teiaperigosa

just overhauled my headset, and it is smooooooooth. last time I adjusted it, I'd made it a bit too tight, purposely. somewhere in between there I broke a bearing in one of the races (tightness as the cause maybe?), and it was rough and clanky....so I overhauled and adjusted 'properly', ya know, smooth enough to swing freely if lifted, but tight enough so that there's no clank when dropped.
anyways, now it feels really nice, but riding no handed takes less lean to steer, as does walking the bike by the seat (yes, walking it), and it flat out has a more twitchy feel to it even riding two handed. I'm still feeling out in what ways I like the smoothness, and in what ways I don't. Have yet to go out on a trick (trackstands, circles, wheelies, bunny hops) session, but would imagine that it may have a 'good' effect in some ways, and a 'bad' effect in others. anyways, I will consider re-adjusting the headset too tight if I resolve that I prefer the feel.
to many, it would seem just wrong to set up a part in a way that clearly puts stress on the component, as 'smooth' is how it's designed to work, but for the sake of less-twitchy steering, a slightly overtightening is something to at least try out
anyways, anyone do this....overtighten the headset slightly for feel? if so, what do you notice? how do you like yours adjusted?

max-a-mill

don't get a king... no matter how tight you make it it is still smooth as butter...

i used to be a doubter, and after one ride on my new headset i am now firmly a beleiver!

lyledriver

I recently went from a piss poor pitted no name headset that was indexed beyond belief, to a sealed Cartridge bearing Ultegra. WOW. My bike feels like it is one piece now (no more vibrations over bumps), and it turns without any effort.

I had to re-learn riding with no hands, as the old headset kept the front wheel straight.

1fluffhead

I have the Cane-Creek S2. For the price and the quality, total winner. I keep it tighten it to the point of where there is no clank when you bounce the front wheel, but not even close to overtighten. This is always the hardest sweet spot to find IMO. Too tight and I can feel it bind, too loose, you get the clank. The difference is usually somewhere between a 1/4 and 1/2 turn of the wrench. I like it super loose and smooth. I found that at first it was twitcher then I was used to, but I adapted to it. Now I actually prefer it that way.

lymbzero

+1

With a new headset, my bike feels SOLID!
It's totally worth the investment for a nice headset.

As far as over tightening, why?
It's like you've become accustomed to the crappy headsets.

It would be like switching out your crappy heavy handle bars with somehting nice
and then saying you don't like it, because it feels different.

Relearning to ride on a smooth headset (or new better parts) would probablly do you better.
Keep it tight, but not over tightened.

dutret

If you want stability consider changing your fork or just selling your bike and picking up something else. Are you riding a track bike? This seems like the wrong way to tune handling to me.

Shiznaz

haha he is asking about how to adjust headsets and you tell him to buy another bike. Classic.

dutret

No he's talking about misadjusting headsets in order to stabilize the bike. That implies that the geometry of his current bike is illsuited to his needs. Instead of misadjusting the headset he should get a new fork or sell his bike and buy one more suited to him. Fixing things the right way will lead to a better riding experience.

*new*guy

I put a tange levin in one of my bikes recently and I'm very impressed. Can't beat the value and it has needed no adjustment since I installed it.

CliftonGK1

My 16 year old Stumpjumper is still rockin' a headset that's at least 10 years old. To keep things from clanking around on it I've got a super old-school Gorilla Headlock on there, and it works just fine. I am looking forward to building my new bike (eventually, when money isn't so tight) and having everything new and shiney, though. I'm sure that it will be a whole world of difference.

coelcanth

maybe try seeking out a Stronglight A9 or Delta headset..
instead of ball bearings these use rollers, which have a larger contact area.
this design decreases wear and increases service intervals, but also translates into more friction when turning the bars...

the A9 is said to be one of the lightest headsets ever designed
the Delta is an updated version with more seals

i have also heard that more drag in the headset helps prevent high speed shimmy problems

captsven

Unbeleiveable, I just installed one on a frame yesterday. I have also heard nothing but good things about them. The LBS had one lying around for three years. I got it for $45, which I thought was more than fair. I was told because of their design, they have a bigger stack height. I guess this limits their use on bikes with pre -cut steerer tubes. I put mine on an 80's Rossin and it fits perfectly.

I will get a review out when the bike is built.

na975

chris king is over priced!! im gonna sell my new one and buy two less expensive ones.

pyze-guy

I have a cane creek on one bike and never had a problem. Runs smooth. I have an old shimano with bearings on the other and never had a problem either. Had the headset for about 10 years now and clean and regrease the bearings every few months. No pitting at all.

soze

I ****ing hate doing headset maintenance. I bought a Chris King (pink, kthx) headset so that I could have it installed once and never have to touch it again.

So far, so good.

na975

water gets in the CK easily, its all exposed.

barba

Here is a reasonable place to get Stronglight A9 & Delta headsets:
https://www.velo-orange.com/headsets.html

rodny71

I have a tange, it was good for about a year, but now it feels loose and if i even slightly over tighten it indexes like crazy. maybe it time to completely overhaul or get a new one?

*new*guy

Have you repacked it since the initial install?

if the races are OK, you could just replace the bearings and repack it.... the top "seal" doesn't seem adequate for bad weather riding, so maybe you had a bunch of water in there and the bearings are rusted out.

Aeroplane

huh?

teiaperigosa

hahahahahahahaahah...I'm dying over here


if laughter extends life like they say, you just hit me off with about an extra week...thanks for the suggesion tho, always lookin' out

lymbzero

Wut the! the stack height on that headset must be 50mm ++ which is bigger than the Ofmega one I had ~40mm...........CRAZY

freebird

Back in the olden days, motorcycles had a big old knob at the "headset" which you could use for on the fly adjustment of "feel". It didn't compress the bearings as such, but used a clutch like material to add friction, and thus slow down the steering. Not such a dumb idea really, although running a headset so tight that the bearings crack might not be such a great plan.

Aeroplane

They make steering dampers for bikes too... more MTB oriented, but check it out:

https://www.merchantmanager.com/timhopey/

max-a-mill

uh so why are they working maintenance free on so many mtbs where they really get exposed to the elements.

i used to hate the guys who always said "throw a king on there"

now; only when i have one on my rigid singlespeed that sees lots of off road punishment do i see that all this time they might have been on to something!

for road use i agree a king might be overkill (and cost way more than you need to spend). but after finally putting in some time in with one i now see they are clearly better than all other headsets i have used to date.

don't think all my bikes will ever get one, but my mtn singlespeed which will stay rigid and gets the living snot beat out of it regualrly in nasty conditions has a king now and it feels fantastic more fantastic than any other headset i've ever owned!