Abec 11 Updates

[ChrisChaput]

I'll write more later about the Fyre Trucks, Centrax Wheels, and the various urethanes that we have, but below is a bit about Fyre Trucks:


Fyre Trucks - Two 30 degree plates and a 20 on the right. These actually went to Scoot, one of 4 guys on the planet who have them ...

Many "precision" trucks have two spherical bearings - one in the baseplate's pivot cup and one in the hanger between the bushing seats. A Fyre Truck has one toward the pivot cup and one on the other side of the axle. I changed the orientation of the spherical bearing in the pivot cup area so that it is parallel (instead of perpendicular) to the other. There is no spherical bearing between the bushings which allows for better bushing seats on the hanger and nice TALL bushings. The two spherical bearings are further apart than other trucks which provides more precise steering and less twisting or slop. The kingpin is free to slide up out of the baseplate when tightening the truck. It has a ledge in the middle that supports the bottom cup washer. The two 1/2" locknuts on the pivot pins hold the entire assembly in place. With the locknuts removed, the hanger and kingpin and bushings all come off as one unit and the bushing tension is preserved.

Most all trucks are like a lever in that the hanger hinges in the pivot cup and puts a load on the bottom bushing. The bottom bushing therefore has to do double-duty. It has to take the load (weight) of the rider and it also has to serve as a fulcrum (pivot point) on which the hanger teeter-totters back and forth. You are literally forced to use a relatively hard and/or barrel shaped bushing on the bottom so that it doesn’t get squashed. It is both a part of the steering (pivot) system AND a part of the resistance (compression) system. What makes a Fyre Truck unique is that it isolates the two systems. The steering system is independent of the compression system. The pivot pins and pivot bearings take the load of the rider. None of the load is on the bottom bushing. Because our bushings aren’t load bearing, you are free to use top and bottom bushings that are as hard or as soft as you like. You can use different shapes and sizes, use various types of cup washers, and totally dial in your ride. Taller bushings allow for a greater range of motion meaning that these trucks continue to steer when most others would stop turning and lift your outside wheels during a turn. Other trucks get squirrelly or get the wobs when you hit a rough patch of pavement because they load, unload, and reload the weight of the rider on the bottom bushing. The Fyre Trucks act more like a suspension system. When you hit a rough patch, they barely even sketch and go right back on track. It’s a pretty amazing feeling - one that breeds confidence at speed.


Other interesting factoids:

• You can take the locknut entirely off of the kingpin and also remove the top bushing and still ride the truck around. It will use only the bottom bushing with no preload on it.
• Hanger swaps are quick and easy and preserve the bushings settings.
• If you use different bushings top and bottom it will feel like an “average” of the two durometers.
• They can do 70.23 mph and not kill the rider.
• 100 of them are going on sale later this week.

The first 100 hangers we've done are 6.25", 6.75", and 7.25" in width (159mm, 171mm, and 184mm) and the first 100 baseplates have 10, 20, 30, 40, and 50 degrees of steering.

Saving Money
You can set up different decks with different baseplates and easily swap out your one-and-only set of hangers and wheels. The extra baseplates aren't all that much money by comparison.

Imagine that I have 1 short speedboard and 2 long speedboards, all of which have flat (horizontal) mounting surfaces. I could have the following 3 choices with only two hangers:

Front / Rear / Wheelbase
40 degree / 10 degree / 33" WB
40 degree / 10 degree / 36" WB
50 degree / 20 degree / 36" WB
Each of these would ride differently. The idea is to have a lot of options and to SAVE money, not to buy a lot of hangers ...

Money Money Money Money
I won't bore you with all of the details of what it costs to put these babies together but it has to be more expensive than just about anything currently out on the market. I'm sure that people with no clue will bitch and moan about the price of anything that is expensive to produce, but I think that all things considered, $200.00 USD per truck is a screaming deal.

