1″ threaded, needle bearings, and three stack heights, what is this, a 1978 Stronglight catalog? Rene Herse has announced its Ultimate headsets in three stack height configurations, but is there something else going on here?

Rene Herse has made the connection between high-performance trophy truck desert racing and gravel racing, stating that steel frames are used on trophy trucks because steel is easily customizable and resists the massive 1000+ horsepower these high-performance vehicles put out…

With more and more professional racers moving to gravel, we can see the loose connection being made. Power plus dirt. Yet, the stigmas still exist that steel is heavy. High-end steel bikes cost less than high-end carbon bikes, and offer a more forgiving chassis material. 1″ threaded steel fork, flex nicely over corrugations, eliminating the need for expensive (and heavy) suspension forks or other quirky damping devices. These new Rene Herse Ultimate headsets use needle bearings and a unique locking mechanism to keep them in proper engagement, no matter how rough the terrain.

What Rene Herse is touching on is intriguing. John has five bikes with 1″ threaded headsets, Crust Bikes has countless 1″ threaded headset models, we made a titanium 1″ headset wrench, Wilde just re-issued the Cane Creek 1″ headset, and yes, Rivendell never left the 1″ threaded headset behind. Hell, John’s “racing” (more like surviving) with Miguel this year on a rim brake, 1″ threaded headset bike. Are we staring down a 1″ threaded headset revival?

Read the full blog post at Rene Herse.