Road force balancing motorcycle tires?

[ohiorider]

I've seen where several tire stores offer road force testing and balancing for car tires.  I htink most of the shops that offer this service use a machine made by Hunter.  Here's the question ............. are any of you familiar with such a machine that can road force test a motorcycle wheel and tire?

Bob

[Alfetta]

I've seen some offer 100% nitrogen tire filling...
I think the "road force" is a similar strategy..

do you know if those are "cage-free" tires ?

[Perazzimx14]

Heck I just quit balancing motorcycle tars altogether. I've noticed absolutely zero difference static, dynamic balancing or omitting it. This includes high to low end tars and even a car tar when I go to the darkside.

[RinkRat II]

    Todays tires and wheels are made to very stringent standards as opposed to the old bias ply style tires. Having said that , if your having a balance or vibration problem that cannot be cured with dynamic balancing, you have additional problems. Tire could be bad. wheel or disc problem, bearings etc. Up until the 90's most race teams used  a good old bubble balancer and those cars were WAY over highway speeds and were smooth because the tires were made to a higher standard much like todays tires. The road force thing is mostly sales gimmick but true tire matching works for those tires that need more than a few ounces to get them to balance.
 Like the gentleman once told me "we can balance a sqare tire but it still won't ride worth a damn"
   
 I dont know of any balancer Mfgr's making such a machine for motorcycle tires.   They are gluten free

   Paul B

[Wayne Orwig]

I've seen some offer 100% nitrogen tire filling...
I think the "road force" is a similar strategy..

do you know if those are "cage-free" tires ?

Free range tires for sure. 

For about 30 years I installed motorcycle tires and never balanced them, and NEVER had a problem.
I now occasionally static balance them, if I am in the mood, and ride slower since I am an olde phart.
Most importantly I run a special 78% nitrogen mix.

 

[kingoffleece]

I read all the time about zero balance on tires.  100% contradicts my empirical evidence.  I often wonder why that is.

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

I read all the time about zero balance on tires.  100% contradicts my empirical evidence.  I often wonder why that is.

+1

[jwinwi]

Free range tires for sure. 

For about 30 years I installed motorcycle tires and never balanced them, and NEVER had a problem.
I now occasionally static balance them, if I am in the mood, and ride slower since I am an olde phart.
Most importantly I run a special 78% nitrogen mix.

 

YES! 

[nwguy]

Free range tires for sure. 

For about 30 years I installed motorcycle tires and never balanced them, and NEVER had a problem.
I now occasionally static balance them, if I am in the mood, and ride slower since I am an olde phart.
Most importantly I run a special 78% nitrogen mix.

 

Isn't normal air about 78% nitrogen?

[oldbike54]

 The imbalance is normally in the wheel assembly , if that has already been dealt with a new tire won't change the balance .

 Dusty

[fotoguzzi]

[Wayne Orwig]

You just had to show my secret tire balancing/inflation formula didn't you.


 

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

The imbalance is normally in the wheel assembly , if that has already been dealt with a new tire won't change the balance .

 Dusty

I check every wheel before I mount the tire and 90% of the time, the wheel is not out of balance.

[Huzo]

Isn't normal air about 78% nitrogen?

I think that might have been the gag..

[Huzo]

The imbalance is normally in the wheel assembly , if that has already been dealt with a new tire won't change the balance .

 Dusty

Or out of round.

[oldbike54]

I check every wheel before I mount the tire and 90% of the time, the wheel is not out of balance.

 Does it still have the old balance weights installed ?

 Dusty

[bcls482]

I have used tire beads when mounting my last 7 or 8 sets of tires on my Stelvio and I've been completely happy.  I agree that most new motorcycle tires are almost perfect but I add the beads anyway. 

[Huzo]

I have used tire beads when mounting my last 7 or 8 sets of tires on my Stelvio and I've been completely happy.  I agree that most new motorcycle tires are almost perfect but I add the beads anyway. 

I’ve never understood the physics of that and I’m sure I never will...

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Does it still have the old balance weights installed ?

 Dusty

No, of course not. I remove those first thing!

[oldbike54]

No, of course not. I remove those first thing!

