This might be a dumb question ...

But would it be stupid to coat my head tube bearing races with varnish to protect them more?

The frameset is painted - just waiting for the clear coat ...

Yes

Yes, again. Varnish and grease don't play well together, you'll get a gummy mess, and a crappy time just cleaning things up.

Welcome to the C&V Forum also.

Bill

I probably don't understand the question but, if you mean protecting the insides of the bearing assembly, the ball tracks, then NO do not coat them with anything. The lubricating grease will do a fine job of protecting everything. If you only ride in dry weather that protection should last years. If you ride in rain then you may need to overhaul those bearings (clean and new grease) each year. Depends on how much water gets thrown up onto/into the bearings.

If you mean protecting the outside of those assemblies then maybe coating would be helpful -especially if the original coating (anodizing, chrome, plating) has been damaged. I've used clear nail polish on such things (mostly shifter clamps) and have recently found that Testors clear coat (from the hobby shop) is easy to work with. Both go on and stay clear. Varnish or shellac will likely add a color (often yellow or amber) which will look funny on shinny bits. And varnish can take days to dry.

Again, if you're talking about the outside of those bearing assemblies then first just try a good auto wax - four coats and see how that works.

Thanks guys.

I mostly meant the part, that is pressed on the fork - that bearings roll against..
And i am intending to use what is called an acrylic gloss varnish over the new pain on the whole frame set - so it will have to dry for a long time anyway.

The nail polish sounds interesting too ...

Bearings need to roll against steel and grease.

Protect them from what? Grease will minimize wear better than anything else you can add. Bearings would eat away varnish or any other coating pretty much immediately and the stuff will just contaminate the grease.

I'm guessing you didn't remove the cups when you painted? I've made the same mistake, i would not try to protect the paint on the cups if thats the case. I would actually remove and replace the entire headset. Much like I had to do when I made this mistake. If that's not the case then disregard. Post pictures to clear up any confusion.

It's ok - just clearing up everything - the cups were not removed - but they were masked. The race on the fork was painted, but I will take the paint off that.

The cups themselves are clean - was basically wondering if I should cover them or mask, when covering the frame with clear coat..

Just as an FYI, that's called the crown race. Be careful of its surface because the bearings and races at the bottom of the head tube (HT) take all the load. The top bearings serve mostly to keep the steerer tube centered and aligned in the HT. Crown races can be replaced if they get too worn or pitted, but you'd rather not have to do it. Better not to try to do it with hand tools.