TULZ Error & Coffee can balancer
Veeduber
To All:
Today is Monday, 8 May 2K.
On Cinco de Mayo I posted Part Nine of the thingee on tools in which I
said a bubble type wheel balancer works fine and that J. C. Whitney
carried them. So far, so good.
Today a fellow called to ask if I'd ever actually balanced a wheel using a
bubble balancer. That kinda got my dander up. So I told him 'Hell yes,' and
offered to show him the balancer I use, just before I stuck it up his nose.
He back pedals a bit and explains that he bought a bubble balancer from
J. C. Whitney some time ago and can't get it to work. Then this weekend
someone mentioned my article and since he lives less than twenty miles
away, virtually a next-door neighbor in motorized sudden California, he
decided to give me a call.
After we chatted for a while I told him to bring the thing over to the shop and
let me take a look at it. So that's what he did.
The balancer he bought is J. C. Whitney part number 75xx2442B, the
price about thirty dollars. For another five bucks he got an adapter for
wide-five rims, JCW p/n 75xx2423B. (The 'xx' changes from one catalog
to another.)
The thing is a total piece of shit. Don't buy it. It does not work. In fact, it
CAN'T work.
Here's why: The principle involved here has to do with balancing a car
tire atop a pivot. The level indicator is a bubble trapped in a viscous fluid
inside a transparent plastic button that sits atop the center of the pivot-
point. The pivot point is a steel ball bearing, hardened and polished and
smooth as a mirror. The pivot sits atop a pivot shaft and that single pivot
point supports the mass of the wheel.
There are several problems with this piece of junk but the most serious is
the shaft on which that pivot point is supposed to balance. It is a hunk of
cheap all-thread, 3/8"-16, foreign made crap, the threads shallow and ill-
formed. Unfortunately, the threads are damaged and the ends, one of
which is supposed to serve as the pivot point, were ragged, the marks of
the shear still grossly evident. There is no way in the blue-eyed world
this piece of crap can work.
The 'adapter' isn't much better. It is a shallow saucer-shape, stamped
from a piece of sheet metal. It would be nice if it were round but it misses
that by several thou. It would also be nice if it fit on the balancing cone
but it doesn't do that either, finding equilibrium only when cocked at an
angle.
Finally, the bubble-level is a cheap plastic thing that is supposed to sit
atop the balancing cone. Except the top of the balancing cone ISN'T
FLAT. The balancing cone is a Zamak casting with a rough, irregular
edge where the equally shoddy little bubble-
indicator is supposed to perch. Try as you might, there's no way to sit the
bubble atop the cone without it being tilted.
Pure junk. Don't buy it. If you bought it, send it back. J. C. Whitney owes
the public an apology for selling this kind of crap.
--------------------------------------------
The bubble balancer I have is mostly cast iron. The wide-five adapter is a
pot-metal alloy but everything else is iron or steel. The bubble-level is
brass & glass, the same sort of thing you see on a surveyor's transit,
except end-on. The pivot is a hardened steel point that goes into a button
of what appears to be carbide. The whole thing is about the size of a
gallon can of paint. It bolts to a corner of the workbench when I need to
balance a wheel. When not in use the bubble-balance tube goes into the
tool chest with my mikes & stuff while the two-part cast iron balancer
goes on the shelf. I've had it more than thirty years. I think it cost about
fifty dollars but I honestly can't remember. I do recall that I bought it out
of the J.C.Whitney catalog after seeing one being used to balance
aircraft wheels.
------------------------------------------------------
Okay, so there's this guy with his bubble balancer that don't work. He's
had this thing for a while, not sure if the problem was him or the device
but in either case it's too old now to return. So he's out thirty-five bucks.
So I fixed it.
The lathe wasn't set up for anything so it was a simple matter to make
the fellow a pivot rod. I didn't have a piece of half-inch mild steel rod
handy but I had some half-inch L-bolts, the things you put into concrete.
Chucked one up, cut it off at about six inches, flipped it around and
turned down the thread to about .365, chamfered the end, chased that at
16tpi with the regular cutting tool then chased that with a 3/8-16 die.
Flipped it around, knocked off the tit with a file, used a Slocum to make a
little pilot hole then let it ride on that while I turned a short taper down
the
shaft for an inch or so. Balance shaft. Took mebbe twenty minutes.
To make an adapter plate I took off the three-jaw, mounted the faceplate
and bolted an 8x8 hunka half-inch aluminum tooling plate to it atop an
old VW differential bearing race I use for a spacer. I just hogged right
into it. Twelve-inch lathe, it'll cut some metal when it has to. The result
was a lipped ring, the ID of which matched the slope of the balance cone,
the OD matching the minimum span of a wide-five rim.
