Riptide Sports Bushings review

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Premium Member Comment by Fitz on May 15, 2011 at 12:29

Sounds really good :)
Bushings are the rubbery essence of skateboarding.

Comment by BRAD T. MILLER on May 15, 2011 at 4:04

The 45a bushing was an experiment to determine the range of the material system we are using.  We found the range to be 45a to 97a.  We have subsequently determined that that anything below 60a is ineffective for the desired application.  A 22 kg child can easily turn the 60a so that is the lowest durometer we are offering.  The current range we are producing is 60a, 62.5a, 65a, 67,5a, 70a, 75a, 80a, 85a, 90a and 95a in barrels.  Our next shape is a "fat boy" or "chubby", then cones.  We also are introducing a compound specifically for slalom, LDP any other style that requires fast transitions that low friction called "WFB™" or "World's Fastest Bushings™".  When tested by a multiyear world champion slalom racer, he said: 

"Awesome formula.   Nice to have the hangers snapping back without oil --  eliminates that slight micro hang up before the initiation of a turn - and tons of maintenance/attention.    They are slightly narrower than some others and therefore fit nicely into certain hangers and cup washers.  

   For slalom truck and other trucks that utilize centrifugal bearings - a bushing with a bearings seat has been necessary.   I often cut one into choice bushings myself with a razor blade.    I will try the WFBs  stock for slalom and see if it is still necessary.  May not be needed if the bushing will depress enough and allow the bearing to slide across the top instead of digging  in.  In my GOG slalom trucks, so far it feels like the WFB bushing hangs up/lags way less than its standard counterpart.   In other words,   There is less hang up/lag across the hanger bearing as compared to other barrels without a bearing seat.”

 

As for splitting, our proprietary compounds will elongate at least 800%.  If you recall an earlier post, we took the 45a bushing in a fixture and rotated it 1800 degrees or five full rotations and we still did not find the materials breaking point!

We are actively seeking shops in Australia to carry our bushings so if you want them at your local shop, have them contact brad@riptidesports.com and we will work something out.

 

Premium Member Comment by Fitz on May 15, 2011 at 1:17

Old Skool Ritchy from NACCOS used to make 60a bushes for jnr slalomers. I think I may still have kept one for novelty sake. If I rode it I would split it within 5 mins or carving.

For my weight at least, 75a offers almost no resistance. 45a would be like no bushes at all!

 

Premium Member Comment by charlie harris on May 14, 2011 at 22:19

well a 45a bushing would be sick on a flexy board for cruising and carving around

Comment by Bozac on May 14, 2011 at 21:37

Nope he mentioned 45a before, its for the mini groms so they can actually carve at their weight

Premium Member Comment by Fitz on May 14, 2011 at 21:28

I'm guessing they meant 75a and accidentalness hit 4 instead of 7.

Comment by Philip and Hugh on May 14, 2011 at 20:49

just asking, why would you make 45a bushings? as is sounds like these bushings feel softer than most bushings of the equivalent durometer. to get proper use out of 45a bushings you would need to be around 10kg and have restrictive bushing seats

Comment by BRAD T. MILLER on May 13, 2011 at 15:45

Uploaded by virtualdude on May 12, 2011

I got a set of the test Riptide bushings and I can say that these are an incredible set of bushings. The ones I was on were 95a but felt closer to 90a. On a janky loose setup, I was hitting speeds of around 35+ MPH and certainly pushed my board and the bushings to the point of failure. You'll see how loose my trucks are in the video. However, if you tighten your trucks up, obviously, they'll handle even bigger speeds. 

These made the board feel nice and carve-a-licious and I got crazy confidence at fairly good speeds. I wouldn't have dreamed of bombing with such a loose setup before, but these really change that game. 

For my setup, I'm running Indy/Core hybrid trucks with the Riptide barrels boardside and Indy stock cones road side. I also ran these as a double barrel configuration in a set of Caliber 44* trucks and these gave a very similar feel to the stock set up. Again, nice and carve-a-licious but still stable at speeds. 

One thing you'll notice is that I'm not pulling any stand up slides. It's because I suck at stand up slides. I wish I had more time to film better stuff, but I'm a bit new at filming, so hopefully, my skill will get better. 

At any rate, I hope you give these a shot. These were a whole lot of fun. I will be anxious to try a lighter duro to see what madness I can think of with these.

One thing to note is that these are available through Riptide Sports at www.riptidesports.com. These come in a variety of duros all the way from 45a to 95a duros. The lighter bushings are for smaller, lighter riders.