tire balancing question

bob706 · October 15th, 2010, 05:40 PM

I'm getting all the tools needed to change my tires and the first item to arrive was a static balancer I got from rocky mountain atv/mc. Since I didn't have everything on hand I decided to try the balancer out on my front tire. I was kind of surprised that the tire was way out of balance. I left the original weight on and got it to balance with one stick on weight, put it all back together and went for a test ride. It was like night and day. With the wheel re-balanced the bike felt great. It seemed more responsive and smooth. Btw my tires have 14.3K miles on them and the front is all but done and the rear could go some more. My question is should a wheel be balanced more than once? Maybe every 5K miles or is the initial balance with a new tire enough?

tapdiggy · October 15th, 2010, 05:47 PM

Do you think maybe you lost an original weight somewhere in your travels?

bob706 · October 15th, 2010, 05:54 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tapdiggy

Do you think maybe you lost an original weight somewhere in your travels?

No lost weights

Flashmonkey · October 15th, 2010, 06:44 PM

I usually assume the initial balance is good enough.

I've never needed to add weight when doing a static balance on my tires. They've always been close when I line up the paint dot on the tire to the heavy spot on the rim. This is usually where the valve stem is, but not always, so make sure you balance the rim by itself first and mark the heavy spot on it.

Oh and don't forget to put the brake disc and whatever on the rim when you balance it.

bob706 · October 15th, 2010, 08:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flashmonkey

make sure you balance the rim by itself first and mark the heavy spot on it.

Good call. The pilots I got don't have the light spot marked on them.

Flashmonkey · October 15th, 2010, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bob706

Good call. The pilots I got don't have the light spot marked on them.

Oh....well I guess you'll have to do it the hard way

I'd also like to suggest some angled valve stems. I put them on the gixxer and they're freaking AWESOME!!

bob706 · October 15th, 2010, 08:23 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Flashmonkey

I'd also like to suggest some angled valve stems. I put them on the gixxer and they're freaking AWESOME!!

how so?

Flashmonkey · October 15th, 2010, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by bob706

how so?

Well I didn't have as much of a problem on the 250 with this, but the gixxer gave me some trouble whenever I had to fill the tires with air (front especially, with the double disc brakes). I know the rear can be a PITA even on the ninjette depending on the type and size of tire inflator you're using. An angled valve pretty much eliminates any of those issues.

I bought a set of these from kurveygurl.com:

Easily the best $10 I ever spent.

October 15th, 2010, 05:40 PM	#1
bob706 ninjette.org certified postwhore Name: Sean Location: Mary Esther, FL Join Date: Jan 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2008 Ninja 250 1998 HD Road King Posts: A lot.	tire balancing question I'm getting all the tools needed to change my tires and the first item to arrive was a static balancer I got from rocky mountain atv/mc. Since I didn't have everything on hand I decided to try the balancer out on my front tire. I was kind of surprised that the tire was way out of balance. I left the original weight on and got it to balance with one stick on weight, put it all back together and went for a test ride. It was like night and day. With the wheel re-balanced the bike felt great. It seemed more responsive and smooth. Btw my tires have 14.3K miles on them and the front is all but done and the rear could go some more. My question is should a wheel be balanced more than once? Maybe every 5K miles or is the initial balance with a new tire enough?

October 15th, 2010, 05:47 PM	#2
tapdiggy Humble Observer Name: Truong Location: Augusta, Maine Join Date: Mar 2009 Motorcycle(s): 2009 Yamaha XT250 Posts: 612	Do you think maybe you lost an original weight somewhere in your travels? __________________________________________________ Everything I post is "IN MY HONEST OPINION". Why is "Parking Lot Enduro" not a thing?

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October 15th, 2010, 06:44 PM	#4
Flashmonkey Professional belly dancer Name: James Location: Toronto Join Date: Apr 2009 Motorcycle(s): 1992 GSX-R 750 Posts: A lot.	I usually assume the initial balance is good enough. I've never needed to add weight when doing a static balance on my tires. They've always been close when I line up the paint dot on the tire to the heavy spot on the rim. This is usually where the valve stem is, but not always, so make sure you balance the rim by itself first and mark the heavy spot on it. Oh and don't forget to put the brake disc and whatever on the rim when you balance it.