You're an absolute legend. I've gone from confusion, to knowing the terminology and exact standards/parts I need to fit my new fork. Bookmarked for future reference.
I know Im asking the wrong place but does anyone know a way to log back into an instagram account?? I somehow forgot the password. I love any help you can offer me.
@Remy Alvin Thanks so much for your reply. I found the site thru google and Im trying it out now. Seems to take a while so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
This was so very helpful. Thank you. The voice distortion played out like a story. You're obviously sharing secret occult bike knowledge, and have to disguise your voice for the safety of you and your family. It's not easy being a bicycle heretic, freeing the masses. Thanks again.
Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video! When I bought my Mountain Bike they tell you nothing about this. Now that I am up grading my front shocks I was again'st a wall trying to figure it all out. You laid it all out and it so simple.
this probably took a lot of time to make, but thank you so much! i'm replacing a headset on my vintage bike and this video helped me clear out a lot of things cheers
Thanks, I picked up a yard sale bike with an integrated headtube, however the bearings on the top of the steer-tube were external and on the bottom of the steer-tube were missing. This video helped me sort out what I needed.
Thanks a bunch for the information. I'm ordering a fork for my old Cannondale (Using headset reducers, hate the headshok). Just seeing the assembly gave me a much better understanding. (Keep the music, I love it)
Oh THANK YOU! I did my 1st repack of my headset bearings last night, complete success but today I woke up and was like "Yo what did I even do?! What was that lil split ring and what was that nut inside my fork called?!" lol thanks again for helping me understand, I think I got it, I want to install a new fork, just need to save up for one now hahaha!
thanks for this video i asked loads of bike mechanics on youtube to do a video like this as nobody has one on this very confusing subject im suprised you havent more views as my cycling group on facebook are always asking advice on this topic
Great vid and very informative. What if I just need to replace the cartidge bearings and not the whole headset? How to i determine the size of the Bearings for the cups?
Glad I watched this video. The chart for Integrated Threadless bearings and the angles needed was so helpful. I looked all over to decide the angles for my 1 1/8 1 1/2 tapered fork. Now I know. You are my hero today.
This was very helpful because I ordered a bike for a gift from amazon and the headset and steering wasn't connecting. Now I understand why and what type of headset. It's a thread-less headset.
If I have a one inch threadless steer tube on an older bike is it possible to change it to 1 1/8 external threadless as long as the new steer tub e fits through the bike,?
Thanks for the video. I'm buying a frame with a integrated headtube of 1 1/8 top - 1 1/4 bottom. Using a integrated headset of the same measure i can use a fork with a straight steertube of 1 1/8 diameter? Will i need an adaptor. Thansk again for the video and atention.
Hey John, what about using a tapered 1 1/8 to 1 1/2 fork into a straight head tube which has a internal head tube of 44mm. I think you need a external bottom cup that is 44mm outside that will fit up into the head tube and the bearing would then sit outside of the head tube. Is this possible?
What an impressive video, very informative, finally I have the information I need. Ignore those mentally challenged that always find something to criticize. This is an awesome video, period.
I'm looking to upgrade my Vp-a71 headset to one with sealed bearings. All that I find have a taller stack height. How do I know if they'll work on my bike?
First let me begin by saying that this is the most informative video I have seen on the topic. Before watching it, I was only familiar with external threaded headsets and had no experience with any of threadless styles. One important point to note is that you must be very careful when making definitive statements about any technology that is subject to change over time. In your video, you state that “threaded headsets all are external”. That may very well have been the case when you made the video in 2017 - but by 2020, semi-integrated threaded headsets were also available. The NECO H184 on my Lectric XP eBIke (manufactured in 2020) is an example of such a headset.
That’s one of those things that didn’t exist when I made the video. Plus, that shouldn’t really exist - some horrible, mega-cheap, decision by someone in Asia. Or, catering to the worst type of cyclists - newbies that want their stem ultra high and are too cheap to buy an adjustable or high threadless stem. Or, they just had a crapload of surplus frames, threaded forks, and just podged something together. Might as well have had a cottered crank. I’d never buy anything with a threaded stem unless it was a vintage Colnago.
Hate threaded stems but they are super easy to build/ disassemble but I have always wanted to know the magic behind that little nut that holds handlebars and forks together
I bought a 34mm risk headset stupidly without measuring first and it's the same width as my headtube. So I would need a 30mm and a 1inch steertube or a 1/8? Still a newbie at this so any help would be much appreciated!
