C64 headset?

[wilwil]

The C64 ships with an Acros plastic headset. The compression ring has to sit right down on the bearing in order for the top cap to fit properly. This fine when there is no fork steerer running through it. I have struggled for hours to push it all the way but its just too tight. I have contacted Acros and they just said I havent pushed it into the bearing far enough. This I already know. Why cant I push it into the bearing? Its pretty crappy and Im frightened of damaging it. So is the steerer diameter out of tolerance? Unless I can solve this I can not build this bike. Am I missing a trick?

[Calnago]

Make sure the ring is nicely lubed up. Insert the fork steerer all the way, without the compression ring installed. Then slide the compression down the steertube and carefully center it slowly and evenly in the bearing. Use the flat side of a small flathead screwdriver to lightly go around the whole circumference to get it started. If you just jam in one side that will make it cockeyed and hard, or impossible, to get the other side started. Be gentle, sounds like this is your first time . Once you're certain that the entire edge circumference is started between the steerer and the bearing then just keep going around with the flat side of the screwdriver and pushing down until it's fully inserted. It should be snug.

[wilwil]

I started off being very gentle but soon got carried away! I have tried your technique. Its just too snug. I will try again. Plenty of lube by the way

[Calnago]

I suppose we can all get a bit "carried away" our first time, it can be very exciting. I just hope you didn't damage the edge of the compression ring in your eagerness to jam it in. Take a break... have a coffee... come back more relaxed and try again. Say "ooohmmmmm" out loud with your fingers raised in a cupping fashion to the stars, oh, and legs crossed.

[wilwil]

I suppose we can all get a bit "carried away" our first time, it can be very exciting. I just hope you didn't damage the edge of the compression ring in your eagerness to jam it in. Take a break... have a coffee... come back more relaxed and try again. Say "ooohmmmmm" out loud with your fingers raised in a cupping fashion to the stars, oh, and legs crossed.

I managed to push it in in the end and didnt get too over excited. It carried on sinking in on the maiden voyage so had to adjust the headset a couple of times. The gap between top cap and headtube is now about 1-1.5 mm which is much better.

[wheelsONfire]

Plastic!!?
Why not alu in such an expensive frame?

[alistaird]

I suppose we can all get a bit "carried away" our first time, it can be very exciting. I just hope you didn't damage the edge of the compression ring in your eagerness to jam it in. Take a break... have a coffee... come back more relaxed and try again. Say "ooohmmmmm" out loud with your fingers raised in a cupping fashion to the stars, oh, and legs crossed.

I managed to push it in in the end and didnt get too over excited. It carried on sinking in on the maiden voyage so had to adjust the headset a couple of times. The gap between top cap and headtube is now about 1-1.5 mm which is much better.

This is interesting - any chance you took photos of the successful install to match the two pictures earlier where you had a problem? I'm always interested to learn from these installs in case I run into similar problems.

Thanks

A

[wilwil]

Plastic!!?
Why not alu in such an expensive frame?

Just because its plastic doesn't make it cheap. I think this particular compression ring costs £12

[Calnago]

The polymer compression ring, or delrin/nylon or whatever it is made of, is an actual improvement over the alloy compression rings in that it provides a dampening effect for the steertube. But yes, when I first saw the change (on the C60), I thought the same thing, and wondered whether it would wear out faster, etc. It hasn't. It's a snug fit and seems to do what it's supposed to do, and I can certainly appreciate that the delrin edge is less likely to be the source of any stress risers where the edge meets the steertube. I've certainly seen indentations and scoring on steertubes where the compression rings have left their mark. Also, the actual flange of the upper headset cup is also made of polymer, by design, intended to reduce the shock and dampen the ride up front. That's a stretch, and I talked about it in my C64 thread, but I suppose it does provide some dampening over a solid alloy flange. Noticeable... probably not. But hey, the word of decade is "marginal", so however small of a difference it makes, I guess it counts.

[wilwil]

The ring for the C64 also has a built in seal that spreads itself across the bearing.