How To Service A Mountain Bike Headset | MTB Maintenance

The headset on a bike is something rarely looked after or considered until it starts playing up.
Unless ridden loose or constantly in really grimy conditions they tend to work well, but repeated washing can flush out grease and leave the bearings to slowly deteriorate. It’s a good idea to give your headset a quick overhaul from time to time to ensure it will last, here’s how…
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[@durbinaa]

11:48 while putting everything back together, notice his left hand maintaining the fork up. Be sure that when tightening the bar and the top, the fork is correctly pressed up, no gaps should be there. Even a millimeter gap can be unnoticeable, and using your bike like that can seriously damage your frame.

[@zebbenbrown1301]

For the longest time I had a creak that I swore was coming from my rear suspension mount but I recently loosened my headset and the creak tone changed. So I followed your video and serviced my headset and no more creak. Thank you!

[@JeremyPointer]

I'm sitting here wondering how Doddy reacts to Sam Pilgrims bike building and maintenance.🤔😬😱🤪

[@_3.time_]

Just use a brick 😅

Perfect timing, just wanted to get into it

[@stuarts4673]

Just did mine yesterday as I was hearing a small knocking sound, All good once its been cleaned and lubbed.

[@mansraberg9341]

Me too

[@tobiaslord]

Thx Doddy. Always simple effective and helpful vids 👊

[@lewisatkinson7277]

One of my favourite maintenance jobs on the bike ☺ I don't know why but it's so gratifying 💆‍♂️

[@robertcooper-waite1991]

Thanks as ever Doddy Building a bike and you are with me every step of the way 👍

[@teemu3370]

I just love watching Doddy do the stuff

[@beccawi]

3:40 "Order a pizza for the lower half of the headset?" OK, Doddy if you say so. Any preference of toppings?

[@uptospeedofficial]

@@Jacob99174 who's becca

[@ChrisSchwarck]

Thank you! I had the issue with tension after changing forks.. You're note to mind the rubber seals solved the issue.

[@richardhaselwood9478]

Of course I did mine a few weeks ago.... Also, another use for old tubes (or in my case, some nylon straps), strap the fork to the frame before you start loosening things, so it will only come out when you want it to.

[@redbomberr4594]

Gonna to this just for fun this week. Thx👊

[@sanabibimtb]

Great video dude👍thank you for all the wonderful information!❤️🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿

[@johnwatson8192]

A very methodical way of working - well done. The only thing that I would add to laying the components out in order is to also lay them out with the upper surface on top - hark at me, I sound like a retired mechanical engineer - I'll try and remember my own advice when I come to do this job in an hour's time 😉

[@jorenmtb]

Great video! Very helpful

[@DcCock]

Thanks for the guide! I'm building my first mtb from the parts and the headset is the part that has me scratching my head the most. I have a Cane Creek 40 so it integrates some of the parts but this guide makes it easy to see where

[@KB-gu2sc]

Thanks, very helpful video!

[@MegaSuperfly92]

This is exactly the knowledge I needed to address the fork rocking inside the head tube of my e-bike. Thank you!

[@philippedhomme2833]

Really enjoyed this video.

[@Lezz015]

you can fill these bearings completely with a grease because there is no much rotating but avoid to fill bb or hub bearings

[@bensleeper]

Very meditative.

[@ldtriplesix]

#GMBNTech, Doddy, maybe some tips and tricks on centering the stem? It can be absolutely maddening!!! I spin my bars around backwards and look straight down. But a video on that would be most excellent. 🤘

[@iscmiscm]

Really good video with great explanation. I would like to know if it is easy or even possible to change to sealed bearings.

[@paulseminara2483]

Great video. So at ~ 11:15 are you calling the upper headset bearing itself a race? Maybe I misheard. Thanks.........man I think I have watched all your vids. GOOD STUFF!!!

[@bongers94]

Nice.This came in very timely as my bike had this creaking sound.So I suspected the headset might be the problem,so I bought a new headset but unfortunately it still had that annoying sound.I brought it to my LBS and my mechanic jokingly said "get a pair of noise cancelling headsets instead"😁😁

[@Shred_Tube]

i know your comment is a year old but was it the bottom bracket that was creaking?

