Originally Posted by megatron
I simply do not have enough threads on my steerer tube to put the locknut on. Am i going to die? The worst thing I can see happening is that the top race could come loose and grime could get into the bearings. I have caged bearings so i am not worried about losing them. Should I just keep an eye on my headset or mill the frame, or get some tube added to the fork? I would like to leave it as-is as long as there is no signifcant problem with what im doing. This is on my beater bike.
Depends on how often you want to turn left
...or would it be right? Everytime you turn the fork, the headset is going to catch on the bearings. Turning left will loosen them so every time you turn left they would come out of adjustment and they'll do it very quickly. There is a very fine line between an adjusted headset and an unadjusted one. If nothing else you'd beat the headset to pieces within just a few miles.
The other issue is what happens if you forget "to keep an eye on it"? Everything seems okay but when you brake, the steer tube can slop around in the head tube which puts stress on the head tube and the steer tube. With enough pounding, either could fail...not a good thing!
Why is the fork too short? I'd say chalk this one up to experience and get the proper length fork.