Hot take: buying that cheap bearing press kit was a huge mistake

Felix Ramirez · 2026-04-20T19:45:08.948931+00:00

I grabbed one of those no-name press kits online for like 60 bucks to save some cash, thinking a press is a press, right? Wrong. The first time I tried to press a headset cup into a carbon fork, the main sleeve bent. Not a little, but a full 15-degree kink, ruining the sleeve and scuffing the fork's steerer tube. I had to stop the job, order a proper park tool press, and eat the cost of the kit plus a new headset cup. That 'deal' ended up costing me over 200 bucks and a whole afternoon of my time. The metal was just too soft. Has anyone else had a tool fail so badly it wrecked a part?

nina_johnson865mo ago

15 degrees? That's insane, the sleeve bent that much?

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abby_black5mo ago

A bent sleeve is a bummer but at least the fork is still rideable. Could have been way worse.

4

cameron5385mo ago

Actually, a scuffed steerer tube on carbon is a real problem. That damage can create a weak spot for a crack to start. It might be rideable now, but it's definitely not something to ignore.

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