Been skating 44 Classics on my 8.4 and AF1 55s on my 8.5 for a while now, and love them both.
However, the stock bushings started to feel too soft, as I’ve grown into liking tighter trucks again.
Hence, I swapped the stock mediums for Ace Hards and they are f*cking perfect. Hard enough so you don’t have to tighten the trucks to show 17 threads, but still turns like an Ace should.
Mind you, I’m a light dude, 145 lbs, but I like the stability the hard bushings bring on flatground (pop, setting up for tricks) and also when skating fast, bigger transitions.
For anyone struggling with the Ace stock bushings, I highly recommend trying the hards. They might feel a bit too hard initially, but give them a little time to break them in and they will be perfect.