What do you like for a wheel balancer ?

[kzz1king]

Well after changing tires for years with spoons and balancing them on there axles leveled across a homemade stand I have decided to upgrade. I bought the HF changer and made some blocks for it. SailorChic talked me into a MoJo lever so maybe I should upgrade my balancing too.  So what do we have, I like inexpensive.
Wayne

[DaddyFlip]

http://www.marcparnes.com/Kawasaki_Motorcycle_Wheel_Balancer.htm

Don't mess around; get this. I use two cinder blocks for stands.

[PlaynInPeoria]

http://www.marcparnes.com/Kawasaki_Motorcycle_Wheel_Balancer.htm

Don't mess around; get this. I use two cinder blocks for stands.

My friend whose house I change tires at has this, so did another.  Good stuff and he's a great guy.   I also have his Visual Alert for turning the output of a headphone jack of a radar detector into brightly flashing LEDs.

[Rhino]

+3 on Marc Parnes including the balancer and the visual alert. Top notch quality and service.

[just gone]

+3 on Marc Parnes including the balancer and the visual alert. Top notch quality and service.

+4
I'm thinking that this must be the kind of "piling on" that V'Jim can tolerate?

..anyway..Another advantage of the Marc Parnes balancer is that it is so low friction, that I can get the wheel really spinning fast on the balancer out in the garage
and then go in and brew a cup o jo and then go back out and check to see if the battery replacement on the TPMS was effective (registers on the dash display)
 before I go to the trouble of balancing a wheel that I might need to take apart again to fix my soldering job on the new battery.
 

[Rhino]

+4
I'm thinking that this must be the kind of "piling on" that V'Jim can tolerate?

..anyway..Another advantage of the Marc Parnes balancer is that it is so low friction, that I can get the wheel really spinning fast on the balancer out in the garage
and then go in and brew a cup o jo and then go back out and check to see if the battery replacement on the TPMS was effective (registers on the dash display)
 before I go to the trouble of balancing a wheel that I might need to take apart again to fix my soldering job on the new battery.

DUH moment! Why didn't I think of that? I tried spinning the TPMS in a sling. Didn't work. Should have used my balancer.

[B.D.F.]

Swinging a C-14 tire pressure sensor from a string absolutely does and will work- I have done it at least 10 times, all with different sensors. And if you wear a pin striped suit and chew gum while doing it, you look really cool like a 1930's gangster. And if you do it at a 'tech. day', you will hit at least two people with the sensor every-time you test one, no matter how loudly you yell 'stand back, I am swinging a sensor in a circle'.

On the tire balancer- I like and use the one from Harbor Freight. Four bearings, very sensitive, robust axle and cones (not plastic!) and it does not need anything else to be used such as cement blocks, etc. I have used one that had plastic cones that I did not care for at all as the cones were distorted from use and the threads for the locking screw were stripped out; I do not remember the brand but I would suggest staying away from any type with plastic cones.

Brian

DUH moment! Why didn't I think of that? I tried spinning the TPMS in a sling. Didn't work. Should have used my balancer.

[Rhino]

Swinging a C-14 tire pressure sensor from a string absolutely does and will work- I have done it at least 10 times, all with different sensors. And if you wear a pin striped suit and chew gum while doing it, you look really cool like a 1930's gangster. And if you do it at a 'tech. day', you will hit at least two people with the sensor every-time you test one, no matter how loudly you yell 'stand back, I am swinging a sensor in a circle'.

On the tire balancer- I like and use the one from Harbor Freight. Four bearings, very sensitive, robust axle and cones (not plastic!) and it does not need anything else to be used such as cement blocks, etc. I have used one that had plastic cones that I did not care for at all as the cones were distorted from use and the threads for the locking screw were stripped out; I do not remember the brand but I would suggest staying away from any type with plastic cones.

Brian

I never could get the string thing to work. How long do you have to swing that thing (easy boys)? And just FYI the cones from Mark Parnes are precision made aluminum. I agree I wouldn't want plastic.

[kzz1king]

The harbor freight  will go well with all the other red in the garage.

