what headset bearings for trek 1.5
radiation man
Posts: 446
anyone know what cane creek headset bearings for the 2009 trek1.5, including the bottom ball bearing cage.
0
Comments
-
I've just replaced the bearings in my 2011 Trek 1.5, but I think the frame and headset is a different design in the 2009. From what I can tell, your headset is semi-integrated (zero stack) at the top and fully integrated at the bottom with some specs saying it has "semi-cartridge" bearings. On my bike, semi-cartridge just meant loose balls in a rust prone cage, not an actual cartridge bearing. Yours might be different and have actual cartridge bearings, on which you will find markings to identify the type or just take along to a bike shop to check for you. I would expect the lower bearing to be cartridge type if it is indeed fully integrated.
This may not be relevant to you, however, to service my headset, which is a standard Cane Creek external cup design (EC34/28.4, EC34/30), I gently picked off the rubber seal ring and removed the upper cup, cage and balls (some fell out), cleaned up the cups with degreaser and replaced the loose balls with new ones without the cages. The cages are not necessary and some would argue that because you can fit more balls in without the cages, the bearings will last longer and work better. The cages in mine were the cause of a lot of rusty discharge, didn't hold the balls well and so they were not really reusable anyway. I got a couple of packs of 1/8" ball bearings for about £4 from my LBS, greased up the inner cup so the balls would stick, left enough space for 2 more balls, replaced the upper cup and seal ring, flipped the bike over and repeated the procedure on the other end.
This procedure was not at all complicated, and although I did drop a few balls in the process, I had loads of them. The headset now runs very smoothly and I don't expect to have the same rusty fluid leaking down my forks since dispensing with the cages. I could have gotten the LBS to replace the headset with a decent cartridge bearing one for a cost of around £50, but for around £4 and less than an hour of fettling, I figure I can get a good few thousand miles out of the current one.0 -
the lower headset has a metal retainer which holds the ball bearings in place, and the top has a semi sealed bearing, can i use the standard cane creek bearings from wiggle or will the bottom one not fit correct, guess i will have to use ball bearings in bottom instead of retainer ring as you cant seem to buy the retainer ring with ball bearingsfrom anywhere.0
-
Don't think the bearings on Wiggle are the correct ones for your headset as those are sealed cartridge type. Prise off the seal on the upper bearing and see exactly what you have. If it's like my "semi-cartridge" bearing, the balls are easily replaceable. Just give everything a clean, fit new balls, and ditch the retaining cages.0
-
I couldn't find any suitable bearings when I needed to change them in my 2011 1.5. Ended up fitting a complete new headset.0
