HandsomeRyan

I tried a search but couldn't really find much helpful information.

I'm building up a new frame and before I cut the steerer tube I want to play around with stem height to get it dialed in. To do this, I need about 70mm worth of spacers**, preferably in different sizes. I'm not sure where is the best (most cost efficient) place to get this many spacers? I know every online retailer (online bike shops and ebay) all have combo sets available but some of them seem expensive and I'd still need at least 2 sets. I hate to spend $35-40+ for some little aluminum or carbon circles especially because once I do cut the steerer I expect at least half the spacers will be going in the parts box. I have not actually checked at my LBS yet but I wasn't sure if any of you had advice on getting a bunch of spacers inexpensively? I don't have any "bike friends" here in MD who I feel I can call and ask to borrow from their parts boxes.

**I do not plan to put the stem on top of 70mm of spacers [I don't think that is safe], but I don't want to cut the tube twice so even if I only need 30-50mm of spacers below the stem I still need about 70mm to get compression from the top cap.

goatalope

Any bike co-ops around? Maybe they'd have some "rentals." Where in MD are you?

mmmdonuts

Unless you want a solid spacer for your final cut you can't get better deals than the 5mm and 10mm spacer sets on eBay. The sets of 5-10 count spacers are often cheaper than a single spacer at the LBS.

Burton

Its the steering stem that actually locks the bearing preload in place once the steering stem clamping bolts are tightened.

So if you sit on the bike and preload the bearings by pushing down on the steering stem while tightening the steering stem bolts you can eleminate all play in the headset bearings too.

Maybe not as convenient as using the preload bolt, but until you get your stack height worked out - it`ll work just fine.

TLCFORBIKES

Barbarian. This method will hurt the headset and make the bike a bit unstable. Spacers cost between $1 - $2 for aluminum spacers and $3 - $5 for carbon spacers. So the end cost for the spacers can be less than $10 (for aluminum) and no more than $20 (for carbon). Mail order companies sell spacers as well. You can have them in a day or two.

HandsomeRyan

I believe there is a co-op in B-more but I don't know anything about it. Maybe i'll look into that.

I'm in the Mt. Airy, the extreme west side of Howard county.

CACycling

Niagara Cycle Works has a set of 5 10mm Al spacers for $8.
https://www.niagaracycle.com/product_...oducts_id=1598

Burton

Headset bearing preload is intended to simply remove all bearing play. After that the bearing preload is locked in by the steering stem. Thats as per every headset manufacturers installation instructions. The method of preloading a headset by applying pressure to the steering stem before locking down the bolts on the steering stem is documented on the Sheldon Brown website and is nothing new. What exactly is your own post based on?

FBinNY 

If you have another bike with spacers above the stem, or a bunch of willing friends, you can borrow the spacers. Once the headset is adjusted and the stem clamped any spacers above it aren't needed anymore, so they can be pooled to get you where you need to be and replaced later.

BTW- it you're going to buy spacers anyway. Buy the spacers you expect to need in the style you want, then buy the trial only in the cheapest quality offered. If you can combine it on the same order the added cost of the throwaways will be be very nominal, probably less than the shipping.

relyt

I bet your LBS has some used or scratched up spacers that they would sell you cheaply or just give to you.

Alternately, for a temporary fix, you could use a piece of PVC pipe cut to the right length. Sheldon Brown was known to do that and it worked for him.

fietsbob

I use a tall stack of spacers, on a steel steerer tube fork.
No problems..
I bought Cane Creek Interlok spacers, they snap together
like Legos, in rings, to function like a solid
they are plastic come several in a pack [Polycarbonate I believe]

heres a picture of an aluminum one, they sell as an each thru QBP
https://www.bikeman.com/HD0030.html

[most are square cut top and bottom]
there is an interlok headset they mate with


I have 118mm of 'spacers' ..
at the bottom a QBP locking spacer.
65mm of the Interlock, a 2nd stem for my bar bag mount ,
... beneath the stem, I have my Trekking bars clamped in.

so 70, less than 3", is nothing.. , splitting them above and below the stem is a good way to go,

Hard to Un Cut a sawn off steerer tube..

Oh significantly its a trekking bike not a mountain or race bike

and I'm 60+ , not young and fearlessly agressive a rider.

corkscrew

Could you not buy one of those locking spacers to lock the headset adjustment? Then you could place the stem wherever you want, with just the one locking spacer.

HandsomeRyan

Even with a locking spacer I'd still need a stack of spacers (temporarily) to tension the locking spacer until it was 'locked'.

I did just stumble across this:
https://www.amazon.com/Michelin-Aveni..._bxgy_sg_img_b
and this:
https://www.amazon.com/Origin8-Alloy-...ef=pd_sbs_sg_1

TLCFORBIKES

I will agree with the first sentence.

Second sentence -- What is "steering stem"? Maybe you meant steerer tube or steerer or steering column.
Fourth sentence -- implies that all you need to do is push down on the stem and lock it in place on the steerer and the headset will work fine. If you look up "steerer" on Sheldon Browns site it will say "the steerer is not visible on a assembled bicycle, being entirely concealed inside the head tube, headset and a threadless or pinch-bolt type stem". The top cap needs a little room to gently snug up headset bearings (pre-load). The precise adjustments needed for the headset can not be accomplished by pressing down on a stem and locking it in place. The OP needs spacers /stem under the top cap to allow him/mechanic to set up proper pre-load. It also takes the combined efforts of the top cap and stem bolts to hold the headset. Stem bolts alone will not work very well.