[@DrTrevorP]

@@Shred_Tube check the seatpost too

[@RicardoPetrazzi]

Dear #GMBNTech you seemed to have only mono channel audio on this video! It made me think my left speaker on my system was not working, until I checed with another video! However, thanks for the quick tutorial on the headset maintenance.

[@rcs2003]

What are you talk about? Its stereo, both channels sounds.

[@ThunderStruckMTB]

Good tutorial. I leave my caliper on the fork so it's one less thing to do.

[@charliemerrill8687]

You sir, are the king of bike maintenance! What advice might you give to a new trail rider that would love to maintain his bike but have no idea what I'm really doing? I like everything to be in a great working order, and I'm afraid I'll mess the bike up? any thoughts? I ride an older specialized hardrock. Good working order, but basic maintenance.. Im lost? Where should I start? Thank you for your time and have a lovely day.. CitW

[@IsaacGonzalez-et2bq]

great video...mine didn't have any waterproof seals for the bearings in either the original headset parts nor the replacement.

[@michaelhoare5291]

Lucus Red-nTacky is a third of the price of Muc Off Bio and is the go-to grease for protecting bearings that are susceptible to water ingress. Funny that the Muc Off Bio is also red. Stick a picture of a bicycle on a product and package it as bicycle specific, and you can charge anything. It's funny how many so-called use specific degreasers for example smell like oven cleaner, they're even dyed like an oven clearer. Wheels are round, there's no reinventing them.

[@kevinnascimento8824]

Helou í´m froam Portugal and i love Service my Bike, i learn many things with youres vídeos, very nice jobe! Whats the best Brand to buy titanium bearings?

[@androdelrosario]

Great timing. Just replaced my ball bearing headset with a cartridge headset and needed to know how to give it some love.

[@themeteorkid8708]

Doddy, quick question. Would the Nukeproof Horizon lower bearing that you were using in the video on your bike fit an is52 headset?

[@skrapz79]

2nd most neglected part of a bike very informative video n i love how u did ur bike because it needed it lol u must have the freshest bike out the whole team 😜😂 🤙

[@justingrimson5750]

And the most neglected part?

[@henrypeters3663]

@@justingrimson5750 probably the bb

[@rupedog]

Clearly headset service season...my was creaking so much had to do in a car park between a.m. and p.m. rides! Redistributed the grease in there. Did properly once home....but don't remove caliper tho....although prob easier overall tbh.

[@StuffswithEric]

What type of grease are you using on the headset assembly?

[@Gabriela-jc4pt]

Could you do an episode on servicing a headset with ball bearings?

[@lau_dhondt]

Hey bike-lovers, can I get an honest opinion? I've got a mountainbike I'm very happy with (a rockrider series from decathlon). Every year I sent it to an atelier for maintenance, to keep it in good condition. Usually that's between 50 and 100 euro. I trust they do the necessary. It's always similar. Usually we change the chain and/or the brakes. Sometimes we replace a wheel or a sprocket when necessary. Always very happy, get along great with those guys. I always understand what they're telling me. This year I give it to a new dude (/same place though) and I immediately get the impression of getting an opportunistic salespitch. Even before he looks at the chain and the brakes, he starts unbolting the fully functional 'headset', warning me of the common danger of losing control of the steering wheel in full speed. (a very common danger i personally never heard of.. (?) , and I don't find any online examples of .. (?) with a steering wheel that had no issues at all as far as i know) For some opaque reason, even though I'm not completely bike-illiterate, the chain could not be replaced without changing the brand new sprocket (from that same store, a year earlier), which is something that never was a problem before. Though we remained cordial and polite, the guy got a bit nervous, did not expect I'd start pushing back a lil on his expert opinion of every issue he saw with my bike, as he was, in my eyes at least, trying to drive up unnecessary costs, and even seemingly wanting to collect brand new parts from my bike to sell me replacements for it. We didn't even get to the end of his list of issues he had written down, because of the questions I asked him and that startled him a bit. I'm not an especially difficult client, who is ever-mistrusting of services rendered, i really respect the mechanics and usually trust their good judgement, but the supposed issue with the 'headset' felt like a red flag to me ? Is there really a common danger with a functional headset suddenly malfunctioning and making a bike completely stearless? Just to test my suspicions with someone, from what I'm telling here, do any of you know if I was correct to be wary of this salesperson? I'm unsure. Thanks!

