Basically, integrated/internal headsets are wakk. To learn more about why, chris king has a very informative .pdf that explains everything. The quick explanation is that there is always a little bit of play in headset bearings, which is normal, but this play eventually wears away at the surface holding the bearings. With a traditional headset, it just wears away on the headset cups and the crown race, but in an integrated headset it wears away on the frame since there is no headset cup. After some time the bearings will become permanently loose, and no amount of tightening will be able to fix it. The result is a ruined frame.
In an internal headset, their is a shim that prevents the frame from getting ruined but the bearings still sit inside the headtube. And most frame builders can only build to an accuracy of about .005" whereas a chris king headset cup is built to an accuracy of .0005" which is 10 times more accurate. This means that the headset will work better and last longer.
from the chrisking website
"We presented an opinion on internal and integrated systems several years ago and our belief remains the same today. We simply believe these systems do not have the long-term durability and performance characteristics to carry the King name."
1 comment:
Dont believe the hype! CK will say anything to make you believe a press fit system is better than a machined race in your frame .
If internal headset's didnt work BMX riders would have switched back years ago , they put far more force on a standard headset than any normal rider will do in a lifetime !
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