Adhesive tyre balance weights

**howdamnhard** · 13th November 2008, 15:00

Recently (3 weeks ago) got a new rear tyre fitted.Yesterday whilst moving the bike out of the way in order to get the mower out I noticed a tyre balance weight lying on the floor.Inspected the bikes tyres and sure enough the rear wheels one had fallen off.
It was the one from the chain side where the wheel gets a little greasy and to make matters worse it had been fitted in such a way that the centrifugal forces generated by the wheel would tend to shear the weight off(it was on an angle).Fortuneatly it hadn't come off while riding.
I reattached it after cleaning off the weight and wheel thoroughly using silicone sealant and foil tape.
The front wheel had the clip on style weight which clips onto the inner radius web of my cast wheel,much better idea.I think a combination chain lube and a poor choice of weight positioning led to it coming off,so if you get a tyre replaced it pays to check the security of the balance weights.
Well thats my 2 cents.

**ArcherWC** · 13th November 2008, 15:54

I allways put tape over them as well

**Toast** · 13th November 2008, 16:37

I agree that it's good to have wheels balanced and take measures to keep weights from falling off, but...

It's probably not gonna kill you if it falls off. I've ridden with a rear wheel 80g out of balance in the wet on Manfeild (had just fitted the wets at the track) at over 200kmh. It was a bit dodge under hard braking and just before turning in to the corner, but that was going hard on the track...general road use it's probably not going to affect you to a great degree.

**Hitcher** · 13th November 2008, 17:50

How long before the centrifugal force pedants arrive...

**erik** · 13th November 2008, 19:32

Originally Posted by Toast

I agree that it's good to have wheels balanced and take measures to keep weights from falling off, but...

It's probably not gonna kill you if it falls off. I've ridden with a rear wheel 80g out of balance in the wet on Manfeild (had just fitted the wets at the track) at over 200kmh. It was a bit dodge under hard braking and just before turning in to the corner, but that was going hard on the track...general road use it's probably not going to affect you to a great degree.

80g?! I thought my rear wheel was bad needing 60g to balance it. I haven't tried riding it without the weight though.

**AllanB** · 13th November 2008, 19:41

I've never had one fall off.

I like to paint mine black to match the wheel colour

I suspect this helps them stay on .... I have not experimented with other colours

**Toast** · 13th November 2008, 20:47

Originally Posted by erik

80g?! I thought my rear wheel was bad needing 60g to balance it. I haven't tried riding it without the weight though.

Wheel only 5g out. Some tyres can be quite unbalanced due to, I think, the steel chords coming back together and overlapping a bit.

**Mishy** · 13th November 2008, 20:49

Originally Posted by Hitcher

How long before the centrifugal force pedants arrive...

it's just GOT to happen ! It is amazing, though, what giving something a good clean before using adhesive will do . . . . . . . . . Clean your wheels first sloth's ! ha ha !

**Hitcher** · 17th November 2008, 13:27

If there really is such at thing as centifugal force, then why do these balance weights need any more adhesive than is necessary to stop these weights falling off when the bike is at rest?

**xwhatsit** · 17th November 2008, 13:41

I dunno if it's the old scratched-up aluminium rims or something, but balance weights always fall off with my RS. Never found it an issue, the crappy suspension and engine vibes rather put little dinky wheel weights in the shade. It's not really a 200kph sort of bike, either, is it.