E
Eurastus
Guest
I've got a pair of the original Answer Manitou forks. They don't have a model number or name.
These are the first suspension forks Answer produced back in the late 80's-early 90's, before the
Manitou 2.
I was out on a ride with the kids the other day and heard a ripping sound come from one of the fork
legs when I hit a moderate bump. This was immediately followed by the same sound from the other leg.
The fork bottomed out and I knew I had problems. I took the fork apart and discovered the longer red
elastomers in both legs had split down the length, exposing the long Allen bolt running through
them. I called Answer this morning to find if they still stocked replacements but the tech on the
phone practically laughed at me when I mentioned how old these are. He suggested I" get with the
program and buy something less than a decade old".
Well, fine...not what I wanted to hear. The fork is mounted on an older Slingshot with a 1" steerer
and all the forks I can find in the 1" size these days are very low-end. Besides that, this bike
does not have V-brakes and frankly I don't want to replace 1/2 the parts on the bike...maybe even
more if I need a 1 1/8" steerer frame.
I've got the split elastomers in my pocket, prepared to visit every LBS in a 50-mile radius just on
the off chance they have something in the junk drawer that might fit.
Before I do that, I'm looking for advice from the community on any ideas where I might find a
replacement set...or something that will fit.
According to the manual that came with these, what I'm looking for are Answer part numbers 040164
and 040197 ( ought to replace the shorter elastomers as well since they don't look too good either).
There is also a "Soft Ride" kit listed as part number 85-3501 and a "Firm Ride" kit is 85-3502.
Frankly, the latter would be fine as well---I don't weigh quite what I did when these were new...
Ideas?
Thanks for your time,
Eurastus.
These are the first suspension forks Answer produced back in the late 80's-early 90's, before the
Manitou 2.
I was out on a ride with the kids the other day and heard a ripping sound come from one of the fork
legs when I hit a moderate bump. This was immediately followed by the same sound from the other leg.
The fork bottomed out and I knew I had problems. I took the fork apart and discovered the longer red
elastomers in both legs had split down the length, exposing the long Allen bolt running through
them. I called Answer this morning to find if they still stocked replacements but the tech on the
phone practically laughed at me when I mentioned how old these are. He suggested I" get with the
program and buy something less than a decade old".
Well, fine...not what I wanted to hear. The fork is mounted on an older Slingshot with a 1" steerer
and all the forks I can find in the 1" size these days are very low-end. Besides that, this bike
does not have V-brakes and frankly I don't want to replace 1/2 the parts on the bike...maybe even
more if I need a 1 1/8" steerer frame.
I've got the split elastomers in my pocket, prepared to visit every LBS in a 50-mile radius just on
the off chance they have something in the junk drawer that might fit.
Before I do that, I'm looking for advice from the community on any ideas where I might find a
replacement set...or something that will fit.
According to the manual that came with these, what I'm looking for are Answer part numbers 040164
and 040197 ( ought to replace the shorter elastomers as well since they don't look too good either).
There is also a "Soft Ride" kit listed as part number 85-3501 and a "Firm Ride" kit is 85-3502.
Frankly, the latter would be fine as well---I don't weigh quite what I did when these were new...
Ideas?
Thanks for your time,
Eurastus.