Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - headtube/headset noises?

ive noticed that when lifting up the front end of my bike a little and dropping it down lightly to bounce the front tire a bit there is some noise, a reverberation type deal. it's been making it when riding on bumpy potholey roads, etc. it simply doesn't feel solid and its such a recent thing. i've isolated the sound to be coming from the front end, headtube/headset area. anyone have suggestions on what it might be? (i know this is a silly question since a lot of troubleshooting is being there, hearing it and seeing it, etc...) from what i gather, it could just be a tightening of the headset that will fix it, although is there any risk of damage by over-tightening? what i am worried about is that the steerer tube of the fork is banging around in the headtube causing this noise, and with each bump comes more deformities in the shape of the tubing. has anyone ran into something similar? the sound of a creaky frame worries me. thanks in advance.

sounds like a loose headset.
- grab a fistful of front brake.
- rock bike back and forth
- do you feel wobbling? or hear clunking? yes? diagnosis: loose headset.

no front brake to test that on, but i've experimented with other ways of finding the problem. wobbling, yes. clunking, a bit. what i did was lift the front up so its verticle, on the back wheel, then lift it by the stem and toptube and drop it down on the back wheel lightly but enough to cause some noise. the front forks seem to make that wobble/clunk/reverberation from the movement. like boy-yoy-yoy-yoing.

simple fix: tighten headset?

thanks!!!

ha, next question:
anyone in SF want to let me borrow tool for campy headset this evening?

(half serious if anyone is okay with it. if not, i'll grab one this weekend from the shop)

The wheels races tight? My last front end 'noise' was not the headset, = axle was loose in the hub, the rim was vibrating on hits.

wheels are all good, axels all good, i'm certain it's not the rims/hubs/wheels. to double check i've switched the wheels onto my other bike and ridden like that for a week or two and found no noise. the problem is definately part of the frame/headset. thanks for the suggestion though.

question: is there a threat of the headtube/steerertube being damaged from this loose headset? it's not been a problem for very long, and since noticing it i've been riding "lightly" on the bike, cautious and avoiding of thingies... and supposing something did become mis-shaped, whats the process of fixing?

there's a risk of damaging the headset races and balls by running then too loose.

not sure about the headtube

-the balls may have false brinnelled the race? And the balls may have scratches. If the race looks good, inspect the balls -if not perfectly smooth- replace them.
Stick some new grease in as well.
http://www.emersonbearing.com/fail_truebrinell.htm
http://www.emersonbearing.com/fail_falsebrinell.htm
http://www.emersonbearing.com/fail_loose.htm

Not stuff I know lots about really. Putting in fresh balls will help preserve the race as does re-packing grease often.

perfect. thanks much for all of the help. boy oh boy is it going to be fun to take this headset apart. any tips on grease to use? this will be my first time actually playing with a headset in depth.

Phil Woods waterproof bearing grease works for me.
Perhaps a mech can suggest a lower cost grease.

chinese food leftovers maybe, but i'll stick with the phil

A loose headset will eventually ovalize the headtube. The cups will be loose in the frame. Very bad.

Oh yeah... and when you get it back together and are tightening it, hold the front wheel between yer legs as you lock the cup and locknut together....it makes the adjustment a little easier.

A loose headset will eventually ovalize the headtube. The cups will be loose in the frame. Very bad.


exactly what i am worried about... once the headset is removed and repacked and reballed if necessary is it possible to eyeball the tube to check for ovalization? or should it be brought to someone better trained? i mean, if it looks a-ok to me should that be trustable?

Oh yeah... and when you get it back together and are tightening it, hold the front wheel between yer legs as you lock the cup and locknut together....it makes the adjustment a little easier.

gratzi

If the headtube is ovalized...the cups will fall out of the bike. If you cant pull the cups out by hand....its all good.

thanks for all the help everyone, beers on me.