domonza Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 (edited) Hi, i have been recently building my new bike and i have this problem where i,ll tighten up the headset and it will be quite tight and then i will go out and after about half and hour or fifteen minutes then headset will be quite loose so my forks rock forwards. The frame is a secondhand 05 zoo pitbull which i have only just built and i bought it of my mate and he never had any problems with it. My headset is brand new and is all on properly. When i look closely at the headset it seems to be the bottom cup that moves. Does any body know if this means my frame is flarred ?,and what should i do if it is, does it mean a new frame? Also the top cup on the headset went in fine and straight when i put it on but the bottom cup slotted in my frame quite easily.CheersDOM Edited March 16, 2006 by domonza Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SCOTTY___ Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Did you put the Cups in the correct way round? <-- Daft i know, But ive seen it.Did u put the barings in the correct way?Have you got the correct bottom rest plate on your forks?Snapped forks?Craig...!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBProductions Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Was the headtube faced before fitting a new headset ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrSuave Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 if your friend had no prob's, i dont see why you should. Try overtightening the headset until its slightly stiff then ride, it will loosen off so it spins freely but it doesn't rock. If this doesn't help i would suggest either: a) try a headlock in it as apposed to a star fangled nut, b)let a shop have a look at it (not halfords!) , or c) clamping up your stem to steerer bolts more and even threadlocking them if they get loose.Does your Zoo have a CNC'd headtube? if so, theres no way its flared.hope this helps Tommo. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Geary Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 If your looking for a headlock i've got a brand new one for sale Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poopipe Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Maybe your steerer is too long to allow you to tighten everything up properly - meaning the topcap isn't clamping down on the stem - its hitting the steerer instead.I was getting that when I stuck new forks on my t-poo a while back - I just kept filing away at the end of the steerer till it sorted itself out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sexymike Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Does your Zoo have a CNC'd headtube? if so, theres no way its flared.hope this helps Tommo.now tommo, it could happen, im sure rossi could manage it, he is so hot! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Davetrials Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Ive flared a echo headtube.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
domonza Posted March 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 (edited) Cheers for the replies, it wont be that my forks have snapped because they are brand new i put them in with the headset. The cups and bearings are all in properly and the bottom rest plate is on correctly, my mate has had a look at it and he,s convinced that it is flarred. The headset has not got a stupid amount of play in it so i can ride comfortably with it but its my new bike and dont really want there to be any problems with it.CheersDOM Edited March 16, 2006 by domonza Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark W Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 If it's a new headset, and especially if it's sealed, for the first few rides it will f**k you about like that. It's generally just the bearings bedding in. If, on the other hand, there's definite actual movement of the lower cup, there's not much you can do apart from getting nifty with a coke can and cutting some shims... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
domonza Posted March 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 I have cut up some can and made some shims and it still moves the same as it did last time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark W Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Then you're doing it wrong Haha, nah, just make sure you shim it on one side, basically, not all the way round or anything. Try and work out where the ovalised bit is, and then just go from there, really. How much did you pay for it again? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
domonza Posted March 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 I have put the shims on the side where i think its moving the most but it just does the same. Im getting confused know and quite worried incase it gets worse. I bought the frame for £75 but it had some dints in and was scratched quite a lot so it was a fair price. DOM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lawnmowerman Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Get a new star nut Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mat hudson Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 check the cups for cracks..... my headset came undone and rocked when it was riddled with cracks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nmt_oli Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 I can't remember who does it, but im sure there a a couple of places that will ream out your headtube and bond a new ring in, bringing it back into shape. weather the frame is worth the cost of that i don't know.As has been said already, make sure your steerer is short enough, try putting another headset spacer in and tighten it all up just to be sure.look very closely to see if its the bearings loose in the cup, or the cup loose in the frame, as the solutions to these situations will be different.If the frame is flaired, it may be more cost effective to buy a cheap headset ( i bought a BMX one for £4 in halfords!!, wasnt too bas either, loose balls, easy to service. ) whack that in, and ride the frame with a wobble until it dies or the wobble gets too much for you to tolerate. Will save you wrecking your nice headset anyway.Might be worth trying a diff headest to make sure its not your headset thats playing up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Krisboats Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 If you're putting these coke can spacers in and it's still doing it your definately doing something wrong. I mean, most headsets need to be put in with a press because they fit so tightly. it's most obviously going to be flared if you can easily slide a spacer in there and have it still wobble.You could get it reamed or buy an fsa pig headset, they are slightly wider then normal headsets and have a tendancy of flaring headsets... so if yours is already flared it should fit in nicely. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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