Originally Posted by
jollingsworth13
I tried putting on a Campagnolo nuovo record crown race onto my Raleigh's fork, and it did not sit quite flat on the fork's base (you could just see light between the race and the base of the fork on one side). I measured the diameter of the steerer tube where the crown race will go and got varying measurements depending on if I rotated the tube (range of 26.36 mm-26.45 mm). Campy crown race inside diameter measures 26.35mm. I understand Raleigh's QA in the 70's was a bit of a joke, but are these discrepancies enough to be a concern? The headset I am using is not original to the bike but is the correct make/model for the timeframe. Has anyone had any issues with getting their crown races onto their Raleigh's? The bike in question is a 1971 Raleigh Pro that was just repainted for reference.
Raleigh's early '70s QC? My Competition left the shop minus braze under the lugs. Bike got ridden lightly. I saw a gap under the DT shifter stop, got nervous, had a local framebuilder send it out for strip then examine it. He saw that only paint had been in the gaps under the lugs! Filled them with braze like a new build.
Mine was a '73. Yours was two years earlier and the bike boom wasn't yet crazy but still Raleigh. It it were mine and I ultimately wanted the NR HS sitting sweetly, I'd first tap it out and put on a $30 Tange. (Yes, you will probably have to do mix and match to get stack right but a $15 Tange el-cheapo will get you some very usable shallow parts. Tange mix and match works really well.) Ride the Tange. See if the HS sets up right without binding or rattle. See if it goes the full 8-10k they typically go. If so, replace it with the Campy next time. If it doesn't serve as the good old reliable and boring Tange, well, the crown has issues. Have it machined as suggested above by someone equipped to do chrome. Probably expensive. But if the Tange works, it cost you little and no precious NRs hit the landfill early. (Tanges also look decently nice on traditional bikes until someone looks at the label. The custom of my avatar photo wears hers with pride.)