Bushings

Bushings - Pivots - Speed Rings - Traction etc

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Jani Soderhall
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Post by Jani Soderhall » Wed Aug 28, 2002 2:30 pm

Does anybody have knowledge of what bushings are sold today (from any manufacturer)?
The ones I use are from the early 80's and they seem to be in a poor state.

I still use my old Tracker mids on one board and would needs some new bushings for that board.

Guest

Post by Guest » Wed Aug 28, 2002 5:54 pm

Jany!

http://www.oldschoolskates.com has a wide selection of Tracker (new) bushings from the 1980s. They are out of soft inner ones, but still have mediums and stiffs. As for the outer bushings they still have every durometer.
Tracker Stilmulators are good bushings too, although wider then the above-mentioned ones.
Minimum order is $25. They are in the US.
http://www.oldschoolskates.com/info1.htm

Vlad.

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Post by Jani Soderhall » Wed Aug 28, 2002 6:53 pm

Thank you Vlad.

That was a good mailorder site! I was surprised not to find the same info on Trackers site.

They don't seem to carry the new Tracker trucks yet, but maybe that will come. I couldn't find any suitable slalom wheels either, but maybe those are such small products that its better to go directly to the manufacturer.

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Post by Vlad Popov » Wed Aug 28, 2002 7:15 pm

Jani,
As of today, August 28th 2002, the Tracker site seems to be in poor shape. They have been making the new trucks (RT-X and RT-S) for a while now. These trucks are available in different axle widths from different distributors in the US (I know nothing about EU, but I heard they made it to England). In a couple of weeks most of the US distributors should have them in stock. For the list of US and EU distributors visit http://www.Turnerdownhill.com DEALERS. The smallest axle width is 106 mm.
Tracker telephone # in US (760) 722 1455
Vlad.

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Post by Jani Soderhall » Wed Aug 28, 2002 9:03 pm

I just realized I should have called Michael Stride at http://www.slalomskate.com (nowadays called Octane Sports). Michael is the UK distributor of Turner stuff and I met him at the Eastbourne contest. He should have it all. I'll try that first.

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Post by Howard Gordon » Fri Aug 30, 2002 6:00 am

Tracker has a new conical top cushion that seems to work pretty well. The bottom hourglass-shaped cushion they supply with their trucks seems to be too soft and dead, and we've generally been replacing them with urethane cushions designed for quad skates from Sure-Grip which are in current production, ranging from approx 86a to 96a in durometer. Remind Michael Stride to have me send some of the bottom cushions to him in his next shipment.

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Post by Jani Soderhall » Fri Aug 30, 2002 12:26 pm

Howard, Thank you for sharing some of your knowledge. I'm riding the same bushings since the 80's. They've worked fine all alone, but when I am now taking the board out of the cupboard again after such a long time I thought it was time to replace them.

Any information on what can be bought and works at the moment is most welcome. I will call Michael Stride today and order a collection for me.

I will also thank him for giving me a set of Turner Cambria wheels of which I used two for the rear wheels at the competition in Eastbourne. The surface wasn't excellent and my wheels were too hard. The Cambria wheels worked well! Thank's for bringing them out!

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Post by Chris Eggers » Mon Sep 09, 2002 2:07 pm

Hi Jani,

try the Bones Hardcore bushings from Powell, those are very responsive and come in three different hardnesses. They are not cheap but I think they work well. I just do not have any experience in long time use regarding durability.

chris

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Post by Bob Frias » Mon Sep 09, 2002 6:46 pm

Regarding Bones Hardcores durability. I am riding the same top I used for all last years DC Outlaw races as well as my own practicing. I only use the bigger bushing as a top on my front truck. I use TK-05's on the bottom and different cushions on the back but the Bones I have up front [blue] is holding up beautifully. I bought quite a few sets thinking I would shred em but have only used this one so far. I use the Bones [yellow] in the back for a top bushing and am now using Sure Grip rollerskate cushions on the bottom. I know this is confusing. I'm using 4 different cushions on one board but it makes all the difference in the world.



