Centramatics-Any experience

I have the centramatics on all 4 corners. They work so well I forgot about them till I read this post.

Centramatics work as advertised on our 245 x 19.5 single assemblies.

DSDP Don wrote:
As I said before, some will not spend the money, so this will be beaten to death. I worked at a tire store in my younger days and was a die hard believer in spin balancing only. Since tires wear over time, you would need to spin balance every so often.

Several years ago I tried the beads in my front tires and they worked great, but I prefer the external mount. When you use beads on the duals, they are added to both duals and will try and balance out separately. With the Centramatic on the duals, it's balancing the ENTIRE dual assembly at once, making for a better ride.

When it comes to cost, especially on the duals, adding beads or Centramatics, wouldn't be that much difference in price, when added during a non tire purchase install. The Centramatic would only require removing the outer dual to install. The beads would require both duals be removed, the bead broken and the beads added

Lastly, the costs are defrayed if you keep the coach over two sets of tires.

good points
Iam going do this next tire change on the drives

rgatijnet1 wrote:

hone eagle wrote:

rgatijnet1 wrote:
What do Centramatics do that the larger RV specific Dynabeads do not do, for hundreds less? Just asking for my own education.

Had beads not sure of the size ,still had a minor vibration at 50 mph, in addition the beads got into my tire pressure monitor causing a valve stem leak.
Centramatics solved both problems ,thinking of them for the drives.

That is why the RV specific beads are larger so that they cannot interfere with any valve core or TPMS system. You used the wrong beads and they clogged up your valve core. .

I know but it wasn't me they were already there ...... and still not as effective the centramatics .

As I said before, some will not spend the money, so this will be beaten to death. I worked at a tire store in my younger days and was a die hard believer in spin balancing only. Since tires wear over time, you would need to spin balance every so often.

Several years ago I tried the beads in my front tires and they worked great, but I prefer the external mount. When you use beads on the duals, they are added to both duals and will try and balance out separately. With the Centramatic on the duals, it's balancing the ENTIRE dual assembly at once, making for a better ride.

When it comes to cost, especially on the duals, adding beads or Centramatics, wouldn't be that much difference in price, when added during a non tire purchase install. The Centramatic would only require removing the outer dual to install. The beads would require both duals be removed, the bead broken and the beads added.

Lastly, the costs are defrayed if you keep the coach over two sets of tires.

hone eagle wrote:

rgatijnet1 wrote:
What do Centramatics do that the larger RV specific Dynabeads do not do, for hundreds less? Just asking for my own education.

Had beads not sure of the size ,still had a minor vibration at 50 mph, in addition the beads got into my tire pressure monitor causing a valve stem leak.
Centramatics solved both problems ,thinking of them for the drives.

That is why the RV specific beads are larger so that they cannot interfere with any valve core or TPMS system. You used the wrong beads and they clogged up your valve core. .

I have Centramatics; no shakes or vibration at any speed.

rgatijnet1 wrote:
What do Centramatics do that the larger RV specific Dynabeads do not do, for hundreds less? Just asking for my own education.

Had beads not sure of the size ,still had a minor vibration at 50 mph, in addition the beads got into my tire pressure monitor causing a valve stem leak.
Centramatics solved both problems ,thinking of them for the drives.

Sorry to be the nay-sayer but: I used them on an 02' Workhorse W22 chassis, MH and they didn't do a thing for me. I considered them a waste of money. Glad they worked for others.

DanTheRVMan wrote:

rgatijnet1 wrote:

wolfe10 wrote:
They are permanent-- external to the wheel/tire. You buy them only once in the whole life of the coach (change a tire and they work equally well with the next tire).

They do not introduce beads or other material into the tire that may cause issues such as clogged valve stems and issues at next tire change, clumping if "wet" air is used to inflate, etc.

IMO the only other excellent balancing technique is to have the fronts balanced ON THE VEHICLE. As with Centramatics, then all the rotating masses are in balance. With a brake drum/disk and hub weighing over 100 pounds, it is not unrealistic that these are out a couple of ounces.

That is one of the reasons why I specified the "larger RV Specific Dynabeads". These are not to be confused with the standard Dynabeads or balancing powder.
They do not clump. They do not clog your valve core and do not need special valve cores. They work fine with any TPMS and they do not clump, like the powder if there is any moisture inside the tires. Having changed a few of the tires, they do not cause any problems when de-mounting the old tires or mounting new tires. The Dynabeads do balance all of the rotating mass as you drive, even if you pick up some mud or dirt in the wheel.
Granted the Dynabeads are not permanent, but when you change tires, it costs me about $15 for new beads.

Everything you say is true, but tire manufacturers do not recommend them. Wear on inner surface that was never designed for wear is one of several issues identified by a tire expert at a large manufacturer. YMMV

Having used them on four different coaches, and some of my commercial trucks, I never saw ANY inner tire problems at all, IF you use the correct LARGER Dynabeads.
Most people tend to group all balancing products in to one category with out any experience with the larger SMOOTH ceramic beads specifically made for RV's and large fleet trucks.
Here is a link but for the non-believers it is a waste of time to even look at it. RV Beads
Here is what they say about the tire manufacturers but IF you have anything to post that says that ANY tire manufacturer will void the warranty if used, please post it. Tire warranty
Of course, as the article mentions, they contacted the major tire manufacturers as well as the only two companies that make RV specific tires. As mentioned, if some dealer specifically prohibits Dynabeads, share the link.