Road Cycling - threaded or threadless?

it seems all the head sets/stems are going threadless but manufacturers are still making threaded bikes. whats the pros and cons of each? i'm basically looking at two bikes, one threaded and the other not. the two bikes are the trek 1000 (threaded) and the motobecane record (non). any help in choosing between the two would be great.

Generally, the more expensive the bike, the more likely it will have a threadless headset. In other words, virtually all bikes over $700US have threadless headsets.

Threadless: They are, arguably, lighter, stiffer and easier to maintain and adjust. They are the standard, so it's easier to change forks and headsets in the future. The downside is lack of vertical adjustment. Once the steerer tube is cut, the only way to change the height of the handlebar is to change stems for buy a new fork. Yes, you can go with those hokey adjustable stems, but you lose stiffness and they look, well, hokey.

Threaded: It's the best, if it's what your bike has. Proven technology. Easily adjustable handlebar height. 1" steerer tubes only, may limit fork choices if you wish to upgrade. Found on low-end bikes now-a-days. Threaded has its supporters, but they are retrogrouchs with no taste and still riding rusted bikes from the '70s.:D

they are retrogrouchs with no taste and still riding rusted bikes from the '70s.
Hey, I resemble that remark.
For one my Serotta isn't rusted.
For two I don't remember the '70s except I know
I was in college, and I know I rode a bike at least once.

Your first line hit the nail on the head
Threaded: The best.

Marty

To quote another forum on this same topic:

"Threadless headsets are butt-ugly."

I must agree whole heartedly. The more you look at a threadless set up, the uglier it gets. The more you look at the elegant quill stem of a threaded set, the more beautiful it becomes. Add to that the fact that if you want to raise your stem on a threadless headset, you're limited by the length of the steerer tube which is usually cut riidiculously short these days. And if you cut it long for more adjustability, then you have more of those butt ugly spacers on it. Gag! It seems we've all teken a step backward with the threadless crap.

I just got a new bike from Habanero and I chose the threaded even tho it's retro. I'm so glad I did. The bike is beautiful and the bright silver quill stem is part of the reason for that.

the bike i just got has a threaded stem.. it looks perty

I bet it's awesome with that purple color and all. No joke, dude. You thought you were buying a used bike, and you got a work of art, too.

yah guy.. it looks great with the purple bike.. i suggest you shaddup tho cuz the next thing u know is urr gonna be in a race with me and have a lil 15yr old kick your arse. ive had 5 people insult my KHS when it only had alivio (before all the lx-xtr upgrades) . they said my bike sucked, i took em into a forest.. i killled them in a race.. they had fallen 5 times. they apologized


lol jokes

btw its lavender. dont be dissin ma lavender

I have a green / purple fade bike... and nobody has made fun of it (yet)... I personaly love the color. :D

Hey, I said "no joke". I mean it when I say you bought a work of art. That's a good thing -- like a compliment or something. I wouldn't want a bike that I couldn't look at and go "Damn. It looks so cool!" Of course, it's gotta ride cool, too. If it rides cool, it starts to look even better with every ride.

yah but i got some really arrogant ******* friends. well just one thatll insult me.. hes a bike snob.. hes 250lbs. has a 2500$ bike for 2 yrs which hes put 300km on it if that and hes in the shop every week having it tuned for his free tuneups..hes also loaded. all he does is insult everyone if they dont have what he has.. frick hes annoying. i dont relaly talk to him anoymore tho.. the other 2 ppl that will jokingly make fun of me know i can make fun of them back so its all good with them

yeah, there are snobs in every sport, and road biking seems to have its fair share -- maybe more than its fair share. It's good you don't let it get to you. You know why you ride, and it's NOT to be a snob about your riding or your bike. And because you ride for you, you're not gonna let one snob ruin the whole thing for you. No matter how good a bike you end up having, somebody out there will always have a "better" one. But no matter what kind of bike they have and no matter how much of a snob they are and how much they may look down on me or my bike, hey, I still LOVE my bike! And I still LOVE riding it! :-)

nah he has a specialized MTB.. so not only does he have american bull****. he insults everyone about it. he cant even ride lol. he just bot if for no reason.. then upgraded the 6inch disc to 8inch cuz it wasnt stopping quick enough lol.

but its not just ibkes.. hes spoiled. hes got multiple cellphones, computers, laptops, the bike, w/e daddy buys him. so yah i just tell him to fuk off . as for my 2 in town biker buddies.. we jsut mess around with each other

Originally posted by WorldIRC
[B]nah he has a specialized MTB.. so not only does he have american bull****.

hey specialized may be junky but don't directly connect that to the states. we may not have great bike makers like the canadian......................... :rolleyes:

i never said canada made good bikes. what i mean by that is the genious marketers at specialized. they mark the price of the bike so much.