Originally Posted by
Biking_Lawyer
I am just trying to get the bike functional. I thought the problem would that the fork would be an off-size, as you can buy Ritchey headsets everywhere (It also would have been nice for them to tell me what size the crown race was BEFORE I purchased it).
I'm fine with using the existing crown race with the remainder of the new headset if that will work. I was just worried there would be some compatibility problems or that the plastic ring thingy (sorry, I dont know the proper name for it) that came with the new headset would crack on the smaller race.
How much too big is the crown race? is there detectable play when fully in place, or is it just that there is no interference fit and you can slide it on by hand? If it is the former,an assembly compound like Loctite 680 will work to hold it in place.
There should be no ISO/JIS issues with a threadless headset and fork, as, like I said before, they are all ISO. Sounds like poor quality control on the part of the fork manufacturer. They may have undersized the mounting seat. Easy enough to check with a digital caliper or micrometer.