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romap · 03-09-2009, 03:38 PM

Quote:

We have not seen any "as delivered" Airstream trailers, with any lead weights on any wheels. They simply do not do it.

Andy,
When I purchased my Airstream (new), there were stick-on weights on the inside of the Alcoa wheels. I could be mistaken, but the dealer that I bought it from would never have taken it upon themselves to do balancing before delivery.

markdoane · 03-09-2009, 04:09 PM

You can check the balance of your drums at home, if you're clever.

The next time you repack your bearings (we do that once a year, right?) just put some light oil in the clean bearings, reassemble (loosely) and give it a few spins.

If the drum always stops in the same position, you have a problem. Tape a few washers to the light side until it comes to rest at a random location.

The number and size of the washers will give you an estimate of how much the drum is out of balance. Then you decide if it's worthwhile to have it fixed or replace it.

Don't forget to regrease the bearings with your regular wheel grease before you put it back on the road.

Inland RV Center, In · 03-09-2009, 04:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by romap

Andy,
When I purchased my Airstream (new), there were stick-on weights on the inside of the Alcoa wheels. I could be mistaken, but the dealer that I bought it from would never have taken it upon themselves to do balancing before delivery.

Who knows, that was 5 years ago.

Andy

wahoonc · 03-09-2009, 06:03 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torii

Thanks for the info on the Centramatics, Do you happen to know the limits as to what they can balance out in terms of weight? I assume they take the place of any weights that would normally be used to balance the tire/wheel assembly. If the brake drum is off balance by a few pounds as suggested by Andy, I wonder if the Centramatics are sufficient to counteract it.

Probably...we run them on 75,000# gravel trucks

Aaron

Inland RV Center, In · 03-09-2009, 07:10 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by wahoonc

Probably...we run them on 75,000# gravel trucks

Aaron

Well, now, if they work on 75,000 pound trucks, they certainly should work very well on a trailer that weighs 10 percent of that, even if it's an Airstream.

Thanks for the endorsement Aaron.

Andy

wahoonc · 03-09-2009, 07:27 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

Well, now, if they work on 75,000 pound trucks, they certainly should work very well on a trailer that weighs 10 percent of that, even if it's an Airstream.

Thanks for the endorsement Aaron.

Andy

Centramatics were originally developed for the OTR trucks, a well balanced tire runs cooler, lasts longer and give better mileage. Then they branched out into the smaller sized units. I run them on my F350 duallys and quite often get 65,000 miles out of a set of 50,000 mile steering axle tires.

Aaron

Becky B. · 03-09-2009, 07:54 PM

I ordered my Centramatics last Friday & am anxiously awaiting the UPS man. I'm glad Aaron has first-hand reports! I've asked a number of tire shops out here if they do the balancing of the wheels & hubs and they all looked at me (and Andy's pictorial guide) like I was crazy. Before I ordered them, I did a search on the forums & there are a number of members who use them, so that's encouraging. They seem to be easy to install. They have a video of how they work on their website--- Centramatics.com

wb13798 · 03-09-2009, 08:22 PM

hi
if you can change a tire you can install the centramatic balancers. i installed a set on my 28 classic last week. and next month im going to get a set for the chevrolet 2500.. also i had to replace another tire good year marathon treed seperation. that makes four since i bought the tt. and i had a good year dealer tell me that marathons are made in gadsden alabama ,wrong has made in china on the side wall. i switched to coopers. made in the usa.
i had a set on my classic 310 , they will effectively put 12 ounces of weight on your tire if needed. and that is a lot of weight. if a tire needs more than 12 ounces i dont want it on any of my vehicles. i endorse centramatic balancers if you got a new airstream you can affor a set. $214.00 and that includes shipping.

wb13798 · 03-09-2009, 11:04 PM

received a request the part number for the centramatics for airstream tt # is 300-556. these can be ordered on the phone or on line (centramatic.com) . i got mine in three days. ups is one of the better shipping companys here.
thnx al

Utahgoldrup · 03-10-2009, 02:03 PM

Great information everyone!! Centramatics sounds like a great idea, while I am not going to try that at this time, it is something I want to read up more on and possibly do in the future.

I like the "Road Force" balance idea, thanks Robert. I just talked with a tire dealer, actually, the same tire dealer I bought my tires from and had an interesting conversation. First I asked if they had the road force balancing equipment (which I checked on-line first, there is a dealer look up tool to see who has this equipment here is the link: Hunter GSP9700 Wheel Vibration Control System ). When the guy found out that I had a travel trailer, he said that he doesn't even have his tires and wheels balanced for his TT... I told him that was fine but that I wanted to have mine done and "road force" balanced so that is what I am going to have them do tomorrow. It's only $20 per tire and I figure I am going to be much better off doing this than not having done it and then just hope and pray that the drums are okay as I could not find anyone who could or would blance those.

centennialman · 03-10-2009, 05:12 PM

Thanks Andy!

