The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area Engine Shop Stearing/tire question

Hi,
On my 55.1, I had 15 inch rims with a 27 dia. bias tires on the front. I put my 16 in. wheels with 31.5 inch dia. bias tires on the front to replace the 15s.

On the rear, I replaced the 31.5 inch dia. bias tires and 16 inch rims with 32 inch bias tires with 16 inch rims.

Before I replaced the small front tires with the large ones, I had a real arm workout. The big tires took care of that, but they cause a slight rotational twitching of the steering wheel at 35-45 mph. Anyone know why?

Also, the new mud and snow bias rear tires are out of balance so far that they say they cannot balance them... It's about 11.5 ounces off. He says that on my truck you will probably not notice it and that it is caused by my wheels, not their tires. I have the old 16 inch wheels and the visible wobble on the spin balancer is less than 1/8 inch. Is not balancing the rear wheels acceptable? Can and should I get the wheels fixed? Are the tires what is really off?

Thanks - Scott

You definately have balance and or bent wheel problems. I wouldn't accept the tire shop's answer without having them chuck a bare wheel on the balancer and proving to me that it was both out of balance and out of round. Big tires are often poorly cast and I would demand ones that are round and balancable, or you will chew up your wheel bearings and king pins rather quickly.

The steering twitch is a dynamic balance problem, possibly amplified by a little wear in king pin bushings, or tie rod looseness. On the rear, the tires are almost certainly the problem. Have the tire shop spin up an empty wheel, and see if it has excessive runout and/or balance problems. Mud & snow tires are notorious for having heavy spots, and replacing the tire is the only solution to the problem. It sounds like your tire shop is trying to weasel out of replacing the defective tires.
Jerry

Like the others have said, spin up a bare wheel and see what happens. If they are out of balance, you could weld some weight to the inside and then try the tires again. I have also seen them move the tire 180 degrees on the rim and then get them to balance. It could be a heavy spot on the tire just happen to line up with heavy spot on the rim. Try a different shop if you have to. Joe

I agree that the rears should be balanced properly. It is amazing how many shops these days can't balance tires worth a darn. It costs people a fortune in tires and suspension wear. I also agree with the spare rim demonstration idea. You may have to get them balanced some other place.

If there is a "twitching" in the front, it just goes along with the fact that they do not know what they are doing. When I used to balance tires, I could make tires with rims that were not very true, spin up nicely.

Lincoln,nix,4, and Joe,

Thanks for the posts. I guess I'll have to go to another tire place to ensure an honest check. I'll have to take 'em all off and check wheels and tires to see where the problem lies. I don't know of any wheel balancing places, but I can see. Thanks for the informed advice. - Scott

Find a tire store that specializes in big truck tires, they usually know a lot more about this stuff than your neighborhood retailer.

Thanks Fred and all. Taking the truck and my wheels all in tonite.

-Scott

Well, more surprises. I went to a recommended tire place and dropped $47. They said my rims are fine and that the front tires cannot be balanced and are causing my twitch with 128 and 56 pounds of thrust on the tires. They rotated the back tires around on their rims and were able to balance them. But one of them has a hop and they both have about 10 inches of balancing lead weights on the rim. The truck drives rougher than a cob. I am going back to Pomps, where I bought the tires, and see if they will stand behind the tires. Any suggestions on how to handle it are very welcome.

Thanks - Scott

I installed some new tires on a customers car that the customer bought from Sears. They were off brand Michelins and I had to mount and balance 8 tires before I had 4 that would balance. Tire quality has seemed to have slipped some over the years so I would spend the money on name brands if possible. Your tire store should stand behind the tires but will probably "exchange" only. Tell the tech that you want to watch the balancing process to ensure you are getting a good tire. I wouldn't accept a tire that has more than 25 pounds of road force or more than 2-2.5 ounces of weight per side to balance.
Just my opinion,
Scott

Follow Scotts advice. Be firm, but don't get angry. If they won't help you, walk away quietly and come back for more advice.

Well before you walk away ask for these pieces of information:

Corporate Head Quarters Customer service phone number

Regional Managers Name and Phone number.

Make sure that you are talking to THE Store Manager.

Good luck

If these are new tires, then the Tire maker does have a warranty of some description. They should be contacted if necessary and this is a good chance to make sure that they know fed up you are with the service that you have received from one of their dealers.

That was an interesting comment about Michelin second brand tires. They do produce some cheaper lower quality tires, some under different names. It suprises me because their real brand tires are excellent.

Thanks for all the good advise. I dropped off the truck last nite and called them early this morning. This time I got a guy I can at least work with. This is the manager of the store. He said he would give me 50 for the first pair and full refund on the second, if I would buy a full set from him. I said I would look at them. He wants $168 to boot. I asked the other tire store what they thought of the deal, and they thought it was very good. I will see what they have...Cordovan XRT They are 31.8" diameter radials. There goes the look, but I am reduced to looking only for function after this mess. Please comment on the Cordovans if you've seen them. Thanks again - Scott