Re: Headset/Headtube Issues on New Atlantis

[Brian Campbell]

I would call Rivendell as your next step. Maybe have the shop and Riv communicate about the problem, so everyone is on the same page? Maybe its a manufacturing issue vs. a damage in shipping in issue. I would try to get it resolved before going further. Good luck and sorry to hear about the issue.

On Thursday, June 11, 2020 at 12:35:05 PM UTC-4, AntiCorgi wrote:

Hi All:

Hope everyone reading this is doing well and staying healthy.

I recently had a MIT 55cm 700c Atlantis built up for me, and upon receiving it noticed a bit of play in the headset region (e.g. I held the front brake and rocked back and forth and heard a "clunking/clicking" noise and saw some movement between the threaded upper race and upper pressed race). I took it to a local bike shop to have it tightened, but no matter how much they tightened it, they were not able to get rid of the play. They asked me to leave it with them so they could take apart the headset and check out what was going on, which is what I did.

Yesterday, I received a call back from them reporting that they started to take apart my headset, and in the process of doing so they reported that the "lower headset cup was moving around in the frame" and said that they think the head-tube is ovalized and I should get in touch with "the manufacturer" about it. Understandably, I'm pretty bummed about this development, but I'm wondering if I should try to get a second opinion here? Namely, are there other reasons why the lower headset cup could be moving around in the frame?

I haven't even ridden the bike yet so it seems pretty unlikely that the head-tube would be ovalized - the shipping box it came in was in good condition and everything else was fine. I'm by no means an expert in bike maintenance/mechanics so I can't think of a non-riding reason for this to occur.  I did get insurance on the shipping, so if it ends up that it was damaged due to a hard drop or something I should be covered.

Thanks all!

[Benz, Sunnyvale, CA]

If your Atlantis new? The ends of the Atlantis headtube is reinforced, so it's unlikely to get ovalized unless someone was trying really hard, or the bike hit something. Did the shop measure the headtube inner diameter and the headset cup diameter to ensure they're sized correctly and round? If the bike is new, I'll guess that someone used a JIS headset cup on the ISO headtube. The difference (30.2 vs 30.0mm) is exactly like what you're describing.

[AntiCorgi]

Thanks all for the helpful advice! Long story short, I'm going to try out a new headset to see if it fixes the issue. To answer some questions:

If your Atlantis new? Did the shop measure the headtube inner diameter and the headset cup diameter to ensure they're sized correctly and round? I'll guess that someone used a JIS headset cup on the ISO headtube. The difference (30.2 vs 30.0mm) is exactly like what you're describing.

The Atlantis is new, and has the stock FSA Duron X headset that Riv pre-installs on their new frames.

[Sal]

Actually most, if not all, of the headset (cups) are installed before the frames get to Riv, so it's possible it's some sort of an assembly-line issue and just the wrong cup size in there, and it got missed during the build-up. Hope it's an easy fix.