angled / offset headset dilema

sofaboy73

currently riding a sc heckler which has a specced head tube angle of 69 degrees when running 140mm forks. I running 160's so reckon that probably knocks the head angle down to around 68 degrees. Thing is i'd like to slacken the head angle off a little more to make it a bit more stable on the steep downs, so been looking at angle headsets.

thing is not sure how much i should knock off, would taking 1 or 1.5 degrees be that noticeable (never ran the bike with 140's so have no point of reference for shaving a degree off)?

How much could i get away with before messing up the overall geometry and making it a pig to climb or sluggish on the single track (obviously it's all a compromise).

Finally, been looking at the cane creek angelsets (£125) and the works components sets (£75). has any one tried either? what are they like for durability , fitting etc? Any other recommendations?

all help greatly appreaciated

lawman

well afaik canecreek don't make a headset for the hecklers straight 1'1/8th headtube, and the works one is only available in a 1 degree offset for 1'1/8th, so youre stuck with that pretty much, i could be worng, but im 90% sure. another option is offset shock hardware from the likes of burgtec, which are cheaper, and offer similar adjustment, thinking of a set myself actually

sofaboy73

cheers for the reply lawman

unless i'm being a bit of an idiot with the way i've read the specs, it looks like cane creek have bought one out that fits 1 1/8th. ie specced at internal head tube diameter at 44mm at top and bottom of head tube??

if my logic above is right (could well be wrong) that means the works one is available in 1, 1.5 and 2 degree offsets - hence the dilemma

not considered the burgtec option and changing the angle from the back end as it were. what are the benefits / pitfalls in doing it that way?

an_original_name

the downside (i think?) of using offset shock mounts is that it can affect the way the rear suspension performs. obviously depends on sus platform etc.

i'm currently running a 150mm bike with a 160mm fork, head angle is around the 66 degree mark and i don't have too much trouble climbing on it, but then i've only ever run this combination so can't compare it to anything else.

lawman

sofaboy73 wrote:

cheers for the reply lawman

unless i'm being a bit of an idiot with the way i've read the specs, it looks like cane creek have bought one out that fits 1 1/8th. ie specced at internal head tube diameter at 44mm at top and bottom of head tube??

if my logic above is right (could well be wrong) that means the works one is available in 1, 1.5 and 2 degree offsets - hence the dilemma

not considered the burgtec option and changing the angle from the back end as it were. what are the benefits / pitfalls in doing it that way?

44mm headtubes are quite new, in the mainstream, and are not in anyway similar to standard headtubes, like the one found on your heckler, like i say i may be wrong, but im fairly certain that the 1 degree headset or the offset shock mounts are the way forward

sofaboy73

my bad then, reallised got my conversion from mill to inches completely wrong!

offset mounts it is then!

Northwind

I've got Works Components headsets in 2 of my bikes now- really good bits of kit, well made (UK made if that matters to you). Works better in all ways but one compared to the Cane Creek, and costs less than half as much.

(the one way the CC is better is that they're universal steerer length, so you're more likely to be able to move it to a new bike. But that's an irrelevance really since you need to move it 2 and a half times to make it pay for itself!)

But, it's hard to predict how it'll affect your bike.