What is Wheel balancing otherly known as tyre balancing?
As you
know a vehicle can be compared to a human body, if you take good care of all
the connecting components and stuff you put onto/into your body it will help you- life
a long hassle free life. The same with purchasing a quality set of tyres for
your vehicle (cheap does not always stay cheap). A new set of tyres can
relatively come at high costs so it is extremely beneficial to you to take care
of them.
If you
have a vehicle, you have a responsibility to look after it for as long as
possible. Some
motorists do not understand the importance of Wheel alignment and wheel
balancing, on how this can affect tyre life, as well as possibly having an
effect on other mechanical factors. This means it is important that when you
purchase a new set of tyres and fit them to your vehicle, you ask a mechanic to
perform wheel alignment and wheel balancing to ensure that excessive tyre wear
does not occur.
Correct wheel balancing is vitally important to performance,
safety and prolonging the overall lifespan of your vehicle and in this case specifically your new tyres. It is one of the most common auto repair services offered by any
technicians capable of providing the service. One of the main reasons is
maintaining the new tyre life, obviously having an impact to the frequency for tyre replacements. This will make you aware that by keeping all you
components in optimal running conditions will save you on unexpected and
unnecessary costs.
When
at high speeds the centrifugal force generated on a truck wheel can amplify the
slightest imbalance on a wheel. At these speeds a truck with
unbalanced wheels becomes dangerous. Wheel
balancing also known as tyre balancing; it is the process of equalizing the
weight of the combined tyre and
wheel assembly so that it spins smoothly and evenly at high speed. Tyre
unbalance describes
the distribution of mass within an automobile tyre or the entire wheel (including the rim) on which it is mounted. An unbalance tyre wile in rotation
distributes periodic forces and torques to the axle, which can cause ride
disturbances, usually as vertical and lateral vibrations, and this may also
cause the steering wheel to oscillate.
The
wheels no longer runs straight and strains are placed on the steering and braking
becomes risky, tyre wear is greatly increased and the wheel bearings are
subjected to additional stress, vibration and vehicle suspensions may become tensioned when the rotating frequency of the wheel
equals the resonant frequency of
the suspension. However, at lower speeds, the sensation may be unnoticed. But
as speed increases, these forces actually increase fourfold.
Wheel balancing ensures that there is proper and even weight
distribution of your tyres and wheels, and that it is consistent throughout a revolving tyre
and wheel assembly. The process is to put the
wheel/tyre assembly on a balancer which centres the wheel and spins it to
determine where the weights should go to create equilibrium. It ensures that
the unit which comprises a wheel rim and a tyre is in balance. Both these units
have high and low spots, or heavy and light areas. Every time a
wheel is first mounted onto a vehicle with a new tyre, it has to be balanced. The first part of
getting the complete unit of rim and tyre in balance is to match the heavy
areas of one to the light areas of the other. Weights are added to ensure the
compensating weight is completed throughout the whole tyre so that it will
rotate perfectly. The wheel weights are smaller counter weights to prevent them
from having heavy spots even the slight difference in weight will cause enough momentum and create
vibrations.
NOTE:
Always enquire when you buy new tyres that they are balanced and requested
wheel alignment, these two are different services but go hand to hand for a preventative maintenance plan.
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