Welcome to another addition to our product review library. This is a very special post in that it is part of a series of information on Riptide Bushings. In recent history Riptide has established itself as a force to be reckoned with in the longboard bushing market. The question on everyone's lips is whether Riptide is riding the hype train or if there is truth to the claims of superior bushings. However, before we start to get into an in-depth analysis of Riptide Bushings let's talk about what a bushing actually is.
I have said it before and I will say it again, bushings are the most effective way to completely change how your setup rides. Through a proper bushing setup you can make a board super duper carvey or stable as a table according to your liking. However, as much as I hate to admit it, there is a huge number of skaters out there who are completely ignorant to the benefits of tuning your setup and how large of a role bushings play in that process.
Bushings. Bushings are the small pieces of urethane (urethane is a substance similar to rubber) that fit around the kingpin of a truck and rest on either side of its hanger. The bushing that fits in between the baseplate and hanger of a truck is the "boardside" bushing because it rests closer to your skateboard. The other bushing is called your "roadside" bushing and it rests on top of your hanger and nearer to the road.
Bushings come in an array of hardnesses to affect the turning characteristics of your trucks. The hardness of a bushing is measured in what we call the "durometer." A durometer is indicated by a number followed an "a," for example, one might have bushings with an 85a hardness. A higher number indicates a harder bushing while a lower number indicates a softer bushing. Riptide offers bushings starting at 60a, which is extremely soft, ranging all the way to a 97.5a hardness, which would be relatively hard. It is important to note that when dealing with Riptide bushings that they generally feel a little bit softer than they test, as indicated on their website, and I definitely agree. Which means if you generally ride an 85a bushing you should consider buying a harder riptide bushing, such as an 88a or 90a.
In addition to coming in different hardnesses bushings come in a couple different shapes. I would say that there are two shapes which are widely accepted as the most common; the barrel and the cone. In fact many trucks come pre-equipped with some sort of a barrel/cone combination.
Cones
Riptide APS Cone (roadside) |
Assorted Cones |
Assorted Barrels |
Riptide WFB Barrel (roadside) |
Riptide WFB and APS Canon |
Riptide WFB Magnum (boardside) |
Riptide Fat Cone |
Riptide WFB Fat Cone (boardside) |
Riptide WFB and APS Chubby |
Riptide APS Chubby (boardside) |
Animated Polymer Systems (APS)
The APS compound is formulated to offer a very responsive setup for riders. It achieves this through a high degree of rebound, or "bounce," which really livens up your trucks.
World's Fastest Bushings (WFB)
This compound was produced with competitive longboarders in mind. They do not offer as much rebound as the APS formula. This allows WFB bushings to compress under your feet cleanly and predictably every time. In addition these bushings are internally lubricated to offer less resistance when turning and provide very clean, smooth transitions.
Now that everyone is on the same page and we know what bushings are, what a durometer is, how many shapes they can come in, and what Riptide offers we can get into how they perform on the road and in your trucks. As I mentioned, this was the first part of an educational series and critical analysis of Riptide bushings; so look forward to part 2 coming up in one week. Each week will cover a different shape of bushing, talk about its benefits and drawbacks, and critique how both of Riptide's formulas perform and compare them to other brands.
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Stay Awesome,
Wayne