Installing own fork?

Glen F said:

Quoted message said:

but if the steerer tube cut is not square, the cap will exert uneven pressure on the headset
bearings.

Rubbish - as long as the cap clears the fork tube (cut some more off!), the star nut will pull any
headset preload applied exactly centrally. [Says he who has bodgied up at least one that way...]

IOW, nothing touches the end of the steerer, so a mm or 2 out of square doesn't matter. So using the
paper method is more presice than necessary.

Glen F:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

but if the steerer tube cut is not square, the cap will exert uneven pressure on the headset
bearings.

Rubbish - as long as the cap clears the fork tube (cut some more off!), the star nut will pull any
headset preload applied exactly centrally. [Says he who has bodgied up at least one that way...]

The operative phrase there is "clears the fork tube". Cutting squarely prevents "cutting some more
off" which is just doing the job twice, "bodgily", and all unnecessarily. Why stick to your rough
method when it's quite easy to do it properly and elegantly the first time?

Peter Signorini:

Quoted message said:

"Jose Rizal" <_@_._> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Edges that are a little rough are functionally fine, but if the steerer tube cut is not square,
the cap will exert uneven pressure on the headset bearings.

Cut, then file to get it close to square. I've set up my own fork like this more than once, with
no problems resulting. You don't need to be a perfectionist with a simple fork steerer tube.

Sure, but on the other hand it's not all that hard to do it right the first time by an inexperienced
non-mechanic. It certainly does not warrant a $69 fee, as OP experienced.

Jose Rizal _@_._ said:

eug k:

[.....]

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$50 installation and $19 for some metal!! Damn, anyone else want a fork installed? I'll do it
for $30 :-P Are they titanium spacers or something?

apparently it was more work than expected.. his original quote was $20-30. rah! I could probably
have bought a pipe cutter for $40. 😉

To me, "more work than expected" translates to "I stuffed up and had to correct it" or "business
was slow so I'll charge you more to make up for it"...

For $69 I would have expected a new headset thrown in. Go somewhere else next time.

shucks, those guys are usually alright. But yeah, it did seem a bit dodgy, if I knew it was gonna be
70 bucks I would have probably done it myself. Over the phone he said $20-30, although i wouldn't
expect him to give an accurate quote without seeing the stuff.

it's the uni bike store at the U of Qld if anyone's wondering.

thanks for all the responses everyone. I'll look for a pvc pipe, a file, or a piece of paper
next time. 🙂

how do you install the star nut btw?

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eug k:

Quoted message said:

how do you install the star nut btw?

If you don't have the proper tool, it's easily done by screwing in the bolt to the star nut, and
using a mallet or similar to tap the star nut into position. Make sure the bolt is concentric with
the steerer by turning the steerer tube around and ensuring the bolt is straight.

Jose Rizal _@_._ said:

eug k:

Quoted message said:

how do you install the star nut btw?

If you don't have the proper tool, it's easily done by screwing in the bolt to the star nut, and
using a mallet or similar to tap the star nut into position. Make sure the bolt is concentric with
the steerer by turning the steerer tube around and ensuring the bolt is straight.

bah, is that all? i thought it involved black magic or something, to get it to stay in place. Or at
the very least, a weld or glue. 🙂

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