# Lower Airheadset bearings



## Silver Potato (Mar 18, 2009)

Anyone have some pointers on where to find the Klein proprietary lower Airheadset bearings for a 2002 Q-Pro (the steerer tube is tapered and the bottom is not the standard 1 1/8 )? I called the local Trek dealer and so far they have had no luck. I have looked everywhere on-line. I found an interesting blog on retro-fitting a King Evolution on the bottom but after contacting King they did not recommend it. Last time I had to do this I lucked out and found a crashed frame and its owner kindly donated the lower bearings. I am in the process of figuring out which bike to buy next and I will NEVER buy another frame with "proprietary" parts. Uggghhhhh.......


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Silver Potato said:


> Anyone have some pointers on where to find the Klein proprietary lower Airheadset bearings for a 2002 Q-Pro (the steerer tube is tapered and the bottom is not the standard 1 1/8 )? I called the local Trek dealer and so far they have had no luck. I have looked everywhere on-line. *I found an interesting blog on retro-fitting a King Evolution on the bottom but after contacting King they did not recommend it.* Last time I had to do this I lucked out and found a crashed frame and its owner kindly donated the lower bearings. I am in the process of figuring out which bike to buy next and I will NEVER buy another frame with "proprietary" parts. Uggghhhhh.......


Sounds like lawyer-speak to me.  

Here's another option, or maybe along the lines of the Evolution retro fit you spoke of.
http://aebike.com/page.cfm?action=details&Affiliate=3&PageID=30&SKU=HD9903


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## brentley (Jul 20, 2008)

did you call trek customer service?

they might be able to point you in the right direction.


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## Silver Potato (Mar 18, 2009)

PJ352 said:


> Sounds like lawyer-speak to me.
> 
> Here's another option, or maybe along the lines of the Evolution retro fit you spoke of.
> http://aebike.com/page.cfm?action=details&Affiliate=3&PageID=30&SKU=HD9903


Thanks, but that looks like it is for older Kleins like my Adroit. The outer diameter of my head tube on the Q Pro is smaller than 2 inches. I will check into that company and see if they have something to fit my bike. The problem with converting the bottom to 1 1/8 is that I will need a new fork (probably a good idea after all the miles this one has seen but I like the way this one rides).


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## Silver Potato (Mar 18, 2009)

brentley said:


> did you call trek customer service?
> 
> they might be able to point you in the right direction.


I have emailed them a couple of times. The 1st time I was looking for the geometry for my bike and they said they had no website for Klein but a member of this forum lead me to the Japanese site where I found my info. The 2nd time was looking for this bearing which my local Trek dealer is working on as well (with absolutely no response at all). Trek is too big for its britches.....


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## Silver Potato (Mar 18, 2009)

PJ352......Have you had a chance to build up that bad a$$ Curtlo yet? I was curious what the weight was on your frame (and for what size). That is one of the sharpest bikes I've seen.....I saw a 54 Ibis Spanky for sale in the classifieds and it was was awesome too...


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Silver Potato said:


> PJ352......Have you had a chance to build up that bad a$$ Curtlo yet? I was curious what the weight was on your frame (and for what size). That is one of the sharpest bikes I've seen.....I saw a 54 Ibis Spanky for sale in the classifieds and it was was awesome too...


I haven't had a chance to build the Curtlo up yet. If I ever told you everything I've gone through relating to this venture, you wouldn't believe it, but I agree that the build quality is excellent. 

I'm considering selling it, so if you're interested, let me know. The geo is based on a 52cm Specialized Tarmac and w/ the headset cups it weighs about 3 lbs.


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## Silver Potato (Mar 18, 2009)

So was it a good venture or bad venture? Why are you contemplating selling it? I'll check out the 52 Tarmac specs...my wife rides a 52 Roubaix Pro and it feels a tad small for me...although I'm used to my too long bike...but I know the Tarmac is streched a little. Truthfully though, I'm not working full time right now so I have been doing my research for a new bike so that when I FINALLY get employeed again I can pull the trigger promptly. We have some money saved but I do not wany to tap into it. I have ordered a 80mm stem (I have a 90mm now) and a compact 3T Ergonova (sp?) bar (not the carbon one) to see if it helps my problems for now. If I do not find some headset bearings for my bike I may be forced to buy anyway or put slicks on the 29ers.....


