Threadless steer tube extender

[Camilo]

My road bike has a 1 1/8 threadless carbon fork w/ integrated headset,
metal steer tube. I have a 90mm 7 degree stem and the reach seems
about right. (I've tried 80 and 100).

I'd like to get a little more height for the handle bars - I'm only
looking for 1/2 - 1 inch (~2 cm). I've tried stem flipped up and down
- there is a tiny difference, but not major.

My options are to get a higher angled stem or a steer tube extender.
Oh, I guess I could buy a new fork, but I'm not going to.

There are also two extenders that appear to be available. I'm familiar
with the ones that clamp onto the steer tube and extend upward:
http://tinyurl.com/27pr46

I recently found a completely different style: http://tinyurl.com/2gbeaz.
Basically, instead of clamping around the exterior of the head tube as
the other kind does, this one has an internal expansion plug (I guess
it's similar to a quill stem?).

The accompanying text says:

Size: 28.6/25.4
Adapter that enables you to make your steering tube longer
Does not effect the function of the Ahead system
Compatible with threaded and threadless headsets
Comes with a lightweight alloy BBB Roundhead head cap

Has anyone used one of these? Will it work for what I need?

I'm thinking I'd have to remove the star nut and place this inside the
steer tube. The expansion wedge at the bottom would connect it solidly
to the steer tube. I'd then have to set the bearings by pulling up on
it, or maybe the star nut would then go inside the extension tube?

Anyway, for $12, I might just buy one and try it, but I was wondering
if anyone was familiar with this thing.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Michael Baldwin]

Camilo writes;

>There are also two extenders that appear to be available.
>I'm familiar with the ones that clamp onto the steer
>tube and extend upward: http://tinyurl.com/27pr46

The above is the one you want.

>I recently found a completely different style:
http://tinyurl.com/2gbeaz. Basically, instead
>of clamping around the exterior of the head tube as
>the other kind does, this one has an internal expansion
>plug (I guess it's similar to a quill stem?).
As mentioned, the above item extends the steering tube. Example if you
wanted to adapt forks from a smaller frame to a larger frame this item
would be the "alternative" to buying new forks with a proper length
steering tube. You may be able to use this extension with several mm's
of spacers but I wouldn't.

If you think about it just a bit more Camilo I think you'll choose the
former versus the later.

Best Regards - Mike Baldwin

 

[Michael Baldwin]

Typo Alert - later should be ladder...

Best Regards - Mike _LATTER_ Baldwin

 

[Nick Payne]

The problem with the extender is that the minimum amount of extra height you
get is the height of the part that's large enough to fit over the existing
steerer, and that's going to be a bit more than twice the additional 2cm you
speak of...

An 8cm plus/minus 17 degree stem when flipped up will give you just over 2cm
extra height and the same reach as about a 7.5cm 90 degree stem.

Extender #2 (internal wedge) would only be for steel steerers.

Nick

"Camilo" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> My road bike has a 1 1/8 threadless carbon fork w/ integrated headset,
> metal steer tube. I have a 90mm 7 degree stem and the reach seems
> about right. (I've tried 80 and 100).
>
> I'd like to get a little more height for the handle bars - I'm only
> looking for 1/2 - 1 inch (~2 cm). I've tried stem flipped up and down
> - there is a tiny difference, but not major.
>
> My options are to get a higher angled stem or a steer tube extender.
> Oh, I guess I could buy a new fork, but I'm not going to.
>
> There are also two extenders that appear to be available. I'm familiar
> with the ones that clamp onto the steer tube and extend upward:
> http://tinyurl.com/27pr46
>
> I recently found a completely different style: http://tinyurl.com/2gbeaz.
> Basically, instead of clamping around the exterior of the head tube as
> the other kind does, this one has an internal expansion plug (I guess
> it's similar to a quill stem?).
>
> The accompanying text says:
>
> Size: 28.6/25.4
> Adapter that enables you to make your steering tube longer
> Does not effect the function of the Ahead system
> Compatible with threaded and threadless headsets
> Comes with a lightweight alloy BBB Roundhead head cap
>
> Has anyone used one of these? Will it work for what I need?
>
> I'm thinking I'd have to remove the star nut and place this inside the
> steer tube. The expansion wedge at the bottom would connect it solidly
> to the steer tube. I'd then have to set the bearings by pulling up on
> it, or maybe the star nut would then go inside the extension tube?
>
> Anyway, for $12, I might just buy one and try it, but I was wondering
> if anyone was familiar with this thing.
>
> Thanks in advance.
>

 

[Paul M. Hobson]

> Camilo writes;
>> There are also two extenders that appear to be available.
>> I'm familiar with the ones that clamp onto the steer
>> tube and extend upward: http://tinyurl.com/27pr46

Michael Baldwin wrote:
> The above is the one you want.

