2005 Trek 7500 FX Headset bearing! please help

[NYRider]

Hi Guys,

New to forum. Semi new to biking. I just bought my first Hybrid Bike a Trek 7500 FX. It was used but well taken care of and also has nice upgrades. Anyway...after about a couple months the Fork and headset area started to wobble while braking. I figured the bearings inside the steering column may need to be replaced. So I took it apart and the bottom portion of the steering post has a bearing and those just fell down (the little BBs). As if the seal was broken.

Long story short I cannot for the life of me find any particular specs on what size bearing or new headset to buy! I have taken it to 2 bike shops in NY and they are very unhelpful. Of course they do not have any bearings or headsets for my bike since it’s an older model. I have searched all over the internet. I have been told the headset on my bike is an older style.

From the manual, below is what it says for the headset:

“Aheadset, semi-cartridge
25.4/34.0/30.0, 26.5 mm stack height”

I cannot figure out the size. Other than converting the 25.4 from MM to Inches it converts to 1 inch. I know there are 1 inch headsets…but not sure exactly what I am doing.

Can I just buy the bearings or does the headset need to be replaced thoroughly?

Thanks guys any help would be appreciated.

 

[mrandmrspoves]

Hi, you can probably get away with just buying new bearings as these tend to wear quicker than the races - certainly worth trying.
I can't tell you what size bearings you will need - but they're cheap to buy loose anyway. If you type in headset bearings into an eBay search you will find some suppliers of loose bearings......buy 2 sizes and compare with what you have.

 

[mrandmrspoves]

3.18mm /4.76mm

 

[accountantpete]

II don't know what a semi-cartridge is but at a guess you have a semi-integrated headset.That means that each end of the headtube has an insert probably made of black metal.

Inside each of the inserts you should see a race for the bearings - it should be either angled (to mate with a cartridge bearing) or concave to mate with caged or loose bearings. Which is it?

(Alternatively have a look at the crown race - that will either be angled or concave as well).

Here's an angled

Her's a concave

 

[NYRider]

Thanks for the responses.
The top portion of the stem has a bearing like the below image. Its in a cage but not sure of the size to buy.
It also has one of those crowns to cover the cage bearing.
As for the bottom portion the crown I believe looked like the concave. I will pull out the forks this weekend and post pictures of what I am exactly working with.
The bottom bearings are not caged like the top. Which is bothersome. I believe they are in a cartridge and are small BBs than the top. I just wish there was a website or somewhere I can get exact specifics of the bearings. I really appreciate the responses.

Link to Caged bearings
http://www.amazon.com/Aheadset-Cage...id=1351276279&sr=8-3&keywords=headset+bearing

 

[NYRider]

I guess I can just buy a sem-integrated headset from amazon. I believe you are right acountantpete. I just need to know what size it is. 1 inch or 1 and 1/8 inch.

Or ebay

So something like this can work right?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/AEST-Thread...915?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item3cc6ef66ab

 

[NYRider]

Please see link below. Its the Trek manual for all bikes. The 7500 fx begins on page 49. Please check it out. Shows all the specs. Can someone confirm if its a 1 1/8 inch semi-integrated headset. Because those are the only sizes I see on ebay and are popular.
I just don't understand this manual and the mm to inches conversion I am calculating doesn't make sense.

http://www.vintage-trek.com/Trek-Fisher-Klein-Lemond/2004specmanualTrek.pdf


Thanks please let me know.

 

[accountantpete]

Sorry - the manual doesn't help at all.

You just need to measure the steerer outside diameter to establish whether you need a 1 1/8th or 1" headset.

You can't buy any integrated headset as they have to fit into the headtube which vary from make to make. To do this you will have to knock out the existing headset and then measure the internal diameter.

 

[NYRider]

So the internal wont work? I need the caged bearings?

 

[Peteaud]

Trek 7500 FX Hybrid Bike

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MSRP : $659.99

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Product Description
Frame Material: aluminum
Frame Angles: 71.5 head, 73.5 seat
Sizes: 15", 17.5", 20", 22.5"
Colors: Charcoal/Gold
Fork: Trek
Rear Shock: Not applicable
Brake Levers: aluminum linear-pull
Handlebar: Bontrager Select
Stem: Bontrager Sport
Headset: 1 1/8" threadless Aheadset
Front Der: Shimano Nexave T301
Crankset: Bontrager Select, 28/38/48 teeth
Rear Der: Shimano Deore LX
Pedals: aluminum cage w/clips & straps
Tires: 700 x 35c Bontrager Select
Hope this helps

 

[Peteaud]

http://www.amazon.com/Aheadset-SX-1-1-Threadless-Black/dp/B000GDX8PK


link for headset

 

[accountantpete]

So the internal wont work? I need the caged bearings?

What I was saying is that there are various integrated headsets - they vary depending on the internal diameter of the headtube.

TBH this is a job for the LBS if you are going to go down the route of fitting a new headset.

 

[NYRider]

http://www.amazon.com/Aheadset-SX-1-1-Threadless-Black/dp/B000GDX8PK


link for headset

Thanks I really appreciate. So will any "Aheadset" brand threadless 1 1/8 inch headset work? Or is it only that particular headset.

 

[Peteaud]

Thanks I really appreciate. So will any "Aheadset" brand threadless 1 1/8 inch headset work? Or is it only that particular headset.

Pretty much think so but not 100% sure.

I would email the seller in the amazon link ( or ebay as there are loads on there as well). and ask them.

To my mind a 1 1/8" headset is a standard part and not too expensive for the complete bit.

 

[NYRider]

Pretty much think so but not 100% sure.

I would email the seller in the amazon link ( or ebay as there are loads on there as well). and ask them.

To my mind a 1 1/8" headset is a standard part and not too expensive for the complete bit.

I Think that is what I will do. They all look so different even though they say 1 and 1/8 inch. Sorry just confusing for me. I thought something like this would be easier to obtain.