I have a Rockshox Judy Silver TK 120mm travel speed.. I am having trouble finding a headset size that will fit my fork. please let me know what size should I get. Thanks in advance! cheers
So I have semi integrated 44mm headtube with straight steertube 28.6mm. Could I somehow use tapered steertube, by changing the cups and bearings? I just need to find the cups that are 28.6mm/44mm for the top and 38.1mm/44mm on the bottom and it should work?
Hi John, thank you for this video, i have an alloy dedacciai frame that i won on ebay without any headset or forks, i tried the integrated bearing races from a new set, (the bearings measure 7mm in depth); and it fits the bottom head tube fine but the top of the head tube is shallower and the bearing race sticks above headtube approx 1.5mm...is this normal?..not sure if its suppose to be like that and it perhaps originally had a top cup with a cowling that covered it....all the headsets i've seen so far seem to have top cup race covers that are flat like casino chips, so the race is seen. The frame's from about 2010 so hoping the headset is not obsolete, do you know of frames that have a deeper bottom bearing seat than the top bearing seat? Any help appreciated, cheers Jo
Thanks John. Great video. I'm trying to adapt a 11/8 steerer to a giant overdrive head tube which is a 47mm lower diameter. I've got an Acros 33/47 bearing but the adapter ring won't go all the way down the steerer to fit onto the fork. Should I give it a tap to force it into place? Thanks if youre still following this thread.
I have a Motobecane Gravel x3 and it has caged bearings, now my friend wants to change it to external pressed bearings, for his new carbon fibre fork steerer of 1 1/8". But his measures top headset I.D. 41mm and O.D 46.8mm and cant find anything that will fit that bike. Any suggestions?
Is it normal for an integrated bearing to be very tight when installing into the head tube? I measured with calipers and the head tube is 51.70mm inside for a 1 1/2 bearing. The bike shop said that they could install the bottom bearing using a bearing press but in all the videos I've seen the bearing seems to just easily fit inside.
Great video, however I'm looking for info on fitting a 1 1/8 - 1 1/2 tapered fork to straight head tube, But my frame's inner headtube measures 34mm... I know of adapters but how do I go about choosing the right 1 ?
Not possible as far as I know. You’d need a special extender on the bottom that keeps the fork from coming into contact with the ID of the head tube. 1.5” is bigger than 34mm.
Hi, i have a steer tube with 26.8mm straight and from top to bottom. and my inner head tube diameter is 30mm. which headset do you recommend. i am modifying my mtb so trying to fit in a new fork with a new stem, handlebar etc. need a new headset.
forgive me if this sounds dumb- My headset bearings became crunchy after a while so i decided to change them today. both top and bottom bearing pretty much fused to the head tube. After perseverance i got them both out but them were both out in pieces. I purchased new bearings from a local bike shop and installed them. The top one seems a little to large as the top cover does not sit flush with the frame. The bearing also does not fit flush, should it be flush? Because of the tightness of the fit of the bearings i am concerned removing them will damage the new bearings installed? Would this headset be an alternative for me instead of them just sitting in the frame? How would i know if the headsets fit my frame? does this headset come with the bearings required?
john - thank you for the video. I have watched your video several times and bought tow headsets that do not fit my 2015 trek 7.2 FX. Can you help me understand what headset can fit my bike? I have ordered 1 1/8" threadless twice but the bearings DO NOT fit into my steer tube. Should I be looking for bearings or a whole headset? Im ot that good at this , so can you suggest brand and part numbers also?
Here is an odd one. I got a bike made by FOCUS. The fork seemed to wiggle so I disassembled it (aluminum washers were stuck and the stem was rusty). It seems to have an Internal \ Integrated headset. But what is most baffling, under the bearings' cup, there was no bearing cage what so ever. The balls, 34 with some missing, are directly held by the cup and supported by the head tube. I haven't removed the lower bearings yet so I am not sure this is intentional. Often, the bearing cage inside bottom brackets falls apart and crumbles. Could this have happened in the headset as well ? Non of the videos watched on RUclips suggest there is such a design. Any help would be appreciated.
You're an absolute legend. I've gone from confusion, to knowing the terminology and exact standards/parts I need to fit my new fork. Bookmarked for future reference.
