balance beads & vibration question
 

I just lifted my '15 JKUR and put 35" Discoverer STT Pros on it. The shop used balance beads, but they left the old weights on too. At 50-55 mph I get a slight steering shimmy. I'm thinking I should pop those weights off? I read on the one bead manufacturer's website that you don't use both beads and weights. Agree??

Yes, loose the weights.

They left the weights? Odd. Like Dirtman said, ditch the weights. I prefer a traditional balance over the beads, but it's one or the other in this situation.

Removing them didn't help much...so I swapped the right front with the right rear and its much better...at least on the one test drive I took. I wonder if they didn't use enough beads?

I agree. I just think that if the balancing beads/compounds were better everyone would be using them. I believe that if you start with a quality tire, you shouldn't have any issue with traditional stick on weights.

Follow-up: I was still getting a shimmy at speed...had the shop confirm with their supplier/tire guru/whatever that they used the correct amount of beads...answer was yes. I had them remove the beads and use weights...all is right with the world. From what I read and from talking to the mechanics...beads are hit and miss. Weights still work.

Y, at least good ole stick on weights are tried and true. Read so many issues with beads. It's so much easier to rebalance with something on the outside of the wheel than it is jacking with crap inside it. I think it just becomes a stickier topic when you move away from a traditional wheel to a beadlock, cuz shops don't want to balance beadlocks.....so people start searching for other methods.

^, I'm not looking for ANY reasons to break apart these wheels before I have to. I'm sticking to my current approach, "Beadlocks? These? Pft, don't be crazy man. These are simulation beadlocks, look up Method 305's on your phone. Sticky weights, please and thank you. I'll be waiting across the street at Snowflakes Starbucks." :wink:

LOL. Mine were a breeze. Will say I've got several hundred miles on em now......no hint of needing balanced at all. I'm quite impressed with that aspect so far.

I took my beadlocks straight into the tire store and had them balanced under my "lifetime of the tire" balance plan. They didn't ask any questions and I didn't volunteer any information. The only thing the guy said after balancing them was, "Whoever mounted these wasn't too good with a balancer, they didn't have ANY weights on them, must've been an interesting ride in". I don't think it's the balancing they dislike, it's the labor that goes into moving the tire around on the bead if it doesn't balance nicely.