Jani,

I would look into the Bones Harcores as well as the Sure Grip cushions. You can get Bones at Solidskate.com and Longskate.com. I think Poolskater.com has them as well but only in blue.

You can get the Sure Grip cushions by doing a search for "rollerskates" and finding a Retailer.
My amp is warmed up and I'm ready to shred!!!

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Post by George Gould » Wed Sep 25, 2002 4:20 pm

board tuning is one of those things that every skater has to do. i am learning the hard way, trial and error. there is a lot of inconsistency and disinformation about bushings. Do-Dohs get slammed a lot, but they are about the only easily available square cut grommet for the bottom truck which won't change the pivot angle. i rode Bones blues for a while, one set lasted almost 8 months the other about 4 weeks. now i am trying the soft whites with the blue ring. some guys say they don't hold up (untested) but i know they don't seem to return to center as well. Tracker hour glasses seemed ok at first but they make a lot of noise which throws my concentration. i hope in the near future that there are going to be others available. the idea of finding NOS 20 year old bushing is not appealing. time is that materials enemy.

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Post by Bob Frias » Wed Sep 25, 2002 9:10 pm

I think that Chaput is going to roll out some wedges and cushions during the winter months. I'm not saying count on it but knowing Chaput it's almost a sure thing.

I have totally nailed the bushing thing for my riding style and it did take a while before I got it just right, but there are decent cushions out there. I named all of them in my previous post and I stick by that.

The TK-05's and 051's that I have were NOS and seemed like they sharank a bit but they have performed well and were worth what I paid. If it works and you're happy then it's worth it.


This is a trial and error thing we are doing here so results can take a while.
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Post by Leonardo Ojeda » Tue Oct 08, 2002 2:57 pm

I changed my indys orange bushings to blue soft doh-doh in my response, it feels a lot different, the only problem is that the washer was cutting the bottom bushing so i took it apart and turn it over and put together agian the truck.

is there any consecuence(sp?) on having the washer convex instead of concave?

leo
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Post by Richy Carrasco » Sun Jul 27, 2003 12:57 am

Hot tip-- G truck bushings are much better than alot of stuff out! Blue -- Super soft for quick turning,Red a little firmer but still soft- with tracker washer caps on top and your off to the races while your trucks come to life!

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Khiro Skateboard Products, Inc.

Post by BOB HINRICHS » Sun Jul 11, 2004 9:11 pm

Jani Soderhall wrote:Does anybody have knowledge of what bushings are sold today (from any manufacturer)?
The ones I use are from the early 80's and they seem to be in a poor state.

I still use my old Tracker mids on one board and would needs some new bushings for that board.
Bob here from Khiro Skateboard Products.
Go to our website at www.khiroskateboardproducts.com and check out
our '' Bushings '' and other Items, don't miss out.

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Re: Khiro Skateboard Products, Inc.

Post by Miko Biffle » Tue Dec 28, 2004 5:13 pm

A lot of us are now using the Radikal bushings. They sell a 'race case' for about 25 bucks which consists of 4 each of all 5 duros. It's a great deal, and I know of several racers who are latheing or grinding them to fit whatever trucks they see fit.

Some are also making the outer bushing conical so the Radikal hanger doesn't bump into the bushing as it moves. If you take a close look while loading the hanger you can see the radiused point on the hanger hitting the bushing from the outside rather early, and removing bushing material gives a smoother, more linear feel, especially on the front truck.

I've had discussions with Sparky at Radikal about this, and he feels that we're pushing the truck range farther than intended, but I've looked at the play in the pivot with the bushings removed and don't find mechanical interference at the ranges I'm setting my trucks up for.

Remember to upgrade your kingpins to current standards if you haven't already. Contact Radikal through their website if you aren't sure which revision your current kingpins are.

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