Tire Balancing beads - BB's?
I have an appointment tomorrow to replace all of my trailer's tires... another story! But, after scheduling the appointment - I read some posts and now have raised the question in my mind - Should I ...
Forum Discussion
Lynnmor wrote:
The weights that I mentioned were at the rim. I understand that the beads would be a few inches beyond the rim but they can't all occupy the same space. Because the beads will be spread out, my guess is that they would need to be approximately the same weight as lead weights on the rim.
I am not convinced that using beads is a good idea. The quantity to be used is just a guess. Every time the vehicle falls below a certain speed the beads fall away causing the assembly to be out of balance till things get sorted out again.
your guess is just that, a guess.. the simple info i gave is not a guess just simple physics.. you are correct in saying the beads will spread out.. yes, in practice they do to a certain extent.. and they don't actually need to "occupy" the same space.. and yes, the beads will fall when stationary.. that again is not a guess but simple physics.. beads have been in use for a very long time.. the only disadvantage over weights i can see is cleaning up during a tire change, it is much simpler to remove a weight than 10,000 beads..
if you can take the time to establish the required static balance weight then it is a simple matter to calculate the approximate bead equivalent.. if you give me your tire and rim size i will do the math for you.
