I'm considering some off set shock bushes for most of my riding which is more DH/FR orientated, however this will hamper my climbing ability for the occasional XC rides I do. So will changing back to standard bushes semi regularly reduce their life span?
Bump!
Short answer: buy a proper bushing tool, a bag of bushes and go for it. 😀
Long answer:
The bush itself is the small round metal or plastic bit (like a hula hoop crisp) -the idea is that the bush wears but the mount kit (the actual 'offset' bit) doesn't. Given that you will be inspecting your bushes every time you swap between standard and offset mount kit, if anything your mount kits will last longer, possibly at the expense of the bush itself which i suppose might get worn a bit quicker if you are frequently pushing the mount bits through it. But the bushes are dead cheap compared to say brake pads, so for me it would be worth potantially say a tenner's extra bushes per year.
All that said, you may really love your bike in new low/slack geometry and not bother swapping back. Mind to check the shock stroke/linkage movement etc with the offset mounting kit on: either no air in shock or remove spring and refit, then cycle the suspension and make sure nothing knocks anywhere it shouldn't and that your back tyre won't rub a hole in your seat tube.
Thank you, for both your long and short answers! 😀