I never ever ever set a crown race with the dropouts touching ANYTHING. Like some of those folks describe above, I cup the underside of the crown/fork in my paw, leaving the drops in the air. I actually made my own crown race setters out of PVC exactly shown in the pic that Timothy put up. Once slid into place, some grease, a few taps with a mallet, the task is completed. The PVC will allow the race to set square as long as you start light and don't try to beat the hell outta the damn thing. The PVC setters are super simple to make, cheap or free, and will not damage anything you are working on. I have been setting races like this for years and years and have never had a problem.