[@sandy_knight]

'Clash'? I'd say 'highlight' ;-) I agree about lining up your headset graphics though, they only line up when you're going straight! On a serious note though, are *all* headset cartridge bearings serviceable in this way, including high end headsets like Chris King? Personally I wouldn't try and service inside the cartridge bearings unless it's starting to feel a bit rough. I guess at that point you might need new bearings though...

[@MultiPlew]

Never looked at my head set bearings. Also can't get a service at lbs. But they are feeling a little stiff. As I had a cheep bike. Are the chances of the bearings being the old cage style? If so can these be changed to a cartridge bearing?

[@thomasberry2632]

hey doddy, i have a canyon neuron and the top headset bearing needs replacing but it feels like it’s stuck i’ve tried to use a rubber mallet with an allen key with a cloth but still not moving. Any thoughts?

[@jellebuelens1611]

Can you replace a semi sealed cartridge bezring with sealed cartridge bearing

[@archiehinchcliffe8155]

Really struggling to get the bearings out, any advice? (Commencal Meta AM 2021)

[@123moof]

I skipped the grease inside the frame when building up my bike (made the mistake of listening to some BS about carbon and grease being incompatible). A year later the bearing had a bunch of surface rust on the outside surface, never doing that again.

[@thesmf1210]

kinda understand why they do this now, downside is, should you neglect the bearings somehow and they do somehow seize, the whole bearing is likely to be spinning on the headset cup itself and you may be none the wiser to it being damaged, still feel greasing the cups is something that just transfered over from caged / loose bearings

[@dawbool9552]

Very instructive video. Yet I have a hard time removing the compression ring (see also time around 2:44). The ring looks like being out of plastic stuff and stuck and holding the shaft of the fork rigidly in place. I can't just let the fork slide out. Can anybody give me a hint what to do?

[@johnnybravo1912]

How about a video on SERVICING HEAD SPACE?

[@mulberry8930]

Can I change from caged bearings to sealed bearings?

[@ajsludge]

I just got a IS42/52 headset for my new Merida One Twenty frame. The top bearing sits about 3mm below the top of the head tube. Why design a frame with such deep insertion depth for the bearing? I figure I’m going to need 3mm or more of spacers just to preload the bearing correctly.

[@JohnDakila]

Can I use HPG-1 grease for this type of servicing?

[@j4s0n67]

When shoukd i do this? Like every month?

[@LawrenceSantillanSax]

I attempted to clean and put new grease in my headset about weeks ago. My bearing won't come off and because of it my bearing broke... How can i take it without damaging the other bearing?

[@Tony-df5rs]

Ps A big block of wood and a hammer are also essential when the forks stuck like mine were 😂

[@MsLaLa1404]

Hi, is this a hardtail bike?

[@SP-ss4uo]

Hey Doddy. I noticed a few of the EWS riders running a custom spacer to lift the bike up a bit. Jesse M has one on his Rocky Mountain Altitude. There fitted on top of the fork crown. Can you buy them? If so what are they called? Thanks

[@SP-ss4uo]

Would it be a crown race spacer?

[@syntrax-og]

#AskGMBNTech I see you using MucOff grease and got couple of questions. - Is MucOff's grease Carbon safe? - I know it's biodegradable. Does it also separate like WPL's after not usage and need mixing?

[@Adam-vm8kp]

Yes it’s carbon safe and we use the large workshop tubs and when sat for a while it does separate but nothing major.

[@randallsmith7885]

Now that they are sponsored by Canyon, they need to do a tutorial on how to upgrade a headset. 😂

[@topgundk]

Any rule og thumb on how often, time or distance ridden, we should check and do maintenance ? (I know, weather and riding conditions will matter a lot)

[@sufyanm4661]

i do it every few months in spring, summer and autumn. In winter every month/2 months depending on how much ive ridden. I ride in the UK aswell, if that helps

[@gabsantiago7676]

Why is that my bearings wont fit to my bearing cup?

[@mmmblah2020]

What if the bearings don't wanna drop out?

