Fork: Not sure if crown race has to sit completely on fork or is this enough?

[MarcoA]

Hi everyone, I'm building my first bike. I'm mounting the fork at the moment and I'm not sure if the crown race has to sit completely on the fork or is this enough? (Attached pic).
Thanks for your help!

 

[S-Express]

Fit the fork anyway, and if that isn't as far as it will go, the crown race will seat itself when you hit the first bump.

 

[gbb]

But remember to carry some tools, your headset will immediately be out of adjustment when it does.

 

[rusty bearing]

Should sit right down on the fork

 

[Tim Hall]

Should a split crown race have that much gap when fitted?

Looks like you could lose a ball in that gap. (I don't know, all my races are unsplit).

 

[lpretro1]

That crown race needs to be knocked down further until flush - end of. There is a crown race setting tool for this purpose or ask nicely at your lbs.You can make a home made one but it need to be good or you can damage the race. If it is still too tight you can cut a slot in it to get it to sit down if you have cartridge bearings not loose ball

 

[Tim Hall]

That crown race needs to be knocked down further until flush - end of. There is a crown race setting tool for this purpose or ask nicely at your lbs.You can make a home made one but it need to be good or you can damage the race. If it is still too tight you can cut a slot in it to get it to sit down if you have cartridge bearings not loose ball

It's already got a (large) slot in it. Something's not right.

 

[Milkfloat]

It's already got a (large) slot in it. Something's not right.

Agreed - I think a bigger hammer is needed to hit the length of waste pipe.

 

[S-Express]

The size of the split is not relevant, as presumably it will be sitting against a sealed bearing anyway. Ergo - no issue.

 

[lpretro1]

It's already got a (large) slot in it. Something's not right.

Ah yyes I didn't notice that first time. In that case it just needs a good thwack down :0

 

[raleighnut]

Is that the crown race or is it the top 'wedge'?

 

[youngoldbloke]

Take it off, or ease it back up a little, and see if anything is stopping it seating.

 

[Dogtrousers]

This is a bit of a useless post.

The first headset I ever installed (as a teenager) I made a right mess of it. It lasted OK in a crappy kind of way but was never quite right.

Now I'm a big coward and always get my LBS to do tasks like this as they have special tools for ensuring that the races are properly seated & parallel.

In short, my advice is to get a shop you trust to install the headset for you.

 

[simon.r]

Is that the crown race or is it the top 'wedge'?

That is a good question.

 

[accountantpete]

The Crown race looks OK - some races have a built up area underneath and are not completely flat by design (making them easier to lift off) - others are. You can soon check by looking at it.

The CR is for an angular sealed bearing - the slit is perfectly OK and is there to cater for small differences in the diameter of the bottom sleeve on the steerer.