Headset Cup Press Tool Question

Quoted message said:

I am trying to decide whether or not to invest $100.00 or so in a Park

press

Quoted message said:

for headset cup installation. I've used them before, and they do work

well.

Quoted message said:

I don't have any one that I can borrow one from right now, so either I buy one or fashion some
sort of home-made jobber. I usually press in no more than a couple sets in a given year, so if
anyone has any contrivances

that

Quoted message said:

worked for them, I'd like to hear about it. TIA, Nedman

A poor-man's headcup press consists of a large C-clamp and a couple of pieces of 1x4 wood. Put one
of the head cups onto the frame, and one of the pieces of wood on top of the cup. Place the other
piece of wood over the head tube on the opposite side, and then start tightening the C-clamp. Then
do the other side.

The blocks of wood serve two purposes. First, they protect the surfaces of the cup and frame from
damage, since they're relatively soft. Second, it allows you to make sure the cup is going into the
frame straight (because it gives you a reference perpendicular to the frame).

Even better than a C-clamp is a very large vise, but it's got to be pretty big to fit a
larger frame.

--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles chainreactionbicycles.comchainreactionbicycles.comOpen ↗

Nedman said:

I am trying to decide whether or not to invest $100.00 or so in a Park press for headset cup
installation. I've used them before, and they do work well. I don't have any one that I can borrow
one from right now, so either I buy one or fashion some sort of home-made jobber. I usually press
in no more than a couple sets in a given year, so if anyone has any contrivances that worked for
them, I'd like to hear about it. TIA, Nedman

remove nospam to reply

Cyclus make a much cheaper one.

Mike Jacoubowsky said:

A poor-man's headcup press consists of a large C-clamp and a couple of pieces of 1x4 wood.

A wise-man's solution, rather.

Sergio Pisa

Nedman said:

Quoted message said:

I am trying to decide whether or not to invest $100.00 or so in a Park press for headset cup
installation. I've used them before, and they do work well. I don't have any one that I can
borrow one from right now, so either I buy one or fashion some sort of home-made jobber. I
usually press in no more than a couple sets in a given year, so if anyone has any contrivances
that worked for them, I'd like to hear about it. TIA, Nedman

Nothing like a good tool if you've got the dough. I've done it with 3/4" ready-rod with nuts on both
ends and a couple of blocks of drilled 2X4 between the nut and HS cup. Works ok if you're careful
and it's cheap. Saw some brass washers at a marine store once that would prob'ly work well to go
inside the cups to keep the tool aligned and pressure off the outside rim of the cup. jb

On Sat, 17 Jan 2004 07:02:38 GMT, "Nedman"

may have said:

I am trying to decide whether or not to invest $100.00 or so in a Park press for headset cup
installation. I've used them before, and they do work well. I don't have any one that I can borrow
one from right now, so either I buy one or fashion some sort of home-made jobber. I usually press
in no more than a couple sets in a given year, so if anyone has any contrivances that worked for
them, I'd like to hear about it. TIA, Nedman

If the large washers sold in hardware stores were made with their internal diameters at a useful
dimension, it would be trivially easy to throw one together from a piece of 5/8" (or similar size;
that's just the one that's reliably available cheap nearby) all-thread, two nuts and two washers. I
have a number of such home-made press tools for various applications, but I find that I usually end
up making my own washers by taking a piece of 1/4" plate, hole-sawing out two discs in the needed
OD, and then counterboring them on the drill press with a bit that leaves very little clearance
around the threads. With just the hardware-store washers, it's likely that the assembly won't stay
square. (It also helps to wrap duct tape around the shaft at the required positions in the
appropraite thickness to ensure that the shaft stays centered in the cups.)

Until recently, all of the frame cups I had replaced were in steel head tubes. I can't say if
aluminum tubes are touchier about the process, but I expect them to be, and I take greater care with
them. Swapping out the cups in steel head tubes has been a snap.

One caveat: If you are dealing with a virgin frame from a specialty builder or high-performance
manufacturer, there is a distressingly high probability that the head tube will be only semi-
finished; it might not be the right ID at the ends, or not square, or both. On a bike that has been
in service without problems, I consider this to be an issue worth ignoring. The degree to which
people consider this to be a must-check thing seems to depend on whether they have the tools to fix
it, which I don't.

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"Nedman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I am trying to decide whether or not to invest $100.00 or so in a Park

press

Quoted message said:

for headset cup installation. I've used them before, and they do work

well.

