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Dave E
08-13-2009, 03:56 PM
I just noticed that none of the three wheels on my Elkmont have any balancing weights on them. I can't imagine that they are all perfectly balanced. Is balancing something that is not done at the factory? My dealer never mentioned that I should have them balanced. I would think that unbalanced tires would wear unevenly and more rapidly. Does anyone have more information for me.

Thank you
Dave

PopBeavers
08-13-2009, 04:55 PM
I doubt that my wheels were balanced, because, like you, I did not see any weights.

I towed my 270 from March 2005 until the blow out in July 2008 that way. When I replaced all three Marathons I had all three wheels balanced.

I never notice any vibration.

When replacing tires I would always balance them. For your situation, I might just let it go. Others will, perhaps, suggest otherwise.

Wavery
08-13-2009, 04:59 PM
I just noticed that none of the three wheels on my Elkmont have any balancing weights on them. I can't imagine that they are all perfectly balanced. Is balancing something that is not done at the factory? My dealer never mentioned that I should have them balanced. I would think that unbalanced tires would wear unevenly and more rapidly. Does anyone have more information for me.

Thank you
Dave

The tires should be balanced. Did you check the inside of the wheels?

Unbalanced tires can cause a lot more problems than tire wear. If the tires are out of balance it could cause undue stress on the entire camper. They can literally shake the cabinetry apart on the inside and cause parts to fall off all over the camper. Sometimes the vibration can be quite extreme in the trailer and you would never know it, unless you were riding inside (which I am not recommending).

ib4classics
08-13-2009, 05:37 PM
I agree with balancing. I just had three new Marathons mounted and balanced with metal valve stems.
Each wheel took at least two weights, some inside and some outside.
It seems rare for RV trailer tires to wear out tread wise so all that vibration will go on unless you balance the wheels.

rumbleweed
08-13-2009, 06:16 PM
If you decide to get them balanced ( I would) have the valve stems changed to metal. The cost is minimal approx $2.50 each and a small charge for installation if done while balancing.

kenngeri2720
08-14-2009, 08:04 AM
Dave,
I thought the same thing until I pull the wheels off to have them balance and the weigths were on the inside of the wheel.

Bluegrass
08-14-2009, 10:06 AM
My TM came with the wheels balanced. As others have noted, the weights were on the inside of the rim.

Dave E
08-14-2009, 10:56 AM
Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. Boy, do I feel like an idiot. I finally got some free time and looked INSIDE the passenger side wheel. There I saw a big wheel weight.
I guess I get the cranial-anal inversion award for today!

Thanks again
Dave

mtnguy
08-14-2009, 11:23 AM
Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. Boy, do I feel like an idiot. I finally got some free time and looked INSIDE the passenger side wheel. There I saw a big wheel weight.
I guess I get the cranial-anal inversion award for today!

Thanks again
Dave

Not to worry. My impressions is that most RV manufaturers do not bother to balance the tires. My tires on my2003 Trailmanor were not balanced prior to my buying it, and the tires on my new Surveyor were not balanced.

Balancing is good. ;)

robertkennel
08-14-2009, 10:52 PM
My tires had no weights, inside or outside. It is a 2008 tm. It took weights on the inside and outside and plenty of weight too. A couple of ounces total. The problem with weights on the inside might be it was only static balanced and not dynamically balanced. Most times dynamically balancing a tire you will need weights on the inside and outside. Robert

mcgyver210
08-15-2009, 11:23 AM
Our 2008 3023 also had weights balancing on them but I purchased Aluminum rims after first trip anyway so it didn't matter that much anyway.

They are balanced but since they are aluminum weights on outside aren't used to preserve the looks.

OneMoBear
01-12-2010, 11:17 AM
We just took all the wheels off of our TM and took them in to get them balanced and have the valve stems replaced. None of ours had been balanced previously. We had "high pressure" valve stems installed which are rubber on both sides with a solid brass piece running though the middle. He said they can't unscrew like solid metal ones.

Malinda

Wavery
01-12-2010, 12:29 PM
We just took all the wheels off of our TM and took them in to get them balanced and have the valve stems replaced. None of ours had been balanced previously. We had "high pressure" valve stems installed which are rubber on both sides with a solid brass piece running though the middle. He said they can't unscrew like solid metal ones.

Malinda

The problem with the rubber ones (high pressure or not) is that they rot over time. The steel ones do have a nut on the outside but it is rare to have one come lose. Even if the nut falls completely off, the air pressure should hold the valve in place until you can replace the nut.

For those of us with steel valve stems, it may not hurt to check to be sure that those nuts are tight when we check our tire pressure before each trip......thanks for the heads-up Malinda...:D

OneMoBear
01-12-2010, 03:09 PM
I figured there was something ;) Still we're far ahead of where we were this morning :)

Malinda

wmtire
01-12-2010, 05:08 PM
I figured there was something ;) Still we're far ahead of where we were this morning :)

Malinda

Sounds like ya got it going on, Malinda.

As far as the stems are concerned, let me see if I can clarify it just a hair.

