Got the ebay tire balancer...

[BulletTrain]

Ok, I got the ebay tire balancer we discussed in another thread. Excellent transaction with the seller so far and the unit seems to be well made. I haven't used it yet, but should tonight sometime. It will definitely beat what I've been using...

Here's a few pics of it. I'll post my impressions of it after I use it. I think it's going to work out great though.

 

[Rhythm]

Aint she purdy, lQQkn nice, Ace.

 

[BulletTrain]

Meant to say, it came with a tire marking crayon and a sample of weights which the seller also carries. The crayon is to mark the tire during balancing, for those who don't know. Just so nobody thought I was going to paint my tread...

 

[pure_ego]

hehe... have you wore a tire out on a bike yet? lol

neat toy.. i'm jealous!

 

[BulletTrain]

hehe... have you wore a tire out on a bike yet? lol

neat toy.. i'm jealous!

Nope, sold the Dunslop D218's to a local rider that doesn't "sport ride" and doesn't mind them and bought a set of Powers for it though.

And yeah, this one of of those cool toys that just make ya moist lookin' at 'em.

 

[BigBSBusa]

I think I would enjoy one of those toys, but I guess I would need to ride more!

 

[justintime2]

BT I just got mine too!

The seller seems to be a great customer service guy. I had him upgrade my bearings to the ABEC #5's instead of the #1's, which he didn't charge me extra for. I went to the hardware store and got a couple of nylon washers with an ID the same size as the bearing shaft and an OD the same as the bearings inner race or hub. I Put them on either side of each bearing that way you don't have to make sure the bearing isn't touching the aluminum sides, which could effect balnce due to drag, before setting the axle on it. I'm excited to use it and I too think it will work great.

 

[bone]

i've never balanced a tire so i'm asking a question. if you have your tire mounted and balanced at the dealer why would you need this? how many of you actually change your own tire? for the headaches involved in changing i got my front tire mounted and balanced for $20. i took the tire off the bike of course. do these tires need to be checked for balancing often?

bone

 

[Turbo-Torch]

i've never balanced a tire so i'm asking a question.  if you have your tire mounted and balanced at the dealer why would you need this?  how many of you actually change your own tire?  for the headaches involved in changing i got my front tire mounted and balanced for $20.  i took the tire off the bike of course.  do these tires need to be checked for balancing often?  

bone

Many of us prefer to change out our own tires.

Dealers around here won't touch tires bought off the internet. When you buy tires from them they do offer to install them for free, however that $140 rear tire sells for $300 at the dealer.

Also when I do mine I know it's done right and I don't put the mandatory dealer scratches on my wheels. As far as headaches...it's an easy job once you've done a few. I'd probably have both tires mounted and ready to put back on the bike in the amount of time it takes you to drive your wheels over to the dealer.

Equipment doesn't cost much at all. Around $200 and it was all money in the bank after my first use.

 

[BulletTrain]

BT I just got mine too!

The seller seems to be a great customer service guy. I had him upgrade my bearings to the ABEC #5's instead of the #1's, which he didn't charge me extra for. I went to the hardware store and got a couple of nylon washers with an ID the same size as the bearing shaft and an OD the same as the bearings inner race or hub. I Put them on either side of each bearing that way you don't have to make sure the bearing isn't touching the aluminum sides, which could effect balnce due to drag, before setting the axle on it. I'm excited to use it and I too think it will work great.

Funny you mention the washer thing. I emailed him about that very thing and he suggested the washers. Even said he'd buy them and send them to me if I wanted them. He really does seem to be top notch in customer service.

Fwiw, I was thinking about using two narrow zip ties, one on either side of the bearing to avoid having it work it's way over and contact the sides.

I also asked about the second set of drilled/tapped holes in the cones. Suggested including an SAE allen wrench as well since lots of sport bikers may not even have SAE tools... only metric. Not sure I've got an SAE allen to fit it.

