How shallow am i ?
r3 guy
Posts: 229
I have always wanted a Chris king headset, finally when i spec my custom build bike i find that they do the "sotto voce" ie no white logos 
I loved the white writing on black. Am i the only one who doesnt like the toned down headset?
Still getting it though
A life long dream realised
(oh and a BB as well)
Bling it up baby :shock:
I loved the white writing on black. Am i the only one who doesnt like the toned down headset?
Still getting it though
A life long dream realised
(oh and a BB as well)
Bling it up baby :shock:
0
Comments
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they are a nice thing, but dont get all rose tinted about it. you will feel no difference at all compared with even a ten quid no name number.
but a nice thing is a nice thing.0 -
ps, the only reason i dont use them is that they dont suit specialized frames.0
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or long travel forks."Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
Parktools :?:SheldonBrown0 -
nicklouse wrote:or long travel forks.
i didnt know this. i found they were too slack in my enduro headtube, i feared the worst but found out its to do with tolerances (spesh goes big and king goes small) it was fine when fitted to my old stumpy but that was more luck than judgement apparently.
i like the general gucciness of them but i really like my hope one, seems better made, looking and sealed for a fair bit less money.
although im the first to admit in a blind taste test i wouldnt know the difference between any correctly fitted and serviced headset0 -
Yep, the reason why most buy King is to tell people they have a King, and show people they have a King.0
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aznd when they fail you have to wait for them to be sent back.
so while waiting you either dont use the bike or buy a cheaper headset.
"Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
Parktools :?:SheldonBrown0 -
And then they don't replace them because you didn't meet one of the warranty terms...0
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Allow me put my two pence worth in here.
The reason I now have a Chris King head set is that my frame has a 1.5 head tube. When I had the bike built I had a Syncros head set fitted only to recently find that they don't do replacement bearings for it!
This left me with one option, a new head set. I am a Hope fan and they do offer replacement bearings but they don't do a 1,5 so the 10 year guarantee of the Chris King was the best option.
I was not best pleased when I returned to the shop that built my bike for some replacement bearings only to be told that "most companies don't offer spares to a new one is your only option" Some advice I could have been given when the bike was spec'd don't you think?0 -
Of course tmost companies offer spares! Sounds like the shop has done you!0
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"dont suit big forks" :shock:
Included in my custom build is a Fox 36 Talas!!!0 -
Not a wise plan.
130-140 is pushing the limit on a 1.125 King. Lovely bearings, superb tolerances, great lookl, but the design is stuck in the 1980s.
Needs a locking collar not a rubber ring.0 -
mine is now getting changed to a hope one. to a nok not so long back and may well of buggered it.0
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Opps watch out for wear on the steerer.r3 guy wrote:"dont suit big forks" :shock:
Included in my custom build is a Fox 36 Talas!!!
Or change the headset for something better suited."Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
Parktools :?:SheldonBrown0 -
so what is the "perfect" headset for a 36 talas (160 travel)0
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Something with a locking collar. I'd recommend a hope. Just make sure to use a star nut rather than the head doctor.
That or a really expensive Cane Creek like the 110, after all, Cane Creek invented the damned things.0 -
Fsa DH pig pro. Had mine a year, still running smooth as hell. Bike has taken a beating too!0
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Same here (but not the PRO version), been using them for years. The things are so cheap the when they DO eventually wear out, it's no hardship.bigbenj_08 wrote:Fsa DH pig pro. Had mine a year, still running smooth as hell. Bike has taken a beating too!
I have all my frames running FSA Pig DHs, so I can easily swap my forks around in emergencies.0 -
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I run a CK Titanium on my Yeti and it's been perfect from day one. Might actually ride it one day...0
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Alex wrote:Just make sure to use a star nut rather than the head doctor.
something against the good doctor? I have 2 and never had a complaint. Starnut is the gashest jury-rig design I have ever set eyes on. It's only redeeming feature (I must admit) is that it seems to work.
I have FSA pig on the Evil and Cane creak IS on the Ibis. The closest I ever got to paying CK price for a headset was when I needed a 1.25 for an old cannondale frame and CK were the only ones I could find still making them (or tehy still had a box in the back of the shed full from the 90s or something). Went with new (rigid) forks and reducer cups instead. cheaper all in....Everything in moderation ... except beer
Beer in moderation ... is a waste of beer
If riding an XC race bike is like touching the trail,
then riding a rigid singlespeed is like licking it
... or being punched by it, depending on the day0 -
The hed doctor is for carbon and thin alu steerers where it's inappropriate to use a SFN. In all other cases, the SFN is lighter, more effective and more reliable. Yes it's terminally simple but it's still the best way of keeping your forks inside your frame.0
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I have 2 Hed Docs sitting in my tool box.
the top caps are in use though."Do not follow where the path may lead, Go instead where there is no path, and Leave a Trail."
Parktools :?:SheldonBrown0 -
Alex wrote:Not a wise plan.
130-140 is pushing the limit on a 1.125 King. Lovely bearings, superb tolerances, great lookl, but the design is stuck in the 1980s.
Needs a locking collar not a rubber ring.
Am I going to die using my CK on Marz AM2's at 160mm?Advocate of disc brakes.0 -
Just spoken to Ed at crosstrax (the people that are buyilding my bike) and he says its not a problem. He has built loads of yetis with long travel forks and has not had any problems in fact he rides one himself. He says he has also built lots of DH bikes again with no issues.
In fact as he put it Yeti wouldn't Spec their 'pro' built bikes with CK headsets if there was an issue0 -
IIRC, the yeti dealer and the CK dealer in the UK are one and the same?
Either way, facts iz facts, CK headsets start munching grooves into steerer tubes once the O-ring has a wear on it, and this wear is demonstratiably accelerated on long travel forks.
Marzocchi alu steerers seem particularly vulnerable. the CK in my SX had a good old munch on my 888ATAs, leading to a a creaky front end, eventually cured with a better suited headset.
Something worth noting is that on the 1.5-1.125 stepdown headset, King have specced a locking collar rather than the O-ring.0 -
I got a Hope one - seems fine.
I go to silly lengths to get black stuff for my very black bike - had to get XT SPDs (!) and a carbon bottle cage because both are black :oops:
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i thought the ck were fine on dual crown headsets... It's just the singe crown ones that cause issues.0
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ride_whenever wrote:i thought the ck were fine on dual crown headsets... It's just the singe crown ones that cause issues.
I thought that too. Spent ages riding around with a loudly creaking front end thinking "Nah, can't be the top race/steerer again, it's a DC fork, it must be the frame/cups".
Eventually it annoyed me enough that I popped the forks out and actually had a look. Nice deep groove in my steerer. Cups were secure. Headtube was fine.
I swapped the headset out and moved it onto a shorter travel bike where it's worked fine since (with a new top race)
I think the only real solution is to inspect the condition of the top race regularly and the moment the rubber O-ring starts to look worn, replace it.
I couldn't be bothered with that kind of faffing about and swapped it out for something less needy (but sadly not as pretty).0
