Why dyna beads didn't work...

[naughtyG]

Well have a question...on a kawasaki thread that I was reading about the beads, they didn't recommend them past 130 mph.....so how fast have you gone with them in?

Ran all the way to an indicated 140mph a few times on my old '86 back in FL :biglaugh:

 

[ZackDaniels]

Several years ago Motorcycle Consumer News did a test of these and determined they did NOT work. Don't remember the specifics but tested with beads and weights in as scientific manner as possible. I can see them being like sandpaper inside your wheel at speed. :biglaugh:

This. I talk with a lot of people that know more about this than I do. They've pointed to that study or similar ones. All show they don't make a difference on bikes. Guys with more knowledge than me have tried to explain to me why the whole idea is stupid for bikes, but my eyes glaze over and I just take their word for it.

The only thing I've seen of claims that they do work are guys personal experience and gut feelings. It's not something to totally discount, but it's hard to hold up as a reason to spend the time and money on something.

 

[Rusty McNeil]

I don't know if they work or not.

But I do know lead weights work

 

[Redbone]

I had intended to put the Dynabeads in my tires last year and forgot and rode close to a thousand miles before I realized it! I had been over 120 mph spanking my ex brother in in law's 190 hp (his claim on FB) Stryker! I'm not sure if I want to jinx my cheap/ slippery wear fast South Korean tires by putting a balancing medium on/ in them!
Since I do have black Carrozzeria's I could always just use black wheel weights if I do put the beads in and they don't work. I'm thinking I won't have any issues...

 

[CaptainKyle]

I've run 211 mph with no weights at all. Many, many times at 190 mph+ in LSR, hundreds of dragstrip passes, and some street too. Unless you are way out of balance, you are not likely to feel it. I would love to see back-to-back tests where people did not know what weight, if any, was balancing the wheels. I'm not saying that balancing is not needed. I'm just saying that unless you are way out you would not feel it, one way or the other. Unless there is a Princess and the Pea situation....

However, if someone told you that the wheels weren't balanced, you might "feel" it right away.

+ 1 I don't have 1 weight on my bike & it has no shimmys shakes vibration etc .

 

[one2dmax]

We use the beads in all our current tire mountings. Prior to that on my personal bike I only balanced the front. Rear never lasted long enough (about 1000 mile average).

Sean

 

[RaWarrior]

This is just the thing....probably 90% of the time you could not balance the wheel at all and subjectively say it feels fine, especially if you never see very high speeds. People's gut feeling they work doesn't have a control "feeling" to compare to i.e if you removed the beads and didn't tell them, would they actually notice a difference, or is this "feeling" just from the knowledge the beads are in there? Kind of the same thing of people "feeling" their bike runs better on premium fuel. Placebo effect.

The logic and physics does work, that beads in the bottle test proves it and such balancing techniques have been around for decades. Your washing machine balances itself with a ring full of water that sloshes around. The problem I found is that for this principle to work, the beads have to "flow" evenly. Ridges and texture interfere with this.

My thought was instead of these beads, why not use a liquid like anti-freeze or something...what flows better than a liquid?

It would be very interesting if one of the MC magazines did a scientific test of these, with a control group. Have two identical bikes with identical new tires. One bike has no balancing, the other has beads, but the riders don't know which is which...see if they can actually pick out the balanced one.

 

[fltinstructor]

Well I have switched over to them and they feel like they work for me. I took the weights off the wheels of my 09 Max and put them in on new Bridgestone's. Incidentally the stock lead weights were 1 oz. on the front and 2 oz. on the rear. I ride this bike hard and FAST!! Runs just as smooth on the freeway and around curves in the back country. This bike has certainly been over 130 mph :biglaugh: and feels like 30 mph. Like someone else her said, "I don't worry about what the inside looks like because the outside is worn off too fast". unk:

Now if I could get them to work on my avatar... :rofl_200:

 

[Traumahawk]

Now if I could get them to work on my avatar... :rofl_200:

LOL...NAH...there are some things that you WANT to bounce...

 

[CaptainKyle]

I used to only balance my front. Never done the rear. Now I just find heavy spot on the rim ( Its not always the valve stem) I match it to the light spot on the tire & run no weights & every one knows my bike don't get rode easy & sees plenty of high speed. I can take my hands off the bars at any speed & never worry about it.

 

[customizedcreationz]

Well have a question...on a kawasaki thread that I was reading about the beads, they didn't recommend them past 130 mph.....so how fast have you gone with them in?

180 mph and I ll see if I can break 200 mph soon as I get the turbo back. The Vmax, I ve hit 150 mph quite a few times. 140 mph ALOT of times. 125 almost every time I throw my leg over it.

 

[gamorg02]

I used to only balance my front. Never done the rear. Now I just find heavy spot on the rim ( Its not always the valve stem) I match it to the light spot on the tire & run no weights & every one knows my bike don't get rode easy & sees plenty of high speed. I can take my hands off the bars at any speed & never worry about it.

lots of shops just line up the dot to the valve stem and try to balance off that, sure its a little extra work but i like to hear you're doing it right as well.

when you do customers tires what do you do? just line 'em up or plus weights?

