crown races?

[young Ed]

i have rebuilt a few headsets, both threaded and threadless and know the crown race is the cup the bearings ride on o the frame. but why would i want to remove them? i manage to clean them just fine whilst they are still in place
is it just i wanted to replace them?
Cheers Ed

 

[Poacher]

Maybe to repaint?

 

[RecordAceFromNew]

If you look carefully you will find they are headset specific, so generally should be replaced with the headset for the stack to fit properly. For example crown races for headsets with sealed bearings aren't even bearing races.