Ace AF1 hype
Yes, I got sucked into the Hype about the release of the new Ace AF1 trucks. The moment they became available I grabbed a pair from Orchard, our local shop around here.
The golden ones obviously. If they make golden trucks, then you just have to get the golden trucks.
This morning I spent some time on a new setup. I've had the Maite Steenhoudt shaped deck from UMA for a few months on ice now. It looked like a good alternative to try when my Welcome Nora Vasconcellos Wicked Queen is on its way out (which it is now, cracks around the bolts and a razor sharp tail). Shape and dimensions of the two decks are pretty similar: width is 8.6(ish), wheelbase 14.5(ish).
The Wicked Queen shape is probably my favorite deck I've had so far, let's see how it goes with the UMA headshape. It's just slightly steeper. I was tempted to get another new Nora deck, but then, I also like to experiment. Maybe next time.
The biggest adjustment is switching from Krux K5 to Aces. I got so used to how the Krux turn. The bushings are replaced with Bones hard, and the trucks themselves are super loose, woobly even. When you shake the board, the trucks wiggle. Many people hate on Krux, but I find them super fun to ride on smallish stuff. With the Bones hard bushings there's literally no wheelbite problem anymore.
My main motivation for possibly switching to Aces is that I have Aces Classic 55 on my bowl setup and totally love it. But it is an adjustment every time I swap boards. My hope is to bring bowl and park setup closer together, or even merge them, and just ride one solid alround setup.
Anyway, I've put the Ace AF1 on the new setup, and boy do they turn. And the wheelbite is real - with now 53mm 101A Loophole teardrops. I just tried the new setup for about 20 minutes in a small park today - it got super busy and I left after a short time. I'm curious how I feel about the Aces after a longer session in a park that I know well, where I have a few standards and a good base-line for comparison.
I can see how this setup could also be OK for bowls, the turn is quick and carvy. Not sure if I like it for park or street. Krux does long nothing and then an abrupt sharp turn. With Krux you can land with your feet not perfectly centered, the weight on one side and still go straight, which I actually find helpful. Not landing perfectly centered on Aces causes wheelbite with known consequences.
