headsets - newbie question
 

hi. my question here is kind of dumb i think. but i want to know what´s the advatage of having a hi end headset vs any simple headset or the different types of them. tnx

Well first comes durability and life of the headset...then comes the rebuildable attributes, smoother action, and of course...brand names are extra money...ie Chris King, great headset, but it's overprice b/c it says "Chris King"

I broke a pig head set when they first came out, $45 bucks gone in less then a week, after that i got an Aheadset and since then i been runing with a headsets and they are pretty good.

If you broke a Pig, it's because something, somewhere, was mis-aligned or mis-adjusted.

Cheaper headsets use cheaper ball bearings. Better headsets use better ball bearings. The best headsets (for most applications) use sealed bearing, and premium headsets use angular contact sealed bearings. Cups can be steel, aluminum, or even titanium. I wanted a ti headset for our tandem, but its price makes a Chris King look cheap. The Pig DH Pro fit the bill.

To answer the question you didn't ask, a $25 Cane Creek or FSA off ebay will serve most people very well for a long time.

Following on from Expatriate's comments, I discovered to my surprise and delight last year that the bearing cartridges in my Cane Creek C2 headset were replaceable items. This inexpensive repair saved all the trauma of installing new cups in the frame and the fork crown seat, all of which were undamaged.

The expensive stuff is well made, and to some has that "bling" factor which I find so elusive. The integrated and internal headsets have a modern, aesthetic appeal, but have their critics. Any headset that is actually part of the frame means that headset damage=frame damage, not a great situation.

Ed

Pretty much even the cheapest ball bearings are replaceable if they're in a retainer. I'm partial to the C2 as I got some cheap and sold them for a very nice profit over here. I like it when everyone goes home happy.

More expensive ones are more likely to come with some type of warrenty. I think CK headsets have a lifetime warrenty on the cups?
Cheers