Originally Posted by
dabac
True, get a good enough fit and the steerer will stay centered and not slop around w/o the compression ring.
The purpose of the ring is to cover for production tolerances and to center the steerer. Which is doable through other means, if you put the effort in.
Exactly. The key here is that the upper cup must be reamed out to be a "perfect" fit to the steerer tube in the absence of a conical compression ring. I think it's definitely possible if you're careful enough.