coolkid_cody

Is it normal for a headset to become loose after 3 months? I have a threadless headset. After a month of having my Steamroller I flipped my stem to have the handle bars drop and doing this I adjusted my headset and it was fine, not too tight or too loose. Now 3 months later I am riding and when I hit bad bumps I can hear jarring in my Headset. This is only when I hit bad bumps so I'm assuming it's not extremely loose. Anyways I was wondering if this was normal that it losened up.... I ride 20-30 miles every day FYI

coolkid_cody

out of the 34 people who have viewed this thread so far I'm sure that at least knows the answer to my question or could point me in the right direction.... or maybe even "yeah my headset comes loose every few months also but have never thought anything of it, just tightned it up"....

norwood

So tighten it up. Make sure the stem clamp is above the top of the steerer tube by a few mm. Get your clamp bolts good and tight but don't strip them. Oh, and don't hit bad bumps.

Al1943

It's not good to ride it when it's loose. It's the stem pinch bolts that hold the compression on the headset. If it came loose maybe you didn't get the pinch bolt(s) tight. But if your steer tube is carbon fiber be very careful to not use too much torque. It only takes 5 nm. And that should be enough for an aluminum steer tube also. The cap bolt is used to set the compression pre-load but it's the pinch bolts that keep it that way.

Al

prathmann

I suspect the answer is that "it depends." On most of my bikes the headset gets adjusted when I change out the grease and it stays adjusted. But on my Bike Friday there's a very long stem which puts lots of leverage on the steerer tube and I think this tends to cause the headset to gradually lose it's adjustment. First I put some tape over the threads (didn't have any locktite handy) and then I learned that GreenGear had recognized this as a common problem and had some special headset nuts with a setscrew to keep the adjustment fixed.

And one time I didn't pay enough attention to a loosening headset. We had lent our tandem to another couple and when we got it back the headset was very loose. I tightened it but it started getting loose again. Unfortunately I didn't take things apart to discover the real cause which was that one of the bearings had cracked and was wearing a slot in the steerer tube. So one morning on our way up a hill the front wheel and fork suddenly parted ways with the rest of the bike. No serious injuries, but I still do have some scars as a result.

JanMM

https://parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=65

Threadless headset adjustment information is towards the end (bottom).

Panthers007

Be sure to tighten (gently) the top-cap on the column before you tighten the stem onto the steerer. And this should be done to the manufacturer's specified torque-setting. Don't tighten down one bolt to proper-tension - and then the other. Do it in increments from one bolt to the other until you reach the correct setting.

Al1943

Very true, but the torque limit for stem pinch bolts may be too high for a carbon fiber steer tube. Trust me on this.

Al

norwood

The OP has a Surly Steamroller. One of those fixie things. Assuming it has the standard fork it's a steel steerer tube.

Panthers007

No need to convince me there. Don't ask... I think you've gotten your point across.

coolkid_cody

thanks for all the replies. I have long arms so my stem is 120mm and I do tend to lean forward during out of the saddle climbs (which i try my best to correct) and that probabley puts more weight than nessasary on the stem. Prathman thanks for pointing out that this could loosen my headset more quickly.

operator

Wtf? How did you get that from his post? He's talking about preload and then alternating between the stem pinch bolts ... didn't mention anything about proper torque on a CF steer tube.