Wheel weights, refinishing Fuchs question

[GeorgeK]

A better pic of a "dot" on a new rim:

[Randy Webb]

I am going to resurrect this thread. While searching for some info on wheel balance wts. I found a doc by Yokohama.

The yellow dot on their tires indicates the point of lightest wt.
The red mark on their tires indicates the point of maximum radial force.

They have a TSB on how to best mount the tires on the rims.

The doc I found is a TSB from 1/28/03, "Tire Balance, Vehicle Ride & Vibration"


I don't know anything about marks on lug nuts or wheels. I'm sure my '73 is too old to have such marks and I don't see any on my wheels.

[Bob's Flat-Six]

If I'm not mistaken, Porsche would put weights on the outside of the wheel to get them to balance.
I didn't care if the weights were in or out when I had mine balanced as I just want the best balance. But a good tire guy I use said he could balance them fine from the inside.

I used to have a 944 that was very sensitive to proper wheel balance at speed. It had to be exact or you would feel it in the steering wheel around 65mph. Not all tire shops could get it just right.
My old school German tech ( Klaus at NARW )would help me out If I was having a problem. He would balance them by hand while on the car and no more shimmy.

[jpahemi]

I thought the dot on the rim was the high spot in regards to run out. Man I'm really confused lately!
Regards,
J.P.

[Wil Ferch]

There is a lot of mis-information floating about in this thread...and some commendable actions by some to get the facts straight..

It is entirely possible to get perfect dynamic balance with all thw weights on the inside. There is subtantial area that ( even being inside) you can place some of the weights closer to the "outside" edge ( closer to the "inboard" side of the car)...and some closer to the hub suface. It can be done....no question....it just takes care and communication with the shop.

Wil

[Randy Webb]

"It is entirely possible to get perfect dynamic balance with all the weights on the inside." Exactly. My view is you do what it takes to eliminate any subjective problems, then you stop. You may not need to split the wts. at all. You may not even need a dynamic balance.

Note: Different tire manfs. _may_ not have the same dot code. Somebody could ask the tire tech reps at the next PCA meeting. I've found them to be very helpful and knowledgeable.

Also be sure to distinguish dots on the rim/weel from those on the tires.

As far as I can determine, the ultimate bablance availble today is with the Hunter Road Force Machines. Their reps are incredicbly helpful and some BMW dealers have the machines (for those of us in the outback). We have still not created a machine that will let a monkey give a perfect balance, so choose the machine operator carefully.

[911pcars]

Without getting carried away, imagine a 10" long cylinder about 25" in diameter. Center it in a frictionless bearing then add a weight at any point (your choice) to counteract the heavy spot. This is static balance. You can spin it and it'll stop at any arbitrary position because no portion of the diameter is heavier than another. However, static balancing doesn't take into consideration where the unbalance is along the width of the cylinder. With a relatively narrow wheel/tire, static balancing gets you pretty close to dynamic balance. Think of a narrow bicycle wheel/tire. As the width of the wheel/tire increases, the window of error increases.

Statically balanced, our cylinder will still vibrate at high speed unless the weight is attached to the exact location that counterbalances both the diameter and the width of the cylinder. This may involve more than one weight. This is dynamically balanced. Thus, the ideal weight location might be at any point along the length of the cylinder. An engine crankshaft is an extreme example of dynamic balancing due to it's length and rotational speed.

In real world street driving, putting all the weight on the back side of the wheel may be close enough and not at all noticeable. The variables include the wheel and tire manufacturer. Fortunately, Fuchs are typically uniformly consistent and performance rubber is usually manufactured under higher quality control conditions compared with the usual long-life, high-volume passenger car tire.

If you have wide race rubber and run at triple digit speeds, then listen to the tire guys and put the weights where they'll do the most good. Anything less is a compromise that may or may not be noticeable in either road feel and/or irregular tire wear.

Sherwood

[Par911]

Originally posted by 89911
Anyone putting an ugly weight on the rim of a beautiful set of polished fuchs should be ordered to forfeit their wheels to another owner. I'd rather run around with 4 out of balance wheels (which I've never had with inner taped on weights) then bear the atrocities of such a violation.

Amen brother !

[randywebb]

Here is a copy of a page from another source, Yoko's Tire Fitment Guide, on the red & yellow marks on the tires. It is not entirely clear, but one might infer that you try to mount based on the red mark on the tire if you have the info about the wheel; otherwise put the yellow mark on the tire next to the valve stem on the wheel...

[KCinBR]

WOW... red dots, yellow dots, radial runout or something like that, now I'm totally confused
All I can tell you is that my new Polished and painted Fuchs look good on my Lil red car.

These wheels were actually done by Jason Cullen and sold to someone who used them for a very short time.... then I got-em. I have to say they are very very nicely done, actually look like chrome.

My not be correct for an 1988 model car, but I really did not like the blacked out Fuchs
Enough babble....here's a pic

[Britain Smith]

I just had my set of polished fuchs (Al Reed) and Falkin RT-615's balanced at a Porsche shop and they found that I needed little to no weight on all four wheels. I chose to have the weights mounted on the inside.

Ignore the ride height, the engine and tranny go back this week.

-Britain

[VaSteve]

Ha ha. This has been ressurected twice since I started this thread and I still haven't redone the wheels.

Things like engine drop and DE have taken priority. LOL...

It's my next project, really....