Raven Wolf

I should probably start this question off by saying that I am rather new to building up a bike but have decided to try my hand at it and have gotten stuck on one part. I figured I'd bring the question here and see if anyone could help me with my dilemma.

I bought a 55 cm frame recently and am looking for a fork for the bike. I was just wondering if the head tube is 14.2 cm, how long should the steerer be for the assembly to work out? I guess I'm looking for what the smallest size it could be just so I know what to avoid.

Thanks to anyone that can help.

vpiuva

Have you bought a headset yet and do you know its stackheight? Threaded or threadless? Start with a threaded/quill setup. Many threaded headsets available today have a 38mm+/- stack height, so adding that to your 142mm headtube = 180mm steerer. If you're going threadless, count on a minimum of 220mm to start, but you have some other decisions on stem type and handlebar height before you can fully answer that question.

Retro Grouch 

Unless you're using a threaded headset it doesn't matter. For a threadless system (most bikes today) the fork comes longer than is necessary and you cut it after trial sizing it.

Raven Wolf

Thank you for your answers. And Retro Grouch, I don't plan on buying a new fork. I don't have the money for that. I appreciate the quick replies.

Al1943

Try checking out some other bikes to see how much steerer tube you need above the headset to get a good fit for your body. No one here knows how well your body will fit your 55cm frame.

Al