On the tire balancer- I like and use the one from Harbor Freight. Four bearings, very sensitive, robust axle and cones (not plastic!) and it does not need anything else to be used such as cement blocks, etc. I have used one that had plastic cones that I did not care for at all as the cones were distorted from use and the threads for the locking screw were stripped out; I do not remember the brand but I would suggest staying away from any type with plastic cones.

Brian
[/quote]

[MAN OF BLUES]

The harbor freight  will go well with all the other red in the garage.

On the tire balancer- I like and use the one from Harbor Freight. Four bearings, very sensitive, robust axle and cones (not plastic!) and it does not need anything else to be used such as cement blocks, etc. I have used one that had plastic cones that I did not care for at all as the cones were distorted from use and the threads for the locking screw were stripped out; I do not remember the brand but I would suggest staying away from any type with plastic cones.

Brian

the h/f balancer comes in basic black.... not red....

I agree with Brian, I have nothing bad to say about the h/f balancer, even though some folks had "issues".....
I will say, for the cost savings, it works.... so, maybe you may have to pull the bearings off, spray them down with wd40 to completely clean them, and then lube them with light oil, or even vasoline... and all is nice... and if someone is unlucky and damages the rod... omg..... pick up a hardened drill rod from mcmaster carr... if necessary....
I did however grind the rod ends tapered so the end is "pointy", this makes it so if the rod touches the frame, for some reason, it doesn't effect rotation.

for all the bally hoo'd precision, and cost over the Parnes tool, I just have to laugh about the monster sized thumbscrews... yeh, that balances well... and the fact you set $100+ tool on 2 cement blocks to use it.... precision at its finast..... bwaaahaaahaaaaaaaa... whatever...

h/f rocks....

[DaddyFlip]

On what do you set your pointy HF balancer? A rainbow?

[zarticus]

On what do you set your pointy HF balancer? A rainbow?

The harbor freight has a built in stand, Can be used on your workbench or floor. The other one needs to be put on blocks or jack stands

[DaddyFlip]

The harbor freight has a built in stand, Can be used on your workbench or floor. The other one needs to be put on blocks or jack stands

Which also, incidentally, can be used on your workbench or floor.

[just gone]

for all the bally hoo'd precision, and cost over the Parnes tool, I just have to laugh about the monster sized thumbscrews... yeh, that balances well... and the fact you set $100+ tool on 2 cement blocks to use it.... precision at its finast..... bwaaahaaahaaaaaaaa... whatever...
h/f rocks....

Well I've never used anything other than Marc Parnes balancer so I can't, and haven't, said anything bad about the HF balancer.
I hope nobody thought my post was putting down another type of balancer. My garage is full of HF stuff, unless there's a fire in which case it was
all Snap-on stuff, and 2 of each.

As close to the axle as the "monster sized" thumb screws are I doubt they have much effect, but just to be sure I set them opposite (180 degrees) each other.
I do use the MP balancer atop HF jack stands. 

I do believe the No-Mar balancer has plastic cones available and some prices that make the MP stuff look thrifty.

[kzz1king]

Right or wrong I have been balancing my bike tires on there own axles forever and seem to have gotten good results.I have thought of doing a DIY one that lets the axle also rotate on skateboard bearings but HF sounds easier. Thanks for the input all.
Wayne

[DaddyFlip]

Right or wrong I have been balancing my bike tires on there own axles forever and seem to have gotten good results.I have thought of doing a DIY one that lets the axle also rotate on skateboard bearings but HF sounds easier. Thanks for the input all.
Wayne

As long as they balance to your satisfaction, you are a winner.

[MAN OF BLUES]

On what do you set your pointy HF balancer? A rainbow?

I set it on the heavy steel top of my Delta table saw, which is perfectly level.....

and I don't have to bend over and work /grovel on the floor......

cement blocks are too much money for me, I need em to hold up all the non runniñ abandoned cars and trucks in mah frunt yard....
I spose I could use one u the old refrigerators I gots out back, hmmmmm ... I always leave the doors on em, the kids like to play hide n seek in em...