Maybe you SHOULD become a Centramatics dealer....looks like there is a need for sure!

Inland RV Center, In · 03-10-2009, 05:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by centennialman

Thanks Andy!

Maybe you SHOULD become a Centramatics dealer....looks like there is a need for sure!

I plan on it as soon as I get back from my trip.

We should have them right at the end of March, and, at a real good price, too, along with "no shipping charges."

Andy

JimGolden · 03-10-2009, 08:17 PM

My take on this is that I would buy new drums and take them to a machine shop with a crankshaft balancer. I'd have them balance all four to zero. In other words, the hubs themselves would be perfectly balanced.

Then I'd get my wheel & tire combinations spun balanced.

Balanced wheels&tires + balanced drums = SMOOOOOOTH!

With that, you should be good to go.

I actually have an old static balancer that I got from an old gas station that went under. I could set a hub and wheel/tire assembly on there and balance it. But to date, I've not balanced the hubs. I have had my wheels & tires spun balanced and my rig tows very smoothly. I have pictures on the walls hanging on residential style hooks and they don't bounce off. Also did the "Wife Test" where I put her in the back with a cell phone and went down the road and she said it rode just fine.

But, I'm running an Avion and it has a different suspension setup than Airstream. I'm using swing arm type suspension and maybe that's more forgiving than the rubber torsion type? I really doubt that it is. All I know is...it is utterly foolish to think that you need to balance the gear on your truck but not on your trailer. When I bought my six new tires, the tire place looked at me like I was nuts, but I insisted on spin balancing them. As a result, she runs smooth. If a tire on any vehicle isn't balanced, it will vibrate, and that is bad.

ALWAYS BALANCE!

see ya on the road smoothly,

msieber109 · 03-10-2009, 08:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JimGolden

My take on this is that I would buy new drums and take them to a machine shop with a crankshaft balancer. I'd have them balance all four to zero. In other words, the hubs themselves would be perfectly balanced.

Then I'd get my wheel & tire combinations spun balanced.

Balanced wheels&tires + balanced drums = SMOOOOOOTH!

With that, you should be good to go.

I actually have an old static balancer that I got from an old gas station that went under. I could set a hub and wheel/tire assembly on there and balance it. But to date, I've not balanced the hubs. I have had my wheels & tires spun balanced and my rig tows very smoothly. I have pictures on the walls hanging on residential style hooks and they don't bounce off. Also did the "Wife Test" where I put her in the back with a cell phone and went down the road and she said it rode just fine.,

I think your static balancer idea is good except. Make sure you mark which wheel goes with which drum and also which stud goes through which hole on the tire rim. They have to be matched up the same way as they were when you balanced them. This could possible make the whole set-up even more out of balance.

I think your machine shop idea would work much better. Balancing each seperately.. that way it wouldn't matter which tire goes with which drum and the drum-tire rim matchup.

ROBERT CROSS · 03-11-2009, 06:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Inland RV Center, In

I plan on it as soon as I get back from my trip.

We should have them right at the end of March, and, at a real good price, too, along with "no shipping charges."

Andy

Ok......

I'm convinced!!

Utahgoldrup · 03-11-2009, 08:07 AM

Question - if I got centramatics and installed those, would I also need the balance weights on the tires/wheels or need to remove those?

Chief · 03-11-2009, 08:29 AM

"I plan on it as soon as I get back from my trip."

Andy,

Would you mind posting, as soon as they are available. I think you're going to get orders quickly.....before some of us start our Summer travels.

Chief

DEITZ645 · 03-11-2009, 08:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Utahgoldrup

Question - if I got centramatics and installed those, would I also need the balance weights on the tires/wheels or need to remove those?

Matt,
From what I read on their web site I do not think you need to remove any existing balance weights. If your tires/wheels are already spin balanced I think the centramatics would just fine tune the balance.

But then again I could be totally wrong.

Torii · 03-11-2009, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by DEITZ645

Matt,
From what I read on their web site I do not think you need to remove any existing balance weights. If your tires/wheels are already spin balanced I think the centramatics would just fine tune the balance.

But then again I could be totally wrong.

I can verify this to be true as I called them and asked this very question. The Centramatics will work equally well with or without the weights.

-T

Gene · 03-11-2009, 07:45 PM

My understanding is as the tires wear, they go out of balance, so the Centramatics help there.

Sounds like getting running gear balanced is much more an issue with older trailers with two or three part brake drums. At least that makes me feel better.

I can see how Centramatics are a good idea, though not sure whether it would be necessary to balance the tires or not if using them. Now I know why I find paint marks on the wheels—probably the running gear was balanced and it was marked and now I know to make sure the wheel is put on in the same place if removed.

Gene