Tire balancing

[Duane Ausherman]

Back in the day we didn't have the beads, but we did have a snake oil product. It was some sort of slime to put in the tube.

We tested it, it didn't work at all. As the bike sits overnight, the fluid runs to the bottom. The bike really hops around at first, but does get better.

Does that sound like a good idea?

On the other side of the coin, all washing machines have some type of balancer that is very serious and takes care of much larger imbalances. I know nothing about how they work.

[Deleted User 62]

Back in the day we didn't have the beads, but we did have a snake oil product. It was some sort of slime to put in the tube.

We tested it, it didn't work at all. As the bike sits overnight, the fluid runs to the bottom. The bike really hops around at first, but does get better.

Does that sound like a good idea?

I used that green slime too. I can't say if it balanced any better, but I did ride around with a nail in my tire for awhile before I noticed it. It did work as a stop leak!

[vanzen]

Back in the day we didn't have the beads, but we did have a snake oil product. It was some sort of slime to put in the tube.

We tested it, it didn't work at all. As the bike sits overnight, the fluid runs to the bottom. The bike really hops around at first, but does get better.

Does that sound like a good idea?

I used that green slime too. I can't say if it balanced any better, but I did ride around with a nail in my tire for awhile before I noticed it. It did work as a stop leak!

A hundred years ago when tubes were commonly used in tires,
I always used a liquid balancer / sealer in a balanced MC wheel assembly.
I never used the stuff as a substitution for balancing the wheel assembly correctly,
and didn't give a sh!t about it's balancing effects,
the momentary vibration until centrifugal force distributed the liquid,
or the increased mass.

The peace of mind that was the result of NO-TRAUMA flat events
more than compensated for these attributes
and made every $ spent on the cost of a jug of balancer / sealer worthwhile.

And from first-hand experience, the "Slime-Oil" (as some might call it),
worked extremely well to eliminate the excitement of a "sudden rapid deflation".

Case in point:
A blow-out event on a wire wheel that completely shredded the tube into bits and shards.
The Slime-Oil kept the valve stem in place and sealed, the tire only gradually lost air,
and the first and only notice that the event had even occurred
was a bit of wobble at speed due to low pressure.

[Sunbeem]

"On the other side of the coin, all washing machines have some type of balancer that is very serious and takes care of much larger imbalances. I know nothing about how they work."

Nothing too sophisticated Duane, the time-honoured method is to bolt a large lump of concrete to the drum.
I think Harley are going to try it next year.

Sunbeem.

[vanzen]

Nothing too sophisticated Duane, the time-honoured method is to bolt a large lump of concrete to the drum.
I think Harley are going to try it next year.

I understand that HD has postponed the addition of this new technology to their production offerings
until another century of research and testing can verify the advantages ...