![]() It would have been interesting to see the vintage fork parts side-by-side with the repros to see the differences, but nobody ever managed to make that happen. Standard bicycle part dimensions today are not the same as ~75 years ago. If they were really built to the vintage specs, then they may have been built 100% correct. ![]() If you didn't, it was a much larger problem to deal with. If you had a metal lathe and a milling machine, all this stuff was annoying to fix, but fixable. I switched to using hardware store bolts with nylon stop nuts instead, but that was a hassle because the original bolt was an odd thin-head shouldered metric bolt that you could not simply flip around to mount the dropout plates on the outside of the fork blades. I also saw that the original dropout plate bolts would not stay tight, as they came. dropout width too narrow (around 80mm with the plates on the INSIDE, which was how the original Monark fork plates were assembled, instead of 100mm, which is the modern standard for front wheel widths) dropout slots too small (5/16" instead of 3/8" axles) Add some style and suspension to your custom ride by replacing your front fork with the sturdy and popular Monark springer fork. no lower bearing race at all (modern headset bearing sizes were all a bit too large diameter) This would have been just fine if they would have explained that in the web page on them, but they didn't, and a lot of people bought them to put on modern cruisers and found out they were "made wrong". I never asked the manufacturer, but have long suspected that they were built to be a drop-in replacement for the vintage forks. Here is a picture of the fully tig welded fork before machining.Ĭlick to expand.I was one of the earlier buyers of the repro Monark fork when it came out, and have seen the problems it had. 020" of the steer tube diameter, giving a press fit for a crown race. Place the properly welded fork into a lathe by the steer tube and then turn down the steer tube weld within. Weld the steer tube all the way around where it passes through the upper crown plate, removing any flexing or movement in this area.Ĥ. Weld all three crown plates together wherever they meet so that no flexing can occur between these plates.ģ. Weld the fork tubes to the upper crown plates, effectively joining the upper and lower crown plates and removing the ability of the tubes from tearing loose of the upper crown plates.Ģ. So, how to fix them? Basically four things need to happen.ġ. Also, the steer tube was only welded to the bottom plate and all three crown plates were only tacked welded together. The fork blades were only welded to the bottom plate so the forks could tear lose from the upper plate and cause a complete failure. Notice the complete lack of welding through this area. Thanks all.What you'll notice is the two fork blades enter into the three crown plates from below, and the steer tube enters into these plates from above. Is any one using any of these forks? Any suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated. My other option is the sunlite version with the single piece fork tube. ![]() I have a welder and can weld so I could reinforce before installing. My second option is monark1 Springer fork however the above mentioned problem. I read the monark1 forks had crappy welds and would break there. My concern is where the forks attach to the mantle. They look like monark forks but with 4 springs instead of 2. I have a few options in mind the first are these. The spring seat definitely helps the ass out but the front end needs to have some suspension added to it and I was thinking Springer forks would suit the bike. However the roads here are terrible and most roads prevent me from wanting to go any faster than 30kmh because of the potholes and general deterioration of the roads and then of course my frame and forks are rigid which really amplifies the extra crappy roads. Hey all so after getting my bike out for a bunch of rides so far.
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