I have a 2001 Jamis Dakar expert with a mix of XT and XTR 8-sp components. It's a horst link bike with 4" of rear travel, and currently has a Fox Vanilla (non-R, non-anything, just the basic one) with an 800 lb spring. Up front it has a Manitou Black Super Air fork with 100mm (~4" travel). I'm 190lbs, not including gear.

I love the bike despite it's weight (28-ish lbs) but the one weak link I've identified is the rear shock. It soaks up hits fine, but when it compresses over a bigger bump, it doesn't seem to have much rebound dampening, and when it decompresses it sort of "launches" you. So, I've decided to give it an upgrade and get a new rear shock with adjustable dampening.

I originally decided on a RockShox Monarch RT3, but NO one has them in stock in my side (6.5x1.5). Since I have to wait a month for anyone to have that shock in stock, I decided to ask the forum to see if anyone has any alternate recommendations.

I do fast singletrack riding, nothing crazy, no big drops, just lots of roots, and the occasional log. Pretty much what you'd consider cross-country.

Should I be looking at something other than the Monarch?

Anything with platform damping works well on a horst bike.

Fox float rp 2 or 23 (pushed) would be my choice.

I've been on HT, rigid forever, so this is just local hearsay:
Rock Shox did some demo last year - they installed their component on your bike to test it.
The majority of those who I consider to be knowledgeable on suspension raved about the Monarch afterwards: most of them were riding Push-ed Fox (since PUSH is local) stuff at the time.

Could be worth the wait.

They're definitely nice, but pretty pricey, and I'm not sure Fox stuff is enough better to justify the cost.

Thanks. I've read only rave reviews about the Monarch, which is why I picked it. I don't mind waiting if it's going to be really good. I mean the bike is perfectly rideable with the Vanilla, and I have a hardtail to fall back on if I need it.

Fox stuff is good enough to justify the cost.

I guess maybe what I should have said is that I don't know if I'm good enough to justify the cost of Fox stuff

You're better off getting the better shock. While the rockshox stuff is good, the fox stuff is just dialed.

I just took my new RP2 for a test run today. Couldn't be happier. Granted I came from a lower-end RS Bar 2.1, but it's absolutely worth the cost. Check chainreactioncycles, I got my 2011 RP2 for $270 shipped after searching Google for a $25 off coupon code. They have a few other Fox shocks for around the same price.

Oh my, that's a very good tip, and you're right, that site has some excellent prices on those shocks.

It looks like the difference between the RP2 and the RP23 is the eye-to-eye, no? The 23 is listed at 6.5x1.5 (my size/stroke) while the 2 is listed at 190mm (~7.4in) with a 2" stroke.

I noticed earlier tonight that one of my usual sites has changed the status of the Monarch from "out of stock" to "discontinued", so I might jump on the RP23 while I can and call it a day.

The RP23 is an awesome shock.

While shock-hunting I read that the Fox units required quite a lot of maintenance. Is there any truth to that?

The difference between the RP2 & RP23 is actually the Propedal adjuster: the RP2 only has an on/off PP switch, whereas the RP23 has on/off plus 3 levels of adjustment. The size thing is just because of what they have in stock. Each shock is made in a variety of sizes.

For maintenance, I've only just got my shock, but before I got it I had testimonies from several people here on having no real issues with anything Fox makes.

Thanks. I ask because I read a review on mtbr where some guy said it needs a rebuild every 50 hrs of riding. At 4-5 hrs per ride, 50 hrs would get used up quickly.

here's a curve ball, i went from RP23'09 to DT swiss, (kinda weight weenie myself) the advantage is it as a proper full lockout that RP23 doesnt have. the dt swiss needs to be fine tuned quite accurately. so for the first 10 rides, i bring my fox pump along with me.

The dt swiss shock is about $255 more than a rp23.

i forgot to mention, XR carbon = XM180 with carbon.
the XR carbon has a higher wear/tear. meant for races where each race there is a mantanience. the XM180 is meant for those longer servicing durations.

I have the dt Swiss fully nude on my Spark. When it works, its awesome, solid lockout. But I had mine rebuilt about 6 months ago and it needs rebuilt again. It like marrying a trophy wife, they look good at the alter, ttttttttttttttttthen.................

Well I decided to go ahead and cancel the Monarch and order a Float, but fortunately I checked email first, and what did I find but a tracking number for the Monarch.

So either....

1) The place found one they didn't know they had,
2) Someone returned one and I'm getting that one,
3) They got a shipment sooner than expected, or
4) I'm getting the wrong shock.

It should arrive sometime today, so we'll see!

Well it wasn't #4, fortunately.



Got it installed and the sag set. Now I just have to fiddle with all these levers and dials!

how's the lockout? does it fully lockout?

It has no lockout.

There's a red dial that has 7-position rebound dampening, and there's a 3-position lever for "floodgate" which it seems by my experiments (RockShox gives you NO documentation on how the shock works) to set the threshold at which the shock reacts to bumps. "Min" means it responds to just about anything (including some pedalling) and "max" means it has to take a large hit in order to trigger movement. I picked the setting in the middle which seemed to ignore my pedalling but still soak up most bumps.

But the lever is easy to reach from the riding position, and a quick flip to "min" just before a bumpy descent seems to work really well.

I think I need another 10 lbs or so of air pressure, as I set the sag without my gear on, and I carry a 100oz cameback with a few tools in it. But it definitely keeps the rear end of the bike in place way better than the old Vanilla.

Update:

The Monarch has been on the bike for several rides now, and I've spent some time dialing it in and getting the rest of the bike set up to match (had to tweak the front fork settings a bit to get the bike balanced). I have to say that the difference is really noticeable. My average speed on this bike for the timed loop I normally do has always been around 3/4 of a mph slower on this bike than on my hardtail - a difference I always attributed to the 4 lb weight difference in the bikes.

Now with the Monarch dialed in, the bike is totally hooked up. I can carry a LOT more speed in a lot more places than I used to, and the Garmin concurs, with around a 1.4 mph average speed improvement. The rear tire stays planted in spots where it used to kick out, and it's quite a bit smoother on climbs. The Monarch did knock almost a pound off the bike (218g on the food scale as opposed to 629 for the Fox), but I doubt that makes much of a difference.

So all in all, I couldn't be happier with the upgrade.

Did this bike have the spring shock originally? I have a 15" Jamis Dakar Expert that I wanted to get going for my daughter. I need to replace the shock. Do you have pictures of the shock mounted on the bike. Does it still work good for you?

This bike has a Fox Vanilla, one with a spring and no dampening adjustment, only preload for the spring.

The Monarch is a great shock, and has been working really well. It feels like a totally different bike than it did with the old Fox on it, and I've been able to tweak the settings after loosing around 20 lbs last summer.

Here's a pic of mine with the Monarch installed:

Looks great! I am glad I found your post. I have been wanting to fix up this Jamis for a while. I gave it to a co-worker for her son to ride. After he grew out of it, she gave it back to me and the bike was in bad shape. It had been left out in the weather ... you know the rest. I am going to try and bring it back. Thanks for your posts and pictures.

-Paul