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Clip on Wheel Weights

rlievenski4555

rlievenski4555

Member
Member
I am replacing my rear tire and thinking about wheel weights for balancing. Does anyone know the type of the weight that clips to the center ridge of the wheel? I had to augment with stick-on weights last year and did not like the look.

Most clip-on styles go on the outside of an automotive rim and arc in the wrong plane. My hope is that I can find out the code for the style and order some for a sleeker look.
 
I've done some looking (no luck) and found someone else looking for the same thing. He ended up going to a dealer and paying 10 bucks a piece at a dealer.
 
Bud said:
I've done some looking (no luck) and found someone else looking for the same thing. He ended up going to a dealer and paying 10 bucks a piece at a dealer.
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I found a company that makes specialty weights for motorcycle rims (Plombco of Canada). One cannot order directly and I am trying to find a dealer who might have them.
 

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I was able to find some clip on weights that seem to be for Yamaha and Kawasaki aluminum rims. They were much, much cheaper than the OEM weights. Hoping they work.
 

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I saw those but didn't think that was really what you wanted. Hope you like them.
 
Those will work just fine! I use K&L wheel weights and tools all the time, they make/sell good quality stuff. You will only need a combination of about 20-40 grams of weight. The clip on weights usually come in 10gram increments, so keep in mind your gonna have to round off to the nearest 10 grams when using these. You would definitely feel a 7gram imbalance. The steel or zinc adhesive weights come in 5 or 7 gram increments. I'm guessing your balancing your own tires, good for you! I highly recommend checking the balance of your wheel, sans the tire, to find out where the true "heavy" spot on just the wheel and marking it before you put the tire on so you know where to put the light spot (usually marked with a paint dot) on the tire. This should reduce the amount of weights you have to put on.
 
TireguyfromMA said:
Those will work just fine! I use K&L wheel weights and tools all the time, they make/sell good quality stuff. You will only need a combination of about 20-40 grams of weight. The clip on weights usually come in 10gram increments, so keep in mind you’re gonna have to round off to the nearest 10 grams when using these. You would definitely feel a 7gram imbalance. The steel or zinc adhesive weights come in 5 or 7 gram increments. I'm guessing you’re balancing your own tires, good for you! I highly recommend checking the balance of your wheel, sans the tire, to find out where the true "heavy" spot on just the wheel and marking it before you put the tire on so you know where to put the light spot (usually marked with a paint dot) on the tire. This should reduce the amount of weights you have to put on.
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I do balance my own tires. You are absolutely right by checking the rim prior to mounting the tire. My tire is a Michelin and has no weight dots on it. I hear to put the “M” of the brand stamp at the lightest spot on the rim, which is opposite the TPMS. Since it will be 45 and sunny today, I will find out.

My secret is to work on a cool, but comfortable day. Leave the rim outside for an hour to cool down. I put the tire on a folding chair in front of my gas fireplace to soak up some heat and get to ~ 100 degrees. Use ample amounts of tire paste, and she pops right on the rim.
 
yeah, Michelin and a few other brands stopped using weight dots many years ago. I've mounted hundreds of Michelin's but never heard about using the "M" as the light spot. I just put them on and balance them. At the end of the day it doesn't matter where the dot is much as long as they are balanced. Are you using spoons to put the tire on, or do you have a tire mounting machine/equipment? If your using spoons and find yourself having some trouble getting the last third of the bead over the wheel it's usually because the bead area before that, in the 5 to 8 o'clock position is not making it's way into the drop center of the wheel. If you have some of those IRWIN pistol grip clamps to give the tire a squeeze in those areas, or have someone push down on the tire while your using the spoons to get the last part of the bead over. Let me know if you have any trouble. Cheers
 
TireguyfromMA said:
yeah, Michelin and a few other brands stopped using weight dots many years ago. I've mounted hundreds of Michelin's but never heard about using the "M" as the light spot. I just put them on and balance them. At the end of the day it doesn't matter where the dot is much as long as they are balanced. Are you using spoons to put the tire on, or do you have a tire mounting machine/equipment? If your using spoons and find yourself having some trouble getting the last third of the bead over the wheel it's usually because the bead area before that, in the 5 to 8 o'clock position is not making it's way into the drop center of the wheel. If you have some of those IRWIN pistol grip clamps to give the tire a squeeze in those areas, or have someone push down on the tire while your using the spoons to get the last part of the bead over. Let me know if you have any trouble. Cheers
Click to expand...
Thanks for the information. The tire popped on in about 5 minutes the other day. I let the rim cool to the 40 degree ambient temperature and had the tire soak up radiant heat in front of the gas fireplace. I used liberal amounts of tire paste with 3 long tire irons, rim protectors, and a yellow tire thing to keep the bead from walking off the rim. I just put it on a box of flat 2x4s and kneel to keep the bead in the middle of the rim, I always have the TPMS sensor at the 2:00 position so it is not crushed by the bead and is away from the irons. My only issue is that I need a bigger compressor to have enough air volume to seat the beads. My buddies at Performance Motorsports in Holland, MI helped me out with this task. They would not take a fee…. But accepted the 12 pack of craft beer I accidentally left there.

My next move is to buy a compressor bigger than my little black and decker!
 
Love that Yellow Thingy, I have two of them. Good thinking making sure you don't crush the TPMS with the tire bead too. Is the problem with getting the bead to seat because you have a small/tiny gap between the bead of the tire and the wheel? If so, a larger compressor will not fix the problem. The hole in the valve stem only allows a very small volume of air through regardless of the amount of pressure behind it. You could have a 100psi, but it's trying to pass through a hole that is less than 1/8 diameter. The area of the gap at the bead is probably bigger than the area of the valve stem. One trick I use on Harley Tires is to put four 5.5" long pieces of 2x4 in the tire bead areas 90 degrees apart from each other. Let the tire sit like that for about a hour. When I go to mount the tire on the wheel, the beads are spread out just enough to sit tight against the inside of the wheel to prevent gaps. Works every time!
 
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