how essential is wheel balancing

[motopat]

say when getting a new tyre?

eg for a 160 / 60 and 120 / 70 combo (road bike)

is an unbalanced wheel going to make the thing unrideable? At what speed?

Was just wandering about having a go at fitting myself, but without the balancing at the end :o

IIRC no dirt bike I've ever had (on dirt wheels not supermoto) have ever been balanced

tanks in advance :)

[Dougie]

I'd advise getting the front wheel done at the very least,although I'm lucky that my GS550 doesn't seem to need it done.Mind you,I reckon that with sizes like that fitting them would be a total bastard,it's bad enough with 100/90-19 and 110/90-18..........
If you ain't sure take it to a pro,it's your life at risk.

[Kylie]

If its anything like cars the wobble usually turns up between about 50 and 65mph and then tends to clear when you go fast enough. It does cause uneven tyre wear tho.

[Dougie]

It can also cause tankslappers,and you DON'T want one of those. :eek:

[RIDLER]

All i know is that i fitted plenty of tyres to my 600 bandit over the 3 years of riding it 22,000 miles and never balanced one of them and never had any wobbles of any kind , did have wide renthal bars on it that may of helped . :confused:

[motopat]

Hhhhhm, obviously don't want to risk my neck over this :eek: .

[Kylie]

Perhaps ask a place that does these things how much they'd charge for fitting and balancing, or even just balancing. National tyres do bike tyres, they might just do a straight balance for a tenner once you've fitted them if you take the wheel down?

[Oobyscoot]

I tried to fit a tyre on my old XJ600 years ago, after smacking myself in the head with the tyreleaver, I just take em to a pro now.

Generally get them ballanced cos my local chappy balances for free.

[kiffer38]

you may be lucky and not need it balancing, but then again, get to the right speed, and youll find out if it needs doing, be like riding a jack hammer if its badly out !

[GPZRich]

I get my tyres over the internet and get them fitted and balanced locally for about £20 for the two.

[motopat]

my local shop advised a mail order site that were doing a good deal that they couldn't get near. Said get them delivered there and arrange for fitting @ £69 inc vat (ride in, as getting both wheels off at the same time is going to be a bastid IMO, but guess I could, but that'd only save about 20-25, no?)

Thought I could just save 70 biguns and do the fecking thing my amature self :o

[GPZRich]

I just took my loose wheels in, is a bastard of a job getting both off though! :D

[Grav]

I get mine done by these guys.



http://www.tst-tyres.co.uk/

What Tony Salt doesn't know about tyres, isn't worth knowing. :) ;)

[John Hopkins]

Can't see the problem myself, after changing the tyre, fit the wheel and jack it off the ground, spin it by hand and when it stops put a chalk mark at the bottom, spin it a few more times and keep marking, if all the chalk marks are at the same place, you need a weight at the opposite spot, if they are all round the tyre it is balanced...John

[ChopperFXR]

I used to have my own tyre/exhaust place. The amount of times people said they didn't want new tyres balanced because they thought they would save money would suprise you. Most of them came back after a very short time and had the wheels balanced.

Un-balanced wheels will definately reduce tyre life. Possible cause of serious wobble, vibration and steering problems. If you cannot fit and balance the tyres properly yourself it is well worth the extra few quid a professional will charge to fit them and balance the wheels after. If you are paying for good rubber, its well worth looking after. Pays dividends in th elong run.

Avoid places like Kwik-Fit and find a local, independant tyre dealer. They are much more concerned about looking after customers and tend to take more care with your wheels.

Hope I have helped.

Chopper.

[Grav]

Not a bad guide for front wheels, John, but completely impractical for a rear wheel as a chain or a shaft will give you a false reading, potentially making the wheel even more out of balance.

Leave it to the pro's.

[John Hopkins]

Having said all that I pay my local shop whatever they ask and haven't changed a tyre myself since the sixties... :D John

[Grav]

You almost sounded sensible and then you reverted back to normal.

snigger....... :D

[John Hopkins]

You almost sounded sensible and then you reverted back to normal. nigger....... :D

I resent that....I never sound sensible...and I used to refit the chain after balancing... :p John

[motopat]

You almost sounded sensible and then you reverted back to normal.

snigger....... :D


nah, he sounds minted :rolleyes:

thanks for the posts peeps - I think I'll cough up the dough. A bit more bitter about it today as the missus lost her job today (and she earns more in 3 days than I do working 55+ hrs :( ) Guess I gotta ride 'em to the wire before I can afford new 'uns :D

[John Hopkins]

Tyres are certainly not cheap these days, in fact biking's not a cheap alternative to cars anymore, Things have changed since my day when clutch corks were a halfpenny each retail.. :p ... and you could buy a bag of chips for a penny.. :D..John

[Freak]

I had a terrible vibration through the seat of a hardtail chop
Had the rear wheel balanced twice and put a new set of bearings in
Still shook like a bastard
Turned out to be the front tyre yet had no vibration through the bars

[Blurt]

Balanced tyres do perform a little better..ie wear.. you wont notice it unless on a track or it is well of...

quick guide is see that spot on the tyre.... new tyre usually yella.. stick it at the valve and 90% balanced.. not all tyre manufacturers use it but a lot claim it...

[kiffer38]

i think if you ride a trike, the wheel balancing especially the front tyre, will be more of an issue than a bike wheel (i know this through experience) but its always best keep thinks in balance, for the sake of wheel bearings, as if your tyres out of balance, your bearings will take a hammering !

[Shifty]

Thought I could just save 70 biguns and do the fecking thing my amature self :o

Tyres are the single most important thing on your bike as far as safety is concerned because they're the only thing connecting you to the road.

If your safety's only worth 70 quid to you then go right ahead.

Like someone else said, if you're not sure what to do then it's probably a sign that you need to go to a professional.

Keep it safe yeah?