Originally Posted by
Prowler
I don't think I can help, but I can learn here: by "Nitto stem" I picture a very nice cast alloy (aluminum?) L piece that fits into the steerer tube and holds the handle bar. If that's what you mean, then a 1/2 inch wide 'ding' in an alloy casting sounds pretty serious. I've heard that castings are pretty strong but more brittle than rolled metal and that sort of 'ding' would have me worried about internal fractures. I can break an iron casting with a good wallop from a hammer. I'm sure that aluminum castings are less brittle but still, that sounds like something that would take a pretty good wallop to create. I'd be real worried about the integrity of the piece.
Or am I just up the wrong tree?
Without seeing a picture of the ding or knowing if the dime width is the width, depth or both of the ding, I agree with this, however, if this ding it actually damage from improper wrenching on a headset, a gouge where material is displaced at a shallow depth and then the displaced aluminum filed down to look and function better it may not be that serious.