HOPE head doctor

Author	Message

lostamasta

Posted: Oct 19, 2008 at 5:19	Quote
do they hold strong enough for FR fork??

dh-pete

Posted: Oct 19, 2008 at 5:41	Quote
They hold as strong as you want them to. All you do is grease the contact points up and tighten the wedge in the steerer. You can choose how tight it is in and how tight you do the bolt up...

hampsteadbandit

Posted: Oct 19, 2008 at 10:53

Quote

completely pointless...and Head Doctors have a tendency to slip whilst being tightened, which can prevent you tightening your headset properly, depending on the internal diameter of your steerer tube

there is nothing wrong with a SFN (star fangled nut) if installed properly by a competent mechanic

all that the SFN is doing is allowing you to adjust the headset to the correct torque, before you tighten the stem bolts to secure the front end of your bike

all the head doctor is doing is adding unnecessary weight and cost, and sometimes preventing you tightening your headset

dh-pete

Posted: Oct 19, 2008 at 11:12

Quote

hampsteadbandit wrote:

completely pointless...and Head Doctors have a tendency to slip whilst being tightened, which can prevent you tightening your headset properly, depending on the internal diameter of your steerer tube

You mention the point of a competent mechanic with the star fangled nut, but not think it's the same with a Hed Doctor. Fair comparison there...

The Hed Doctor is easily installed, all you need to do is tilt it if isn't tightening, then the edges will come into contact with the steerer tube and start to expand, slowly it will reach it's normal position and then you can tighten it as you wish. It's far from rocket science.

The point of the Hed Doctor is to give a better grip than a star fangled nut and to be re-usable for years. And it works. I won one and have for over a year now, I haven't had a single problem with it that a little bit of thought couldn't solve and mine has been in many different forks.

I'm usually the first to criticize a new innovation, don't get me wrong though, I will welcome it, but only if it is progress. The Hed Doctor is progress. It's nice to see a lightweight option to use instead of a Headlock. Which can't be used on RS Pike's.

If you are worried about the weight gained from a Hed Doctor from a starfangled nut you need to get to the gym. It's incomparable to the pros that the Hed Doctor has.

lostamasta

Posted: Oct 19, 2008 at 19:21	Quote
thanks for the comments mate!

hampsteadbandit

Posted: Oct 20, 2008 at 1:58

Quote

The point of the Hed Doctor is to give a better grip than a star fangled nut and to be re-usable for years. And it works. I won one and have for over a year now, I haven't had a single problem with it that a little bit of thought couldn't solve and mine has been in many different forks.

I have been installing SFN in bikes in workshops for years and have never had any problems with them...so what is the point of the Hed Doctor...its another case of solving a problem that doesn't exist

I have seen situations where the head-doctor has not been able to effectively grip the steerer tube due to the steerer tube wall thickness being different to Hope's working tolerance for the device

Headlocks were also completely pointless and in some cases responsible for damaging headset bearing races as many riders got a bit too enthusiastic with the allen key when tightening them - there was a myth that a Headlock would somehow stop your steerer tube from snapping and causing you to crash, if the steerer tube did snap the Headlock would not stop the broken tube rotating and the fact that your handlebars would then have no connnection to the fork crown would cause the crash

benr123

Posted: Oct 20, 2008 at 2:06	Quote
had mine 4 about 4 mounth and cant fault it a+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

dh-pete

Posted: Oct 20, 2008 at 8:48

Quote

I have been installing SFN in bikes in workshops for years and have never had any problems with them...so what is the point of the Hed Doctor...its another case of solving a problem that doesn't exist

I also install star fangled nuts daily, but what happens when there is surface rust? It slips.

It also damages the tube, not structurally, but in time it can. Even the effect they have on the aesthetics alone could put down the value of your fork. Who wants a scratched up, rusty steerer?

"A problem that doesn't exist"? The problem does exist, it has a lot more pro's than a star fangled nut and doesn't cause damage, works on all forks I have installed one in, can be used in carbon steerer's, doesn't slip, is stronger and most importantly, it is easy to install with just allen keys for someone who would normally have to make a ghetto way to install a starnut, or have to pay for a mechanic to do it. A lot of the time the average Joe will install a regular star fangled nut wrong, whether it's wrong because it's tilted, or because some of the flanges bent.

