Originally Posted by
Reeses
I have a few questions regarding that giant lock nut. It seems if I don't tighten it down, the fork is a little loose in the headset, meaning it moves back and forth. But if I tighten it, the fork is tight but it gets progressively harder to steer.
That's tough to diagnose, even with the bike on the stand. It could be any number of things: worn-out headset, bent steerer tube, incorrectly installed headset cups, ovaled head tube, wrong number of ball bearings... it goes on and on. Bikes are incredibly simple devices, but one small goof can throw everything off.