So that's what I'll commit to for now. $200 a truck. If we learn how to source free titanium for axles, free machine time from the CNC gurus, free spherical bearings, etc, the price could drop. Or I'll come to my senses and realize that we are selling Ferraris for the price of a Chevy and try to make some of my money back. I've spent tens of thousand of dollars on machined trucks and to date I've sold one set for about my cost. I welcome any conspiracy theorists out there who think that I'm making any money off of this to preform a thorough reality check before whining about the price. You can choose from a wide variety of tall Reflex bushings and stainless steel cup washers.
These truck preform like no other. They aren't just different for the sake of being different. They are superior to anything else that I have ever tried. They have already won the North American Championship at Vernon, two World Cup races including the fastest on the planet, and will be taking a stab at the World Championship in Oz soon. But don't take my word for it. Wait until more and more people have chimed in after trying them. I KNOW that people will dig them because I've been skating for over 35 years and nothing has preformed as well for me.

[TylerHill]

Thanks Chris, I have to change my pants now

[chandler95]

So these are CNC but with a weld line? I'm confused, maybe I should go reread hahaha

[a_speck_of_dust]

theyre decorations

[RipTide]

Great job Chris!!!

[Zap]

I didn't read it, but I heard the schpeel from ya at Vernon and MaryHill. I am stoked to see the release! It's sweet to see some revolutionizing to a turning system that has gone relatively unchanged for so many decades.

Sweet! I can't wait to see how they are received!

[jmasta]

Finally something different

i'm sold.

[Barf]

Chris, I want to THANK you for pricing them at $200 per truck.

If they'd been $200 per set, I'd probably have bought them... and then my wife would KILL me. But at $400 a pair, my self-preservation instinct finally has more strength than my need for cool new skate gear. So thanks, Chris.. you saved my life!



(Honestly, this isn't a dig at the price.. I'm sure you're selling them for what you need to, and that's cool.)

[Hanael]

$200?

holy
#######
####.

i think i need to sell half my quiver for it.

byebye maguns.

[SpeedFiend]

scoot rides for area

he has a nice truck collection

[Kenny_Ledesma]

scoot rides for area

he has a nice truck collection

And abec11 and landyachtz.....


So free aeras, fyres, and smokies.

[jmasta]

Any tentative pricing on the baseplates?

I would seriously be interested in 2 hangars, 4 baseplates, and about 12 barrels

[stephen.mhsrider]

And abec11 and landyachtz.....


So free aeras, fyres, and smokies.

he usually rides JimZ's but i dont think he is sponsored by them

[borisdamole]

So these are CNC but with a weld line? I'm confused, maybe I should go reread hahaha

The whole truck is CNC, except the aluminum sleeve's that hold the titanium axle.... the aluminum is welded to the CNC'd truck...
Normally welds are not considered "precision," but the trucks have a groove made by a "ball endmill" that holds the axles PERFECTLY square to the truck, and a good weld will often be stronger than the material it is supporting.

I have nothing to do with the design or production of the truck, but I am a machinist with lots of experience with projects like this...

[Gary in VA]

Are there going to be any slalom sized trucks like the ones CBark rode at the Dixie?

[Randelpink03]

yes, liquids. Basically a smaller version of the fyres. Those are probably far offf though i would imagine.

[spoctopus]

sorry if i missed this, but what are the demensions on the centrex? also thane depth?

[speshlspeclsteak]

yes, liquids. Basically a smaller version of the fyres. Those are probably far offf though i would imagine.

fairly cirtain liquids are different from fyres... the fyre line(if it were actually going to be released which i still doubt) encompases all the cnc including slalom stuff and liquids (if they ever come out) are a cast truck to the tune of randals and the like

[Randelpink03]

search this thread, its in here near the start

[speshlspeclsteak]

i would say the trucks pictured in these links would beg to differ
http://abec11.com/images/fyre_quiver.jpg

http://abec11.com/images/fyre60.jpg