 Interesting . In all these years I haven't ever checked a bare wheel . Have noticed over the last 10 years or so that new tires don't need weights .

 Dusty

[Ncdan]

Is it a reasonable method to precision balance one’s wheels only, then just mount tires and forget balance from that point on when replacing tires???

[Antietam Classic Cycle]

Interesting . In all these years I haven't ever checked a bare wheel . Have noticed over the last 10 years or so that new tires don't need weights .

 Dusty

One particular brand consistently needs no weight and it's not any "premium" brand that comes to mind. 

[oldbike54]

One particular brand consistently needs no weight and it's not any "premium" brand that comes to mind. 

 True , and since it is the brand I have been running for years now ...

 Dusty

[Wayne Orwig]

I’ve never understood the physics of that and I’m sure I never will...

Simple.

If you do NOT put beads in it, there will seldom be a balance issue.
If you DO put beads in it, there will seldom be a balance issue.

So, obviously, the beads fixed it.     And the company that makes the beads profits, and people are happy.

[oldbike54]

Simple.

If you do NOT put beads in it, there will seldom be a balance issue.
If you DO put beads in it, there will seldom be a balance issue.

So, obviously, the beads fixed it.     And the company that makes the beads profits, and people are happy.

 Kinda like the fuel additive argument . Don't use any additives and you will probably never have a problem , add some magical brew of containing mostly some exotic sounding alcohol and you probably won't have any problems either .

 Dusty

[MGrego]

So.....If I'm reading between the lines here, there is really no need to balance new motorcycle tires ?  Just put them on and away you go, provided there isn't something amiss with your wheel ? 

I hope that's the case, I notice those stick on weights come off at random times, without me even noticing....  Sometimes the shop doesn't even bother to take the old ones off.  I'm planning on replacing my own tires in the future, so it would be great to not worry about balancing them.

[Wayne Orwig]

So.....If I'm reading between the lines here, there is really no need to balance new motorcycle tires ?  Just put them on and away you go, provided there isn't something amiss with your wheel ? 

I hope that's the case, I notice those stick on weights come off at random times, without me even noticing....  Sometimes the shop doesn't even bother to take the old ones off.  I'm planning on replacing my own tires in the future, so it would be great to not worry about balancing them.

YMMV. As in, your mileage may very.

After years and years of NOT balancing and having zero issues, I got a static balancer just to feel good. That was right about the time I got my 2004 EV. I balanced the bare rear rim, without the tire off. It came from the factory with a HUGE lump of fancy chrome plated stick on weights, on the chrome plated rim. I had to remove the majority of those, to get the bare rim balanced. I then put on the tire, and it was basically still balanced. I never did understand why the factory had installed such a huge lump of weights. I never noticed any difference before or after.

My Stelvio needed an adapter to balance the rear wheels. I never got one, so I never balanced the rear wheel. After 55,000 miles I never noticed any issues and that beast ate rear tires, so likely over 10 tire changes.

So there is only one obvious conclusion. I will sell you some canned Georgia air, that will magically balance your tires. Money back guaranteed.
 

[RinkRat II]

So there is only one obvious conclusion. I will sell you some canned Georgia air, that will magically balance your tires. Money back guaranteed

   So do you have both Summer and Winter air or does one size fit all??

      Paul B

[Wayne Orwig]

   So do you have both Summer and Winter air or does one size fit all??

      Paul B

You're right, I need at least cold weather and hot weather styles.


Here is the label I'm working on. I'm thinking about discounts for pre orders.

[Huzo]

Some of you guys who reckon your tyres don’t need balancing might need a better balancing apparatus.
I have almost always needed to add some weights, but sometimes very little.
This took 30 seconds to settle, would y’all have called it near enough ?

https://youtu.be/MbezuZa_hNY

As for beads..?
The mentality behind using them is perfectly understandable...(they make you feel better).
I don’t want to know why you THINK they work, I do want to know HOW they work.
Also, if your wheel thrashes at speed because it is out of round and not concentric..( not necessarily the same thing), then you can add beads as long as your arse points towards the earth and you’ll not succeed.