After many difficult months of not understanding my headset, I found this video. My pain is gone.
the most informative video about headsets I have ever seen on RUclips.
I know Im asking the wrong place but does anyone know a way to log back into an instagram account??
I somehow forgot the password. I love any help you can offer me.
@Abel Wesson instablaster =)
@Remy Alvin Thanks so much for your reply. I found the site thru google and Im trying it out now.
Seems to take a while so I will get back to you later when my account password hopefully is recovered.
@Remy Alvin It worked and I now got access to my account again. I am so happy:D
Thank you so much, you saved my ass :D
@Abel Wesson No problem =)
This was so very helpful. Thank you. The voice distortion played out like a story. You're obviously sharing secret occult bike knowledge, and have to disguise your voice for the safety of you and your family. It's not easy being a bicycle heretic, freeing the masses. Thanks again.
One of the most, if not the
most comprehensive video about bike components ever. Thanks.
Thank you so much for taking the time to make this video! When I bought my Mountain Bike they tell you nothing about this. Now that I am up grading my front shocks I was again'st a wall trying to figure it all out. You laid it all out and it so simple.
this probably took a lot of time to make, but thank you so much! i'm replacing a headset on my vintage bike and this video helped me clear out a lot of things cheers
John you are amazing. This stuff has been so helpfull. Just started at a pro bike shop in uk and my head is swimming.
This might be 4 Years old, but the best video for information on headsets. Cheers John.
Great video, many thanks. Exact, systematic and detailed description. Helps a lot to me. Thx!
thank you! you just taught an old dog new tricks. Very detailed, informative and easily understood!
Very informative and the music fit just great! Thank you!!
JohnTheBikeGuy, Great Video. The demonstration was perfectly supported by your explanation. Thanks for uploading!
im fixing up some bikes for kids that live close by. this helped a ton. thank you so much buddy
My brain hurts after listening to all that mess.
I'm glad I could follow your explanations.
well done ,just subbed
Absolutely excellent video. Great to have the index at the start. Data much appreciated.
Thanks, I picked up a yard sale bike with an integrated headtube, however the bearings on the top of the steer-tube were external and on the bottom of the steer-tube were missing. This video helped me sort out what I needed.
Thanks for the information, I was totally lost before watching this. Great job 👍
I'm late to the party, but wow! You covered everything! Had all my questions answered, and much more! Thanks so much!
I kinda like the music. Relaxing, when my few remaining brain cells are straining to take in the info. Great vid. thanks.
best viewed at 1.5 speed. Good info. Thanks for posting this.
Thanks for that!!! Thoroughly enjoyed it and your information was invaluable and very useful. Two thumbs up.
Very informative and helpful! Thanks a lot!
Good sir, I shall nominate you for best video on RUclips! Well done! Bravo!
Thank you, it helped me a lot before buying one.
Thanks a bunch for the information. I'm ordering a fork for my old Cannondale (Using headset reducers, hate the headshok). Just seeing the assembly gave me a much better understanding. (Keep the music, I love it)
Learned a lot more about headsets. Thanks
Thank you!! This was SO helpful.
awesome! thanks.. please keep making more! and I think the music was a good choice.
Hello and thank you for this video.
It’s very straightforward, clean and understandable for me as a noob.
Big like and subscribe!
Truly holistic information, thanks Bro!
Long ass, but bad ass. You just made my life so much easier.
Absolutely amazing video. Thanks!
very clear, very professional, wee explained, no wise cracks every 30 seconds.... perfect good channel
Oh THANK YOU! I did my 1st repack of my headset bearings last night, complete success but today I woke up and was like "Yo what did I even do?! What was that lil split ring and what was that nut inside my fork called?!" lol thanks again for helping me understand, I think I got it, I want to install a new fork, just need to save up for one now hahaha!
I agree with Prof. Mustafa - best headset explanation I have ever seen.
Thank you for a very simple explanation!!!
This video is a gem .
thank you for the vid you made my life so much easy
Good stuff John, thanks for the information!!
Thanks for this fantastic video!
Great video. Really helped a lot. Thank you!
Thanks John this helped a lot!
absolute amazing content!!!! thank you sir! new subscriber here!
thanks for this video i asked loads of bike mechanics on youtube to do a video like this as nobody has one on this very confusing subject im suprised you havent more views as my cycling group on facebook are always asking advice on this topic
I had the same situation, very straight forward explanation.
