After lurking for a long time, reading everyone’s opinions and making some of my purchase decisions based on this, I’ve decided to also create and account and share my experience.
Until about two weeks ago I skated an 8.75 anti hero classic eagle with a 14.56 wheelbase. I first tried a pair of 8.75 Thunder High Lights II (151) on it, but it just felt off, popping and shove its just felt weird, which also showed in my incapacity to do decent flip tricks on it. I then tried Ace Classic 55’s (9.0” axles) which worked really great on that board. I tried indy’s and thunders, and I’ve always kept experimenting with bushings, but nothing really felt right. With the Ace Classics, for the first time I had the feeling I could ride them pretty loose (loose compared to my other trucks) while still having that stable center to pop my ollies and flip tricks. Although I had a lot of space to land, I started to notice that the setup was quite bulky and heavy, so I recently decided to go back to skating an 8.5 deck (Real deck with 14.38 wheelbase.
Since the 9” Ace Classic 55 where a little wide, I first tried riding it with my Thunder 151’s. It was OK, but the thunders somehow felt weird. Turning wasn’t as good as the Aces, and i got a lot of wheelbite when not landing in the centerline of my boards.
Today I went to the local skateshop to purchase a pair of aces again. I was in doubt between the classic 44’s and the AF1 55’s. I eventually chose the AF1 55’s since they matched the width of my deck better and I was curious to try them.
All I did so far was ride them for 15 minutes around my neighborhood while leaving them stock (one, maybe 1,5 thread showing). My first impression in that short period of time was the incredible steering compared to my thunders. I could make really right turns without having any wheelbite (I ride 54mm wheels). Even with the busings still feeling pretty loose in the beginning for a 185lbs/85kg guy, the stable center felt really nice, just like the classics have. Even after that short ride, I already felt the bushings getting a bit stiffer. I’m curious to see how it feels after more skating.
The steering definitely doesn’t feel like Indy trucks. So far it feels a little different then the 55’s classic, but the width difference and short skating may not be a fair comparison yet
My initial impression, even though very short, is very positive. When I’ve done some more skating on them, I’ll share my further experiences