Wheel balancing beads “ Do they really help”?

[A97obs]

I never had any idea balancing beads were a thing and option for I guess larger all terrain and aggressive tires that don’t balance out very well. Actually my current R/T set Road force balanced at 27-28 in front but the backs were in the 40s. Same for my M/T I had last year . Granted they’re cheap tires No names…
So a buddy said he swears by them and have had a few customers have them installed when he worked at belle tire .

Would this be a worthy option that can’t hurt even if it can’t help? I’m swapping out to a set Non aggressive A/T tires tomorrow and I might consider them. My rims are Brand new tires new, with all things considered and still being an all terrain, could this help , has anyone found them super effective? And are there any do’s and Dont’s when’ considering them like anything as far as type of wheels cast or steel or what you should not use them on?

 

[Scooterwrench]

I've heard of them,never seen them used. I have seen tires put up on a lathe like cutter to round them up.

 

[Hipster]

Their effectiveness is highly suspect. They were widely advertized for motorcycle use but can tell you without a doubt they will make a harley springer worse to the point it starts to pogo stick at 60-70 mph..

Sometimes breaking the tire down,spinning it a half turn, and reseating it helps them take less weight. Have heard of tires being trued on a cutter as well.

My experience was getting them out and rebalance. Sometimes balancing takes some effort.

 

[Sean Buick 76]

I’ve used them on my Yukon, no issues. I’ve got low cost BFG AT copies on there in 35x12.5-20 and it wouldn’t balance worth a crap! I had them put beads in it and it’s night and day. 80 mph now without a vibration where as it was noticeable before. I’m not saying beads are better than a proper balance however if given the choice between beads or living with a vibration I will take the beads all day!

I was thinking about it today while driving. I think I’ve got more vibration with my Sierra on 35x12.5-18 ATs then I do with my Yukon that’s got the beads. Both trucks are fine now, it’s not going to be 100% smooth like a street only tire.

 

[A97obs]

I’ve used them on my Yukon, no issues. I’ve got low cost BFG AT copies on there in 35x12.5-20 and it wouldn’t balance worth a crap! I had them put beads in it and it’s night and day. 80 mph now without a vibration where as it was noticeable before. I’m not saying beads are better than a proper balance however if given the choice between beads or living with a vibration I will take the beads all day!

I was thinking about it today while driving. I think I’ve got more vibration with my Sierra on 35x12.5-18 ATs then I do with my Yukon that’s got the beads. Both trucks are fine now, it’s not going to be 100% smooth like a street only tire.

So what’ determines how many per wheel needs ? Certain size beads ? Do the tire shops supply them or make a recommendation during balancing .. they never told me about the option 3 times I’ve had R/T mounted on new wheels …Considering half the kids that mount tires at these places are Moron’s (Usually).
I was gonna go today to do it but I may wait to order some beads . Is there a specific amount or just a bag per wheel, will they still run stick weights on the inside of rim even after road force balancing “ as in” meaning the beads just being an “extra”

 

[A97obs]

I’ve used them on my Yukon, no issues. I’ve got low cost BFG AT copies on there in 35x12.5-20 and it wouldn’t balance worth a crap! I had them put beads in it and it’s night and day. 80 mph now without a vibration where as it was noticeable before. I’m not saying beads are better than a proper balance however if given the choice between beads or living with a vibration I will take the beads all day!

I was thinking about it today while driving. I think I’ve got more vibration with my Sierra on 35x12.5-18 ATs then I do with my Yukon that’s got the beads. Both trucks are fine now, it’s not going to be 100% smooth like a street only tire.

I dunno discount tire just told me .. nahh don’t do it and it’s probably unnecessary on a 33-35 maybe a 37” . Tried say it can counter act against the weight balance and make things worse
That’s Why I figured I’d ask .. I can’t understand why they would not promote it if it helps.. maybe it’s frowned upon with the shops.

Hopefully these new tires are built better than the last set .. and that going from an aggressive R/T to A/T helps … apparently it’s all about the tires quality not necessarily just the wheel being perfectly machined for a good or acceptable balance reading

 

[Sean Buick 76]

Most of the time it is the tire quality that’s the problem. All I can say is that with my 35s the beads completely eliminated the issue after they wouldn’t balance out. It’s worth a try if they don’t balance out. You can also sometimes return the tire as a defect if it doesn’t balance well. I find it’s a quality control issue. The high end companies only sell the tires that pass the QC, the cheap companies sell em all. Out of a batch of cheap tires most will balance well and a few won’t. That’s what’s I find anyways but your mileage will vary!

 

[Sean Buick 76]

I dunno discount tire just told me .. nahh don’t do it and it’s probably unnecessary on a 33-35 maybe a 37” . Tried say it can counter act against the weight balance and make things worse
That’s Why I figured I’d ask .. I can’t understand why they would not promote it if it helps.. maybe it’s frowned upon with the shops.

Hopefully these new tires are built better than the last set .. and that going from an aggressive R/T to A/T helps … apparently it’s all about the tires quality not necessarily just the wheel being perfectly machined for a good or acceptable balance reading

It’s frowned upon by good shops because it’s a lazy way to balance a wheel. Around here there is a shop that puts beads in everything as it’s easier for them. The good shops try a real balance job first. To outright say they don’t work isn’t true they are very useful when you have a tire that doesn’t balance.

 

[Erik the Awful]

Considering half the kids that mount tires at these places are Moron’s (Usually).

I was under WCJr the other day and noticed that there's about ten ounces of weights on one of the wheels. I'm pretty sure it's not a problem with the wheel and tire, but rather with a tire-swapper who was thrown on the balancing machine without any training. I don't blame the kids, I blame lazy managers.

I've long heard about how good beads work, but I recently heard that they have to be replaced every few years because they get pulverized over time. I don't know how true that is. I also heard you can use airsoft pellets because they're the same thing. I haven't ever seen the tire beads in person to verify.

 

[Sean Buick 76]

Yes many tire shops aren’t professional. I use a shop that’s very good, I’ve been using them for many years and they treat me very well. I believed them when they said they couldn’t get my tires to balance out and they normally don’t use beads but they suggested them in my case. I had a fiat repair a few years after having the beads installed and I was curious to see them so they brought out a few to the front desk to show me. They are a soft gel like bead and they aren’t breaking down from what I can tell. I can try to find out the brand of bead as I was ready to throw away $1600 worth of new tires if the beads didn’t fix the problem.

There are a few types of beads. Some adsorb moisture and clump up, so those ones are no good for sure!