Thank you for this video! Super helpful
Thank you really helped loads didn't know there was so many different types wow 👏
video what I'm looking for... keep it up! more power...
Dear JOHN, this video is very helpful , thanks a lot .
Thank you for this, now i know what i need to buy.
Sooo helpful. I took two bikes apart and am trying to salavge good parts from one and suddenly realized had no idea what was what lol
Great vid and very informative. What if I just need to replace the cartidge bearings and not the whole headset? How to i determine the size of the Bearings for the cups?
Excellent video! Great!!!
Thanks for this knowledge filled, information packed, educational video. Very interesting.
Thank you for sharing your wisdom with me
Glad I watched this video. The chart for Integrated Threadless bearings and the angles needed was so helpful. I looked all over to decide the angles for my 1 1/8 1 1/2 tapered fork. Now I know. You are my hero today.
This was very helpful because I ordered a bike for a gift from amazon and the headset and steering wasn't connecting. Now I understand why and what type of headset. It's a thread-less headset.
This was helpful, thank you!
Extremely informational and detailed video. Please make a video regarding the crank system. You are very knowledgeable.
great video, thanks for sharing :)
If I have a one inch threadless steer tube on an older bike is it possible to change it to 1 1/8 external threadless as long as the new steer tub e fits through the bike,?
GREAT video!
Thanks for the video. I'm buying a frame with a integrated headtube of 1 1/8 top - 1 1/4 bottom. Using a integrated headset of the same measure i can use a fork with a straight steertube of 1 1/8 diameter? Will i need an adaptor. Thansk again for the video and atention.
Dude, many thanks!
Hey John, what about using a tapered 1 1/8 to 1 1/2 fork into a straight head tube which has a internal head tube of 44mm. I think you need a external bottom cup that is 44mm outside that will fit up into the head tube and the bearing would then sit outside of the head tube. Is this possible?
Thanks this was very helpful.
Thanks a lot!!!!, this help me a lot, explained perfectly, a billon points!!!!!, liked and suscribed thanks again!!! :)
What an impressive video, very informative, finally I have the information I need.
Ignore those mentally challenged that always find something to criticize. This is an awesome video, period.
I want to upgrade the forks on an old chrome aluminum rockhopper with a threadless head set. I'm i on the right track here?
This answered my question. I have 44mm straight top and bottom headtube, and I wanted to know if I can use tapered fork. No :(
Absolutely informative. THANKZZ
I have a threadless stem but the bearings are that of a threaded headset. What can I do to use the external bearing kits?
I'm looking to upgrade my Vp-a71 headset to one with sealed bearings. All that I find have a taller stack height. How do I know if they'll work on my bike?
First let me begin by saying that this is the most informative video I have seen on the topic. Before watching it, I was only familiar with external threaded headsets and had no experience with any of threadless styles. One important point to note is that you must be very careful when making definitive statements about any technology that is subject to change over time. In your video, you state that “threaded headsets all are external”. That may very well have been the case when you made the video in 2017 - but by 2020, semi-integrated threaded headsets were also available. The NECO H184 on my Lectric XP eBIke (manufactured in 2020) is an example of such a headset.
That’s one of those things that didn’t exist when I made the video. Plus, that shouldn’t really exist - some horrible, mega-cheap, decision by someone in Asia. Or, catering to the worst type of cyclists - newbies that want their stem ultra high and are too cheap to buy an adjustable or high threadless stem. Or, they just had a crapload of surplus frames, threaded forks, and just podged something together. Might as well have had a cottered crank. I’d never buy anything with a threaded stem unless it was a vintage Colnago.
Great video chef...
Hate threaded stems but they are super easy to build/ disassemble but I have always wanted to know the magic behind that little nut that holds handlebars and forks together
I bought a 34mm risk headset stupidly without measuring first and it's the same width as my headtube. So I would need a 30mm and a 1inch steertube or a 1/8? Still a newbie at this so any help would be much appreciated!
If it’s a zycle prime what’s the size headset for it
I have a Rockshox Judy Silver TK 120mm travel speed.. I am having trouble finding a headset size that will fit my fork. please let me know what size should I get. Thanks in advance! cheers
So I have semi integrated 44mm headtube with straight steertube 28.6mm. Could I somehow use tapered steertube, by changing the cups and bearings?
I just need to find the cups that are 28.6mm/44mm for the top and 38.1mm/44mm on the bottom and it should work?
