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[ccarloss]

Hopefully this isn't too silly of a question.  Do wheel weights affect a motorcycle the way they do a car?  I took delivery of my 07' FXSTSSE the other week and noticed that there seems to be A LOT of wheel weight on the rear wheel.  They are the stick on weights and they stick out like a sore thumb and look horrible.  If the weights are removed will it negatively affect the bike ie bad vibrations etc? Or, is there another way to get the wheel balanced that "hide" the weights?

[jeffj]

Hopefully this isn't too silly of a question.  Do wheel weights affect a motorcycle the way they do a car?  I took delivery of my 07' FXSTSSE the other week and noticed that there seems to be A LOT of wheel weight on the rear wheel.  They are the stick on weights and they stick out like a sore thumb and look horrible.  If the weights are removed will it negatively affect the bike ie bad vibrations etc? Or, is there another way to get the wheel balanced that "hide" the weights?

Yes, removing the wheel weights will or can cause a vibration

Your dealer may try and match mount the wheel and tire to optimize the amount of wheel weight
However, this is normally done when the tire and wheel become an assembly at the factory
You may also ask about using a ballast called equal as it can act as a balancing agent
Equal is used in the Over the Road (18 wheelers) industry as most tires are balances not using a tire balancer
I am not sure if Equal would work in a motorcycle tire but maybe you can do some research

here is a link to Equal:   http://www.imiproducts.com/equal/tire-balancing.aspx


jeffj

[grc]

Hopefully this isn't too silly of a question.  Do wheel weights affect a motorcycle the way they do a car?  I took delivery of my 07' FXSTSSE the other week and noticed that there seems to be A LOT of wheel weight on the rear wheel.  They are the stick on weights and they stick out like a sore thumb and look horrible.  If the weights are removed will it negatively affect the bike ie bad vibrations etc? Or, is there another way to get the wheel balanced that "hide" the weights?

ccarloss,

Yup, wheel balance is important on a bike, and I would not recommend just removing the weights.  If you have an excessive amount of weight, it could indicate that the tire was not properly indexed to the rim prior to balancing, or that the tire has a higher than normal amount of imbalance from the manufacturing process.  There is a spec for the maximum amount of imbalance allowed, but I'm not sure what that figure is for H-D/Dunlop.  A tire with excessive imbalance should be replaced by the manufacturer under warranty.

You could try having your tire reindexed and rebalanced, to see if the number of weights can be reduced.  Indexing involves aligning the lightest spot of the tire with the heaviest spot on the rim.  This is supposed to be done whenever a tire is mounted, but I have seen some where it didn't get done properly, or the mark on the tire from the manufacturer was missing.  Also, there are much better looking weights available, both from H-D and the aftermarket.  Bright chrome, various shapes and logos, etc.

Jerry

[WVULTRA]

The "dyna beads" have been a recommended product:

http://www.innovativebalancing.com/motorcycle.htm

 

[charlie]

I have had the sticky wheel weights come off and it did matter.

[ccarloss]

Thanks for all of your suggestions.  I'll look into it further.

[leoniru]

FWIW, I have just installed the ceramic balancing beads - one carefully measured ounce in the front tire and two ounces in the rear - in my 2007 SERK.
I had an intolerable amount of vibration on this bike, so much so, that I didn't want to ride at 60 mph or above. It was that uncomfortable. Felt like I would lose control if pushed above 70 mph!
Not sure if it's been like this since new as I didn't push it much past 50 mph ( if I did, it was only fleeting) during break-in.
Pretty sure I lost a stick-on type wheel weight from the front rim - can't be sure though. I seem to remember seeing a weight on the front wheel but there was no adhesive residue on the rim. I did polish the wheel so any residue could have been removed then unknowingly. Was one hell of a loud tink sound one day- maybe that's when it launched.
I did remove one full ounce of stick-on weight from the rear wheel's belt side before inserting the beads. This one ounce strip of lead weight was positioned right at the valve stem point on the rim. No weight on the opposite side of the rear rim. Were my wheels improperly balanced to begin with? Did I lose weights from one side of my rear wheel as well?

I do know that the stock windshield was also a contributing factor as two days ago I installed an 18" Clearview windshield with recurve. It has definitely made some difference in the amount of felt vibration. Don't know if the improvement was solely due to height difference (my Clearview is 4" taller than the stock SERK), thickness, or both. The Clearview is substantially thicker than the stock Harley shield. Maybe the stock windshield was vibrating at some resonant frequency or a similar principle as well as putting the airstream right at my eyeglass level!

Anyway, back to the balancing beads. They have made a BIG improvement. The bike is now comfortable at 75-85 mph and most likely even higher. This speed would have been unthinkable before the windshield change and the beads.
No need to buy a balancing device or booking service time at your dealer. No more ugly adhesive style weights that may launch at any given time. These beads are supposedly good for the life of the tire or tireS if you want to go through the trouble of salvaging them from the old tire, cleaning them of any debris, and reinserting them into a new tire. Why would you when they are so inexpensive? Plus they continuously adjust for tire wear, and reportedly increase the total number of miles of use one gets from a tire.
I give them a thumb's up -- for now.

