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Cane Creek XX 44 Headset - Increased Stack Height?

10K views 9 replies 7 participants last post by  gticlay 
#1 ·
I have pulled the trigger on my new 429 frame and have decided to go with a 120mm talas fork with tapered steer tube. To do this, i have decided to go with the Cane Creek XX 44 headset which will allow use of the tapered steer tube in the zero-stack style head tube.

I know that this is the way that Pivot specs them now so it shouldn't be any problem but should i at all be concerned on the effect of the increased stack height from the use of the XX 44 headset (this essentially adds an external bearing to the bottom of the head tube) combining with the 120mm fork to affect the geometry of the bike? I imagine this would slacken out the head angle a good bit, but geometry was never my strong suit.

Again, it is probably a silly question but i wanted to make sure that i could sleep at night without worrying. I could always forgo the tapered steer tube but the idea of the stiffer front end is enticing.


Thanks,

L
 
#2 ·
I just put mine on yesterday, with a F29 FIT-Terralogic 100mm. The headset itself will maybe slack it a little less than a degree. The 120mm will really slack it, but since you haven't ridden a 429 without all that, I really don't think you're going to notice.
Really don't worry about it. If it really made the 429 ride weird, Pivot wouldn't have speced it. And some people like running a 120 on their 429's better than a 100, so using the XX44 isn't going to make much more difference.
 
#3 ·
I ask the same question about the CC XX-44 to the guys at Pivot and they said that to them, they saw little to no difference. My call was to ask about the Mach 5 and how it would change the HT angle for a tapered FFork. The Pivot guy explained to me that his personal bike was a 429 with a 120mm front fork and he was totally digging the ride and the bikes' handling.

The Chris King Inset headset for the Pivot HT is internal on the bottom. I call them and confirmed this fact. So you always and a solution if a person was able to perceive a handling change with the XX44.
 
#4 · (Edited)
Where are you sourcing the CC XX 44 and for how much? What's the weight on it? Has anyone felt the 429 with and without and can tell a difference? I've never heard anyone slight the 429 for needing additional stiffness.

I have a medium Mach 429 frame that I'll begin ordering parts for on Monday and tapered or not tapered is something I'm not decided on. That said, I am putting the Fox 32 Talas 29 on the bike. It's a 120 but it also drops to 95.
 
#5 ·
Miles2go,

Chad @ Red Barn Bicycles helped walk me through the options for the 429 and the tapered fork. I am putting the higher end 110 series ZS on the top and the XX 44 on the bottom. Not sure about weights or price.

Drop Chad a line , their website is http://www.redbarnbicycles.com/ . He is always great to work with and really took care of me on the headset issue and helped me out with my new F29 Talas Terralogic. His prices and attitude are really hard to beat.
 
#7 ·
I purchased my XX44 right from Cane Creek, I also got the 110 ZS top, I think is was $85 shipped. Obviously there is a slight weight gain because it is a larger bearing. I'm going from a straight steerer F29 to a tapered steerer with the same travel, 100mm. But I also have the stiffer 15QR compared to the 9mm QR (which I ran a thru 9mm).
Handling is barely noticeable and in my opinion better, with the very slight slackening of the headtube angle. It also feels stiffer, which may be due to the combined tapered steerer and 15QR dropouts. By stiffer I mean that the front tracks better, the bike goes where the front wheel leads it. This bike always rode like a sports car and definitely feels faster through rough terrain with the new fork and headset combo.
 
#8 ·
Are there any reports of significant benefits in using this headset/steerer tube combo on the 429? Real and discernable benefits found with this particular frame, rather than theoretical gains.
Ditto. I would like to know whether there is a benefit between tapered 2011 Reba with Maxle vs standard 09 Reba with Maxle.
 
#9 ·
I am third in line wondering if there would be any real world difference in going the tapered steer tube route.

I am not planning on ditching my 2010 Fox F120 RLT w/15mm and a std 1 1/8 steer tube to go to a tapered version any time soon but I have read it is "stiffer and can be lighter"- which are still the most over used marketing buzz words I can think of- just a few years ago I had a fork with 28mm stanchions and a quick release... today I could be stopped at the trail head and advised to go home with my noodle of a bike...

Nice thing about the ZS style headset is it at least offers the option-
 
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