EQUAL tire balancer

[ente_kaefer]

Now thing my car is 'street legal' I am updating the list of work that I would like to get completed before heading off to Kubel Treffen East.

On the list is to replace the stock 14 inch rims with 15 inch rims, I have located rims that will fit so I can install disc brakes in the front of the car, now I need to determine what size tire will fit without rubbing in the front when I turn, http://www2.cip1.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=ACC%2DC10%2D6626 .

I have called local tire shops in the St. Louis, MO, area and none can balance the tires after being mounted, due to the 'wide 5' pattern.

One shop recommend a product called Equal that is placed in the tire before mounting, http://www.imiproducts.com/products/equal/ .

Has anyone used this product ?

[77kafer]

Call around and ask if anyone of the shops have an old Hunter "tune-in" wheel balancer that they still use. That is the best way to balance your wheels and tires.
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Supposed to be 77käfer, but there are no umlauts on an american keyboard

Overheard on 27 June 07, one lady to another when they saw my Harli in a parking lot at West Point, "maybe he found it on the clearance aisle at the Volkswagen dealer"

[Shoyrtt]

The only problem with Equal is that if there is any water or humidity in the tire, they tend to lump together which is even worse. If you ever have to patch the tire, Equal is like cake batter inside the tire and a nightmare to get out. How does the water/humidity get in you might ask? Every time you add air to the tire, your compressor will pump it in.

One pricey option is to buy the adapter:
http://www.tooldiscounter.com/ItemDisplay.cfm?lookup=COA8113223

Less expensive is to use an old front brake drum to bolt up to your wheel. I have also heard that you can put two to three cups of antifreeze in each tire. Or if you don't mind the noise, put a few ounces of BBs or Airsoft pellets in. The one thing good that Equal does have is a chart to tell you how much (antifreeze/BB's/Airsoft) in each tire based on the size.

You should also look into going to a shop that services large trucks. They tend to be the best place to balance a tire.

[citroen]

here is what you are looking for if you see one

[GI Joe]

That stuff looks sketch.....

Pm sent !
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'74 Thing, "Our Thing"....
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?t=4...p;start=60
'71 Beetle RPU
http://www.thesamba.com/vw/forum/viewtopic.php?p=8080337#8080337
www.NLEOMF.com
Respect, Honor, Remember

[Bashr52]

If you can find someone with an old school bubble beam balancer, I have a wide 5 adapter plate for one just sitting around.

[tallman206]

The Porsche guys use this one a lot:
http://www.mainelycustombydesign.com/1wheelbalanceradapterring.html
Mainely Custom By Design is selling off their business to Precision Matters, so production runs of these should be available again in a few months.
http://www.precisionmatters.biz
Use this on any modern wheel balancing machine.
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Jerry Henning
Southern Classic Works
St.Petersburg, Florida
1973 VW Type 181 with 616/33-6 powerplant
1962 356B-T6 Cabriolet Rustbucket

[Wildthings]

[sam_w]

Can I take an old rear drum and bolt it on?
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63 singlecab
73 thingster
74 Thing

[sam_w]

Can I take an old rear drum and bolt it on?
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63 singlecab
73 thingster
74 Thing

[Jzsquared]

Been there done that had a horrible experience!! I bought 4 of those rims for my thing along with balancing beads. First issue it took a long time to get the rim bead to seal on these rims I had to pull out all the tricks just to mount them. I installed 205/75 15 Goodyear tires. The rim bead never seamed to mount correctly. I also started with 5 oz of balancing beads and went for a ride. The front end shock like mad above 45 so I ordered more beads all said and done I had 12 oz per tire after adding a little each time and still shock like crazy.
I then purchased a balancer mount like the one shown above off the Samba for around $50. Put the tires on the balancer and the rims/tires needed up to 9 oz of stick ons to balance yes 9 oz that's a ridiculous amount to use but I tried it any ways. Car still rode like crap.
I ended up buying a set of 5 spoke rims since they have a normal hole in which to mount on a balancer and ended up only needing 1 oz or less stick on weights. I loved the look of the chrome wide 5 rims with the bigger tires but safety did play a role.
Bottom line I feel the adapter and wide 5 stock size rims and small stock beetle size tires would work fine. When you try to put bigger tires it makes things to hard to get a safe end result. The new Chinese rims are so poorly balanced in stock form that it simply isn't safe for a road car. I ended up giving the rims to a scrapper because I couldn't bring myself to low enough level of pawning them off on someone else.

[Q-Dog]

Looks like Equal is designed for big truck tires, I see no reference to passenger car tires. I did some research on other balance beads and wanted to try DynaBeads for the tires on my buggy. The company did not recommend them for my tires and actually doesn't recommend them for anything less than a 65 series tire and said they work best on tall, skinny tires. They suggested I try them as a supplement after traditional balancing.

Some motorhome, motorcycle, offroaders and 18 wheeler drivers swear by them, and I may try them in my RV.
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Brian

'69 Dune Buggy
'69 Beetle Convertible
'70 Beetle

[mondshine]

My previous set of tires were balanced "on the car", which is sort of a lost art now-a-days.
I used Dyna Beads in those 195-75-R14 tires as a supplement.
For those unfamiliar, Dyna Beads are very tiny; you pour them in through the valve stem (with the core removed)...very easy.
They made an noticeable improvement, especially between 55-65 MPH; definitely worth it.


But... last year, when I needed new tires, I purchased a wheel balance adapter,

(here it is, about to be delivered)

Owning a wheel balance adapter will let you have any tire shop do a perfect job balancing your wheels; the only way to go.

Good luck, Mondshine

[rrankin]

I just bought tires this past fall, call around you'll find some tire shops can still balance 5-wides. Here in central Texas, there is a shop that has a 5-wide adapter that's a chain. There is a local old school shop that can still balance on the car too...

Chain: Discount Tire - Cedar Park location
Local: Walker Tire Company


While we are on this topic.... Is there a way to refurbish rims? Make them true again?
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'74 Thing [Fritz]
Austin, TX