DitmarsNY

Hi all, was hoping for some help here.
I decided to play around with some of the spacers and removed my stem. When I did, I also pulled down on the fork once the stem/cap was off. the bearings at the bottom of my frame came loose. Well it is a sealed unit anyway.

So I go to put it together and there is a slight gap between the fork/frame (enough for my fingernail to go into) and there is also a gap between the top of the frame and the plastic cover of the headset.

do these bearing cartridges need to be pressed in? Or is there something else I'm doing wrong when assembling?

Thanks for any help,

jemoryl

I'm assuming that we are discussing an integrated headset here (see the Park Tool website if you aren't sure)? Mine (non-Cervelo) has a bearing that is press fit on to the fork and and then press fit into the frame. Put the fork into the frame, add the top spacers and stem (not tightened) onto the steerer (complete with expansion plug installed), screw in the top cap until it pulls the lower bearing up into the frame. Be sure you have everything in the right order/orientation before proceeding.

oilman_15106

I think the best thing to do before going forward is to call the company or a reputable dealer. You don't want to ruin the frame over something this simple. Another thing I have encountered is the headset race part of the frame is not cut down enough and the bearings seat higher. The Park tool to fix this costs more than the frame and no LBS in my area of 2million plus(Pittsburgh, PA) had the tool to do the job.

DitmarsNY

Thanks, I actually took it to the LBS since I don't want to damage anything. It is an integrated headset by the way, and from what I have read I have a feeling that no pressing is required, but whatever the case, I'll let a pro handle it,

DitmarsNY

For anyone else that may come across this question, looks like that little gap is normal. I picked up from the LBS and it was put together the same way I did. Then went on a ride, saw someone with another Cervelo Soloist and took a look at their bike and it was the same way. I always thought it was flush,

Zouf

Had a similar issue when taking apart my fork to cut it down (Kestrel Evoke): the fork did not seem to go all the way back in, and I could not adjust it correctly, there was some freeplay even when pre-load was increased to the point of starting to bind the bearings. Turned out that there is a small spacer between the bottom bearing and the fork crown, and it had gotten out of its seat. That solved it all. Basic rule in these: all these integrated headsets are the same, except they are all slightly different... Take it apart really slowly, looking at what it looks like before, and it's simple. Don't, and it's not.