August 21, 2018, 10:44 PM
bobtheelfAnyone bead balance their passenger vehicle tires??
quote:
Originally posted by hrcjon:
my advise. never, ever, rotate tires that have no issues in the current configuration. No idea on other solutions, but if you have balance problems get the tires balanced and move on.
That sounds like a great way to kill a pair of tires really quickly.
August 21, 2018, 10:56 PM
hrcjonHas not been my experience across millions of miles. Exception not originally noted for 4wd cars with central differentials (i.e my Subaru STI), but on ford superduty pickups my normal ride this is the best strategy.
August 22, 2018, 12:14 AM
sigcrazy7I've used Equal and Centramatics on my semi trucks for years with success. Never heard of using them on passenger or LT tires, though. I have all my little stuff spin balanced.
August 22, 2018, 01:12 AM
phydoughI started bead balancing my tires about 30 years ago when I ran 38 inch Super Swamper tires that wouldn't balance conventionally. I mount my own tires and always use beads to balance everything from trailer tires to my Raptor tires. They stay nicely balanced for the life of the tire and stay balanced to above most speed limits. I use airsoft bb's, sounds weird, but they work and last just fine and don't interfere with my home or valve stems.
August 22, 2018, 11:02 AM
egregoreI got the scoop. They are used on large tires like those found on lifted 4x4 trucks, large RVs and semi-trailer trucks. On smaller car and normal light truck tires they are ineffective as there isn't enough space inside for them to disperse properly. The material they are made of is not harmful to tires, wheels or TPMS.
If your tire/repair shop has lifetime balancing, just have them balance the tires again, preferably road-forced, and it is unlikely you will have to deal with it again. My tires typically get through a lifetime with one, maybe two rebalances at most. The last time it happened it turned out I had a bent wheel.
August 22, 2018, 11:41 AM
UTsigBack when I ran a commercial tire business, we were one of the first to use Equal, worked great but on large truck tires.
Today I work for a large tire distributor, I'm going to start asking customers if they use "beads" in smaller tires. I'm a fan of the Road Force balancer and have my Rubicon, Vette and Pilot done that way.
August 22, 2018, 12:57 PM
Black92LXquote:
Originally posted by egregore:
I got the scoop. They are used on large tires like those found on lifted 4x4 trucks, large RVs and semi-trailer trucks. On smaller car and normal light truck tires they are ineffective as there isn't enough space inside for them to disperse properly. The material they are made of is not harmful to tires, wheels or TPMS.
If your tire/repair shop has lifetime balancing, just have them balance the tires again, preferably road-forced, and it is unlikely you will have to deal with it again. My tires typically get through a lifetime with one, maybe two rebalances at most. The last time it happened it turned out I had a bent wheel.
Yes, all my reading is that you don’t want to do it on smaller tires with less than a 65 aspect ratio.
I have a 65 aspect ratio and will likely to go larger when I switch to A/T tires.
So we have 1 installer that, though does not do them frequently, has had great success. 1 that has been doing it with great success for 30 years, and 1 that had an issue with 1 wheel.
They are not terribly expensive and are 100% guaranteed. May have to give them a try. We’ll see.
August 22, 2018, 01:28 PM
Sunset_Vaquote:
Originally posted by henryaz:
Didn't they (many years ago) use a bubble balancer (with a bubble like a level) to balance tires? Or is just a figment of my aging memory?
The bubble balance method is much superior to the speed balance method, shops don't do it because it takes more time.