Tom Sanders wrote:
> Strada headsets were obviously up to the task of track racing, as
> witnessed
> by the fact that they came as original equipment on Paramount track
> bikes
> and I have never heard of one failing. I believe I know why
> Schwinn used
> Strada headsets, they were able to standardize their steerers more
> using
> only one headset and the "Campagnolo" was plainly visible on the
> Strada
> headsets but not the Pista ones. I think Schwinn wanted all the
> Mojo they
> could muster.
> Were the Strada headsets less expensive to put on the Paramounts?
> The
> question in my mind is why two headsets at all? Was it the weight
> savings
> on a shorter steerer with the shorter stack height of the Pista
> headset that
> racers were after? This seems fairly minimal, but it's about all I
> have
> come up with. I have heard that Pista sets were "stronger", but I
> have to
> wonder about this...perhaps it's a myth.
> Tom Sanders
> Lansing, Mi USA
My guess? It was easier for Schwinn to stock one headset than two. And Americans wouldn't know the difference anyway living out in the sticks middle of nowhere and all.
Track bike headsets lead a pretty sheltered life. No rain and mud, no bumps or potholes, not many miles. Smaller than the road headset and smaller bearings to boot. Never heard the myth of the track headset being stronger the the road headset... wouldn't be necessary for the track headset to be stronger than a road headset in my mind, in fact the opposite.
A road headset on a track bike instead of the proper track headset? Nojo!
Chuck Schmidt
South Pasadena, CA USA
http://www.velo-retro.com (reprints, t-shirts & timelines)