Enthusiast II
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Balancing Beads
- Thread starter NJ Rodz
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Balance rim on 5 gallon bucket, pay attention to the dots on the tire, should be pretty damn close to balanced if you do both of those steps.
Don't believe the internet morons, beadlocks should not leak at all, make sure the mating surfaces are spotless, use soapy water to check for leaks.
Don't believe the internet morons, beadlocks should not leak at all, make sure the mating surfaces are spotless, use soapy water to check for leaks.
Off-Road Ranger I
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Can you describe what you're talking about? The OP wanted to know about "balance beads" which are used throughout the truck tire industry all over the world. Has nothing to do with bead locks.
Zim
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You should be able to balance a tire with wheel weights but if you have a difficult tire you can use beads however I would let a trained or experienced tire tech do it for you. I've done many MT and AT tires but they were well used and probably should have been replaced.
Zim
Enthusiast III
tried them once. terrible ride. also had a bead get stuck in in the valve stem after airing down woke up to a completely flat tire. sounded like there is a special valve stem the shop giant install went back to the shop and had them removed and refunded
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I've used them on and off over the years on Jeeps and motorcycles. I've had mixed results. Sometimes they've worked other times not so much. Can't explain it. I've had much better luck with a basic static balancer and some stick on lead weights.
I balance my MT's once.
Most of the out of balance complaints online, are from people unused to the MT rumble at low speeds. They naturally went back to the tire shop and forced them to make it worse.
Also people that don't rotate enough. Get a rough wear pattern. They rebalance, and that wear screws with the machine, and boom, ya'll made it worse.
Beads work. But having to constantly explain what's going on to a tire tire tech, or moronic service writer every single time I need tire work done......is too tiresome. (These jabronies don't even know what a plug-patch is)
Metal beads and a gallon of Green Slime was our go to for a long time. Now I only run air.
Most of the out of balance complaints online, are from people unused to the MT rumble at low speeds. They naturally went back to the tire shop and forced them to make it worse.
Also people that don't rotate enough. Get a rough wear pattern. They rebalance, and that wear screws with the machine, and boom, ya'll made it worse.
Beads work. But having to constantly explain what's going on to a tire tire tech, or moronic service writer every single time I need tire work done......is too tiresome. (These jabronies don't even know what a plug-patch is)
Metal beads and a gallon of Green Slime was our go to for a long time. Now I only run air.
There are charts that tell you how many ounces of beads you need to have per tire size. Add them and drive. I've used them many times with good results from car tires to 35s on personal vehicles and trailers. In the winter they can freeze together with the moisture in the tire. But will break apart and start working in a minute.