Quoted message said:

I don't have any one that I can borrow one from right now, so either I buy one or fashion some
sort of home-made jobber. I usually press in no more than a couple sets in a given year, so if
anyone has any contrivances

that

Quoted message said:

worked for them, I'd like to hear about it. TIA, Nedman

remove nospam to reply

I've use a 7/8" bolt, a nut, and a few washers that I bought at a hardware store. I've used this
system several times on both 1" and 1 1/8" headsets and it has always worked perfectly. IIRC, it
cost me about $2 at Home Depot Very Inexpensive

Dave

Dave, is it necessary to put pipes on the end of the wrenches or something to get enough torque to
make this system work?

Robert

(R15757) may have said:

Dave, is it necessary to put pipes on the end of the wrenches or something to get enough torque to
make this system work?

Good grief, no! If you can't get them to move in smoothly with a
3/8"-drive ratchet, something is VERY wrong; the effort required should not be enough to even
require a heavy grip.

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No. When you tighten a bolt, notice that for each 360 degree turn, which is a huge amount of
movement with a normal wrench, the nut only moves up or down the bolt a very small distance. This
is a tell tale sign that you will be producing huge torque with little effort. A basic wrench or
cresent wrench (I'm using a 12" one ) on one end and a pair of pliers on the other is more than
enough. The headset presses in real easy, but just do one cup at a time. Don't forget to grease
everything before assembly and make sure that the cup is going in straight -- all obvious stuff.
Oh, I said 7/8" but I think I may have actually bought 3/4" or smaller. You can figure this out
on your own.

It's works great and I will be using it again on my soon-to-arrive new frame. Yippee!

Dave

"R15757" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Dave, is it necessary to put pipes on the end of the wrenches or something

to

Quoted message said:

get enough torque to make this system work?

Robert

I used the same approach and since I only do a headset every few years, I just return the parts to
Home Depot as there was really no wear.

"onefred" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

No. When you tighten a bolt, notice that for each 360 degree turn, which

is

Quoted message said:

a huge amount of movement with a normal wrench, the nut only moves up or down the bolt a very
small distance. This is a tell tale sign that you

will

Quoted message said:

be producing huge torque with little effort. A basic wrench or cresent wrench (I'm using a 12" one
) on one end and a pair of pliers on the other is more than enough. The headset presses in real
easy, but just do one

cup

Quoted message said:

at a time. Don't forget to grease everything before assembly and make

sure

Quoted message said:

that the cup is going in straight -- all obvious stuff. Oh, I said 7/8"

but

Quoted message said:

I think I may have actually bought 3/4" or smaller. You can figure this

out

Quoted message said:

on your own.

It's works great and I will be using it again on my soon-to-arrive new frame. Yippee!

Dave

"R15757" <[email hidden]> wrote in message "]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Dave, is it necessary to put pipes on the end of the wrenches or

something

Quoted message said:

to

Quoted message said:

get enough torque to make this system work?

Robert

"onefred" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

No. When you tighten a bolt, notice that for each 360 degree turn, which is a huge amount of
movement with a normal wrench, the nut only moves up or down the bolt a very small distance. This
is a tell tale sign that you will be producing huge torque with little effort. A basic wrench or
cresent wrench (I'm using a 12" one ) on one end and a pair of pliers on the other is more than
enough. The headset presses in real easy, but just do one cup at a time. Don't forget to grease
everything before assembly and make sure that the cup is going in straight -- all obvious stuff.
Oh, I said 7/8" but I think I may have actually bought 3/4" or smaller. You can figure this out on
your own.

It's works great and I will be using it again on my soon-to-arrive new frame. Yippee!

Dave

This is most excellent. Thanks for the tip!

Robert

"wannagofast" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I used the same approach and since I only do a headset every few years, I just return the parts to
Home Depot as there was really no wear.

Home Depot is the DIY'ers paradise!!!

Quoted message said:

"wannagofast" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I used the same approach and since I only do a headset every few years, I just return the parts to
Home Depot as there was really no wear.

onefred said:

Home Depot is the DIY'ers paradise!!!

I wondered, do you think that's acceptable behavior? I don't.

I've never been in a Home Depot, I meant, just in general, to purchase something, use it, and
return it.
--
Andrew Muzi www.yellowjersey.org Open every day since 1 April, 1971

A Muzi said:

Quoted message said:

Home Depot is the DIY'ers paradise!!! I wondered, do you think that's acceptable behavior? I
don't. I've never been in a Home Depot, I meant, just in general, to purchase something, use it,
and return it.

I have never done so either, but ... .

When my brother got married, my mother went in for a fur collar; she borrowed it, brought it home to
show it to us and think about it. The wedding was that saturday afternoon.

