Country of Origin & Quality

[Mile_High_Mark]

[lettucefresh]

fury? i know they tend to be above-average shortboard trucks.
who, besides randal, still casts their trucks here?

[Mile_High_Mark]

Tracker/Orion are cast in the US as far as I know.

[Lobo]

Mark: Can you compile a list of brands and a rating regarding to the faces?

[WalkTogether]

What's the best and worst?

[Mile_High_Mark]

Mark: Can you compile a list of brands and a rating regarding to the faces?

While it's an interesting exercise, it's something that I'm reluctant to post publicly. Plus, since castings can vary wildly, it would be hard to draw conclusions without having access to 100's of hangers and sophisticated measuring tools.

[Lobo]

I understand. I don't agree..

[Mile_High_Mark]

I understand. I don't agree..

Gotcha.

I think one take-away from this is that trucks made overseas are not necessarily poor quality. Force and Holey, for example, are made in the Orient, and have excellent QC.

[bpz]

I agree with Mark. Are we the only dudes on here with counterbores who face our trucks? We should get an elite forum that nobody else is allowed in. Besides the modified slalom trucks I got from Geezer-X, and my downhill trucks from Herb'N, the only trucks I didn't really have to face were my Forces. I faced them anyway, but didn't really notice an improvement after I did, which I usually do notice. Just some thought for food...

[Lobo]

If Randal had that QC I wouldn't surf this part of the forums this often, hehe..
I'm still pretty satisfied when I compare my Randals to my girlfriend's and my friends' ones. Still, I hope that Pogos will give me that extra precision that I want!

[Mile_High_Mark]

Yeah, we're like 1337 an' ####.

As far as "best" and "worst," see my previous post.

One thing's for sure, when you pay extra for the costlier trucks, you are getting cleaner hanger faces, etc. And in the case of Crails, the axles are the closest to 8mm OD of any non-boutique truck I've found.

[Momona Boe]

I've found some variences in even the same manu

I've had RTS/X's that only took a few turns to face and others that took awhile

Hey - shameless plug

At Fatboy, when you order a complete board, your hangers are faced, and with Randalls we change out the kingpins and install flat washers.

[SpookTheHamster]

I'd join your elite club if I could find the right tool in the UK. There's no way I'm beating the axle out of EVERY truck I own so I can face the hangers on a milling machine.

[Gimp Skool]

A lathe would do y'know.

[Mile_High_Mark]

I'd join your elite club if I could find the right tool in the UK. There's no way I'm beating the axle out of EVERY truck I own so I can face the hangers on a milling machine.

You want a counterbore with a 5/16" ID.

[mark grimace]

are you able to face Crails yet Mark?

[Mile_High_Mark]

are you able to face Crails yet Mark?

No, not yet.

[xxsimply_becausexx]

why can't you face crails? I've only recently begun to become interested in doing my own truck "clean-ups". I've bought a counterbore but havn't used it yet. So, again back to my question. Why can't you face crail hangers (I've been interested in buying a pair, just want more info on them.)?

[Mile_High_Mark]

The OD of a Crail axle is larger than the typical 5/16" axle. The counterbore that I use has a ID of 5/16", so it won't fit over the axle. I could buy an 8mm counterbore, but I don't feel like dropping $50-100 on a tool that would see very minimal use.

[Aaron]

I agree that there is much cutting corners (or not cutting/finishing truck castings) in this truck realm. It is appearant to me that it is easier to do more work better and cheaper off shore. A friend who mfgs. in the USA went to Singapore to see how they did it and was blown away. He moved some of his work there because they were making a better product than he EVER could.
For sure it cost less to live and work over there.
I think that a big part of the truck quality problem is that they mostly made for kids.
Somebody is going to make something better soon.
Going off thread here but...
Info for my fellow elite (and perhaps those soon to be)....
Used counter bores having a 5/16" pilot hole can easily be found in any major city having manufacturing. They can cost 5 to 15 $$. Used machinery and tooling dealers often carry used bits, cutters, taps etc. Be prepared to do your own digging as there is not much proffit here for the sellers to have things organized. Refering to it a a 5/16" counter bore is incorrect as the dimension corresponding to the "bore" is the larger diameter of the cutter. In this case the larger dia. needs to be slightly greater than the "thrust"(end) surface of the housing. The 5/16" hole is what the "pilot" fits into. Those having a 5/16 bore may be slightly more difficult to locate as this dimension is secondary. Keep in mind that they also make counterbores not having removable pilots, these will not work for this use. The removable pilots themselves come in many sizes. Properly used the pilot guides the tool (under power) into a matching hole/bore. The tool cuts a countersunk perpindicular "seat". This tool would normally be used to cut a load bearing "spot" under a bolt head on a rough casting or counter sink for socket head cap screw. The manner in which it is used on a truck hanger not how it is intended, but it works. I have not seen one with an 8mm bore but any competent machinist could make or alter an existing one. Cleaning up truck hangers with one of these takes about 30 seconds per side. It is mearly de-burring the casting mark.
Returning to thread topic...