I own a shop and would never let a bike go out the door with the headset/stem as you described.

CACycling

By "steerer stem" he obviously means the stem. While it would be difficult to get a precise preload the way he describes, once the stem bolt(s) are tightened, the cap is for decoration only.

chucky

Where are you shopping for spacers? They usually cost like a dollar each. So get 7 10mm spacers and you'll be good to go.

fietsbob

chuck up some aluminum tubing with appropriate ID [29mm?] and
OD [say 35mm], or 3mm wall thickness..
in the lathe, and cutoff the length you need,
getting the end square will insure there won't be tight and loose bearing
portions of the steering , as the fork turns.

FBinNY 

Are you sure you didn't work in military procurement before this?

A pack of 10 10mm spacers can be bought online for about $11.00, or $1.10 each. They're even anodized.

That boils down to $8.80 for 2 40mm stacks, with 2 spares to sell.

I own and run lathes, but there's no way I'd switch collets then fixture turning, boring, and parting tools, and set feeds and speeds to save $10.00. Not to mention actually doing the job. There's also the raw material waste to the collet (2" on my machines), and cleanup involved.

So sure, it makes a world of sense to spend $100 in lost time and money to avoid shelling out $11.00 in real dough.

fietsbob

Yup running a CNC machine an making them all day long in China
then shipping them across the Pacific is cheaper ,
that's why the stuff is made there.

We have a Booming armaments trade is US and UK , though ..
and heads of state as the sales brokers.

Burton

Because I wouldn`t let a bike out of the shop like that either. Which is entirely incidental because this is supposed to be a very TEMPORY meseaure solely intended to give the OP the chance to establish a correct height to cut that fork down to.

However - suggest you take a few minutes to read the installation instructions for one of those headsets you might be selling. The objective of that preload bold is ONLY to remove all play from the headset. And as per a previous post I believe the only brand that even quoted any torque values at all quoted `betwen 5 and 20 in-lbs. Which is next to nothing.

On the other hand, the screws on that steering stem (sorry if you don`t like my French Canadian terminology) is between 45 and 145 in-lbs PER SCREW depending in the manufacturer, with the lowest values on the most precise (and expensive) hardware.

So if you really think adjusting that preload screw is going to have any effect after tightening those other screws you have a really good imagination. If that stem could move vertically it could also rotate - which wouldn`t make it very safe to drive.

The reality is that once those other screws have been properly torqued - you could remove that preload screw and toss it and it wouldn`t affect the performance or safety of the bike one bit.

I`m not promoting any of this as good shop behavior, but this appears to be a forum where people are looking to save nickels and dimes and are looking for instant results. There`s actually nothing unsafe about what I proposed as an interum measure. Its fully expected that once an opimum height has been identified the OP will cut the fork to length and install a 2mm spacer on top and preload the bearings as per normal instructions.

But compared to waiting a week for spacers to arrive from eBay or taking over a machine shop to produce $5 worth of spacers - my suggestion would have already resulted in a proper fork height and completed installation the same day with no additional expense..

TLCFORBIKES

The top cap may be decorative but the star nut/compressor/expander that the top cap is attached to is not decorative. By just using the 1 or 2 pinch bolts to keep the proper tension on the headset -- the headset will come loose during the first ride. It will not work. There are compressors that suck (spring under top cap style). These compressors suck because the headset keeps coming loose (at least easier than non-spring style). The headset keeps coming loose because the compressor looses spring tension. It takes consistent precise pressure from both pinch bolt/bolts and screw holding the top cap to keep the headset working correctly. You need the top cap to come in contact with either spacer or stem or the bike will not handle properly.

Don in Austin

This does not make any sense at all.

Don in Austin

TLCFORBIKES

We will have to disagree. The torque needed for the top cap is small but it is important. You may want to read the insallation procedures. It doesn't say to remove all the play - tighten the stem pinch bolts - toss the top cap.The OP needs to have spacers. Period. It may be temporary but he wants to "play around with stem height to get it dialed in". He will probably ride the bike. Do not say you can omit headset spacers -- they really are not needed. Got to Ace Hardware or Sears or some other hardware store and locate some PVC or aluminum tubes (cut to length) if nothing else is available. Come up with some product that will work.

Don in Austin

Top spacers are used along with the cap and vertical bolt to remove play in the headset before the stem is tightened. In other words, an assembly aid. If you can properly position the stem through other means such as simply pushing down hard on it, once it is tight there is no need for the cap, top spacers and vertical bolt. The clamping force of the tightened stem to the steerer is such that the spacers on top will not move it. If it did not have that kind of clamping force any kind of bump or impact and it would rotate.

If I chose to prove a point, I would have no fear whatsoever removing the cap and upper spacers from a bike and riding it on a mountain century. In fact, I recall not having a star nut for a bike I wanted to ride and calling Brandon at my shop to come push down hard on the bars while I tightened the stem. Checked for no headset play by holding the front brake and attempting the rock the bike back and forth -- no problem.

Sheldon Brown is correct.

Don in Austin

Al1943

I don't understand why you need 70 mm of spacers when you expect to use only about half that amount. I do understand why you need some extras.