To flatten the rough casting I smeared some lipstick (!) on a corner of the
surface plate, rubbed the rough casting on it then scraped it true. (Zamak
-- pot-metal -- is a zinc-aluminum alloy. It scrapes easy.) [Yes, I got
bluing. But I can never find it when I need it.]
He went home happy, albeit poorer :-)
Having given you guys a bum steer by pointing you toward J.C.Whitney I offer
the following to make amends.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wanna make a Precision Bubble Balancer?
Start with a junked camshaft & gear. See the indentation in the end of
the shaft? Go find a ball bearing to sit on there. Not too big. (No old
camshaft handy? Then use pipe. Floor flange for the base, twelve-inch
nipple for the upright, reducer to hold the ball bearing.)
You gotta level it so drill & tap three quarter-twenties equidistant around
the gear. Or the floor flange. No taps & dies? Then glue it to a plywood
base and put the three adjusters in the plywood. Buy some of those theaded
inserts. (Don't laugh; it works.)
To level it, remove the ball bearing and replace it with your circular
bubble level. Turn the quarter-twenty machine screws until you've
centered the bubble. Okay; that's good enough.
To hold the wheel go find a three-pound coffee can. I use MJB but suit
yourself. Make five ninety-degree angles, about three-quarter inch on a side.
If you got some thin cheap aluminum angle stock, cut them outta that. If not,
bend them up out of something. Gotta be strong enough to support the weight of
the wheel.
Stuff the coffee can through the hole in your wide-five rim. Yeah, it's
tight; push harder… there. Mark the five points where the lugs go. Pop-
rivet your angles at those locations. Put your angles on the INSIDE of
the can with their legs sticking OUTSIDE. The idea is for the wheel to sit
on the tabs. Use countersunk pop-rivets if you gottem. Real rivets will
also work. But you gotta keep the heads low or they'll cause the rim to
hang up. (Honest, a 3 pound coffee can is a near-perfect fit to a wide-
five.)
Stand the can on the tabs and find the center of the bottom, which is now the
top but....
There's lots of ways to find the center of a circle; use which one you like
the best.
Drill a TINY hole right there, smack dab in the center of the bottom of the
can. Now turn the can over. Sit it on a piece of softwood; plywood or
something like that. See the hole in the bottom? Balance the ball
bearing on the hole. (Okay, so debur it. Now balance the ball… okay,
you do it.) Got it balanced? Now hit it. Use a hammer and a piece of
wood for a drift. Just give it a rap. Not too hard. That should do it.
Test it. Put the ball bearing back on the pivot shaft and position the
coffee can ON THE BALL BEARING. Balances, eh? :-)
Now check it. You can't use the bubble balance because of the bump
you just raised in the bottom of the can, right where the bubble balance
should sit. So put something over the bump. (I don't know! It's your
shop, for crysakes! Howzabout a tuna can? Or that lid over there; try
that… no, the one on the can of paint thinner… yeah! There ya go!)
Balanced? I didn't think so.
So balance it. Get some solder, cut off a little bit and crimp it to the
bottom rim of the coffee can. When you get the bubble back in the
center MARK EVERYTHING. Use fingernail polish. Put some on the
solder balance weights you've crimped to the rim and dots of it to show
the orientation of the bubble balance and the lid, can or whatever you're
using as a base for the bubble.
Does it work?
Of course it does! VW wheels are better than two foot in diameter. Sixty
miles an hour, they're only spinning eight, nine hundred rpm. Your
coffee-can bubble balancer is more than accurate enough for that. A
smaller pivot point would provide a bit more accuracy than does the ball
bearing but it should be more than accurate enough.
Or you can buy one. But mebbe not from J.C.Whitney this time.
-Bob Hoover
-8 May 2K
Jan Andersson
> To flatten the rough casting I smeared some lipstick (!)
From your very own (pink, furred) purse, I bet...:-)
> Wanna make a Precision Bubble Balancer?
>
> Start with a junked camshaft & gear.
PLENTY of those around here.
> To hold the wheel go find a three-pound coffee can. I use MJB but suit
> yourself.
This is where I got disappointed. This tool obviously can only be built
out of genuine American high quality parts. Cheap Euro copies don't
work. Damn.
It's been YEARS since I even SAW a coffee can. They are sold in vacuum
packed foil pouches, packed in a cardboard box or whatever they're
called (some are sold without the box). No cans here. Mebbe some special
brands or whatever. And, since I don't drink coffee (Yuck, gag, puke),
I'd have to throw away the expensive special brand just to get the can..
The can which most likely will NOT be the same size as your US version.
