Cane Creek have brought out a new threadless headset that allows you to change the head angle of your mountain bike by up to 1.5°.
The new AngleSet is similar to K9 Industries' Angled Reducer Cups, but is designed to fit any length head tube and is suitable for both tapered (1.125in to 1.5in) and 1.5in head tubes.
It offers a choice of seven angles: /- 0.5°, 1° and 1.5°, plus 0°, in case you want to run a 1.125in fork steerer in a larger head tube but don't want to change the head angle.
Cane Creek's director of R&D, Josh Coaplen, said: “In a conversation with Santa Cruz Bicycles, they identified a need in the mountain bike market to give riders a simple way to adjust a head tube angle. Every other angle adjustment system on the market is dependent on head tube length or is bike specific, which is not user friendly. The AngleSet fits a much wider range of bikes and is very easy to use.”
Three models will be available from September, all of which are designed for 1.125in fork steerers: ZS49/30 (for 1.5in head tube), ZS49/30 (for tapered head tube with zero stack upper and traditional lower) and ZS56/30 (for tapered head tube with zero stack upper and lower). Riders can opt for just one offset option or buy a set including all three lower cups.
The AngleSet has been tested on the World Cup downhill circuit and is being used by riders including Kyle Strait (Team America) this year. It'll be available as a stock or upgrade option on a number of 2011 bikes from the likes of Santa Cruz, Pivot and Intense – who are speccing it on a limited edition version of their 951 frameset, due out this August.
Jeff Moates, Intense Cycles' director of operations, said that while the 951 is already adjustable, the new headset gives riders the ability to dial-in their bikes even further. “The AngleSet is a game changing headset for freeride and downhill bikers," he said. "This combined with the hugely popular 951 frameset and Cane Creek’s Double Barrel shock is an exciting option in a sea of downhill bikes."
The Cane Creek Edition Intense 951 comes in this fetching ChainReactionCycles-Intense blue