My current set of 44s is almost axled with a rattling kingpin and sometimes makes boards sound dead, but it also makes certain boards feel somehow alive, as in it gives them so much springy pop that they feel like they're actively trying to help me do tricks. My only pair of 55s has a savagely bent hanger--not the end of the axle, like I've done with other trucks, but the hanger starting about an inch from the yoke. I'm working on getting warranty service for them now, because those shits are fucked up, but I really liked them. I'm skating more transition than I used to and want to set up a new 8.75 bowl board as soon as the warranty comes through. Anyway, I love Aces, but I can tell that they are just not as good for certain things as other trucks.
I got some Thunder 148 hollow lights for Christmas and set them up on a $lave 8.25. I've never ridden Thunders before this, but I was frankly startled at how easy crooked grinds and feebles in particular were with them. It was as if just getting the truck on the ledge/rail was all it took to lock in and go, whereas Aces require a kind of choreography involving where to put pressure on your foot to make those tricks work. Both have pretty similar feeling pop to me, strangely, but I get way more wheelbite on the Thunders with 54mm radials worn down a couple mm (my 44s have 56mm Classic Fulls and they barely wheelbite), even though I'm riding them medium-loose and I weigh 170. I dunno, looking forward to keeping comparing and contrasting.