Metal tab on rims?
Peter Jung
metal tab on each of my rims. The tab appears to go in between the tire
and the rim, but is quite visible on the outside of the rim. Can
someone tell me what purpose they serve? I'm kind of curious,
particularly because I noticed one of them was missing yesterday...
Is it still safe to drive my car?
Thanks in advance,
Peter
Ephar
the tires. Check out a few other cars (not necessarily Miata's) and
see that they have them also.
If you really lost one you should get that tire balanced again, but
they aren't always required.
Ephar & Bambi
'92A Classic Red
Dewey Decimal
Are you sure it was there before? The wheel may have been balanced anyway
and not needed it or on the other hand your wheel may be off balanced now.
bob
Peter Jung
tires rebalanced? I'll probably get it done at my next oil change,
which
is only 600km away anyway.
Vincent W Chan
this point to say. Anyway, try going to a mechanic (almost anyone) with
the balancing machine (which is like a BBQ stove) and it should cost you
less than $10 to get one balanced. Of course if you have a friendly one
like I do, it may cost nothing... because I almost know how to use that
thing to balance a tire after seeing how it works.
In fact, I see my stock miata tire/rim with
those balancing weights mounted at the outside. However my friendly
mechanics mounted those weights at the inside of the rims. I don't see why
if there is any theft stealing these weights so that they can re-use or
re-sell those stuff but things I don't see why might have their
reasons. Could it drop away itself I doubt..., I don't know for sure.
But mounting it at the inside might help protecting theft from stealing
these things but also hard for owner to realize if one is dropped away
somehow...
-Vincent
Dr. Strangelove
"Vincent W Chan" <vwc...@garlic.engr.ucdavis.edu> wrote in message news:8gc6vv$bkl$1...@mark.ucdavis.edu...
> If you are sure there is one missing, I 'd say your tire is unbalanced at
> this point to say. Anyway, try going to a mechanic (almost anyone) with
> the balancing machine (which is like a BBQ stove) and it should cost you
> less than $10 to get one balanced. Of course if you have a friendly one
> like I do, it may cost nothing... because I almost know how to use that
> thing to balance a tire after seeing how it works.
> In fact, I see my stock miata tire/rim with
> those balancing weights mounted at the outside. However my friendly
> mechanics mounted those weights at the inside of the rims. I don't see why
> if there is any theft stealing these weights so that they can re-use or
> re-sell those stuff but things I don't see why might have their
> reasons. Could it drop away itself I doubt..., I don't know for sure.
> But mounting it at the inside might help protecting theft from stealing
> these things but also hard for owner to realize if one is dropped away
> somehow...
>
> -Vincent
Those weights have to be placed where the computer says they need to be. Sometimes they're on the inside, sometimes on the
outside. Sometimes both or none.
--
Adios
Eric
'95 M "Galahad"
Keksz
Shep wrote:
> ...Hell with that, I could have done a better job with a bubble
> balancer. And may do just that.
Did you go back?
> ...Names have been changed to protect the incompetent :-)
Why? We need to know the bad ones....
Shep
<kracke...@minspring.com> wrote:
>
>Those weights have to be placed where the computer says they need to be. Sometimes they're on the inside, sometimes on the
>outside. Sometimes both or none.
Yeah, OK, but please explain to me why, after I had one of those
gee-whiz balancing jobs done, the tech installed two weights,
different weights yes, both on the outside of the rim, exactly 180
degrees opposite each other. The tech's comment was, "yeah some times
that happens." BS. Car developed St.Vitus' Dance, undrivable at 65MPH,
when it was fine before (just figured while it was in the shop, I'd
get a balance done; bad idea.) This was one of those "European low
speed balancing machines, laser driven, computer controlled, yadda
yadda." Hell with that, I could have done a better job with a bubble
balancer. And may do just that.
As always, JMO, YMMV
Names have been changed to protect the incompetent :-)
Note--reply to: tshep1 at pipeline dot com
97 Montego Touring
93 Black/Red LE
92 Sunburst Yellow
chuck
broken.
It's also possible that he did not have the correct weights.
Low speed balance may not correctly balance a tire that has problems at high
speed.
There are a multitude of tire problems that can cause the tire to vibrate
(shimmy) at highway speed.
65 mph or so is for some reason, the approximate speed that an out of round
or non uniform tire can cause problems.
<Shep> wrote in message news:3929cc47....@news.pipeline.com...
Jim Carr
>
> If you really lost one you should get that tire balanced again, but
>they aren't always required.
Definitely have the balance checked. BTW, you can have "tape on"
wheel weights inside an alloy wheel and some wheels require weights
on both the inside and outside to balance properly.
--
James A. Carr <j...@scri.fsu.edu> | "The half of knowledge is knowing
http://www.scri.fsu.edu/~jac/ | where to find knowledge" - Anon.
Supercomputer Computations Res. Inst. | Motto over the entrance to Dodd
Florida State, Tallahassee FL 32306 | Hall, former library at FSCW.
Jim Carr
>
>However my friendly
>mechanics mounted those weights at the inside of the rims. I don't see why
The reason is to balance the wheel *completely*. The machine will
tell the operator if the weight needs to go on the inside or outside.
Imagine if a big piece of your wheel was moved from the inside to
the outside. It would still have the same moment of inertia about
the axle, but it would want to wobble as it turns.