Thoughts on Reflex Bushings

**Fmunkey** · 07-07-2009 11:05 AM

I was wondering what everyone thought of their reflex bushings.

I have 2 barrels and 2 tall cones in lemon (83a) I probably should have gotten orange or orange+ since they are slightly deforming horizontally in my trucks, and are still very turny. I have randal 180s and had to sand about 1mm down at about a 45 degree angle. They fit perfectly and I think they feel great. The 83a have even more rebound than my 90a venoms of the same barrel/cone setup. Soon I'm going to see how Venom bottom Reflex top feels. I tried it once but had to switch before I could really get a feel for them.

**flannelman** · 07-07-2009 11:15 AM

i bought 2 lemon, and 2 orange barrels when Sk8kings first started selling them. them lemon was to soft for my paris', but just right in some old Gullwing M1s. i ran orange, and venom 90 in my paris' and that works great. then i bought 2 more oranges, 4 orange + and 2 reds. all in barrels. the problem is that the newer oranges are even taller than the original, not "compatible" bushings. i dont know if thats a goof up, but its okay as i always swap out my kingpins for longer ones.

the reflex bushings do move around the kingpin more than other bushings. what i mean by that is when they are compressed, the squish out on the washer side if your using a flat or flipped cup washer. that is not a bad thing because the still spring back into there spot. they have geld up well on all my setups. i have put them in randals, indys, gullwing, and paris. i think they work best in paris due to the huge bushing seat that they have. the only problem i have is that they dont fit cupped washers very well.

**vince-t** · 07-07-2009 11:36 AM

muir has them set up on a timeline with some bears. at first glance they look amazing since theyre so gynormous but i was really let down by the lack of rebound. it could just be the setup but ill stick to venoms

**Blix** · 07-07-2009 11:48 AM

I sticking to my Venoms as well, I like them better.

**igotscars** · 07-07-2009 11:49 AM

paired with venoms the reflex bushings gave a nice dampening effect that lends a smoother more deliberate turn. It still has the same deep lean as venom barrels but it just takes a little more effort to get there.

Return to center is amazing. Super stable. Great bushing

Only problem is I didn't get the "compatible" kind. So my r2 bushing seat is slowly shredding them up

**bakersfield90** · 07-07-2009 11:52 AM

Originally Posted by igotscars

paired with venoms the reflex bushings gave a nice dampening effect that lends a smoother more deliberate turn. It still has the same deep lean as venom barrels but it just takes a little more effort to get there.

Return to center is amazing. Super stable. Great bushing

Only problem is I didn't get the "compatible" kind. So my r2 bushing seat is slowly shredding them up

The "compatible" kind doesn't fit randals either without modification.

**gabriel[abc]** · 07-07-2009 12:58 PM

too wide and too tall. the small conicals are bombass when it comes to indy style trucks

**wooden** · 07-07-2009 02:34 PM

i'm not sure where everyone is getting this "amazing rebound" from, but i've seen them set up on multiple boards and different trucks and not once has the board returned to center.

for example, on a nemesis set up with kahas with orange barrels on bottom and cones on top, you could stand on the board and lean it all the way, step off, and it would literally stay in place.

nor do they fit most trucks, the "compatibility" is horse sh!t.

bleh. i'll stick with venoms and jimz.

**neuros** · 07-07-2009 02:35 PM

Agreed on too wide & tall. I don't know why they were called "compatible.." I've had to lathe all my barrels. I'd've thought that someone as into precision as Chappy is would have made something that would actually fit... At least some trucks okay.
Also I agree that the small cones rock regular geometry trucks.

**stocago** · 07-07-2009 05:37 PM

The barrels (and tall cones) fit Bennetts nicely.

**Rich Nelson** · 07-07-2009 05:57 PM

i was a bit disappointed as well, switch back to my 90a venoms, on two of my setups. and currently have some lemon/lime barrels in my bennet/rtx setup. they run pretty nice, but i'll probably switch back to my indy/randal/venom bushing combo in them

**glideronfreerides** · 07-07-2009 06:12 PM

the barrels work awesome in paris trucks, and the cones (short or tall with a longer kp) work great in indys.

since those are the trucks I ride 99% of the time anyhow, I find them to be very "compatible"

I'm actually hooked on a sabre/venom bushing combo currently however.

