1.5 Stems and Headsets

bens109

bens109

Likes Dirt
Hey guys I am just about to dive into the world or 1.5" steerers with a Transition Bottlerocket and 2-step Totems on the way!

Unfortunately I can't decide on what headset and stem I want slash need so I wondering if anyone had any experience with them. There is only a small amount of 1.5 stuff out there so it is between a Funn gripper and Raceface Diablous stem (I get the impression the raceface is meant to be better but I'm not huge on the flames graphics!).

As for a headset the only models I can find on the net are Fire Eye Iris Orbiter 1.5 (which I know nothing about), FSA Pig DH Pro 1.5 (is the cheapest), FSA Xtreme Pro 1.5 and Cane Creek Double X. I'm not really sure if the Xtreme is worth the $100 premium and I have heard there is also an 1.5" version of the FSA Orbit but I can't find it for sale.

What are the differences between the FSA headsets in practical terms? Also has anyone had experience with the two stems or the fire eye and cane creek headsets?

Thanks for any help, I can't wait to get this bike built up and I want to make sure everything on it is going to do it justice!

Cheers
 
BLAKE-2234

BLAKE-2234

Likes Bikes and Dirt
i would go with the fun gripper stem imo funn is better than rf and for headset i woud go the fsa pig or the extreme one

cheers blake
 
t

t

Likes Bikes and Dirt
I ran an orbit extreme in my woodman for nearly 3 years it worked great until the bike got stollen and some one over tightened it.

I just put new bearings into it when I installed it into my Bottle Rocket te other day.

I've got a Raceface and an FSA stem, I like the FSA better, I think the RF looks funny because it's got such a big steerer and then it's a standars 25.4 bar clamp.

Thompson make a sweet looking (and very light) 1.5 stem.
 
bens109

bens109

Likes Dirt
Thanks guys!

The Thompson looks very nice but is a tad pricey, I am going to run standard size protaper bars and I guess that will look a little funny next to the steerer! Does anyone else know anything about the fire eye and cane creek headsets?
 
t

t

Likes Bikes and Dirt
cane creek and FSA are effectivley one company... there is a PDF you can download here

it shows enginering diagrams of each headset in the FSA/CC range
 
placebo

placebo

Likes Dirt
I read on the Intense site that Cane Creek headsets have been the source of a few problems on Intense frames with 1.5 headtubes, due to production variances. Intense prefer FSA for this reason, so to be safe I'm running an FSA Pig DH Pro on my Socom until I get something better. Truvativ do 1.5 stems also, but they're only in 31.8mm bar diameter. I've got a Diabolus at the moment with a standard bar, and I think it looks pretty good. I'm eyeing off the Thompson however, because of its' weight and lack of rise.
 
|Matt|

|Matt|

Banned
I'm selling a 1.5 Funn Serial Grippa stem if you're interested!

$30 posted. PM me!

Its a burly stem, feels pretty much bombproof.
 
bens109

bens109

Likes Dirt
Thomson x4 really looks the shit. Unfortunately beyondbikes.com wants to charge me US$30 to ship it to Aus and there is nothing on ebay. CRC has it for AU$129 so either I get it there I do the sensible thing and buy the Funn gripper stem for $30 (definatly a good buy)!

As for headsets it looks like the FSA orbit extreme is the way to go unless there is something I am missing........ anybody?

Thanks for the help
 
christopher riding

christopher riding

Likes Dirt
Headset

I have a DA Bomb and Cane Creek headset for sale. Da Bomb one is brand new in box and looks great.
pm me if your interested and we can work out a price.
 
sockman

sockman

Likes Bikes and Dirt
what about a truvativ holzfeller 1.5 stem? i can hook a brother up fo' cheap if you want it... i ran a big fat pig headset...
 
bens109

bens109

Likes Dirt
Sounds good guys, PMs sent!

I was reading somewhere about being able to interchange headsets I think in particular the FSA ones. Im not sure how excatly how but they implied that if you had a 1.5 and a 1.5 - 1 1/8th you could quickly switch them across by keeping the cups in? What do you reckon? It would be nice not to have to change the headset if I wanted to whack on a lighter fork for a bit of uphill work :)

I don't really know that much about headsets to decide if that would be practical or more trouble than its work. Has anyone tried this out or care to speculate?

Cheers
 
'Alex

'Alex

Likes Dirt
I'm currently running a FSA ORBIT Extreme 1.5 sealed head set and a Thompson 4x 45mm stem (only size they come in OS) and they a great combo. It is one tough combo.. the head tube on me bottlerocket will break before they will.
I currently have a Diabolus stem for sale... check me signature.
 
Last edited:
bens109

bens109

Likes Dirt
Nice, that is the setup I think I will go with as well :)

Unfortunately it is also the most expensive choice but I guess you get what you pay for!
 
t

t

Likes Bikes and Dirt
bens109 said:
Nice, that is the setup I think I will go with as well :)

Unfortunately it is also the most expensive choice but I guess you get what you pay for!
Click to expand...
FSA an Thompson are both much cheaper in the US :cool:
 
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