Originally Posted by thumpism

Welcome! Can't wait to see the pix.

Originally Posted by Road Fan

Hi, here's what I hope is a new topic, but I apologize if it is old hat.

I'm rebuilding my 1952 Rudge Aero Special, a 27" Reynolds-framed drop bar bike made in Nottingham. Current stage is to install the H/S cups and the fork. I've been told the head tube IDs are to be 30.0 mm, and mine are (actually 29.97 mm, if I can believe my Harbor Freight digital caliper!). Also, Park Tool says the maximum allowed interference in such a press-fit installation is to be maximum 0.2 mm (not 0.20 mm for some reason).

My fixed cups have OD of 30.28 mm, so the interference is too great to use, if Park Tool is correct. Has anyone ever installed a HS with this much interference? The head tube is 531 with nicely brazed lugs and 70 years old. Should I go ahead and use these cups? They MIGHT be the ones which came out of the frame originally, actually I think they are, but I didn't mark them carefully when I pressed them out and put them in the parts cleaner.

Am I really at risk of cracking my head tube if I force these in, with a pretty decent HS press?

BTW, the bike frame size is about 54 or 55 cm c-c with 27" wheels. Overall geometry is long and laid back, a precursor to the Super Course and the International of 1971.

Originally Posted by steve21108

Thanks. Rare hub.

Originally Posted by Unca_Sam

You'd likely get a better response in the bicycle mechanics forum.
A good bike shop will have a headset reaming and facing tool that will machine the head tube so that the top and bottom have the correct ID and the ends are parallel. It takes a few minutes if the headset is not installed.