New to balance beads. Worth trying?

[Lou]

I’ve tried centramatics twice and they did nothing for me in terms of reducing tire vibes.

35 12.5 15 stt pro on Hutchinson beadlocks and 35 12.5 15 km3 on racelines.

 

[Wildman]

Well I emailed Checkered Flag yesterday and really wasn't expecting a reply until next week.

Checkered Flag Tire Beads

has received a new message.

Please ask us what you would like to know? Hello, I have 36x13.5x16.5 TSL IROCK bias ply tires. SKU Size Aspect Ratio Section Width Weight Tire Tread Width I-803 36x13.5x165 36 13.5 67 12 Tire Tread Depth Tread Ply Rating Side Wall Ply 21/32 8 4 I'm running a steel dual beadlock rim with the inner HDPE insert. These are custom wheels made by StazWorks and are 9.75X16.5. How much of your beads should I be using with these tires and wheels? Thank you, Rick Language en-US

Got this reply from them TODAY around 10:30 AM

36in on the boundary from going 8 to 10 oz but because of the beadlock rims I would go 12 ounces per tire.



Thank you

 

[Rescue6]

I’m running 10oz checkered flag beads in a 15x9 spyderlock beadlock and 36x13.50-15 SS Irok tires. Balances great

 

[Steel City 06]

I've had good experiences with the Centramatics. They seem to keep everything balanced especially at freeway speeds, and appear to be promoting even tire wear. They do make a small amount of noise at low speeds, but it's only really noticeable with the doors off.

Balance Masters makes a competing product using liquid mercury instead of BBs and oil. I have two of their driveshaft balancers, but have not tried their wheel balancers. I would imagine they're just as effective (maybe slightly more) as the Centramatics.

 

[Roadhand01]

I ran Centramatics on my Goldwing for years
Great product

 

[Apparition]

Happened across this video of balance beads in action.

 

[Mike_H]

Happened across this video of balance beads in action.

Pretty interesting video. I'm running about 14 oz of beads in my 35" Baja Boss MT's. I still have a slight shimmy in my front end...and the tires are brand new. At this point, I'm thinking I might have a bad wheel or two. They do work, but they are Dynamic balancers...so they will go out of balance on occasion too. Like slowing down for a corner or hitting a big bump. They do eventually balance back out, but you'll get a bit of shake once in a while. Its just something else to be aware of.

 

['05Train]

Lots of discussion about them on the MC forums 20 years or so ago. They don't work well on MC tires for a multitude of reasons, mostly about the way MC tires flex and lean. Long-haul truckers use them, and for steady-state highway grinding they seem to do okay. But as mentioned above, they're nearly worthless below about 40MPH. Same with Ryde-On and other slime products you put in your tires (and they make a damn mess at changes, and can corrode your wheels/rims.

 

[Apparition]

Lots of discussion about them on the MC forums 20 years or so ago. They don't work well on MC tires for a multitude of reasons, mostly about the way MC tires flex and lean. Long-haul truckers use them, and for steady-state highway grinding they seem to do okay. But as mentioned above, they're nearly worthless below about 40MPH. Same with Ryde-On and other slime products you put in your tires (and they make a damn mess at changes, and can corrode your wheels/rims.

Looked like they worked quite a bit under 40 in the vid.

 

['05Train]

Looked like they worked quite a bit under 40 in the vid.

Big difference between watching beads migrate and road feel. I had them in my bike for about 2,000 miles and took them out. They simply didn't work for me and the way I ride.

Edited to add - They're worth trying if you're really interested. I'd wager you'll either feel no difference or you'll hate them. To be fair, I haven't tried them on 4 wheels.

 

[Apparition]

Big difference between watching beads migrate and road feel. I had them in my bike for about 2,000 miles and took them out. They simply didn't work for me and the way I ride.

Edited to add - They're worth trying if you're really interested. I'd wager you'll either feel no difference or you'll hate them. To be fair, I haven't tried them on 4 wheels.

I’m not a fan of them and have no desire to try them. Just pointing out they looked pretty well placed in the video at like 15 mph.

 

['05Train]

I’m not a fan of them and have no desire to try them. Just pointing out they looked pretty well placed in the video at like 15 mph.

That's marketing. "Well placed" doesn't equal, "well balanced".

 

[Apparition]

That's marketing. "Well placed" doesn't equal, "well balanced".

Your response tells me you didn’t watch the video

 

['05Train]

Your response tells me you didn’t watch the video

I didn't but I watched plenty two decades ago, and I've run them. Your response tells me you have no first-hand experience with them.

 

[Apparition]

I didn't but I watched plenty two decades ago, and I've run them. Your response tells me you have no first-hand experience with them.

I flat out said I didn't

 

['05Train]

I flat out said I didn't

Indeed, yet here you are trying to tell me they work.

Look, someone upthread compared them to laundry in a dryer. Bad analogy. A tire has a constant, moving flat spot (the contact patch). Roads are bumpy. There's additional dynamic forces at play (turning, hard acceleration and braking, etc). At a steady, straight 70mph they do what they're supposed to, which is why long-haul truckers use them. But at 80mph on a 900 pound motorcycle, laid over in a bumpy corner, then having to pop up and brake for a dog in the road, those beads are all over the place and screwing with the bike's steering and feel. I haven't tried them on anything with 4 wheels, but I'd wager there'd be similar issues in more dynamic situations.....not to mention that they do nothing at low speeds.

But the real tell is this. OEMs spend metric tons of money trying to engineer out NVH. Yet there isn't a vehicle sold on the planet that comes with balance beads stock. Not a single one.

 

[Apparition]

Indeed, yet here you are trying to tell me they work.

Look, someone upthread compared them to laundry in a dryer. Bad analogy. A tire has a constant, moving flat spot (the contact patch). Roads are bumpy. There's additional dynamic forces at play (turning, hard acceleration and braking, etc). At a steady, straight 70mph they do what they're supposed to, which is why long-haul truckers use them. But at 80mph on a 900 pound motorcycle, laid over in a bumpy corner, then having to pop up and brake for a dog in the road, those beads are all over the place and screwing with the bike's steering and feel. I haven't tried them on anything with 4 wheels, but I'd wager there'd be similar issues in more dynamic situations.....not to mention that they do nothing at low speeds.

But the real tell is this. OEMs spend metric tons of money trying to engineer out NVH. Yet there isn't a vehicle sold on the planet that comes with balance beads stock. Not a single one.

No, I didn't say they work. I said they looked like they worked at much less than the 40 mph that was mentioned before.

I can't believe anyone would put them in bike tires.

 

[jjvw]

Your response tells me you didn’t watch the video

I watched the video and recognize that the beads dispersed. But I have no idea how effective the result was because I do not know what that should look like.

 

[Apparition]

I watched the video and recognize that the beads dispersed. But I have no idea how effective the result was because I do not know what that should look like.

Same. I think they are a poor replacement for a proper balance but I can see where they could be used as a temporary improvement if there was an issue such as a proper balance isn't available.

 

[jjvw]

Same. I think they are a poor replacement for a proper balance but I can see where they could be used as a temporary improvement if there was an issue such as a proper balance isn't available.

My only parallel experience is with Centramatic balancers for several years. They were noisy below a certain speed somewhere below 20mph. And in hindsight, I am less convinced they did as much as I hoped to adjust for fluctuating tire balances. My current tire/wheel setup is no better or worse with normal balancing and keeping up with it over time, because I still needed to keep up with tire balancing with the Centramatics.