Obviously everyone has their own take on this h.s. washer business, but I have NEVER had a headset come loose because of a non keyed washer. If fact more times than I can remember I have had to repair damaged steerer threads due to a keyed washer. I consider them to be such a pain that I routinely file out the key not only on my headset washers but on my hub axle washers as well.
That's what two headset wrenches are for. You get it tight and no problems.
my two cents.
Jay Sexton Sebastopol, CA
This whole headset keyed washer thing...killing me.
You should have a keyed washer in your headset just
like in a hub. It does keep the locknut/top screwed
race from coming loose as a unit. I don't think it is made
for one wrench use at all. Who is geto enough to only
own one headset wrench?? I have prepped/built more pro
bikes than most people have seen and the ones w/o a keyway -
the headsets do come loose. We used to dremel a slot and then
file down the tooth in the washer to fit the minimal slot to keep
things adjusted. Many older frames had a slot cut all the way through
the steerer tube for the tooth to fit into. Did not hurt anything.
The tooth is there for reason. Otherwise Campy headsets would not
have a tooth. I used to slap forks in old Bridgeport milling machines
and
cut a .020 flat if it was lacking or dremel. Still today I see bikes
lacking the
slot/tooth setup and usually the headset is loose. Dale is correct
in his missive concerning this issue. We used to custom file the Super
Record
teeth as they were so accurate when we had to start stacking the
headsets
after the Italians did so in about 1980. SR washers were still
affordable back
then and if you had less than 5 you were questioned. We also did the
triple
crank on a double SR spindle by whacking the chainstay a tad for extra
clearance. Ballpeen action. Again, after some Italians were racing that
way.
Joe Hughes
Denver