Recommend me some headset fitting and removal tools, home DIY mechanic priced stuff please! 😀

Hammer and a block of wood for fitting
Hammer and a piece of copper pipe for removal

got the ice tools remover and press. both excellent. but the press seems to have almost doubled in price!!

+1 for hammer, wood and pipe or old screwdriver

link to maaking your ownplumbing suplies shops will sell you all the bits to make one cheap.

its a mugs game buying cheap tools like a headset press, if you are going to do it buy a good quality one, best you can afford or make it yourself.

Cheers guys, looks like the homemade version might be the way forward. 😀

What David said.

no way the cyclus headset press is awesome review here buy it for £30 here from UK Bikestore which is brill.

For headset removal any of the home made methods are excellent.

Buy a long sturdy metal bolt a couple nuts to fit that bolt and a couple large metal plate washers that also go on that bolt then use them as a press. Cost me less than a fiver from my DIY shop and always worked for me. If the cups are being a little stubborn put them in the freezer for an hour and they shrink slightly making them easier to fit.

block of wood at both ends + hammer and an old pair of steel flat bars to get the original cups out. So far been good for over 50 bikes I've built this way.

no way the cyclus headset press is awesome

+1

I've had one for just over a year and used it three times. Does the job perfectly and will probably last for years.

For removal I've got an Xtools headset cup remover from CRC. It wasn't that expensive and it takes seconds to remove a headset cup.

Before i bought the cyclus press (which is brilliant value) my favoured tools were a block of wood and a meat tenderiser! 🙂

I made a load of presses for STW users a few months ago, before i got my thread locked for being trade add (even though i wasnt making anything on them 8O).
Im now selling them on ebay at a small profit see here

I could post one out to you for what i was selling them at before on here if you like? I think it was a fiver posted from memory, but ill check if you are interested.

J

Jammy111

That would be great thanks. Please email me payment details, address in profile,

Cheers – Paceman

I did just buy the Cyclus one since I had a Works Components headangle reducer to fit, and it seemed like I should get the correct tool. It turned out not to work, all I managed to do was get it jammed in the cups so I went back to the traditional correct tool, lumps of wood and a coarse grade hammer. Sorted. The Cyclus one looks alright but it's not significantly better than my £3 B&Q one.

I've never fitted headangle reducer cups, but my cyclus one is waaaaay better than the B&Q verion I had before, whatever permutation of washers/spacers etc.

Its the stepped cups with a long 'shaft' to keep it straight on the on the threaded rod part on the proper tool that make it go in straight every time (I wonder if it didn't have the right sized 'step' on it for northwind's headangle reducer). Difficult to keep a stack of washers perpendicular to the threaded rod in the DIY one if you have a headset cup that keeps wanting to go in on the wonk.

The fine pitch thread is also better for the snugger fitting headtubes than a big m10 threaded rod too. Mine has done four of mine and wife's bikes plus three or four of my mates' ones so far. Little difference if your headset can go 3/4 way in by hand, but greeeat for more stubborn fitting ones.

All that said, the DIY one would be functionally about the same as a proper one with the addition of some home made machined stepped 'cups' and a thrust bearing to go under the bolt you tighten up. There must be someone on here that would machine off a bunch of cups in their garage and buy the other bits in bulk?

paceman- YGM. i've found that if you do each cup one at a time they go in no problems. the one i make is using m12 hardware so it has a bit of lateral stiffness to it as well, making it easier to press the cups in straight.

Thanks Jammy111

I've sent payment etc as requested.

A quick question… do you grease headset cups before pressing them in? Aplologies if this seems a daft question, i'm just keen to do it properly 😆

do you grease headset cups before pressing them in?

hell yes. Bonus points for using coppaslip if putting aluminum cups in steel frame, but any will do.

It'll be aluminium cups in a steel frame, good tip, cheers 8)

lol

Removal..

Fitting

5 minutes to make…literally.

Jammy111 – 60 quid an hour pro rata, not including your postage. Good work if you can get it 😀

laim- not quite sure how you figure that one out, but whatever.