[@GaLaxY-1905]

you should use a torque wrench

[@elitefennec2512]

Even after installing correctly, i've still got a noticeable wobble from the top of the headset. Have i done something wrong? 😂 Its a triple crown Rockshox boxxer fork.

[@R700buba]

The captain price of the bike world

[@brandonreimer184]

It is so dry and dusty here I have had to do my headset twice so far this year. It keeps injesting fine dirt then starts to creak.

[@meyekull]

might be a good idea to replace your seals if they keep getting ingress, unless it’s so dry where you are that it still gets under there

[@carloswithac]

Are you no longer doing Ask GMBN Tech?

[@mrbadger9920]

Did you fit the lower bearing? Maybe I missed it

[@alan181090]

10:40

[@mtbboy1993]

2:21 keep in mind if the bike has been heavily abused by not being serviced the compression ring and the headset dust cover right be stuck to the steerer tube and you might need to use a hammer to loosen it. If you think it won't happen, I confirm it can happen, I've sold some parts and worked on a bike a guy bought so much wrong stuff on it, I had to hammer it hard alot, obviously was careful. Headset service is a good point to check the headtube, fork for damage i found punctured lower leg and leaks tru seals and wet dust wiper seals on a old rockshox did fork, probably due to grashing on a sharp rock. But managed to loosen the fork, and clean headsrt, steerer, everything got it packed with grease. Fork was locked out mabye corroded and rusted internals lockout was open and it was stuck. Shame it was a dual air Rock shox Sid Team. I had to tell the guy the fork was dead, only few parts that probably could be saved and sold, but it me and new fork for that bike really I went over the the rest of the bike and to no surprise I found other nasty things. Technically you don't have to remove the brake caliper, if you have a spot to hang the fork securely, if you keep bike at same sngly and gang fork at stand, but if you want to work more comfortably detaching is nessesary but if for some reason you can't, it's not technically needed. But if doing service on headset and want to change positions or rotate frame upside down, it's best to detach it all, like with my. Heis king headset i prefer to detach, but with integrated headset or semi integrated with loose cartridge bearings you can just remove those and clean easily without messing with the fork, so I never did it. On my bike I have Chris king bearings so bearings were pressed into the cups so I need to have fork fully seperated from the bike and rotate the frame upside down to work on bottom bearing, the bearings have a metal ring keeping the seal secure, so that has to be removed. Not a job for a brutal beginner.

[@jurijrozanec]

Is it possible that there is no crown race? Just opened my giant headset a few days ago and there was none? I opened it for the first time, so maybe the bike shop messed up?

[@jonathanzappala]

Some forks have them built in without a sewerage piece.

[@QoraxAudio]

Okay but I can only get the top cap, handlebars and spacers off. The rest is all ceased up...

[@Mtb_and_Ski]

My bike shop said there's nothing wrong with my Head set but every time I tighten it, it still is loose and has play. Any ideas of what this is?

[@Caseysodennn]

Make sure that when you tighten it you loosen the lower stem bolts that hold the stem tight so it dosent move make sure to losen them and then tighten up the top cap bolt and tighten the stem bolts back up

[@abdullaalnamy8422]

No issues with assembly for me kzbin.infoUgkxHL1v1R3NE5x4KiYfyt8dnQmyNYz7qi5L but I could see where some might benefit from using an experienced bike assembler/mechanic. I'm an older rider starting back after a 10 year break. This bike exceeds my capabilities and has been easy to get comfortable riding. I'm mostly on easy trails with almost no street riding and have not been disappointed with the performance of the bike. My fitness level is far below what I previously rode with and because of that the mileage is going on the bike slowly. While I'm losing weight slowly, the bike seems to tolerate my 220 pounds just fine. The bike has been used by several family members ranging from 5'5" - 5'9".

[@tat1ukpable]

Until You get a headset with Intergrated wiring through the bearings 😢

[@gergoolle5773]

It seems Doddy doesnt like it dry

[@VerthNeel]

Bring Doddy back.

[@bobothericefarmer1878]

E

[@JaggersLips]

Bike shops and headset company’s hate this video.

[@---GOD---]

Too much work. Too many tools involved. I'll continue to never clean my headset ever.

[@bayonetred7508]

I'm an American mt biker, why is it when I look up tips on how to fix things, it always some brit with an annoying accent?