Hello everybody,

I’m fitting a hope headset.
It has 3 shims and on the website it says optional up to 3.
What is a shim for and how many should I put in?
If anyone could help that would be great.
Thanks,
John

The shim(s) go above the “wedge” shaped insert.

Basically, you want the rubber seal around the top cover to be on the headset cup – not so much it’s dragging, but not leaving a space for water to get in either.

I found it to be a classic case of a manufacturer going the extra mile to help and thus flummoxing me – a mechanical illiterate.

The idea is as scotroutes said – it is to fine tune the spacing so that the rubber seal acts as a seal with as little drag as possible.

The argument about whether you could feel the difference with the amount of leverage you are exerting via wide bars is a moot point for me.

Yeah the tapered insert will sit at a slightly different height relative to the top cup on every steerer so the shims are there to get the top cup cover just right

I must admit, I just tend to use them all. At least that way I know where they are 🙂

Whereas I use none…

A smear of silicone grease under there and I cant feel any drag, yet the seal is as tight as a very tight thing!

Yeah, you shouldn’t need any- but they can help if the seal is deformed at all (ie squished in transit) or if there’s any tolerance issues (which there won’t be ime)