Patent ID: 7591474

Claim:
A bicycle fork assembly comprising: a hollow steerer tube having a lower end at which a head tube seat is formed, and with diametrically opposed notches defined in said lower end and directed concave upwardly toward said head tube seat, thereby defining a pair of downwardly directed end closure tabs therebetween that narrow from proximate said head tube seat to distal extremities, and said distal extremities of said end closure tabs are bent in toward each other to meet in mutual abutment where they are rigidly secured together, so that said notches define peripherally enclosed fork openings at said lower end of said steerer tube, and a pair of hollow tubular fork legs having upper and lower ends, and each of said fork leg upper ends terminates in a steerer tube interface opening having edges that follow the surface contour of said lower end of said steerer tube and which surround said fork leg openings and reside in direct contact with and are welded about their circumferences to said end closure tabs of said steerer tube, and said lower ends of said fork legs terminate in bicycle axle dropouts wherein said steerer tube has an internally threaded upper end and further comprising a hollow, cylindrical, annular preload bolt that has an outer barrel with external threads thereon for engagement with said internally threaded upper end of said steerer tube, and which has an interior dividing wall that defines an upwardly facing wrench socket radially offset from axial alignment with said external threads on said barrel, and a brake cable routing passage delineated from said wrench socket within said barrel.