I have recently purchased a gravel bike. It's a steel framed Jamis that comes with an FSA c40 b internal headset. I have had a look at it and it uses the older style caged bearings in the cups. I prefer the cartridge style but my road bike has the campy style drop in cartridges. What would be a good headset upgrade for this type of headset fitting? There is more movement than I'm used to when I've adjusted and greased the headset. There is a lot of flex which I assume is due to the carbon forks? There also feels like a little bit of play, not much but a touch loose and that is after re assembling the headset to try and remedy this.
Are you sure? The C40 is a IS52 lower headset.
It might be so far gone that the outer race and inner race have come apart.
FSA headsets are generally decent enough for ~£30. My usual setup when whatever FSA or Cane Creek OEM headset is in a bike dies, it to replace the lower part with Hope (or similar). It's only the lower headset that's exposed to dirt and water so doesn't make sense to spend that money on the upper part where even a cheap one will last pretty much forever.
Be careful if you order replacement bearings rather than the whole headset and crown race. The diameters have been standardized, but the height and the internal angle aren't (and there's at least one niche FSA headset that uses 36deg outer angles too which is outside of the SHIS system).
Thanks for the reply, yes the headset in it is new but that sounds a good idea regarding switching the lower section potentially for a hope version alternative. Yes it is a c40 that i see also comes in a more premium version with the ACB bearings that I would prefer to have had but this has come fitted on a new bike. The quality looks decent enough I was just wondering if being used for more bumpy and rugged mixed terrain riding it would be as solid as an ACB system. I have ran retro MTBs with this set up in though over rough off road in the past and it was never an issue, just got to watch corrosion and water ingress on some of the designs but I've loaded this one with grease.
Ahh, I assumed you were talking about an 2nd hand bike.
Yea, I've managed to make looseball headsets last but they need cleaning and packing with fresh grease regularly or they quickly go notchy.
I'd probably swap the whole headset for the ACB version before winter. Then upgrade to a hope lower headset if/when the cartridge FSA died. I've just bought a new bike with an "FSA C40" headset, and I'm now curious what's in there, I just assumed it was a cartridge.
Yes if you check the spec for your bike it should specify the version, if not once you open it you will soon see whether it is ACB or caged bearings. I think most headsets now are ACB bearings. I thought initially I could just swap the cage bearings out for a the ACB set which are around £20ish but as there is a cup mostly going into the frame as this is an internal headset meaning it's not a straightforward switch over. So was looking for some help with what options are available with this set up in the frame currently?
So was looking for some help with what options are available with this set up in the frame currently?
It should be straightforward but the FSA website calls the C40 an IS52 (52mm bearing that sits directly in the frame) headset, but then states it's for 56mm headtubes which would be ZS56 (56mm cup pressed into the frame that then takes a bearing (usually the same 52mm bearing as the IS version).
I thought initially I could just swap the cage bearings out for a the ACB set which are around £20ish but as there is a cup mostly going into the frame as this is an internal headset meaning it's not a straightforward switch over.
Check with Jamis what the S.H.I.S. part should be, you can then buy one that fits.
n.b. hope don't show IS52 on this diagram but it does exist as "HOPE Type J". SHIS is universal so any IS52 headset fits any IS52, or any ZS56 fits any ZS56 frame etc. There's one exception (that I know of) that some frames with integrated headsets have 36deg tapers (all other IS frames follow the campag standard with 45deg) and therefore only take a specific FSA bearing, but that's very unusual and the example I have is probably 15 years old at least predating S.H.I.S. standardization.
Thanks for the details on the match up for the hope set up. Yes the picture is becoming clearer now. The internal cups are pressed into a 56 width frame size which is then where my caged bearings fit. If I had this same model c40 but in the ACB version the bearings would just sit straight into the frame like I use on my road bike. On the upper part of this headset I can lift the cup out but on the lower it may need a tool or more help to remove. For sure on the upper I could just immediately use a ACB bearing but on the lower it may take a bit more work when the time comes. I may run this one for the moment with the caged bearings but for better longevity and a more solid ride I would be happier with the full ACB on there rather than the cups with the caged bearings but I guess both systems will work. I have used the caged version bearings for a long long time in other bikes.
I have just taken another look at my headset which has taken me back to this situation.
I have a Jamie Renegade S3 steel gravel bike, the headset is performing ok currently but the lower has the older type roller cage bearing and looks a little bit exposed. Ideally I want to switch this to a more sealed option, basically ACB. Currently as I mentioned in this thread initially it is a FSA Internal Headset C-40B which looks to be a budget version headset die to this design. I am looking at fitting a sealed cartridge bearing version. The top part of this internal headset seems to just lift out of the frame by hand so can easily be switched over but the lower cup seems to be pressed in more. Is it just a case of removing the lower cup and fitting a new version which moves me into which version would be suitable. In the FSA range I see there are a few C-40 headsets. The FSA Orbit C-40-ACB version looks to be an integrated headset where the bearings sit directly into the frame similar to what I have on my road bike.
When I first opened the headset I was hoping to be able to switch the caged roll bearings out for sealed ones but can see that it is a different headset type so fitting a sealed bearing in this set up is not possible right?
I know from past experience the crown race can be sometimes to trickier to remove but installing the new one I have a plastic tube to fit that on all being well.
Does anyone know from experience how easy this type of headset is to remove? I am referring more the lower cup as the upper up just lifts out by hand so is very straight forward. I have a couple of sealed bearing headsets to replace it with. One is a brand x and one is an FSA c40 No 42 ACB version. It's not desperate as it is functioning but moving into the dirtier weather in autumn and winter I would rather have a more sealed option in there.