**B Dollar Bill Symbol** · 07-07-2009 08:05 PM

I put them on 42 prandals on my nemesis with 86 bottom and potang top. I think they are great for return to the center, they really pop back into place on both set-ups I have them on. I want to try sabres but I'm waiting for the trucks...

**igotscars** · 07-07-2009 08:26 PM

Originally Posted by wooden

i'm not sure where everyone is getting this "amazing rebound" from, but i've seen them set up on multiple boards and different trucks and not once has the board returned to center.

for example, on a nemesis set up with kahas with orange barrels on bottom and cones on top, you could stand on the board and lean it all the way, step off, and it would literally stay in place.

nor do they fit most trucks, the "compatibility" is horse sh!t.

bleh. i'll stick with venoms and jimz.

You have to pair them with some venoms to get a good feel to them. 90a eliminator+ 92a barrel= smoothbouncysex

**leadfoot** · 07-07-2009 08:28 PM

I like em,...
They are super soft. You have to crank em down a bit harder.
I dont run any setup with JUST reflexes,... its always an assortment. There is no right and wrong combo for specific trucks/setups.
Youve got to play around until it feels right.
Bushings are bushings. I dont dislike any brand of bushings,.... Im not a huge fan of Khiros,... and Im not that into Jim Z bushings either. But in the right trucks on the right board all bushings have potential. Even moogs.

**Mr. Sociable** · 07-07-2009 08:31 PM

Love the short cones around 92a, otherwise, I'm sticking to Venoms as well.

**SirKale** · 07-07-2009 08:39 PM

combo venom+retro barrels are great for DH. With a retro on the bottom you can actually use it as a 1 degree wedge due to their hugeness. Both venom and retro have sick return to center, but when you combo them you get deep-lean with progressive turn and a really nice feel overall.

for the record my DH is currently on 42* 205compII with 85venom/89retro front and double F-tpye(88a) sabre rear pretty much just tight enough to stop the trucks from being rattling loose.

**rosewood thief** · 07-07-2009 08:56 PM

i have orange 4 cones, and 2 pink cones and 2 barrel cones. they are all in bennetts. im always switching them out and experimenting, right now i have orange cone all around, and pink cone bottom and pink barrel top in my other set of bennetts.

IMO these are the bushing for bennett trucks. they make an already extremely turny truck turnier. cone bottom barrel top gives you tons of lean and rebound but minimal stability, if you are looking for a more stable bushing setup go orange short barrel bottom tall barrel top. the bushings just sort of spring back to go the other direction every time you go around a cone, i swear these things can tell what you thinking, because you hardly even have to try to get these turn as tight as you and as fast as you want.

the cone all around gives you tons of lean and minimal rebound and stability. i use them for sliding because i like my trucks to turn when im sliding. this bushing setup takes a couple hours of hard riding to break in, the first few hours the bushings will stick wherever you turn, which was hella annoying. but once you get them broken in they pump like maaad, even with 96a noskoolz.

here is a pro and con comparison with elims and reflex:

elims

pros

more stable

lots of lean

compatable with more trucks

shorter

cons

more expensive

less rebound

less versatile

not as pumpable

reflex

pros

cheaper

tons and tons of rebound

compatable with bennetts, unlike most bushings

more shapes and duros

very pumpable

great for slalom

cons

less stable

less lean

not compatable with randals without a modification

tall

hope this helps!

**skully** · 07-08-2009 03:24 PM

Originally Posted by Fmunkey

I was wondering what everyone thought of their reflex bushings.

I love the ones that I have tried. (I've only tried the 74a version so far...)

I'm using them in my front slalom truck, TS board.. It's a cut down Bennett modified with spherical bearings in both the hanger and the baseplate. I prefer really soft bushings on the front truck. The only thing I have to compare the 74a reflex's with is either Khiro white barrels both top / bottom. Khiro white top / orange bottom, or a Khiro white top / homeade ABEC 11 75a bottom. My preference at the moment is the 74a reflex barrels top and bottom. The Reflex bushes do seem to deform easily, but I'm of the opinion that if you're cranking down the bushings enough to deform them, it's time to bump up to the next higher duro...

I don't own any Venoms to make any comparisons to. As Venom doesn't make anyting softer than 78a, I don't think I'll make any Venom / Reflex comparisons on my front TS setup. 78a is above my duro preference on the front. I'll have to find a way to get ahold of some 90a Eliminators and compare them to my homeade 89a reflex Stim / Jimz shapes that I'm currently using on the back truck...