Manitou platinum R7 wear?

[eliu]

I have a 2006 manitou R7 platinum which I purchased used from ebay. For the last several rides I've noticed fore/aft fork leg flexing when braking. This is both visible and felt when I brake. I have avid juicy carbon brakes with 160 rotors. Headset has been checked and is tight. Is this a sign of a flexy fork, worn fork(bushings), something to do with my brakes, or something else? My ride is a custom Ti Racer-x. Your feedback would be much appreciated.

 

[ozelise]

May I ask your weight? I'm 90kg and found my Manitou Skarebs (28mm Stanchions) noticeably flexed, especially on downhill technical sections. The R7s are the Skareb replacements but have 30mm stanchions.

I have changed my set up to Rebas (32mm Stanchions) and found the flex disappeared immediately with no other change to the setup. Similarly, a mate (80kg) changed from Judys (28mm) to Fox Float R(32mm) and also eliminated the flex he found very unsettling on descent.

 

[eliu]

May I ask your weight? I'm 90kg and found my Manitou Skarebs (28mm Stanchions) noticeably flexed, especially on downhill technical sections. The R7s are the Skareb replacements but have 30mm stanchions.

I have changed my set up to Rebas (32mm Stanchions) and found the flex disappeared immediately with no other change to the setup. Similarly, a mate (80kg) changed from Judys (28mm) to Fox Float R(32mm) and also eliminated the flex he found very unsettling on descent.

I weigh about 69kg. I was considering a Fox racing shock but was trying to keep the weight down. In addition, there are great deals on ebay for a new r7 for around $265 compared to a comparable Fox fork which is typically $450+. However, I don't want to deal with the same problem if it's an R7 flex issue. Thanks for the response.