Can that type be chopped down to a desired length similar to a fork's
steerer tube? It's seems that it could, but I've no experience with these.

--
Paul M. Hobson
..:change the f to ph to reply:.

 

[Werehatrack]

On Sat, 1 Mar 2008 18:47:51 -0800 (PST), Camilo <[email protected]>
may have said:

>My road bike has a 1 1/8 threadless carbon fork w/ integrated headset,
>metal steer tube. I have a 90mm 7 degree stem and the reach seems
>about right. (I've tried 80 and 100).
>
>I'd like to get a little more height for the handle bars - I'm only
>looking for 1/2 - 1 inch (~2 cm). I've tried stem flipped up and down
>- there is a tiny difference, but not major.
>
>My options are to get a higher angled stem or a steer tube extender.
>Oh, I guess I could buy a new fork, but I'm not going to.
>
>There are also two extenders that appear to be available. I'm familiar
>with the ones that clamp onto the steer tube and extend upward:
>http://tinyurl.com/27pr46
>
>I recently found a completely different style: http://tinyurl.com/2gbeaz.
>Basically, instead of clamping around the exterior of the head tube as
>the other kind does, this one has an internal expansion plug (I guess
>it's similar to a quill stem?).
>
>The accompanying text says:
>
>Size: 28.6/25.4
>Adapter that enables you to make your steering tube longer
>Does not effect the function of the Ahead system
>Compatible with threaded and threadless headsets
>Comes with a lightweight alloy BBB Roundhead head cap
>
>Has anyone used one of these? Will it work for what I need?

Maybe. If your steerer is steel, there's a good chance that the ID is
compatible with that item. If your steerer is aluminum, all bets are
off. That's not the only problem, though...

>I'm thinking I'd have to remove the star nut and place this inside the
>steer tube.

Yup.

>The expansion wedge at the bottom would connect it solidly
>to the steer tube.

With some potential caveats. If the wedge grips in the vicinity of
the upper bearing of the headset, you could end up distorting the
steerer enough to make the headset inner race oval instead of round.
This is not very likely, but not outside the realm of possibility.
This device also mkaes it a trifle less certain that you'll be able to
get the headset correctly loaded; if you use it, I recommend getting a
seatpost binder of the appropriate ID, filing off the lip inside (if
it has one), and installing that as a clamp immediately above the
upper bearing instead of relying solely on the shim stack and the stem
to do the job. (Keep the shims installed, though; belt and suspenders
is safer than either alone.)

>I'd then have to set the bearings by pulling up on
>it, or maybe the star nut would then go inside the extension tube?

If it uses a star nut inside, you have problems getting to the binder
bolt for the expansion wedge.

>Anyway, for $12, I might just buy one and try it, but I was wondering
>if anyone was familiar with this thing.

I have something similar around here somewhere as a problem
solver...but I haven't had to leave it installed on a bike yet.

I've also seem an extender that slips over the steerer and clamps in
place like a stem. If you need more than two inches of added rise,
they can be useful.

--
My email address is antispammed; pull WEEDS if replying via e-mail.
Typoes are not a bug, they're a feature.
Words processed in a facility that contains nuts.

 

[Peter Cole]

Camilo wrote:

> I recently found a completely different style: http://tinyurl.com/2gbeaz.
> Basically, instead of clamping around the exterior of the head tube as
> the other kind does, this one has an internal expansion plug (I guess
> it's similar to a quill stem?).

> Anyway, for $12, I might just buy one and try it, but I was wondering
> if anyone was familiar with this thing.

I've used something similar. It worked fine. I don't know if they make
any provision for setting the headset preload, but you can always do it
by just pressing down on the stem.