How to balance wheels without a central hole (with blind / blind discs)
Content
A wheel balancer without a center hole is not suitable for all machines and is expensive. Many companies are forced to purchase adapters that allow the rotating element to be fixed to the equipment through bolt holes.
The problem of balancing wheels without a central hole is most often encountered by owners of French car brands. When choosing discs, many do not pay attention to the lack of a balancing cutout, and the feature is revealed only at tire fitting.
Blind discs, their differences
All rims are characterized by a number of parameters: diameter, offset, number of bolts and the distance between them, rim width, etc. One of the estimated values that most buyers do not pay attention to is throughput.
Disk balancing
Some wheels do not have a hole in the middle, or it is a non-standard size, and therefore is not suitable for a conventional tire changer. Accordingly, the throughput of the disks is absent.
This feature is most often found on the wheels of cars of brands from France (Peugeot, Citroen, Renault). Thanks to this, the discs were called French. In order to give an aesthetic appearance to the rotational element, manufacturers place a company logo in this place.
It is worth distinguishing:
- disks on which plugs are installed in the mounting hole;
- and blind - they initially did not provide a slot.
The presence or absence of a connector affects only the aesthetic appearance of the product - the performance characteristics are practically the same.
Balancing blind discs - a problem
The French wheel can only be balanced at a specialized service station.
For small regional centers, the presence of a car with such wheels can be a real problem. Even in large metropolitan areas, a car enthusiast will have to spend time looking for a suitable station.
Balancing differences
Rims are usually positioned on the center hole, but this is not possible with French wheels. They are fixed on the machine using flange adapters.
A wheel balancer without a center hole is not suitable for all machines and is expensive. Many companies are forced to purchase adapters that allow the rotating element to be fixed to the equipment through bolt holes.
Balancing Technology
The process practically does not differ from the standard one, the main thing is that the workshop has suitable balancing equipment.
Equipment used
To balance French discs, special devices or universal adapters are used that are installed on standard machines. Equipment at service stations must undergo routine checks to prevent damage to products.
Balancing
Most tire shop owners don't skimp on the cost of wheel balancers - it's better to spend more money on one and earn customer trust than to answer endless complaints.
Order of work
The wizard does the following:
- Removes the wheel from the car and installs it on the machine, making sure that the bolt holes fall on the protruding elements on the adapter.
- Centers and fixes the disk in a given position.
- He looks at the computer - it fixes the imbalance during rotation and indicates in which places it is necessary to install additional weights.
The procedure is considered time consuming, and the specialist spends 30% more time than with standard wheel balancing. Although the processing of blind discs is more expensive, time consuming and not carried out at all workshops, it is considered one of the most accurate and well worth the effort and money spent.
