Vintage Headset Help

[engin_ear]

I have an old cheap steel frame (probably a department store Huffy) from the 70's that I built up for fun in the early 80's with parts that were freed up from upgrading other bikes. The bike needs a new headset. Without me disassembling the headset, is there a way to tell what type it is? (Size, threaded, etc...) Did all cheap steel bikes have the same type back then?

I'm giving this thing to my son as an inner-city college bike, but I don't want the headset to fall apart while he's riding it. I'm going to pick up a vintage one on ebay once I know what to get. Didn't want to have to take it all apart first.

Any help appreciated, thanks.

[fuzzalow]

1" steel threaded steerer tube. English threads. Takes a 22.2 quill stem.

[Louis]

I'm 99% sure that it will be one of these two:

Tange Seiki 1" headsets at AEBike.com (http://aebike.com/product-list/tange-seiki-b417/headsets-complete-passage-t600-m2386-qc30/)

Can't tell you from here which of the two (26.4 vs 27.0) it will be.

I bet if you spend some time on Sheldon Brown's web site there will be something there telling you which headsets are typically used for what types of bikes.

[oliver1850]

As Louis said, could be JIS or ISO, depends on the frame. Cup size and crown race diameter are both different for the two standards. Best to pull it apart and check. Dimensions are here:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cribsheet-headsets.html

Ritchey makes a $20 ISO headset, you could get it from nashbar last time I checked. I'm sure Tange makes a decent one to either standard for not much money.

[Louis]

You know the line from The Usual Suspects, "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." ? (Verbal Kint paraphrasing Baudelaire).

Well, the greatest trick Chris King ever pulled was convincing guys like us that you have to spend $100+ on a headset. The truth is, on a road bike a $15 threaded headset with caged bearings will be perfectly serviceable for years and years. And if you 1) check once or twice a year to see if it's loose, and tighten it if it is (but not too tight) and 2) take it apart every now and then (say, every 2-5 years, depending on conditions) and clean it out and re-grease it, it will probably last more miles than the frame itself.

[Ken Robb]

You know the line from The Usual Suspects, "The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn't exist." ? (Verbal Kint paraphrasing Baudelaire).

Well, the greatest trick Chris King ever pulled was convincing guys like us that you have to spend $100+ on a headset. The truth is, on a road bike a $15 threaded headset with caged bearings will be perfectly serviceable for years and years. And if you 1) check once or twice a year to see if it's loose, and tighten it if it is (but not too tight) and 2) take it apart every now and then (say, every 2-5 years, depending on conditions) and clean it out and re-grease it, it will probably last more miles than the frame itself.

Grant Petersen has written a similar opinion. Of course he also has stated that almost any front derailer will work with any other combo and if you had to you could shift the front rings with a stick. :) I enjoy his writing and share many of his ideas.

[buldogge]

Pull the fork, remove the crown race and measure fork...most likely ISO (26.4) but could be JIS (27.0)...buy appropriate Tange Levin for $20...ride into the ground.

-Mark in St. Louis

[engin_ear]

Thanks guys. I guess I'll have to pull it apart first. The reason I'm replacing is not wear, just that the headset was not in great condition when I originally put it in, it's a real cheapie, so I will now say sayonara to it.

[engin_ear]

Was Raleigh-type with 26 tpi. Wound up buying a Tange Passage ISO 24 tpi from ebay for $5 and a new 24 tpi chromed fork for $25 with an extra long steerer tube. Cut the threaded steerer to length with a cut-off wheel and bike is good as new.

[AgilisMerlin]

Tange Seiki 1" headsets at AEBike.com (http://aebike.com/product-list/tange-seiki-b417/headsets-complete-passage-t600-m2386-qc30/)



link dead

[oldpotatoe]

As Louis said, could be JIS or ISO, depends on the frame. Cup size and crown race diameter are both different for the two standards. Best to pull it apart and check. Dimensions are here:

http://www.sheldonbrown.com/cribsheet-headsets.html

Ritchey makes a $20 ISO headset, you could get it from nashbar last time I checked. I'm sure Tange makes a decent one to either standard for not much money.

Origin 8, from J&B, a distributor, big one, sells a really nifty 1 inch HS that has both size FCRs...see a bike shop, get one of those.

[Louis]

link dead

They have revamped the AEBike web site since that was posted a while back.