Fitting new fork... What should I know?
Discussion
Hi team,
I'm fitting a new fork... I've found a (pretty crap) tutorial here: http://www.bikemagic.com/news/article/mps/uan/3025
If anyone has a better one I would appreciate a link
Anything really important I should know?
Cheers
I'm fitting a new fork... I've found a (pretty crap) tutorial here: http://www.bikemagic.com/news/article/mps/uan/3025
If anyone has a better one I would appreciate a link
Anything really important I should know?
Cheers
I haven't looked at that guide, but its really simple
Firstly - if it is a carbon steerer tube - let a shop do it, by the time you have shelled out on a carbon cutting blade and cutting guide you could have paid someone else to do it.
Secondly - are the forks the same length - not just the same travel, but is the distance between the drop outs and the bottom of the steerer the same and you are happy with your position - this makes it a lot easier, as you can cut one steerer to match the other
Right, here goes:
Remove the crown race from the old fork - a flat screwdriver works pretty well
fit the crown race onto the new fork - a bit of pipe just bigger than the steerer tube helps here - race on, slide tube on, bash tube till race is seated
If you have a load of spacers, i would leave the steerer uncut and play about with the position a bit to get a rough idea of where you want your bars - be very rough here - measure to about 10mm longer than what feels comfy to give yourself some wiggle room when you finally cut it - use your existing forks as a rough baseline.
Mark where you have measured to
Measure this again
Get your hacksaw out, blade designed for cutting metal
Measure the steerer on the new fork again
Cut the tube
File it flat and remove the burrs
This bit is optional - i hate star nuts and always go for an expansion style top cap - they work better and dont need a special tool to fit - fitting the star nut can be done with an old allen bolt and a hammer though - put the bolt in the nut, line up and whack away bout 3cm in should do it.
Fork through the headtube, then put your bottom spacers on, then the stem. If you did it right, you should have ~1cm above the stem - this is your wiggle room for wrong measurements/position adjustments - can be cut away later when you are sure you like where your bars are. For now, stack spacers until they are slightly higher than the steerer.
Put the top cap on and tighten it up till there is no play in the headset - dont go mental, this isn't what is holding your fork on, its just there to take the play out of the bearings - this is double important with an expansion bolt - you really dont want to bulge your steerer
Tighten the stem bolts - if you dont have a torque wrench, tighten the bolts, but dont overdo it. If its a carbon fork and you dont have a torque wrench - get one.
Phew, that was a long 'yin. Probably not as good with a guide with pictures, but its what i run through in my head every time i cut a fork. I also can't emphasise how important the repeated measurements are - i was once swapping two sets of 888's and long story short, i needed to buy a direct mount stem (with next to no stem stack height) to make them fit - due mainly to me being a fanny with the old steel rule.
Firstly - if it is a carbon steerer tube - let a shop do it, by the time you have shelled out on a carbon cutting blade and cutting guide you could have paid someone else to do it.
Secondly - are the forks the same length - not just the same travel, but is the distance between the drop outs and the bottom of the steerer the same and you are happy with your position - this makes it a lot easier, as you can cut one steerer to match the other
Right, here goes:
Remove the crown race from the old fork - a flat screwdriver works pretty well
fit the crown race onto the new fork - a bit of pipe just bigger than the steerer tube helps here - race on, slide tube on, bash tube till race is seated
If you have a load of spacers, i would leave the steerer uncut and play about with the position a bit to get a rough idea of where you want your bars - be very rough here - measure to about 10mm longer than what feels comfy to give yourself some wiggle room when you finally cut it - use your existing forks as a rough baseline.
Mark where you have measured to
Measure this again
Get your hacksaw out, blade designed for cutting metal
Measure the steerer on the new fork again
Cut the tube
File it flat and remove the burrs
This bit is optional - i hate star nuts and always go for an expansion style top cap - they work better and dont need a special tool to fit - fitting the star nut can be done with an old allen bolt and a hammer though - put the bolt in the nut, line up and whack away bout 3cm in should do it.
Fork through the headtube, then put your bottom spacers on, then the stem. If you did it right, you should have ~1cm above the stem - this is your wiggle room for wrong measurements/position adjustments - can be cut away later when you are sure you like where your bars are. For now, stack spacers until they are slightly higher than the steerer.
Put the top cap on and tighten it up till there is no play in the headset - dont go mental, this isn't what is holding your fork on, its just there to take the play out of the bearings - this is double important with an expansion bolt - you really dont want to bulge your steerer
Tighten the stem bolts - if you dont have a torque wrench, tighten the bolts, but dont overdo it. If its a carbon fork and you dont have a torque wrench - get one.
Phew, that was a long 'yin. Probably not as good with a guide with pictures, but its what i run through in my head every time i cut a fork. I also can't emphasise how important the repeated measurements are - i was once swapping two sets of 888's and long story short, i needed to buy a direct mount stem (with next to no stem stack height) to make them fit - due mainly to me being a fanny with the old steel rule.
I'm in the process of doing this. I failed at the star nut installation so got my LBS to do it with the special tool. I considered just buying an expanding nut or a full head lock thingy but I didn't want to wait for mail order stuff to come through. Hopefully it should all bolt back together again ok. Adjusting the brakes so they don't rub hopefully won't be too tricky.
Henry Hawthorne said:
Eventually decided to leave the bike shop to it... 
Good plan.Should you be tempted, however:
http://www.parktool.com/repair/readhowto.asp?id=11...
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