Now if only I knew my crank was in specs...........

leoniru

[Hoist!]

My weight from one side of the rear wheel is gone. I just noticed today. I don't know how long it was gone, but never felt anything. I was skeptical about those Dyna Beads. Those things really work? With all the centrifugal force in the tire, how does it always wind up opposite the heavy spot. Great idea if it really works, and if it doesn't cause any damage inside the tire! Anyone have some time and miles with this product?

Hoist!

[leoniru]

Hoist;
Like you, I was skeptical about if the beads work, and if they would cause any damage to the inside of the rim/wheel.
I can asure you, that they do work. Don't know if they will continue to with miles and miles. Guess I'll find out at my first tire change about the latter.
I'd also like to hear from someone who's got some miles with this product in their wheels other than the 'testamonials' on the manufacturer's website.

leoniru

[Rooster]

I also noticed a stick on wheel weight missing on the back wheel when they were pushing it into the shop. Rebalanced under warranty.

[hdfatboy]

I was skeptical about those Dyna Beads. Those things really work? With all the centrifugal force in the tire, how does it always wind up opposite the heavy spot. Great idea if it really works. . . .
Hoist!

I've never used them in/on any of my vehicles. However, I have a Bud who drives a Powerstroke F350 Supercrew 8' bed with some ridiculously huge BFG's (H1 tires) and uses the larger vehicle equivalent (almost like sand bags) and he loves 'em. Said he had nothing but trouble getting those huge run-flats balanced simply because of the size! Only has one problem, until they regain their high spot, or low spot or whatever . . . he has a bit of a "bounce" usually 15 - 20mph and then they find their back to where they belong. I'd guess this would be less of an issue with a 3.5 X 16 tire on a scooter  His other issue is 8mpg on pump diesel 

[bpalmersheim]

I threw the weights on the rear wheel the other day.  I thought I ran over a rock and it got slung up in the inner fender.  Later that night I noticed that the rear wheel weights were missing.

I was going to replace them with the chrome Bar & Sheild logo weights, until I discovered that they are $4.00/ea per 1/4 ounce.  I have (4) 1/4 ounce on the rear and (5) 1/4 ounce on the front wheel.

The dealer handed me a stick of 4 and told me to replace them by putting them in the same spot where the adhesive is still visible.  I did and no issues, but they look terrible!

Would like the chrome ones, but for $36.00 plus tax, HD MoCo can keep them!

[bobaroni]

I have had the sticky wheel weights come off and it did matter.

The weights have come off my rear wheels (leaky, factory original and the replacement). Rode the SEUC2 home from the dealer right after rear wheel was replaced. A day later went to check pressure and there they were- four  1/4 oz weights in a strip laying on the garage floor next to the wheel. How many people are missing some and don't even know it?

[grc]

The weights have come off my rear wheels (leaky, factory original and the replacement). Rode the SEUC2 home from the dealer right after rear wheel was replaced. A day later went to check pressure and there they were- four  1/4 oz weights in a strip laying on the garage floor next to the wheel. How many people are missing some and don't even know it?

bobaroni,

Makes you wonder if either H-D or the dealer understand the basics of applying an adhesive wheel weight.  It's a very simple process, and I guarantee I can install them where it will be necessary to pry or cut them off.  They are either using old dried-out weights, or are not following the process with regard to cleanliness, temperature, and pressure.

Rule #1:  CLEANLINESS IS PARAMOUNT - clean the wheel with a grease and oil remover, followed with alcohol.  Wipe dry with a clean cloth.  Keep fingers off the surface and off the adhesive.

Rule #2:  KEEP THE SURFACE WARM - most pressure sensitive adhesives work best when applied to a warm surface.  Make sure the wheel and the weight are both at least 70 plus degrees.

Rule #3:  APPLY PRESSURE - when installing the weights, start at one end and press onto the wheel to eliminate bunching and air gaps.  Once the weights are applied, reapply pressure evenly from one end to the other to force the adhesive into intimate and full contact with the wheel.  The reason they call it "pressure sensitive adhesive" is that it takes pressure to fully wet out the adhesive.  

BTW - if you've owned a car or truck where a nameplate or piece of body moulding came loose, it was most likely due to not following the above rules during installation.  This was one of my pet peeves when I worked in assembly plants; people thinking they could just lay the parts up against the car and they would somehow magically stick without any effort.

Jerry  

Oh, I forgot, last but not least, do not let Howie (Hoist) ride your bike for at least 12 hours - those weights need time to allow the adhesive to build full strength prior to any burn-outs. 

[ccarloss]

One of the big strips of weight fell off the rear wheel while I was riding the other day.  I didn't notice it till' I got home but didn't notice any ill handling or vibrations while riding.