Threaded 33mm headset upper cup replacement

"chc scs" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

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I have a bike with an odd sized upper/adjustable headset cup. The bike is

a

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Bianchi "Alaska" MTB (late 80's vintage). I bought the bike second hand

and

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have never found any information about it on the web but I'd say it was Bianchi's entry level MTB
for the North American market.

Using calipers I measured the wrench flats on the cup as 33mm (the lock

nut

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accepts 32mm). I can't find a 33mm headset wrench though I did find that Park Tools once did make
them. An adjustable wrench won't do the job.

Is it possible to replace the cup with a more common 32mm cup? I realize more info may be required
to answer this (such as steerer tube width,

thread

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pattern) but I can't provide that right now since I keep the bike out of town for use on weekends.

Yes you could just buy a standard $10 headset* which would solve your immediate problem (and on a
fifteen year old bike, potentially others). But I have to ask why wouldn't a large adjustable wrench
span 33mm?? And can't your LBS just adjust and lock it for $1 or so? I mean, this is after all just
a headset adjustment- not some liquid oxygen control valve on the Mars Lander.

IIRC that bike's a JIS type headset- one inch thread but the bores are 30.0 not 30.2 and the crown
similarly 27.1 not 26.4)

--
Andrew Muzi yellowjersey.orgyellowjersey.orgOpen ↗ Open every day since 1 April 1971

"A Muzi" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Yes you could just buy a standard $10 headset* which would solve your immediate problem (and on a
fifteen year old bike, potentially others). But I have to ask why wouldn't a large adjustable
wrench span 33mm?? And can't your LBS just adjust and lock it for $1 or so? I mean, this is

after

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all just a headset adjustment- not some liquid oxygen control valve on the Mars Lander.

IIRC that bike's a JIS type headset- one inch thread but the bores are

30.0

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not 30.2 and the crown similarly 27.1 not 26.4)

--
Andrew Muzi yellowjersey.orgyellowjersey.orgOpen ↗ Open every day since 1 April 1971

Thanks for the info. I can't use an adjustable wrench on the cup because there isn't room for it.
The brake cable hanger doesn't allow a fat adjustable wrench though I have adjusted the cup with the
wrench by raising the lock nut and hanger. I just couldn't hold the cup in place while locking
it. As for taking it to my LBS, I guess that would be too easy. -Sean

chc scs said:

Thanks for the info. I can't use an adjustable wrench on the cup because there isn't room for it.
The brake cable hanger doesn't allow a fat adjustable wrench though I have adjusted the cup with
the wrench by raising the lock nut and hanger. I just couldn't hold the cup in place while locking
it. As for taking it to my LBS, I guess that would be too easy.

Most of the headsets on 'classic' style citybikes here don't have any flats on the adjustable race,
it's just knurled for movement by hand. If the fixed rings between the race and the locknut are
properly in place, you shouldn't need to hold the race with a wrench to lock it up properly.

Jasper