Campag Record Headset

[glaucman]

I have two bikes with the 2003 Campag Record headset. Both of theses units are 14 months old. In that period I have had to replace the rubber band cover on the bottom of each headset twice on both bikes. What has been other's experience with this issue?

[Kevin]

I switched from Campy Record to Chris King Ti. The King is bullet proof. The CampyRecord had to be replaced after one season.

Kevin

[Michael Katz]

My LBS, which sells both Campy components and Chris King, takes the view that there are some things Campy does very well and others which it does not. Both the sales guys and the wrenches are of the opinion that Campy headsets and bottom brackets fall within the latter. They do not recommend Record headsets and for the money feel it's a no brainer to go with Chris King. If you get more than a season out of a Record bottom bracket, they think it's nothing short of a miracle.

[soulspinner]

While on my third season on my 10 speed bottom bracket with no trouble, I must finally give up on my Campy headsets. The last two examples have gone bad(indexed) within 5000 miles with proper adjustments/maintenance. Chris king it is...Although I tried an FSA headset on one of my bikes and after a little less than a year its still great. Someone else mentioned they have had good luck with Stronglight headsets but I have no clue if they wear well. Anyone know?

[BigMac]

I am a bit befuddeled as to why you are needing to replace the rubber oil port seal. Are you actually using the oil port and the rubber is getting stretched out or somehow damaged during this procedure? Is this a UV degradation/hardening issue? If the former, simply do not use the oil port, use a good quality waterproof grease (Redline GL2 or Phil Wood are fine choices) and never touch the oil port. If the latter, apply a thin layer of Lexol, Armor-All or similar synthetic UV protectant.

Is this a threaded or threadless type headset? Threaded headsets require proper bearing preload and regular re-checking of preload for maximum durability. A dab of Loctite Blue on locknut only will help, but check preload every 1500 miles and replace grease annually -- twice per year if you ride in wet weather consistently. If you are using a threadless setup, almost any headset if properly setup will last several years and many, many thousands of miles. The CK headsets are a fine design but honestly are ridiculously overpriced. I would avoid the roller bearing headsets -- Stronglight at least -- as they too are durable but suffer from odd, stiff feel, ime.

Campy has always made the among the best headsets, their current offerings share same fine design and bearing races which provides silky smooth feel and outstanding durability. I would suggest you use a Chorus hs in future to avoid the Record's ugly (imo) black band and the useless oilport setup. Excepting for the oilport design, the Chorus and Record hs is identical including most importantly the extremely tight tolerance bearing-race matching. I have 80k miles on a Chorus threadless hs, over 50k miles on vintage Nuovo Record unit and a C-Record model. The key is proper initial setup and preload readjustment within 300 miles or so. Unless you are experienced with proper feel, have an experienced mechanic make these adjustments. There should be complete absense of any friction yet complete absense of front end fork play. In my experience, most inexperienced mechanics-installers provide too much preload which will dramatically accelerate wear. The only advantage to CK design is with use of proper CK installation tools, its a more idiot-proof setup/install but the Chorus is less than 1/2 cost, lacks the ugly bulbous shape and very unsightly logos, not to mention the fact that when properly setup a Chorus hs offers smoother feel and equal durability.

I would concur with gentleman above who mentioned the Campy BB reliability issues. Unlike the Campy hs who's design remains unchanged, Campy severely altered the driveside bearing design of its BB's a few years back. Unfortuately, this new design is a VERY poor one utilizing considerably smaller diameter bearings which are highly prone to failure in 7k miles or less, regardless of proper setup. Use the pricey but nearly bomb-proof Phil BB with Campy cranks and eliminate any such troubles. I would say Campy's only faults among their present offerings is their BB and setpin designs. I also long for the alloy parts on Chorus lineup, either that or upgrade Centaur lineup with low Q crank alloy crank and differential brake caliper like big brother. Ok, we do not live in a Eutopian existance so nothing is absolutely perfect, Campy headsets are damn close, however.

Ride on! :banana: :banana: :banana:

[glaucman]

BigMac is correct I should have been more specific regarding my Record Headset issue.

The headsets are 2003 Campag Record threadless. Both are on Legend Ti's with one unit at about 8000 miles and the other about 2000 miles. To date, after referring to my records, I will have replaced the 8000 mile unit twice and the 2000 mile unit once, both within 15 months. I never use the oil ports on either unit. The rubber band is never touched other than a wipe off during cleaning. When they break it is spontaneous and does not involve any manipulation. They just break. I would change to the Chris King unit but their greater stack height doesn't work for me.

Of course now you guys have me thinking about Campag BB failure. What are the advantages to the Phil Wood BB's?

[Andreu]

I would say in my experience that in the Campy Record groupset the Bottom bracket and the Headset are the weak points in the group...I have to replace them alot more than I would like to. I put it down to the quantity of rain they have to put up with. With other groupsets this has never been a big issue. Maybe they are designed for long Italian summers?
A

[Elefantino]

Aside: I can't think of anyone I know who has had something bad to say about Chris King headsets (or hubsets, for that matter). It's rare that one product in our little "use what I use" world is unanimously lauded.

That said, I'm sure there are detractors. But spending $100 on a key piece of equipment that will last quite likely for as long as you own the bike, well, that's a no-brainer.

Mike

[vaxn8r]

Glaucman, I have a Record Threaded HS on my OCLV and other than routine maintenance, it's been perfect for over 25K miles and very smooth. I think maybe your shop mechanic is not good.

Big Mac, the Record HS is smooth. So is the King. How can you possibly tell one is smoother? I think you can only tell when a HS is not good.