Oh well.
> When you get the bubble back in the center MARK EVERYTHING. Use fingernail polish.
Here we go again... Bob comes out of the closet... hehehehe
Sorry, just kidding. Couldn't resist the *invitation* to crack some lame
jokes on you. ;-)
Jan
tom....@mindspring.com
<bug...@rocketmail.com> wrote:
>Veeduber wrote:
>> To flatten the rough casting I smeared some lipstick (!)
>
>From your very own (pink, furred) purse, I bet...:-)
>
>> Wanna make a Precision Bubble Balancer?
>>
>> Start with a junked camshaft & gear.
>
>
>PLENTY of those around here.
>
>
>> To hold the wheel go find a three-pound coffee can. I use MJB but suit
>> yourself.
>
>
>This is where I got disappointed. This tool obviously can only be built
>out of genuine American high quality parts. Cheap Euro copies don't
>work. Damn.
>It's been YEARS since I even SAW a coffee can. They are sold in vacuum
>packed foil pouches, packed in a cardboard box or whatever they're
>called (some are sold without the box). No cans here. Mebbe some special
>brands or whatever. And, since I don't drink coffee (Yuck, gag, puke),
>I'd have to throw away the expensive special brand just to get the can..
>The can which most likely will NOT be the same size as your US version.
>Oh well.
>
>> When you get the bubble back in the center MARK EVERYTHING. Use fingernail polish.
>
>Here we go again... Bob comes out of the closet... hehehehe
>
>
>Sorry, just kidding. Couldn't resist the *invitation* to crack some lame
>jokes on you. ;-)
>
>
>
>Jan
What do you mean lame? Gosh Bob is quite an attractive man. You know
he lives in one of those states thats trying to recognize same sex
unions? You don't think he lives there for the weather or old VWs do
you?
And when he gets all wet and sweaty working on those cars......one
can't help but develop those certain visions that you try and hold
back.
Has he ever showed you those pictures yet?????
:-)
joe locicero
Don't you be picking on us old guys.
Joe
Jan Andersson wrote:
> Veeduber wrote:
> > To flatten the rough casting I smeared some lipstick (!)
>
> From your very own (pink, furred) purse, I bet...:-)
>
> > Wanna make a Precision Bubble Balancer?
> >
> > Start with a junked camshaft & gear.
>
> PLENTY of those around here.
>
> > To hold the wheel go find a three-pound coffee can. I use MJB but suit
> > yourself.
>
> This is where I got disappointed. This tool obviously can only be built
> out of genuine American high quality parts. Cheap Euro copies don't
> work. Damn.
> It's been YEARS since I even SAW a coffee can. They are sold in vacuum
> packed foil pouches, packed in a cardboard box or whatever they're
> called (some are sold without the box). No cans here. Mebbe some special
> brands or whatever. And, since I don't drink coffee (Yuck, gag, puke),
> I'd have to throw away the expensive special brand just to get the can..
> The can which most likely will NOT be the same size as your US version.
> Oh well.
>
> > When you get the bubble back in the center MARK EVERYTHING. Use fingernail polish.
>
P.J.Berg
are never older than what you set your brain to. :)
Enjoy while you can, we are all going to leave sooner or later.
(having said that, I just got my two stroke 250 out of storage, HHHMMMmmm!).
J.
--
P.J.Berg: BergR...@Aircooled.net
Web.Based.: BergR...@Everyday.com
MSN/NetMeeting: BergR...@Hotmail.com
Mob.# +47 986 81 318
Remove ZZ to reply, the same for the above.
"joe locicero" <opsh...@spiretech.com> wrote in message
news:39181CD1...@spiretech.com...
> Jan,
> Don't you be picking on us old guys.
> Joe
>
> Jan Andersson wrote:
>
> > Veeduber wrote:
> > > To flatten the rough casting I smeared some lipstick (!)
> >
> > From your very own (pink, furred) purse, I bet...:-)
> >
> > > Wanna make a Precision Bubble Balancer?
> > >
> > > Start with a junked camshaft & gear.
> >
> > PLENTY of those around here.
> >
> > > To hold the wheel go find a three-pound coffee can. I use MJB but
suit
> > > yourself.
> >
> > This is where I got disappointed. This tool obviously can only be built
> > out of genuine American high quality parts. Cheap Euro copies don't
> > work. Damn.
> > It's been YEARS since I even SAW a coffee can. They are sold in vacuum
> > packed foil pouches, packed in a cardboard box or whatever they're
> > called (some are sold without the box). No cans here. Mebbe some special
> > brands or whatever. And, since I don't drink coffee (Yuck, gag, puke),
> > I'd have to throw away the expensive special brand just to get the can..
