New headset has 26.4 crown. Forks are 27mm - ream the crown?

trail-blazer

Retro Guru
I'm busy clarting around with a 90s aluminium Peugeot frame and forks. I wanted to stick with the original Miche headset but both the races were ruined due to an over-tightened headset. (beyond notchy :facepalm: )

Anyway I ordered a cheap and cheerful Ritchey Logic headset but the crown race is 26.4mm.

I'd probably have ordered one of those Dia Compe Gran Compe headsets which are similar money but they're supposed to have a 26.4mm crown too. (can anyone confirm this?)

I don't know if I can be @rsed returning the headset and looking for another so I'm thinking about attacking the crown race with a dremel as I have to find an extra .6mm and there seems to be enough meat on the crown to allow this.

Which currently available threaded headsets are actually supplied with a 27mm crown race anyway?

Thanks in advance...
 
Re:

The M-Part Elite comes with 26.4mm and 27.0mm crown races. There's another cheapy that I've forgotten the name of that's 27.0mm. The Dia Compe is 26.4mm crown race. Watch out for the frame being 30.0mm, shoving a 30.2mm headset cup in an alu or light steel frame will result in a crack. If you want to fit a 30.2mm cup to a 30.0mm frame it needs to be reamed and there is no substitute for a £££ tool for that sadly.

You're better off using a file than a dremel to cut down the crown race seat. Check repeatedly with vernier calipers and be careful to keep it concentric is my advice from experience. I have the proper tools now to do both jobs, if you're local to me (Edinburgh) I'll do it for beer :)
 
Re: Re:

eastsidebikes":37l5kzws said:
The M-Part Elite comes with 26.4mm and 27.0mm crown races. There's another cheapy that I've forgotten the name of that's 27.0mm. The Dia Compe is 26.4mm crown race. Watch out for the frame being 30.0mm, shoving a 30.2mm headset cup in an alu or light steel frame will result in a crack. If you want to fit a 30.2mm cup to a 30.0mm frame it needs to be reamed and there is no substitute for a £££ tool for that sadly.

You're better off using a file than a dremel to cut down the crown race seat. Check repeatedly with vernier calipers and be careful to keep it concentric is my advice from experience. I have the proper tools now to do both jobs, if you're local to me (Edinburgh) I'll do it for beer :)

Thanks for the detailed advice. I had no intention of touching the forks or headtube. I was thinking about taking some material off the inside of the actual crown race so it fitted the fork better.

The frame is in the loft and I haven't dragged it down yet to check to headtube's internal diameter. I can return the Ritchey headset FOC so I'm going to look for another that actually fits rather than bodging. I'll have a look at the m;part one but might try to find another Miche one as that's what the bike was originally supplied with.
 
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