I have seen situations where the head-doctor has not been able to effectively grip the steerer tube due to the steerer tube wall thickness being different to Hope's working tolerance for the device

I haven't yet, nor has any other mechanic at our shop. Unless of course you tried to use a 1 1/8" Hed Doctor in a 1.5" steerer. But I trust that isn't the case...

Headlocks were also completely pointless and in some cases responsible for damaging headset bearing races as many riders got a bit too enthusiastic with the allen key when tightening them - there was a myth that a Headlock would somehow stop your steerer tube from snapping and causing you to crash, if the steerer tube did snap the Headlock would not stop the broken tube rotating and the fact that your handlebars would then have no connnection to the fork crown would cause the crash

Headlocks weren't pointless, they were just very misinterpreted, any step to removing the star fangled nut isn't pointless.

Is it the part's fault for being incorrectly installed? No.

Is it the parts fault for riders to listen to a myth and not use common sense? No.

I think you just need let go of star fangled nuts and try a Hed Doctor. It is innovation, it does work 99.99% of the time, as long as you use common knowledge. I would understand if I had a single bad experience, but I have yet to meet a fault that wasn't the owners (dumb git didn't grease it, so it jammed in his steerer, I got it out for him and told him how to grease it, problem solved).

ctd07

Posted: Oct 20, 2008 at 9:01

Quote

The only possible advantage that can be gained from a ridiculously overpriced 'head-doctor' or other brand equivalent is that it seals the bottom of your fork from the elements and mud - this small issue can much more easily be solved by stuffing an appropriately sized cork up the steerer tube, or just by putting a rag on the end of a screwdriver from time to time and cleaning the steerer out. The 'official' headlock device is made my Azonic and is the only one that has a completely sealed base anyway.

On top of this, many headdoctor/headlock systems actually come in different lengths so may not be interchangeable between different frames/forks, and they often don't fit into certain steerers that have a narrower bottom to them where reinforced (some don't fit into Marzocchi DJ's) - and most 'hardcore' specific forks now have reinforced steerers.

Considering the price difference of >£20 - £3 they simply aren't justifiable, star-nuts can be removed or pushed further down if necessary and 'headlocks' don't actively grip the steerer like a starnut does, thus quite likely resulting in some slippage during tightening as stated earlier by 'hampsteadbandit'.

_--_--_--_
EDIT - my bad, I confused Hope's Head-doctor with the Azonic 'Headlock' - both devices are pretty pointless though!

dh-pete

Posted: Oct 20, 2008 at 9:27

Quote

ctd07 wrote:

My bad, I confused Hope's Head-doctor with the Azonic 'Headlock' - both devices are pretty pointless though!

Not really pointless.

Oh yeah, to shed shine to the weight argument, it's 29g for a Hed doctor, bolt and topcap included, and 10g for the average star fangled nut, bolt and topcap not included.

If that weight makes a significant difference to you, or anyone else. "Man the f*ck up". There isn't really much more to say.

fubb

Posted: Oct 20, 2008 at 13:09	Quote
the head doctor bolts are shit mine snapped when tighten up !

dh-pete

Posted: Oct 20, 2008 at 13:14	Quote
You are supposed to grease all parts where metal meets contact with other metal. Excluding the outer area which wedges against the fork stanchions. Since if you don't the bolts tend to snap.

suburbanrider

Posted: Nov 18, 2008 at 4:00	Quote
I have a NS bikes RNS fork And the SFN always slips, i have had it installed properly by a bike mechanic, but it still slips, so i thought i would try the hed doctor, but now that wont fit into the steer tube and i mean its not just tight, its just far to small, the headlock wont work as the bottom of my steer tube is curved. Now what do you guys suggest?

almostwise

Posted: Nov 18, 2008 at 4:29

Quote

suburbanrider wrote:

I have a NS bikes RNS fork
And the SFN always slips, i have had it installed properly by a bike mechanic, but it still slips, so i thought i would try the hed doctor, but now that wont fit into the steer tube and i mean its not just tight, its just far to small, the headlock wont work as the bottom of my steer tube is curved.

Now what do you guys suggest?

My mate is having the same problem atm with those forks...he's trying a bmx SFN now (or something, didn't pay much attention)...will let you know how it goes.

suburbanrider

Posted: Nov 18, 2008 at 5:11

Quote

almostwise wrote:

suburbanrider wrote:

My mate is having the same problem atm with those forks...he's trying a bmx SFN now (or something, didn't pay much attention)...will let you know how it goes.

Cheers mate

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