We keep discussing two different types of valve stems, but really aren't differentiating between the two types.....as much as we are the pressure ratings.

What you got today sounds like a TR600 snap-in valve stem (which replaced your original TR413 snap-in valve stem). A TR600 snap-in stem is rated for pressures up to 100 psi.

Your original TR413 snap-in valve stem is rated for pressures between 60-65 psi maximum.

So if you are using tires that run pressures higher than 65 psi, you need at least a TR600 snap-in stem. However, just as Wayne correctly referred in his above post, either one is still a snap-in stem and aren't as long-lasting or durable as a 'clamp-in' metal valve stem which we will discuss now.

A "clamp-in" metal valve stem is the one that has a nut on it, and you screw it tight. The clamp-in stems are rated for pressures even greater than 100 psi (although you probably won't ever find a tire for your trailmanor that requires that much pressure). We are recommending a clamp-in stem more for some of the reasons below, more than for the air pressure it can hold.

These type of stems have a rubber grommet on the inside part of (the part inside the wheel/tire) it that seals the stem. These rubber grommets do eventually dry out, but the grommet can be replaced. These stems do last a lot longer than either one of the clamp-in stems we discussed above. Since they are rigid stems, they can also be better if you ever decide to put one of the after-market type of tire pressure monitoring systems on your trailer, that screw onto the valve stems in place of the valve cap. These metal stems also aren't as susceptible to tire cleaning products, that will ruin a regular rubber snap-in valve stem.

A TR600 snap-in stem and the clamp-in stem are BOTH high pressure stems, which is where some of the confusion begins.

A lot of the time, when we say high pressure stem, we don't clarify enough to mean that we are usually referring to a metal clamp-in stem only. :eek:

I am probably as bad as anyone on adding to this confusion, and from now on will be certain to specify clamp-in valve stem instead of high pressure valve stem when referring to them in the forums. :new_tomat

OneMoBear
01-12-2010, 05:32 PM
We're going with "we are better than we were this morning". :new_Eyecr We do store it in the garage so we hope we won't have to deal with the stems rotting.

Malinda

PopBeavers
01-13-2010, 01:13 AM
Since the tires will need to be replaced every 4 to 5 years anyway, if you replace the rubber valve stems at the same time, what would the advantage of the metal valve stem be? Especially for those of us that store our TM in the garage out of the sun and bad weather when not in use?

Wavery
01-13-2010, 09:59 AM
Since the tires will need to be replaced every 4 to 5 years anyway, if you replace the rubber valve stems at the same time, what would the advantage of the metal valve stem be? Especially for those of us that store our TM in the garage out of the sun and bad weather when not in use?

The valve stems seem to rot far faster than the tires. I think that most people would be shocked if they took the rubber valve stem and bent it to one side. I did that to my brother's trailer a few weeks ago and the stems were cracked nearly all the way through. His trailer is 4 years old. The tires look perfect. Not a single crack anywhere. He went out that week and had steel stems installed.

Scott O
01-13-2010, 12:22 PM
Wayne hit it on the head. This is old news, but from some of the comments it needs to be revisited. There was a massive recall of valve stems around a year ago. Made in China (surprise) stems rot extremely fast, sometimes within a year. TM has used these stems. There is no way to find out if you have the bad ones without removing your tires. Best to just bite the bullet and change them to metal. NOW!!! I personally feel that many of the tire problems blamed on the Goodyear Marathons should actually be laid at the doorstep of the stems...

ED-n-KEL
01-13-2010, 03:38 PM
Thank you all for your comments and suggestions. Boy, do I feel like an idiot. I finally got some free time and looked INSIDE the passenger side wheel. There I saw a big wheel weight.
I guess I get the cranial-anal inversion award for today!

Dave, don't feel bad at all. This is a good and logical question, and as some have already noted, their TM's came from the factory without being balanced.

I've been told several times now, by different tire centers, that tires really shouldn't need balancing if not driven over 45-55mph. While this would be idiotic on a TV, it has merit on something like a utility trailer, etc, but still not worth the money saved.
I can share a recent experience where we had 4 tires installed and balanced on my Astro. Since DW drives it daily and much of our driving is local roads (top speed 45mph), everything felt fine. Then we took a trip on Interstate and damn near vibrated off the road. It was determined that their balancing machine (and operator IMHO) was defective and it wasn't noticed until we hit the 70-75mph range.

The point of my story is that TM may feel that since the TM shouldn't be driven at high interstate speeds, they may check the tire/rims at a preset limited speed (ie;50mph?) and some may pass just fine with no added weights.

I think we all agree that the TM tires SHOULD be balanced to prevent even minor undo vibration. (Don't forget the spare(s).)

MudDog
01-13-2010, 07:17 PM
I think we all agree that the TM tires SHOULD be balanced to prevent even minor undo vibration. (Don't forget the spare(s).)

And it saves the time to wind the toilet paper back on the roll when you arrive at your destination :D

dugb527
01-14-2010, 11:36 AM
... or reassembling the stove top.