miles.
Rant, rant. I know. Retrogrouch here. But I keep discovering that a lot of the things that were done virtually unchanged for a century were actually pretty darn good. (Not all and I will never go to some of the now fad old style stuff when it makes my riding worse. Riveted all leather seats. Not under my butt! Campy single pivot NR speed adjusters? No. But quality toeclips, straps and slotted cleats for the fixie instead of any new system? Yeah!
Ben |
|
|
|
|
longslowdistance
Posts:2881
|
| 08/03/2014 01:07 PM |
|
| Ben, your experience is different than mine. I just about never touch my headsets unless swapping stems, despite riding rough roads in rough weather and being a heavier than average rider. In fact, I'd put the ahead set up there with index shifting, clipless pedals and brifters as the top improvements in road bicycle technology in the last 50 years. I guess YMMV. |
|
|
|
|
79pmooney
Posts:3180
|
| 08/03/2014 01:35 PM |
|
lsd, can you swap spacers, moving them from under to over to lower your stem without fussing with the headset? I do that all the time and hate getting a few blocks into a ride and finding the HS isn't quite perfect. And yeah, I could do this the night before and do a test ride, but just to change my stem height? That's BS in my book. If I were a pro and had a mechanic to do this, OK. But I like to ride. And I like to be able to pull out a hex wrench mid-ride and make fit improvements. Change stem heights, seat tilt, etc, without it being a big issue. All this was easy 40 years ago. We did it as racers. Post winter bike dial in. After crashes, etc. (Granted, we had to have the Campy "Z" wrench for the seat, so some things are better.)
Ben |
|
|
|
|
longslowdistance
Posts:2881
|
| 08/03/2014 04:06 PM |
|
| It takes about 2 minutes total to move spacers, and about 5 minutes more to swap a stem. It's trivial. Tools needed: one or two allen keys. No test ride, hand wringing, or other fussing needed. If it's taking you longer something is wrong with your gear. |
|
|
|
|
dkri
Posts:95
|
| 08/03/2014 07:39 PM |
|
| I'm with him ^^^^ |
|
| formerly dkri |
|
|
79pmooney
Posts:3180
|
| 08/03/2014 11:57 PM |
|
I guess I do not have the touch. I never know until about 30 miles into a ride if I really got it. And if I go long enough, then find I want a threadless a hair tighter, I find I have lost all reference with the stem bolt and it is just as hit or miss as it was the first time. If you guys know a good reference to read to learn how to do them 1st try every time, I love to hear it.
With threaded headsets., it's easy. You can mark the nut and cup with tape or note the wrench positions,
Ben |
|
|
|
|
| You are not authorized to post a reply. |
|
Active Forums 4.1
|
|
No articles match criteria.
|