I didn't use it tonight. Decided to wait and check my wheels when I do the Galfer lines and 16 tooth sprocket next week. I work all weekend so it's not like I'll get to ride before then anyway...

 

[BulletTrain]

i've never balanced a tire so i'm asking a question. if you have your tire mounted and balanced at the dealer why would you need this? how many of you actually change your own tire? for the headaches involved in changing i got my front tire mounted and balanced for $20. i took the tire off the bike of course. do these tires need to be checked for balancing often?

bone

I change my own tires. If you have them done at the dealer or a shop you don't need a balancer at home. And wrenching on bikes isn't a headache for me, it's THERAPY.

 

[busa854]

I looked for that but couldn't find it. How do I get to it on ebay. Motorcycle tire balancer in search was no good.

 

[BulletTrain]

I looked for that but couldn't find it. How do I get to it on ebay. Motorcycle tire balancer in search was no good.

Here's a link to the auction I bought mine in:
<a href="http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=4584188943&ru=http://motors.search.ebay.com:80/4584188943_Wheels-Tires_W0QQbsZSearchQQcatrefZC6QQcoactionZcompareQQcoentrypageZsearchQQco
pagenumZ1QQfclZ3QQfgtpZQQfposZQ5AIPQ2fPostalQQfromZR2QQfsooZ2QQfsopZ2QQftrtZ1QQftrvZ1QQlop
gZQQsacatZ35601QQsadisZ200QQsaprchiZQQsaprcloZQQsaslcZ2QQsbrftogZ1QQsofocusZbsQQfviZ1" target="_blank">Precision Static Balancer</a>

This auction has ended. You can contact him to see if he will be listing anymore soon. I'm sure he will.

 

[PACIFICBUSA]

that is a sweet lookin piece of work! Very nice....


I wanna know more about those ABEC bearings, JT...I wanted to go ceramic for the wheels, but sweet mother I nearly crapped myself when I saw the price.

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[justintime2]

that is a sweet lookin piece of work! Very nice....


I wanna know more about those ABEC bearings, JT...I wanted to go ceramic for the wheels, but sweet mother I nearly crapped myself when I saw the price.

The ABEC 5 bearings are more sensitive and have a tighter tolerance than the 1's it comes with standard. From what I have read the ABEC 5's will get you down to about 1 gram sensitivity which is far more than you should need for balancing. Your talking about the weight of a strip of masking tape here. Anything more sensitive like the ABEC 7 or ceramics would have you balancing your tire forever not to mention the price of the ceramics are completely out of control.

Some one knowledgeable on bearings could shed alot of light on this as this is just what I have learned looking at it.

 

[BulletTrain]

that is a sweet lookin piece of work! Very nice....


I wanna know more about those ABEC bearings, JT...I wanted to go ceramic for the wheels, but sweet mother I nearly crapped myself when I saw the price.

The ABEC 5 bearings are more sensitive and have a tighter tolerance than the 1's it comes with standard. From what I have read the ABEC 5's will get you down to about 1 gram sensitivity which is far more than you should need for balancing. Your talking about the weight of a strip of masking tape here. Anything more sensitive like the ABEC 7 or ceramics would have you balancing your tire forever not to mention the price of the ceramics are completely out of control.

Some one knowledgeable on bearings could shed alot of light on this as this is just what I have learned looking at it.

Dude, I hope you haven't set yourself up for frustration. I just used mine tonight and if it had any less friction I think it would border on being TOO sensitive. Have you used it yet? Mine spins FOREVER before stopping if I give it any sort of push to get it started. I found that just barely spinning it had it going for probably 20-30 seconds before stopping. When I got down to the last little bit I simply turned it 1/8th and 1/4 turns each direction and let it go to let the heavy spot ease to the bottom from several positions. Got down to a half of a 1/4 oz stick-on weight putting it dead balanced. I can't imagine trying to get it any closer than that. It would drive you NUTS!

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