Steerer Die

[Blackbike]

It has been my observation that when purchasing tooling, where the tooling comes from is important with regards to how long that tooling is going to last. If it were me I would limit my search to Europe, USA, Japan. 2nd Tier, Eastern Europe. Anything from China and Taiwan is a wild card as the product varies from very good to junk and it's almost impossible to sort it all out.
Also its worthwhile to note that there are two type of dies, thread cutting and thread chasing. also note that the die handle for threading steering tubes is unique as it has a pilot guide built into the die handle to keep the die cutting in a straight line as shown in the photo below.

Best Wishes: Mike

 

[FINNEY1973]

Thanks Mike,

I've decided to go the Cyclus route, seemingly far superior quality. I have a bent set of forks to practice on, hopefully that will be enough to get the technique sorted.

Cheers

 

[gavr]

Re:

I've decided to go the Cyclus route, seemingly far superior quality. I have a bent set of forks to practice on, hopefully that will be enough to get the technique sorted.

Nice and slowly and plenty of oil. Cyclus tools are decent quality

 

[danson67]

Plenty or cutting oil...1/8 of a turn and reverse (to cut the chip off)...remove the die and clean out the swarf frequently (every 2-3 turns?)...don't forget to cut the keyway or file a flat for the headset locking washer.
Simple die is OK for extending threads, but you'll need a handle with a guide for fresh threads. If you're starting from no thread, you'll need to allow about 2 turns to get everything cutting correctly.

If anyone else looks for this...I have the dies and handles (VAR, Hozan and Cyclus) for 1", 1 - 1/8" and 1 - 1/4" BSA.
Happy to cut threads for RB projects for around £5/inch + postage.

All the best,

 

[FINNEY1973]

Cheers folks, all solid & very helpful advice. Went the cyclus route at about £75 from Jozefs Cycles http://www.jozefs-cycles.co.uk/store/45 ... ks/9890001. Very good quality. Job completed with no fuss whatsoever, slow & steady to start but once started I cut four inches in a matter of minutes, then cut the steerer to length and it's now installed on the bike and working exactly as it should. Very happy with the result. Oh, and by taking the die out you can use the handle to install the lower crown race onto the forks