Cane Creek 40-Series External Cup Complete for 34mm Head-Tube (1-1/8-Inch Straight Steerer), Black

Perfect fit on integrated tapered headtube. Orbea exact tolerances. Smooth, quiet, durable. Less expensive than a King (not comparing quality to a King) and appears to be better quality/tolerances than an FSA.

I have used several different brand headsets over the years, although most were Tange threaded models. I used a threadless Cane Creek 110 series for a previous bike (a Trek 720 disc that the frame cracked at the seat tube/top tube junction, but that’s a tangential rant I will skip for now), which was a pricey upgrade. While I would love to put a 110 series in my new steel frame, I could not justify the cost. The 110 is all US made and beautifully finished, including the smoothest bearings I have ever handled, but the 40 series appears just as nice in the hand, albeit not entirely US sourced. The bearings were just as smooth as my memory of the 110 series, too.Installing it was easy, using a home made headset press (threaded rod, an assortment of fender washers, and some nuts — look up DIY headset press and crown install tool on your favorite internet search engine), some wrenches, and grease (use it liberally at the headset/headtube interface). Adding the crown race to the fork was easy, using a section of PVC pipe long enough to extend from the fork crown to just beyond the fork steerer tube. You want the PVC to fit in the race as tightly as possible, so all the subsequent force is applied to the race, so take the race with you to your hardware store of choice. PVC is key, as you want something softer than the race. Place the crown race and gasket on the crown (more grease), PVC pipe on that, invert the whole assembly, and slam the PVC on a hard surface until it sets properly on the crown. Or you can pay your local bike mechanic for installation, but it really is easy to do without the pricey, dedicated tools from Park and other makers.Installation of the bearings and dust covers are easy to follow from the included instruction sheet supplied by Cane Creek.Definitely recommend Cane Creek, the 110 series (if you can afford it), and now the 40 series. I expect it to last for years, and Cane Creek sells replacement parts, so it is essentially a lifetime purchase.

Sealed bearings are the best. Very good quality material and great performance.

Allowed me to replace the miserable straight tube fork on basic specialized rockhopper with a sweet tapered fork.

Installing a headset and crown race requires a couple of special tools, so if you don’t have them, take your frame to a bike mechanic. With the tools, installation is pretty quick and easy. For a standard 1 1/8” head tube, the Cane Creek 40 hits the sweet spot… reliable and reasonably priced. I’ll probably not have to think about this headset for many years to come.

Really good headset. Installed easily. Looks great. Nice smooth action. No complaints at all. Would recommend for any bike build.

Upgraded the super lame fork that came with the Specialized Rockhopper. Totally different bike with a modern fork thanks to this headset. Allowed me to convert the straight steerer tube to a tapered one. The bearing upgrade on my he headset is also a noticeable improvement. Thanks Cane Creek!

working great for 4 months no issues at all !