Little round thingies
Posted: Wed Sep 19, 2007 6:49 am
John, while I'm not buying, I'd suggest this shape (which I've done to Rads and a Stim or two). Go with a conical shape that's 1-3/8" at the fat end, and tapers to 15/16" at the smaller end. You can play with this a bit in terms of how deep you leave the 'fat' end. With stiffer Rads (90A+), I've found that leaving a fat 'rim' about 3/16" high makes for a nice progressive flex as a rear bushing; you get rebound, but just enough stiffness for a 'thrust' platform. With softer bushings used in front, the conical taper should be enough to keep the hanger from impinging on the bushing at it's severest lean + turn angle. I'll often draw the conical angle down to the base, just for that reason (and/or use a smaller O.D. at the base, say 1-1/4"). You'll need a means by which you can stabley spin the bushing against an abrasive or file. Mounting a bastard file in a vice, while putting the bushing on a knurled bolt that's chucked to a drill has worked fine for me, even though I'd prefer a hobbyist's Lathe for accuracy. Keep in mind that the basic 'stim' shape is best for rebound control with stability, so it's got a niche of it's own(well, there's JimZ's+Rads), while conically shaped bushings are everywhere, just not in the right duros or sizes. Is there yet another shape that hasn't been offered that'll work better? Offhand, I'd say there is, just figure out what..
