Filed under: Anecdotes
Today a dude came into my shop with a pretty alright looking old school track bike. Some nice bits on it, just in for a quick check-up.
As I’m admiring his stem, I notice his headset is indexed. This is one of my favorites. The best part is, the guy thought it was intentional. The brinelling was dead straight ahead, meaning the handlebars/front wheel would ride perfectly straight when in this position (taking into consideration frame/fork/wheel straightness of course). He was under the impression that it was designed that way to allow a rider to ride hands-free during straight descents in order to remove their jacket or something.
He had a great attitude about it. I didn’t make him feel stupid or anything (I hope I didn’t at least) and he walked out with a smile, knowing that he’ll need a new headset soon. I told him I didn’t think there’d be any harm in continuing to ride it, but there wouldn’t be much to be done for it but replacement.
My friend Dan in Seattle has a bike or two with indexed headsets. One of which I know has multiple indices for very specific turn angles, from what I know, that dude wins races.
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