Bicycle Mechanics - Cap Screw Cover

I know this is very OCP, but my LBS "lost" my black rubber 5mm cap screw cover that goes on the cop of my headset.:mad: Anyone know where I can buy more?

Hey, that's a perfectly understandable thing to worry about! It's ugly and you can get rain water, sweat, and dirt in your fork if it's missing!

I'd make the LBS give you a new one, definitely. They're mostly interchangeable between brands, and black is by far the most common, so they should have them lying around. If they put up a fight, get a new LBS. LBSes shouldn't "lose" parts of their customers' bikes.

A circle of black electrical tape is a good substitute.

A circle of black electrical tape is a good substitute.

I haven't tried that... but I often find that sweat loosens electrical tape very quickly.

At least on my racing bike, I'm constantly dripping sweat onto the stem. Which is why I think the cap around the screw is important.

I've never seen them for sale separately online or in a catalog, but we have a bin at the shop marked "rubber caps and doodads" full of these and the like. Personally, I don't think they're too important, but some mechanics forget to put them back in, and some people notice, so we have them. Perhaps some other shop in your area keeps a few of these around?

You could make one using the cap screw as a mold. Wax up the head of the screw and the recess really thoroughly, and wrap some masking tape around it, letting the edge of the tape be 1.5-2 mm above the top surface of the cap screw. Then get some black silicone and fill the recess and top of the cap screw. When it cures fully, you should be able to pull it out, and reinsert it after reinstalling the cap screw. If you can't, then you didn't wax the screw enough: you'll have to buy a new cap screw!

For christ sake, go back to your LBS. We have a billion of these floating around in random drawers.

A good hardware store should have them. I'm guessing about $0.35.