question about headtube on wicked

afterbang · February 12th, 2013, 9:08 PM

Hey guys.

My new to me Wicked showed up on Monday and I plan on dropping it off for paint tomorrow. I was looking to get some advice about something I am probably just being OCD about. I removed the headset cups and bottom bracket on the bike and the headset cups came out rather easily... leading me to have thoughts about slight head tube ovalization.

I am just so used to there being a much tighter tolerance and not being able to get the headset cup halfway in with my hand on frames. I have King headsets on all my bikes and have had to face a number of HTs because how tight the tolerances are on those things so it may just be in my head... The old headset cup was an old campy one and was installed just to make the bike less susceptible to impact damage during shipping.

Anybody who has had experience taking these things apart and reassembling them, I would be interested in hearing what you have to say.

- Matt

tvcreative · February 13th, 2013, 8:38 AM

do you have a king headset you can test/press before you paint?

that would be my measure

mainlyfats · February 13th, 2013, 8:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tvcreative

do you have a king headset you can test/press before you paint?

that would be my measure

+1. Probably the junk headset.

I'd also have a look for cracks in the HT, cause that doesn't sound like ovalizing to me (more a rocking in opposite directions).

OTOH, it could be a lovingly prepped frame that got a full face + chase by its previous owner/refinisher.

I-ROBOT · February 13th, 2013, 12:35 PM

If you have an ID micrometer or caliper, measure the ID at several points to see if it is out of round. It is possible that many years of jumps and impacts could cause the head tube to ovalize somewhat. All frames were reamed and faced before leaving the factory and the machined ends of the Wicked (and Fat) head tubes usually held up for long periods of abuse. Cracks are a possibility - look at the area where the headtube tapers down to the smaller diameter. Sometimes a crack at the edge of the chin gusset can propogate into the head tube. Very rare for the head tube itself to crack. Early models of the Wicked were welded without a heatsink and the weld burn through gave the finishers fits trying to get the IDs reamed properly. I came up with a copper ID heat sink that minimized the amount of burn through and held the ID concentricity much closer than the ones welded without it. I'm not sure when we came up with this. I'm guessing around 1988 or so.
Consult a headset manufacturer for the allowable tolerances on what they require for a correct press-fit.
Good Luck
Scott

February 12th, 2013, 9:08 PM	#1
afterbang Senior Member Join Date: August 21st, 2012 Location: Oregon Posts: 128	question about headtube on wicked Hey guys. My new to me Wicked showed up on Monday and I plan on dropping it off for paint tomorrow. I was looking to get some advice about something I am probably just being OCD about. I removed the headset cups and bottom bracket on the bike and the headset cups came out rather easily... leading me to have thoughts about slight head tube ovalization. I am just so used to there being a much tighter tolerance and not being able to get the headset cup halfway in with my hand on frames. I have King headsets on all my bikes and have had to face a number of HTs because how tight the tolerances are on those things so it may just be in my head... The old headset cup was an old campy one and was installed just to make the bike less susceptible to impact damage during shipping. Anybody who has had experience taking these things apart and reassembling them, I would be interested in hearing what you have to say. - Matt

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February 13th, 2013, 8:38 AM	#2
tvcreative Senior Member Join Date: March 15th, 2010 Location: Naperville IL Posts: 716	do you have a king headset you can test/press before you paint? that would be my measure

February 13th, 2013, 12:35 PM	#4
I-ROBOT Senior Member Join Date: January 7th, 2007 Location: Hudson, MA Posts: 426	If you have an ID micrometer or caliper, measure the ID at several points to see if it is out of round. It is possible that many years of jumps and impacts could cause the head tube to ovalize somewhat. All frames were reamed and faced before leaving the factory and the machined ends of the Wicked (and Fat) head tubes usually held up for long periods of abuse. Cracks are a possibility - look at the area where the headtube tapers down to the smaller diameter. Sometimes a crack at the edge of the chin gusset can propogate into the head tube. Very rare for the head tube itself to crack. Early models of the Wicked were welded without a heatsink and the weld burn through gave the finishers fits trying to get the IDs reamed properly. I came up with a copper ID heat sink that minimized the amount of burn through and held the ID concentricity much closer than the ones welded without it. I'm not sure when we came up with this. I'm guessing around 1988 or so. Consult a headset manufacturer for the allowable tolerances on what they require for a correct press-fit. Good Luck Scott

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