SJX426 

Can just the crown race be purchased for a 1" steerer? It is for my 83 Colnago. If not, was there a difference in the crown races used between head sets? I would think the NR and SR would use the same and maybe other, new head sets.

I am stripping it down and found the crown race was broken. I suppose it would work if the crack is located toward the rear, but I am thinking it should be replaced. I did not feel the crack prior to dismantling when rotating the fork.

Bianchigirll 

well if it is apart and broke I would fix it. I think the only difference between NR and SR was alloy cups and nuts (but still steel races). you may find a Miche, Ofmega or Gipemme will fit too alot of those were copies of early campy.

gr23932

I have a stack of varies HS parts that I'll check to see if any might work if you'll interested.

JohnDThompson 

No, the alloy cups on the SR headset needed to be thicker than the steel NR cups. In order to keep the stack height reasonably close, the SR crown race was made thinner than the NR race (SR on the left; NR on the right):



You *could* use an NR crown race with an SR headset if your steer tube was long enough and you didn't mind the extra metal hanging out, but not vice-versa.

luker

Know someone with a mill or maybe a lathe? A good machinist could make a copy (have to use a hard alloy, though). If you have one made, you may as well have 50 made and sell 48 on eBay, because it is a common problem. (the 49th? send it to me, for the idea!)

SJX426 

JohnDThompson: Good info of SR vs. NR. Using the NR would decrease the number opf thread engagement with the locking nut. What is the difference in stack height? The NR looks harder to break from interferance fit.

When I measured the difference in ID of the race and the OD of the fork, there was as much as .005 difference. I guess the paint build up added to the OD and caused the failure on installation. Once cleaned up it was closer to the .002 interference number.

gr23932: The ID is 26.40 mm. The OAHeight is 7.73 mm and the bearings are the standard Campy 4.76 mm.

Luker, I do know a great machinest who is very reasonable. What do you think a good price would be? I could reverse engineer the dimensions and sell them too!

Panthers007

Most people just bought a Tange Levin. Same headset, in effect. Every bit as good as the old Campy, just cost 1/3rd as much and didn't say 'Campagnolo.' Still in production. Hunt around. I've seen them offered for as little as $20.00

JohnDThompson 

The stack height of SR and NR are actually the same. The SR's aluminum cups are thicker than the NR's steel cups, so the crown race was made thinner on the SR to keep the total height the same.

Yes, the NR crown race is quite resistant to cracking vis-a-vis the SR. At Trek we broke dozens, maybe hundreds of SR crown races installing them on forks. I can't recall ever breaking an NR race, though.

Re: machining a new race -- this could be done, but it will need to be hardened as well or it will wear out in short order.

JohnDThompson 

The "Levin" is a great headset, but it's more like the Campy "Pista" headset than the "Strata." It uses smaller balls (5/32" vs 3/16" in the Campy Strata) so it is marginally less durable than the Campy Strata, and the stack height is a few mm less than the Strata.

scbvideoboy

The cost of machining this by a local shop would be so high, it would be less expensive to buy a NOS SR/NR headset

repechage

Indeed, actually to make it work, you would have to use stainless steel or you will need to chrome it. Stainless is not a great bearing material. The bearing surface is ground, not a machined finish, done after heat treatment and chroming on the original.

When set up for production, the cost drops, in even "reasonable" batches the cost climbs fast. If Velo Orange was interested, they could probably have someone make up some that would be at a final reasonable cost, Going to be hard to get it below $15. to $20. which is outrageous but not.

For steerer size, Campagnolo has a Passa/no passa tool. Too big, and it will crack a crown race in no time.

SJX426 

My thoughts were to just replace the SR crown race with an NR crown race. The stack height would only change based on the difference between the two parts.

My machinest only charges $25/hour. The secondary costs would be of concern and there would not be significant reduction in batch without using a full CNC set up. Sounds like an opportunity for a good Chinese sourced product!

Good to know the difference in the Levin. It was tempting until you pointed out the diff.

So where did Trek get the replacement crown races they broke? Robbed full HS sets? Was the solutions so cost effective that corrective action was not required?

I haven't seen any opportunities to purchase just the crown race. Hence my initial thought of buying a used NR HS and just using the CR.

repechage

Way back Campagnolo sold to distributors and OEM's replacement parts, at the shop we could order just the crown race or any other numbered part from a stocking distributor, not all inventoried the small parts. I would love to know where the inventory of say, Apollo TBS Distributors went, they had everything. Even the shop I worked for, long since sold, but even a year after it changed hands, no one working there had any idea what I was talking about when I mentioned "The Campy Drawers"

scbvideoboy

Some collector has them stashed away I bet.

scbvideoboy

Don't you have to worry about the "indents" on a used CR?

repechage

Yes, but its better than nothing. Index steering.

JohnDThompson 

At the time, Trek was the largest importer of Campagnolo parts in North America. Getting replacements wasn't a problem.

SJX426 

Indents? Worst case, I can use the same CR. I cannot feel the crack with my finger nail, so I really think it would be low risk for reuse. As stated, I think it broke on installation. I did not detect any "index" steering prior to disassembly.

geezerwheels

<At Trek we broke dozens, maybe hundreds of SR crown races installing them on forks>
did the Trek folks ever try heating the races before installing them? not enough to ruin the temper, just enough to get them to expand a few thousandths...we used to heat aluminum cases to set bearings, or crank throws to fit bosses, when I worked on BMW motorcycles...

dbakl

I probably have a NR I could send you. Drop me a message.

rootboy 

Holy cow. This thread was from 09. Did you ever get your crown race repaired, SJX426? Hope so.

(I happen to need a NR crown race, Dbakl. Can I drop you a PM if the OP doesn't? )

dbakl

I'll look tomorrow...

rootboy 

Thanks Dbakl. Not an emergency or anything, but, if you happen to...

hueyhoolihan

new aftermarket crown races are pretty inexpensive in my experience. i would invest in one and see if it works. i would just make sure that i got one with the correct inside diameter. of course this assumes that originality is not an overriding factor.

puchfinnland

Ok, making a new one could be done,
have to grind and polish the race....and then harden it, thats easy, which would mean it is a good quality steel,
but then it would rust.
i know a forum member that could do it but it is up to them to step forward,