Can anyone recommend me a headset that:
– will work in UK conditions.
– will take replacable sealed bearings from the bearing shop.
– be designed to minimise the ingress of crap, especially the bottom one.
– put up with me washing my bike after every ride with muc off.
– not cost too much.

I dont think I need to buy a CK headset, I just want one with easy to replace bearings that will last a year. Seems simple, but looking at all the websites they all seem great but the marketing is making a simple product way too complicated.

Can someone recommend me one, please.

Oh, it needs to be integrated into a tapered headset (Transition Covert running 2011 Fox 36’s)

The hope one I’ve got has been faultless. Not sure if they do an integrated tapered one though

Ive looked at them, but cant seem to find a diagram which would show me how its all put together. Id like to see it in some detail to find out if it will be a bit weather proof. Your right I too cant tell if the integrated one will do for my tapered headtube.

Hope hope hope—drop them a line for your needs if you can`t find it on websites?

Might be worth a look to see if Cane Creek are doing something suitable [yet].

Cane Creek is all I fit these days, they just seem to go on for ever – and if they do fail, spares are available. Not sure about the tapered stuff tho’, that bit of design hasn’t filtered down to road bikes just yet. 😉

Both Hope and Cane Creek do a tapered headset that will fit.

You need to check the ID of your headtube top & bottom cup though, as there is 2 different standards…

Hope +1

Hope!

Hope are great but don’t think the bearings are available from bearing suppliers only from Hope.

Was looking at the On-One Smoothie Mixer (tapered) headset that came with my Carbon 456 frame today and it seems quite nicely made with cartridge bearings.

Might be worth a look as a cheap-ish option.

Well the original Headset I had, which was very, very cheap was a Cane Creek one – it didnt have sealed bearings it was that cheap. I didnt realise they did such a cheap one till I took it off to see what why it was a bit notchy.

I said to the shop doing the build just fit a decent one, but not expensive. I spent over 5k on the complete bike and thought Id have a simple but OK headset. They really did go cheap, perhaps I should have speced it myself, but never haveing issues with them before I thought headsets were pretty much all the same apart from the marketing hype.

Mmm, wrong there.

Looking at the spec I need Tapered 1.5″ / 1-1/8″ (1.5″ Lower Cup 49.6mm ID / 1-1/8″)

The lower and upper are integrated. I did look at CK’s website – but cant tell if their Devolution one will fit or not. They are expensive, but seem similar to Cane Creeks prices on CRC.

They would go with my CK hubs though. But I dont see those bearings as being simple ones I can get from the bearing shop a year later.

“- will take replacable sealed bearings from the
bearing shop .”

I don’t think one exists but FSAs take cheap spares IIRC.

I got a Cane Creek and I can’t adjust the play out of it. Garbage.

CK headsets are superb. Mine is 3 years old now. After going through “cheap” headset every 6 – 9 months, 3 years is positively ancient.

Although expensive to buy, it is working out to be the cheapest headset I’ve ever owned.

It’s on its 3rd frame and I’ve fitted / removed on all occasions with a proper headset tool and proper cup remover tool and no problems, no steerer scoring issues either, that some people report.

Funny cos I bought the tools cos I was replacing headsets so frequently it seemed worthwhile….

How good is it at keeping crap out of the bottom bearing then. Thats where mine gets mucky.