 

[Biker Dash]

Well I have switched over to them and they feel like they work for me.

That right there is a very good reason to go ahead and use them. If it makes the bike better for you, then you're doing it right.

 

[CaptainKyle]

lots of shops just line up the dot to the valve stem and try to balance off that, sure its a little extra work but i like to hear you're doing it right as well.

when you do customers tires what do you do? just line 'em up or plus weights?

Depends on how big of a rush the customer is in. half the time there standing there because they came last minute for a tire & just want to get out . In that case I line the dot up with valve stem throw some weights on & get them out the door. If the bike is just dropped off & no hurry then I take my time.

One more thing since you have the same machine I have not to do with tires but the machine. Make sure you pull the left door off once in a while & put transmission fluid or some kind of lubricant for the big seals on the bead breaking ram. My seals went bad after 4 years & there is no customer support for just the seals so I had to find some one to copy them for me. It cost me a $ 100 bucks but that beats the $ 400 Plus shipping the company wanted for a whole new ram.

 

[gamorg02]

Depends on how big of a rush the customer is in. half the time there standing there because they came last minute for a tire & just want to get out . In that case I line the dot up with valve stem throw some weights on & get them out the door. If the bike is just dropped off & no hurry then I take my time.

One more thing since you have the same machine I have not to do with tires but the machine. Make sure you pull the left door off once in a while & put transmission fluid or some kind of lubricant for the big seals on the bead breaking ram. My seals went bad after 4 years & there is no customer support for just the seals so I had to find some one to copy them for me. It cost me a $ 100 bucks but that beats the $ 400 Plus shipping the company wanted for a whole new ram.

good to know thanks, i'll take a look soon at 'em.

 

[gamorg02]

Depends on how big of a rush the customer is in. half the time there standing there because they came last minute for a tire & just want to get out . In that case I line the dot up with valve stem throw some weights on & get them out the door. If the bike is just dropped off & no hurry then I take my time.

One more thing since you have the same machine I have not to do with tires but the machine. Make sure you pull the left door off once in a while & put transmission fluid or some kind of lubricant for the big seals on the bead breaking ram. My seals went bad after 4 years & there is no customer support for just the seals so I had to find some one to copy them for me. It cost me a $ 100 bucks but that beats the $ 400 Plus shipping the company wanted for a whole new ram.

i took the door off tonight to get a look, not sure if we have the same setup, take a peak:

the only place i see a seal here is the outside:

oh and on a side note, what do you use to get stick on weight residue off the rims?

 

[CaptainKyle]

Exact same set up that white piece you see in the front with the nut on it is the piston & the big gold part is the cylinder. That piston has 2 big special rubber sealing rings on it. I just use a squirt can & lubricate the inside of the cylinder with trans fluid. I use goo gone or if the rims are not powder coated I just spray a little carb cleaner on a rag & wipe it off.

 

[gamorg02]

Exact same set up that white piece you see in the front with the nut on it is the piston & the big gold part is the cylinder. That piston has 2 big special rubber sealing rings on it. I just use a squirt can & lubricate the inside of the cylinder with trans fluid. I use goo gone or if the rims are not powder coated I just spray a little carb cleaner on a rag & wipe it off.

i follow exactly now. Do you take the conical cylinder head off to do so or just squirt it through the spring?

Its part 529 below thats the issue eh? and its all pneumatic so once you get a leak, its not gonna hold shit eh?

i actually hadn't dug into how the bead breaker works but i appreciate it as now I know. what pressure do you usually use for breaking? i have the machine set to i think 55-65 psi and leave it there for both clamping and breaking. for seating the bead i just use a line straight from my compressor at 90+ psi (but don't exceed 60 or 70 for the tire pressure itself).

 

[CaptainKyle]

Yep 529 Im not sure why they give you a breakdown since they wont sell you just them 2 rings. I have been just putting oil thru the spring . Mine got really dry in there & one of them seals rolled out & tore & the ram would not come back but that was after 4 years. I leave my pressure at 90 to the machine. If you do get the itch to take it apart make sure you have 2 people that spring has a good bit of pressure on it. That is why they told me they wont sell just the seals.

 

[gamorg02]

Yep 529 Im not sure why they give you a breakdown since they wont sell you just them 2 rings. I have been just putting oil thru the spring . Mine got really dry in there & one of them seals rolled out & tore & the ram would not come back but that was after 4 years. I leave my pressure at 90 to the machine. If you do get the itch to take it apart make sure you have 2 people that spring has a good bit of pressure on it. That is why they told me they wont sell just the seals.

nah i'll use some oil thats a good call now that i see how it works. thanks for the heads up again.

edit: you know what would probably help would be pneumatic air tool oil eh?