> > The can which most likely will NOT be the same size as your US version.
> > Oh well.
> >
> > > When you get the bubble back in the center MARK EVERYTHING. Use
fingernail polish.
> >
Jan Andersson
>
> On Tue, 09 May 2000 09:52:08 GMT, Jan Andersson
> <bug...@rocketmail.com> wrote:
>
> >Veeduber wrote:
> >
> >
> >>
> >> Start with a junked camshaft & gear.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >> yourself.
> >
> >
> >out of genuine American high quality parts. Cheap Euro copies don't
> >work. Damn.
> >It's been YEARS since I even SAW a coffee can. They are sold in vacuum
> >packed foil pouches, packed in a cardboard box or whatever they're
> >called (some are sold without the box). No cans here. Mebbe some special
> >brands or whatever. And, since I don't drink coffee (Yuck, gag, puke),
> >I'd have to throw away the expensive special brand just to get the can..
> >The can which most likely will NOT be the same size as your US version.
> >Oh well.
> >
> >
> >
> >
> >Sorry, just kidding. Couldn't resist the *invitation* to crack some lame
> >jokes on you. ;-)
> >
> >
> >
> >Jan
>
> he lives in one of those states thats trying to recognize same sex
> unions? You don't think he lives there for the weather or old VWs do
> you?
>
> And when he gets all wet and sweaty working on those cars......one
> can't help but develop those certain visions that you try and hold
> back.
>
> Has he ever showed you those pictures yet?????
>
> :-)
I did NOT need the visuals your reply brought to my mind, Tom! :-)
Jan
Jan Andersson
>
> Jan,
> Don't you be picking on us old guys.
> Joe
Aww come on Joe, what fun are you if we can't throw a couple of verbal
low punches every now and then! :-)
I'll be gentle, I promise. Besides, you "old guys" have no problems
defending yourselves and getting a few nasty ones through yourselves..
hehe
Jan
Jan Andersson
>
> There is no such thing as old!! It just a matter of progress in life, you
> are never older than what you set your brain to. :)
> Enjoy while you can, we are all going to leave sooner or later.
> (having said that, I just got my two stroke 250 out of storage, HHHMMMmmm!).
>
> J.
Sell it to me Joern. I wanna live fast and die young. (I've sort of kept
my eyes open for a cheap bike...)
jan
P.J.Berg
handmade all aluminium Nikon exhaust(England) 3kg all together + two new
complete big bore pistons (gives 300cc and 2 gear wheelies).(It does that
already with a bit inspiered gear shifts). It tops 170 fairly easy, weighs
only 130kg, so whatc out for cross winds!!
J.
--
P.J.Berg: BergR...@Aircooled.net
Web.Based.: BergR...@Everyday.com
MSN/NetMeeting: BergR...@Hotmail.com
Mob.# +47 986 81 318
Remove ZZ to reply, the same for the above.
"Jan Andersson" <jan.an...@sonera.fi> wrote in message
news:39186367...@sonera.fi...
Jan Andersson
>
> It's for sale, special price for you my friend 20.000.- Nok.
And 10.000 for anyone else?
> weighs only 130kg, so whatc out for cross winds!!
I've been known to BREAK wind without much effort, so it should not be a
problem.. LOL
Jan
replica
>Veeduber wrote:
>> To flatten the rough casting I smeared some lipstick (!)
>
>From your very own (pink, furred) purse, I bet...:-)
>
>> Wanna make a Precision Bubble Balancer?
>>
>> Start with a junked camshaft & gear.
>
>
>PLENTY of those around here.
>
>
>> To hold the wheel go find a three-pound coffee can. I use MJB but suit
>> yourself.
>
>
>This is where I got disappointed. This tool obviously can only be built
>out of genuine American high quality parts. Cheap Euro copies don't
>work. Damn.
>It's been YEARS since I even SAW a coffee can. They are sold in vacuum
>packed foil pouches, packed in a cardboard box or whatever they're
>called (some are sold without the box). No cans here. Mebbe some special
>brands or whatever. And, since I don't drink coffee (Yuck, gag, puke),
>I'd have to throw away the expensive special brand just to get the can..
>The can which most likely will NOT be the same size as your US version.
>Oh well.
>
>> When you get the bubble back in the center MARK EVERYTHING. Use fingernail polish.
>
>Here we go again... Bob comes out of the closet... hehehehe
>
>
>Sorry, just kidding. Couldn't resist the *invitation* to crack some lame
>jokes on you. ;-)
>
>
>
>Jan
hey bob,is your middle name mc guyver? sorry ,just kidding.i couldnt
resist...replica