Hi John, thank you for this video, i have an alloy dedacciai frame that i won on ebay without any headset or forks, i tried the integrated bearing races from a new set, (the bearings measure 7mm in depth); and it fits the bottom head tube fine but the top of the head tube is shallower and the bearing race sticks above headtube approx 1.5mm...is this normal?..not sure if its suppose to be like that and it perhaps originally had a top cup with a cowling that covered it....all the headsets i've seen so far seem to have top cup race covers that are flat like casino chips, so the race is seen. The frame's from about 2010 so hoping the headset is not obsolete, do you know of frames that have a deeper bottom bearing seat than the top bearing seat?
Any help appreciated, cheers Jo
thank you from 2020!
Thanks John. Great video. I'm trying to adapt a 11/8 steerer to a giant overdrive head tube which is a 47mm lower diameter. I've got an Acros 33/47 bearing but the adapter ring won't go all the way down the steerer to fit onto the fork. Should I give it a tap to force it into place? Thanks if youre still following this thread.
I meant 30/47...
How do I know which cup/bearing goes on top and which one goes on the bottom?
I have a Motobecane Gravel x3 and it has caged bearings, now my friend wants to change it to external pressed bearings, for his new carbon fibre fork steerer of 1 1/8". But his measures top headset I.D. 41mm and O.D 46.8mm and cant find anything that will fit that bike. Any suggestions?
Is it normal for an integrated bearing to be very tight when installing into the head tube? I measured with calipers and the head tube is 51.70mm inside for a 1 1/2 bearing. The bike shop said that they could install the bottom bearing using a bearing press but in all the videos I've seen the bearing seems to just easily fit inside.
Great video, however I'm looking for info on fitting a 1 1/8 - 1 1/2 tapered fork to straight head tube, But my frame's inner headtube measures 34mm... I know of adapters but how do I go about choosing the right 1 ?
Not possible as far as I know. You’d need a special extender on the bottom that keeps the fork from coming into contact with the ID of the head tube. 1.5” is bigger than 34mm.
This is a great video
Thankyou this helped lots
If you have a book/ blog/ photoalbum on all your tips and tricks where can I find it? Please let me know :)
thank you for this information and the numbers. now im sure my headtube are a 34mm thank you!
A tutorial by Darth Vador
Vintage Rider embrace the power of the dark side.
Hi, i have a steer tube with 26.8mm straight and from top to bottom. and my inner head tube diameter is 30mm. which headset do you recommend. i am modifying my mtb so trying to fit in a new fork with a new stem, handlebar etc. need a new headset.
forgive me if this sounds dumb-
My headset bearings became crunchy after a while so i decided to change them today. both top and bottom bearing pretty much fused to the head tube. After perseverance i got them both out but them were both out in pieces.
I purchased new bearings from a local bike shop and installed them.
The top one seems a little to large as the top cover does not sit flush with the frame. The bearing also does not fit flush, should it be flush?
Because of the tightness of the fit of the bearings i am concerned removing them will damage the new bearings installed?
Would this headset be an alternative for me instead of them just sitting in the frame?
How would i know if the headsets fit my frame?
does this headset come with the bearings required?
I know my bike has a 1 1/8 straight steerer fork, so could I just buy any 1 1/8 headset kit and not have to measure anything?
john - thank you for the video. I have watched your video several times and bought tow headsets that do not fit my 2015 trek 7.2 FX. Can you help me understand what headset can fit my bike? I have ordered 1 1/8" threadless twice but the bearings DO NOT fit into my steer tube. Should I be looking for bearings or a whole headset? Im ot that good at this , so can you suggest brand and part numbers also?
Here is an odd one.
I got a bike made by FOCUS. The fork seemed to wiggle so I disassembled it (aluminum washers were stuck and the stem was rusty). It seems to have an Internal \ Integrated headset.
But what is most baffling, under the bearings' cup, there was no bearing cage what so ever. The balls, 34 with some missing, are directly held by the cup and supported by the head tube.
I haven't removed the lower bearings yet so I am not sure this is intentional.
Often, the bearing cage inside bottom brackets falls apart and crumbles.
Could this have happened in the headset as well ?
Non of the videos watched on RUclips suggest there is such a design.
Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks for the infomation very informative.....👍
The fork bible on RUclips. Period! Thank for this video!