Fitting headset and cutting forks

This is about the only thing ive never tackled on a bike. Im seriously considering building my next bike from scratch, how difficult is it to cut the forks to size and install a headset? Anyone got any useful tips?

Qubit":1zz5up1r said:

This is about the only thing ive never tackled on a bike. Im seriously considering building my next bike from scratch, how difficult is it to cut the forks to size and install a headset? Anyone got any useful tips?

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Buy the right tools and it's easy.

You need one of these > http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Cyclu ... 300003499/ to put the crown race on the fork

One of these for cutting the fork > http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Cyclu ... 360017211/

And one of these to press the cups into the frame > http://www.wiggle.co.uk/p/cycle/7/Cyclu ... 300003485/

You can of course use bits of wood and a mallet. Or a combo of proper tools and homebrew stuff. up to you I guess.

Thanks for the info. Doesnt appear quite the cheaper option i was hoping for! (particularly 60 quid for the fork cuting guide). Perhaps a steady hand and a decent hacksaw might suffice.

The cutting guide might be handy for a bike shop but it's absolutely unnecessary for home use, plus it's at a ridiculous price.

It's the cheap option if you want to use blocks of wood etc. Regardless of what anyone says it is easier (and probably neater) with the proper tools.

fiks":2sfwkoeq said:

The cutting guide might be handy for a bike shop but it's absolutely unnecessary for home use, plus it's at a ridiculous price.

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Uneccesary how? I've tried numerous 'home methods' of cutting forks and found (oddly enough) the best way of getting a neat, straight cut is using a proper guide. The tool listed was pricey I'd agree, bought a Park one much cheaper a while back like these > http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid ... Categories .

If you just want one headset fitting it might be worth visting the LBS. However given the number of headsets I've fitted over the years I reckon the proper tools are a good investement.

The proper cup and crown race tools are worth having; using the hammer and screwdriver bodges are wrong and can damage parts, but IMO the cutting guide is not. If you're cutting it at home, you can afford to take your time and do it properly.

You can either cut then tidy up with a file or put an old headset on the steerer as a cutting guide, which will also clean up the threads when you unscrew it.

It sounds like i might be best off getting a suitable headset and getting my lbs to fit it. Hopefully that wont be too expensive. Thanks for the advice guys

fiks":1zb0vo33 said:

The proper cup and crown race tools are worth having; using the hammer and screwdriver bodges are wrong and can damage parts, but IMO the cutting guide is not. If you're cutting it at home, you can afford to take your time and do it properly.

You can either cut then tidy up with a file or put an old headset on the steerer as a cutting guide, which will also clean up the threads when you unscrew it.

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+1 for this. Great idea to use an old headset locknut (ideally steel) as a cutting guide / thread chaser.

I've recently invested £24 in a crown race fitting tool as I once broke an alloy Campagnolo Record one and spend a long time (and about £24!) finding replacement and getting it fitted at a LBS. I have used an old stem to bash crown races into place but it took forever!

As for the headset cup fitting tool, I made one for a fiver which has never failed me (the cost gave me enough for two so I gave one away to a helpful friend) and the cup removal tool is also easy and cheap to make out of a soft pipe with a cross cut into it.

This is just my opinion of course, and I honed my skills on dozens of cheapo bikes before attempting anything on a nice machine with delicate parts.