Question on Road Force Balancing
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Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 67
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From: TX
St. Jude Donor '13
Question on Road Force Balancing
My Mirror Cut Nurburgrings are in! 
I'm having them road force balanced at Discount Tire. My question is...how will I know they used the road force balancer and didn't do a normal balance? Is there a computer print out they give the customer or something? I'm not a tech savvy guy like most of you - I'm a woman who's been ripped off by plenty of mechanics, so how do I ensure it doesn't happen in this instance?
I'm having them road force balanced at Discount Tire. My question is...how will I know they used the road force balancer and didn't do a normal balance? Is there a computer print out they give the customer or something? I'm not a tech savvy guy like most of you - I'm a woman who's been ripped off by plenty of mechanics, so how do I ensure it doesn't happen in this instance?
Last edited by Mariah; Sep 6, 2013 at 12:35 PM.
Melting Slicks
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 3,315
Likes: 17
From: Near Jacksonville Fl.
True road force balancing is done on a special machine most places don't have.
First the tire is match mounted to the wheel this is done by mounting the tire on the wheel and spinning it on the machine with a drum pressed against the tire tread while the tire is not inflated.
It match's the stiffest part of the tread to the lowest point of the wheel.
The tire is then inflated and balanced with the drum still contacting the tire.
Most places skip the first step and just inflate the tire and sell you a regular spin balance for the price of a road force balance.
First the tire is match mounted to the wheel this is done by mounting the tire on the wheel and spinning it on the machine with a drum pressed against the tire tread while the tire is not inflated.
It match's the stiffest part of the tread to the lowest point of the wheel.
The tire is then inflated and balanced with the drum still contacting the tire.
Most places skip the first step and just inflate the tire and sell you a regular spin balance for the price of a road force balance.
Instructor
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 228
Likes: 0
From: Ottawa Ontario
A true road force balance takes time and money to do. And yes you should have a print out of the results. I have found in the past tire wholesalers hate these Hunter balance machines because it will fail a lot of tires before you get a matched set of four. ( unless your using Michelin).
The machine will take the high and low weight spots and try and match them on the high and low of the rim. This can require several tire mounting/dismounting and spinning the tire on the rim to get the force balance within limits. It's an art to do properly and the results are worth it.
Steve
The machine will take the high and low weight spots and try and match them on the high and low of the rim. This can require several tire mounting/dismounting and spinning the tire on the rim to get the force balance within limits. It's an art to do properly and the results are worth it.
Steve
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 1,186
Likes: 1
From: North Topsail Beach NC
I just had my new Michelins road force balanced yesterday. The place where I bought them was supposed to road force balance them when they were installed, but I was told their road force machine was "down." It was still working as a spin balancer, but there was some part that was defective and on order so the road force part was not happening. They balanced them but I wasn't satisfied, and got tired of the runaround as I am leaving on a 2,200 mile trip next week. I went to another shop who has installed tires from TireRack for me in the past. They have the Hunter machine and more importantly a guy who knows how to use it and takes his time to do it right. He started by doing the road force check and then checked the balance currently on each wheel. The road force was fine on each wheel but each wheel needed to be rebalanced. It made a world of difference. Best part about this shop is despite signs to the contrary, they allow me in the shop to watch the process. And since they didn't have to remount any of the tires, they only charged me $12 a wheel. I was so impressed with the tech that I slipped him $20 on the way out the door. Oh, did I mention that when he reinstalled the wheels on the car he torqued them by hand with a torque wrench?
Le Mans Master
Joined: May 2005
Posts: 6,366
Likes: 249
From: Fort Lauderdale, Florida
I have a friend who works at a GM dealership and uses a road force machine. It is a PITA and time consuming process. The tire might have to be relocated on the rim a few times to get it right which minimizes the amount of wheel weights you will need. He's a little **** about getting this right and will also require some cursing before he's satisfied with the final result. That's probably why some places like to blow off the road force procedure because of the time to do it right.
Drifting
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 1,951
Likes: 2
From: The heartbreaking shame of pink stars Kentucky
I just had my new Michelins road force balanced yesterday. The place where I bought them was supposed to road force balance them when they were installed, but I was told their road force machine was "down." It was still working as a spin balancer, but there was some part that was defective and on order so the road force part was not happening. They balanced them but I wasn't satisfied, and got tired of the runaround as I am leaving on a 2,200 mile trip next week. I went to another shop who has installed tires from TireRack for me in the past. They have the Hunter machine and more importantly a guy who knows how to use it and takes his time to do it right. He started by doing the road force check and then checked the balance currently on each wheel. The road force was fine on each wheel but each wheel needed to be rebalanced. It made a world of difference. Best part about this shop is despite signs to the contrary, they allow me in the shop to watch the process. And since they didn't have to remount any of the tires, they only charged me $12 a wheel. I was so impressed with the tech that I slipped him $20 on the way out the door. Oh, did I mention that when he reinstalled the wheels on the car he torqued them by hand with a torque wrench?
Most of the tire stores around here equate the term "torque wrench" with a 250 ft.lb. impact wrench.
You are quite lucky to find a knowledgeable tire tech!
Team Owner
Joined: Dec 1999
Posts: 34,873
Likes: 487
From: Lacey WA RVN 68-69
NCM Sinkhole Donor
My Mirror Cut Nurburgrings are in!
I'm having them road force balanced at Discount Tire. My question is...how will I know they used the road force balancer and didn't do a normal balance? Is there a computer print out they give the customer or something? I'm not a tech savvy guy like most of you - I'm a woman who's been ripped off by plenty of mechanics, so how do I ensure it doesn't happen in this instance?
I'm having them road force balanced at Discount Tire. My question is...how will I know they used the road force balancer and didn't do a normal balance? Is there a computer print out they give the customer or something? I'm not a tech savvy guy like most of you - I'm a woman who's been ripped off by plenty of mechanics, so how do I ensure it doesn't happen in this instance?
Is there a specific reason why you want this type of balancing? It's usually the tire that needs balancing, not the wheel itself. Somebody who has lots of experience with balancing tires will be able to use whatever balancer that's in their shop to do a good job. But the Hunter machine does have the ability to assign locations for weights just about any place on the wheel and even split the weights around the wheel.
Also, keep in mind that lead weights cannot be used anymore when balancing tires. The new weights are a steel alloy and more pieces will be needed for a balance.
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