Sergio Pisa

Someone said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

I used the same approach and since I only do a headset every few years, I just return the parts
to Home Depot as there was really no wear.

Fellow retailer Andy Muzi queried:

Quoted message said:

I wondered, do you think that's acceptable behavior? I don't.

I've never been in a Home Depot, I meant, just in general, to purchase something, use it, and
return it.

I usually agree with Andy, and this case is no exception.

When merchandise is bought, then used, then returned, a reputable retailer can't generally re-sell
it as "new" for full price. Even if the part is truly unused and unmarked, a dealer has costs
associated with the two transactions, both the sale and the refund.

When a customer buys something in good faith, then doesn't like it for some reason, or even for no
reason, we don't mind absorbing these costs. It's part of the cost of doing business.

However, when a customer _deliberately_ buys something with the _intention_ of using it then
returning it for a refund, that is STEALING.

Sheldon "Don't Do It!" Brown +--------------------------------------------------------+
| The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands | in moments of comfort and convenience, but
| where | he stands at times of challenge and controversy. | --Martin Luther King, Jr. |
+--------------------------------------------------------+ Harris Cyclery, West Newton,
Massachusetts Phone 617-244-9772 FAX 617-244-1041 harriscyclery.comharriscyclery.comOpen ↗ Hard-to-find parts
shipped Worldwide captainbike.comcaptainbike.comOpen ↗ sheldonbrown.comsheldonbrown.comOpen ↗

"A Muzi" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

"wannagofast" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I used the same approach and since I only do a headset every few years,

I

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

just return the parts to Home Depot as there was really no wear.

onefred said:

Home Depot is the DIY'ers paradise!!!

I wondered, do you think that's acceptable behavior? I don't.

I've never been in a Home Depot, I meant, just in general, to purchase something, use it, and
return it.

No, I don't think it's ethical, but I ain't his momma either...

You can try to punish him if you feel it's your place, but I believe this is an issue for Home Depot
and wannagofast's momma. If you really want to help, try to visit Home Depot more often to help make-
up for people that abuse their liberal return policy.

None of this changes the fact that Home Depot is the DIY'ers paradise!!! Woohoo!

Radio Shack is the DIYers nightmare. Unless you need an RCA patch cable or 'Shaq' doll, they never
have [censored] on their shelves! Boohoo.

Dave

onefred said:

None of this changes the fact that Home Depot is the DIY'ers paradise!!! Woohoo!

Local hardware stores tend to be even better for DIYers...although the dearth of good hardware
stores leaves Home Depot the best in many areas.

Quoted message said:

Radio Shack is the DIYers nightmare. Unless you need an RCA patch cable or 'Shaq' doll, they never
have [censored] on their shelves! Boohoo.

The Radio Shacks around here usually have what I need, but they are terribly expensive. You can only
buy extra-premium RCA cables at excessive prices; never an inexpensive, or even competitively priced
premium cable. They do have reasonable prices on some small electronic componentry, if all you need
is resistors and very common pieces.

Quoted message said:

Dave

--
Rick Onanian

"Nedman" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

I am trying to decide whether or not to invest $100.00 or so in a Park press for headset cup
installation. I've used them before, and they do work well. I don't have any one that I can borrow
one from right now, so either I buy one or fashion some sort of home-made jobber. I usually press
in no more than a couple sets in a given year, so if anyone has any contrivances that worked for
them, I'd like to hear about it. TIA, Nedman

remove nospam to reply

You could buy just the stepped inserts for the Park tool for about $20:

oolsetc.com/index.cgi?id=150440547026&d=single&c=Tools&sc=Headset&tc=Press%20Set%20Parts&item_id=PA-
530/2>

Then use a threaded rod and nuts. You'd probably have to be more careful than with the Park tool to
make sure the insert goes in straight, but I don't see why it wouldn't work.

On Mon, 19 Jan 2004 12:58:41 -0600, "onefred" <[email hidden]>

may have said:

Radio Shack is the DIYers nightmare. Unless you need an RCA patch cable or 'Shaq' doll, they never
have [censored] on their shelves! Boohoo.

My experience has been lexically opposite; *all* they have on their shelves is *[censored]*. If I'm
desperate for a resistor or other small component on a Saturday evening, I'll go there. Otherwise, I
go to the real electronic parts houses (what few remain) to get what I need. For anything more
complex than an IC chip or a cable, I will go *anywhere but* Radio Sharks, as my experinece with the
majority of their products has been awful.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Yes, I have a killfile. If I don't respond to something,
it's also possible that I'm busy.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.