I’m building this bike, and the last part I need is a headset. The specs are EC34mm/44mm Headset, 1-1/8” steerer Steel fork. The options I’ve found are really expensive, so I was wondering if anyone knew of a cheaper product, or a work around?

To be clear, you need an EC34/28.6 upper and probably(*) a ZS44/30 lower. Hard to go wrong with Cane Creek 40, also helpful that they sell uppers and lowers separately so it’s easier to get this slightly odd combo:

https://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=39927
https://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=57098

(*) EDIT:

The other option would be an EC44/30 lower, but that’s *weird*, hard to find, and I think the bigger external cup would look doofier with the skinnier 9/8″ fork than the zero-stack version. The only difference is 8mm of stack height: the External Cup setup has 12mm of stack between the bottom of the head tube and the fork crown, while the Zero Stack setup only has 4mm of stack. BUT, if that’s what this frame *really* calls for… Off the shelf, afaik that would limit your options to the $$$ White Industries and Cane Creek 110. Or for cheaper you could get a [Cane Creek 40 EC44/40 lower](https://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=39951) and a [52/30 conversion crown race](https://www.universalcycles.com/shopping/product_details.php?id=10602), which is what those WhiteInd and CC110 EC44/30 assemblies are anyway.

That said: if you think you ever might want to swap out that fork for one with a tapered steerer (basically, almost all carbon forks), think strongly about going with the EC44 lower. In that case, you could just pop the new fork right in. If you go with the ZS44/30 lower assembly, you’d need to swap it for an EC44/40 lower in order to use a tapered steerer.