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Silver Potato said:


> So was it a good venture or bad venture? Why are you contemplating selling it? I'll check out the 52 Tarmac specs...my wife rides a 52 Roubaix Pro and it feels a tad small for me...although I'm used to my too long bike...but I know the Tarmac is streched a little. Truthfully though, I'm not working full time right now so I have been doing my research for a new bike so that when I FINALLY get employeed again I can pull the trigger promptly. We have some money saved but I do not wany to tap into it. I have ordered a 80mm stem (I have a 90mm now) and a compact 3T Ergonova (sp?) bar (not the carbon one) to see if it helps my problems for now. If I do not find some headset bearings for my bike I may be forced to buy anyway or put slicks on the 29ers.....


Oh, it was a good venture. Doug is very good to work with and is clearly a pro at what he does. Don't misunderstand, my comments weren't aimed towards him, the venture, or the end product. It was just events that transpired after the order was placed. I'm really half heartedly trying to sell the Curtlo, because sometimes I think about the build and other times I think about selling the frame.  

I don't want to pursue a sale in a thread because I don't think it's appropriate - I'd provide you with my email address in that case. But just for conversations sake regarding fit, although the Roubaix's geo is similar to the Tarmac, (as you elude to) it's not a Tarmac. If you normally ride a 54, to start I'd ask for your saddle height, effective TT length, HT length, saddle to bar drop and current stem length/ angle. But honestly, unless your proportioned longer legs/ shorter torso, for example, I'm not sure that you really ride a 54 if you're looking at an 80mm stem. That's pretty short.

Bottom line though, from the measurements I'd get I could at least tell if the Curtlo's dimensions are close to yours, and we'd go from there. But given the circumstances you describe, it sounds like you've got a couple of perfectly fine plans.


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## Silver Potato (Mar 18, 2009)

PJ352 said:


> Oh, it was a good venture. Doug is very good to work with and is clearly a pro at what he does. Don't misunderstand, my comments weren't aimed towards him, the venture, or the end product. It was just events that transpired after the order was placed. I'm really half heartedly trying to sell the Curtlo, because sometimes I think about the build and other times I think about selling the frame.
> 
> I don't want to pursue a sale in a thread because I don't think it's appropriate - I'd provide you with my email address in that case. But just for conversations sake regarding fit, although the Roubaix's geo is similar to the Tarmac, (as you elude to) it's not a Tarmac. If you normally ride a 54, to start I'd ask for your saddle height, effective TT length, HT length, saddle to bar drop and current stem length/ angle. But honestly, unless your proportioned longer legs/ shorter torso, for example, I'm not sure that you really ride a 54 if you're looking at an 80mm stem. That's pretty short.
> 
> Bottom line though, from the measurements I'd get I could at least tell if the Curtlo's dimensions are close to yours, and we'd go from there. But given the circumstances you describe, it sounds like you've got a couple of perfectly fine plans.


I can ride anything from a 52-54 depending on manufactor. My Klein is a 54 but the top tube is 56 (actually 56.5 according to my calcs). Yes, I am mostly leg w/slightly shorter torso but I used to really like being streched out. As my 40th approaches I realize a more upright postion is better (at least for distance). I like the Tarmacs but they have similar geometery to my Klein & I need something a little more upright and not quite as aggressive. Maybe I should buy a Townie....(incidently the shop we ride with has a video on YouTube where they rode Townies up Brasstown Bald, GA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdAeJ8ZkXMo )


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## PJ352 (Dec 5, 2007)

Silver Potato said:


> I can ride anything from a 52-54 depending on manufactor. My Klein is a 54 but the top tube is 56 (actually 56.5 according to my calcs). Yes, I am mostly leg w/slightly shorter torso but I used to really like being streched out. As my 40th approaches I realize a more upright postion is better (at least for distance). I like the Tarmacs but they have similar geometery to my Klein & I need something a little more upright and not quite as aggressive. Maybe I should buy a Townie....(incidently the shop we ride with has a video on YouTube where they rode Townies up Brasstown Bald, GA http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KdAeJ8ZkXMo )


Cool video, too bad they muted the sound. Looks like a really nice area to ride, though.

Nothing wrong with a Townie, but re: geo preferences, that's the beauty of going custom. You tell the builder the specs and he builds the frame to match. Want a 120mm HT? got it. Want 410mm chainstays? Got it. The key is, _knowing_ what you want because guessing wrong can get a bike that's either boring or a handful to control. I aim for the middle ground. 

As far as your turning 40.... yer just a kid.


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