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Headset coming loose issue.

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Headset coming loose issue.

Old 05-15-21, 04:32 PM
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Dopefish905
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Headset coming loose issue.

Stock cervelo 2017 s3 with fsa is3 headset.

issues with it coming “looser” over a few hundred kms of riding..

Checked bearings and steering tube, all is good there mechanically.

so it’s been ongoing, I back off the stem bolts completely & the top cap. Tighten down the headset cap untill the steering binds slightly, then back it off untill it doesn’t(stem spacers do not spin!! They are tight and nothing binds when steering...perfect) torque the stem bolts down to 6nm and good to go, it’s perfect.

so it’s never really a issue when riding, no pulsing when breaking down hills ect, like a loose headset would do, but after a few hundred km the stem spacers and bearing cap(under the spacers) I can spin with a little effort with my fingers under the stem now(I couldn’t before when tightening it all up), and there is a tiny amount of play(no sound of knocking or anything, talking a mm or so)when I hold the front brake and rock the bike back and forth..again not like before, when I set it up.

Stem bolts are still torqued to 6nm and haven’t loosen and same with the headset cap & screw..(there’s no grease on the stem either at all) after checking.


sooo what’s coming loose? Or is this just normal after a few hundred kms on the road? I’m perplexed where the minute amount of play keeps coming from.

Last edited by Dopefish905; 05-15-21 at 04:36 PM.
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Old 05-15-21, 06:10 PM
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Your expanding plug may be slipping.
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Old 05-15-21, 06:39 PM
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The starnut//expander plug and aluminium sleeve inside the the carbon steerer have not moved at all, solid..the headset cap is still tight.it hasn’t loosened, neither the stem bolts(which actually matter)

I’ll try your method of headset setup up, thank you, the only difference would be over torquing to start to gets things settle then leaving it binding a bit, and I guess maybe it settles in a bit over time and becomes good? interesting, thank you.

any other advice would be swell as-well, thanks dudes
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Old 05-15-21, 07:02 PM
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Be sure there is clearance between the top of the steerer and the top cap. Tightening the top cap against the head tube won't work.
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Old 05-15-21, 07:15 PM
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I got it so tight the steering would bind when I tightened to top cap so that’s not the issue, the top cap is pressing on stem not the steerer tube 100%
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Old 05-15-21, 07:22 PM
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Originally Posted by Dopefish905

sooo what’s coming loose?
If, as you write, everything is tight and secure, then the next likely suspect for the looseness are the bearing surfaces.

Bearing surfaces do wear, after all. Any movement of one surface against another will cause wear. Even the spacers.

I usually have to adjust my headset every 6 months or so, when I hear a "tick tick" of the spacers moving as I'm riding out of the saddle.

PS: You might get some better responses in the Bicycle Mechanics section.
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Old 05-20-21, 09:42 PM
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Originally Posted by cubewheels
What I do with headset stem install while the bike is held steady:

1. With the stem bolts loose, tighten the top cap screw real tight so that anything unseated or out of place will be settled
2. Loosen the top cap screw to the point you can turn the screw with very little effort
3. Tighten the top cap screw again but this time, just enough so there is just a little bit of binding (Do not back it off)
4. Tighten the stem bolts to specs
5. Ride bike and test for play after ride
6. If play returns, loosen stem bolts and tighten top cap screw 1/8 turn and test ride again. If that didn't fix the problem, there might be unseen problem like a crack somewhere, very slight bent in the bearing seat, etc or the stem/spacers is somehow working its way loose.

That's what works for me. Headset has totally no play after thousands of miles of ride in rough roads and gravel.

hey, kudos on this advice, i tightened the headset cap untill the steering binded slightly but didn’t back it off, over 800kms and it’s still rock solid and the steering loosened up to pretty much perfect aswell, guess those angular bearings need more load 🤷‍♂️ Thanks again though great advice sir 🙏
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Old 05-20-21, 09:57 PM
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If you have problems in the future, perhaps your crown race was not fully seated and is getting pounded into place slowly by simply riding your bike. If everything else is adjusted properly, this is the only thing that could cause the looseness, outside of the stem bolts not holding the steerer tightly enough, which seems unlikely if it was torqued correctly initially.
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Old 05-21-21, 06:54 AM
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Originally Posted by Dopefish905
The starnut//expander plug and aluminium sleeve inside the the carbon steerer have not moved at all, solid..the headset cap is still tight.it hasn’t loosened, neither the stem bolts(which actually matter)

I’ll try your method of headset setup up, thank you, the only difference would be over torquing to start to gets things settle then leaving it binding a bit, and I guess maybe it settles in a bit over time and becomes good? interesting, thank you.

any other advice would be swell as-well, thanks dudes
I hope you don't have a Starnut inside a CF steerer tube, because if so, you have a problem! It's called a compression plug and it can be / should be tightened as well. Did you check it? It should be tightened enough to expand to the ''walls'' of your internal steerer tube and stay there (you shouldn't be able to press it down the tube with your finger) so that when you tighten your two stem bolts to 5-6NM, the composite does not get crushed.

It could also very well be your headset. It wouldn't hurt to replace it. It's not expensive.
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Old 05-21-21, 06:58 AM
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The cervelo s3 doesn’t use a crown race, the bearings sit right into the carbon bore of the head tube(integrated headset) the only parts of the headset are in this picture, complete is3 headset everything’s drops into the cervelo head tube. It’s not missing anything either, but the problem seems to be fixed just need a few more NMs on the headcap

and yes I have a star nut in there but like mentioned it’s solid and doesn’t move and is about 1-1/2 inch down the headtube where my stem bolts are, cervelo also epoxies a thin metal sleeve inside the carbon headtube to avoid excess pressure 👍

also by “tightening to when it binds”, the steering doesn’t really bind it’s just a bit slower but still very smooth through the turn of the handlebars

Last edited by Dopefish905; 05-21-21 at 07:47 AM.
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