The headset is the connexion between the fork and the frame. There's relatively little stress on the ball bearings, but it needs to be well-installed to work properly and not damage the frame.

We stock the solid and good-looking parts, a headset lasts so long that it's not worth cheaping out on, it'll only end in tears at the worst possible moment.

We always have 1-inch threaded and 1-1/8" treadless headsets, and sometimes French and 1-inch threadless. Sorry Cannondailures, no proprietary headsets. We can also find almost every other type. The reference to find headsets is Park Tool's Standardized Headset Identification System page.

For 1-inch parts, the crown race is usually 26.4mm (ISO) but some track forks and cheap bikes use a 27.0mm (JIS) crown race. Let us know if that's the case for you and we'll try to track one down.