Alright, so I’ve been wanting to do this for a while, and today I finally got around to balancing the tires on my motorcycle. I gotta say, it wasn’t as hard as I thought it would be, but it definitely took some patience. First things first, I grabbed the Orion Motor Tech Motorcycle Bike Wheel Balancer, that I picked up a while back. This thing is pretty neat. It is not too heavy, but it is solid.
Getting Started
I started by getting the bike up on stands so I could take the wheels off. This part was pretty straightforward, just had to loosen a few bolts and the wheels came right off. Make sure you keep track of the spacers and which side they go on, I nearly messed that up. Once the wheels were off, I cleaned them up a bit, cause why not, right? Also, it was necessary to remove the old wheel weights.
Setting Up the Balancer
Next, I set up the balancer. I made sure the balancer is level. It’s got adjustable feet, so that was easy to do. I put the axle through the wheel and rested it on the balancer. I noticed the wheel naturally rotated to a heavy spot, so I marked that with a piece of tape at the 12 o’clock position.
The Balancing Act
Now came the fun part – actually balancing the tire. I had some wheel weights lying around, so I started sticking them on the opposite side of the tape. I kept testing by giving the wheel a light spin. I found that if the weights go back to 12 o’clock, I need to add more.
Here’s a little trick I learned: rotate the tire 90 degrees after you think it’s balanced. If the heavy spot still goes to the bottom, you need more weight. It took a few tries, adding and removing weights, and rotating the tire, but eventually, I got it so the wheel would stop in random positions. That’s when I knew it was balanced.
Final Touches
Once I was happy with the balance, I made sure the weights were securely attached. Then, I put the wheels back on the bike, making sure to torque the bolts to the right specs. I’m not gonna lie, I was pretty proud of myself at this point.
Test Ride
Finally, I took the bike out for a test ride. I could immediately feel the difference. The ride was so much smoother, especially at higher speeds. No more vibrations in the handlebars. It’s like a whole new bike.
Wrapping Up
So yeah, that’s how I balanced my motorcycle tires. It was a bit of a process, but totally worth it. If you’re thinking about doing it yourself, I’d say go for it. Just take your time, be patient, and you’ll get it done. Plus, it’s pretty satisfying to do something like this yourself and save a few bucks in the process. Hope this helps someone out there!
