Making a repop Monarch better?

[Retro Flutter]

So, I bought one of those repop dual springer Monarch forks, it's been on my bike for a little over a year now. My only issue are the pivot bolts. I wanna add in bushings or bearings of some sort to make it pivot a bit smoother... I've thought about teflon/ptfe or oilite thrust washers between the bolt head, plate and the fork legs....wondering if they'd make any difference or if there's something else that'd be better?

 

[RustyGold]

I'd try oilite. It can be a bit brittle, but if it can stand up to the abuse the self lubrication should give you smoother action. I feel teflon would be more apt to deform over time than oilite.

 

[arty dave]

Just read about oilite, interesting stuff, I had no idea something like this existed or was even possible. I'd like to do something better for mine too, would brass and/or nylon also be OK? These are what I have in the shed.

 

[Captain Awesome]

I had always thought maybe a shouldered delrin bushing with a brass center insert might work well. Never tried it though

 

[RustyGold]

Brass is good. I don't which Nylon you have in your shed, but there are Nylons (6/6) that would probably hold up okay. Delrin should work very well.

 

[Retro Flutter]

Hm, I've got some delrin lying around somewhere...might try that.

 

[RustyGold]

Oilite...

 

[Retro Flutter]

I wasn't able to order through McMaster-Carr, living in Canada and not having a business to run it through. I was able to order through Ackland Grainger however.

I ended up ordering some 9/16 bronze bushings, drilling out the holes on the rocker to size with a step bit and then pushing them in. I also used some PTFE round stock I had lying around, drilled a hole through a section then cut it up into washers to work with the bushings. So far, seems 100% better. I imagine it'll get better overtime as well.

 

[RustyGold]

Probably a better deal than the oilite...those 6 1/2" rods above are nearly $100 .

 

[Karate Chicken Industries]

Probably a better deal than the oilite...those 6 1/2" rods above are nearly $100 .

That's a bit more than Delrin, IIRC. I was in the plastics biz a long time ago in a land far away.