13 Best Tire Balancing Machine (2022 Updated)

The actual physical product is exactly what I’d hoped. I know YouTube is now the universal instruction manual, and I know there is a wide range of uses that would make an instruction manual tough to write, but a little something would have been nice.

When to use axle and when to use just cones? How tight should cones be? Nevertheless, with no guidance and no experience I was able to true a spoked motorcycle wheel and take it from totally unsafe to merely not very good.

As the user gets smarter I’m sure my application for the device will also increase. And Iike it a lot already.

I don’t normally balance my dual sport tires but I bought some 4mil ultra thick tubes and it shook so bad it felt like my ride needed a salsa soundtrack. I decided balancing in some way was in order.

I tried balance beads and I know some people swear by them but for me it was all swearing at them, the vibration was much worse. So two new tubes later, (because once those little things are in there they aint coming out) and I ordered the wheel balancer.

I knew nothing about using such an animal but it went together easy and the process of static balancing was simple and straight forward. My bike is pretty smooth on the highway albeit you can still tell I have tall knobbies on there.

For the money and ease of use I feel this tool was a good buy.

I have always changed my own tires on my KLR at home and on the trail. Recently upgraded to a Super Tenere with tubeless tires. After hearing how difficult mounting these can be, I was going to take them to a stealership to mount.

Got the price of $300 for both tires. Ouch. Figured,screw that so purchased this tool, added some longer irons and found with proper technique it was simple. Still work but simple. The part that breaks the bead could be longer.

It won’t get the rear tire of the rim but no biggie. Was looking at the Rabaconda but at $850, nope. I change tires once a year so it’s perfect. If I used it more I would get the Rabaconda just for ease of use.

I mounted Dunlop Trailmax Missions which have super stiff sidewalls for reference.

Had to swap a low-mileage tire from a dented rim to a new one. This tire changer is more sturdy than others of this type, because after breaking the bead with the very well-designed breaker, you will be applying a lot of muscle to the tire to remove and install.

Do not underestimate this! The bead-breaker has a return spring that keeps itself up and away from the tire to keep everything clear while using tire irons to finish the job, another feature to look for.

The coating on the upper frame will keep the rims from being scratched, but I don’t know how durable it is. If it gets damaged, I will recover it with more durable hose in the future. As far as changing tires goes, the rest is whatever technique you can use.

But the tool does make the job that much easier, as besides having an excellent bead-breaker it raises the rim to a more accessible height to use tire-irons.

I purchased this model after being on the fence for the last two plus years. Sitting on the fence required that for me to change my tyres, I had to resort to C clamps and zip ties. Of course hindsight is always 20/20, this product literally required two minutes to break the bead.

Take it from me, if you are going to use this once or twice every couple of years, then this is all you will ever need.

I purchased the Black Widow Balancing/Truing stand because of its features. This particular unit had centering cones with the proper single taper for the type and style of H-D hubs/wheels used in my bike builds.

The stand is of a very sturdy construction (FYI: Another manufacturer had a nicely constructed stand, but the bizarre design of the cones rendered it impossible to use without paying for re-machining or fabricating adapters etc.

, then deducted shipping charges from the refund to return it). Kirk, at Discount Ramps is an outstanding Sales & Customer Service Representative for the company. Even though I had an issue with a defective part, he immediately sent out a replacement as a warranty claim.

free of charge. Kirk made this a great company to deal with.

I really like this unit do to it’s tuff construction. I didn’t like that right out of the box the Truing Bolt Holes were off set from each other, so aligning the unit was vertually impossible. But, I called their custumer service line and after I explained the problem, TWO replacement arms were sent with no other problems.

A company that stands behind their product is priceless!!! I will definatlly do business with Discount Ramps. com again! Thanks you!.

When I got the stand it was heavily scratched, the bottom supports on the under side were bent and the uprights were off so the pins that hold the wheel didn’t line up correctly. Also it’s narrower then stands I’ve used in the past, so it barely fits most full size dirt bike rear hubs even on the widest setting.

I’m currently in the process of trying to return it, so far Discount Ramos asked for pictures, which I immediately sent to them, and I have yet to hear anything back.

Made my husband smile and that’s what makes me happy 😊 Thank You Fingerhut you’ll always be my go to place for everything I need that’s available through your company! I’ve always been satisfied with everything I’ve ever purchased! Thank you 😊.

I was very surprised when I got this tool at the excellent quality. I’ve set mine into a concrete base, and even though I haven’t had to use it yet I have no doubt that this will make my life much easier dealing with as many flats as I get given I live in the country.

Being able to repair my own is the best thing since Tylenol for me !.

Did 8 tire changes already. Great money saver. Excellent purchase.

I’ve only taken the machines out of the crates and assembled them. I haven’t had a chance yet to actually hook the air up and try them. At my first inspection of the quality of build and the weight of the machines I’ll say that I am impressed with them both so far.

They were scheduled for arrival three weeks after I ordered them, bit they arrived a week earlier than expected and that was nice. I got to uncrate them for inspection and assembly and decided where I wanted to place them.

I liked all of their reviews and that’s why I decided on this set. I don’t have any reason yet why I won’t be satisfied, but if I have problems with them I will amend this review at that time. So far I have already recommended them more than once to people that I know.

I purchased the 960 tire changer with the arm assist, not sure if I will use it a lot but for a bit more money it was worth getting. I went to the local truck terminal to pick it up saved me a $160. 00 tailgate drop off fee.

It was packaged very well. First observation very heavy duty, not some cheap light weight material. The tire machine and the balancer work perfectly, as far as the balancer I would recommend ordering the 3.

5″ to 5. 5″ cone sold separately, used for larger rims. As far as the instructions go, they are not the best, but its pretty straight forward, you will need a helper. Mayflower great to work with, great at answering questions before and after the sale.

For the price it was a great value. I did my research it was a wise choice.

Have done about 12-14 tires with this machine so far ranging from 15-23 wheels with 40-75 series tires and have had no problems with this machine. Ive used Coates and Atlas machines before and I would say it works just as well as them.

The directions on calibrating the balancer could of been a little better written, but if you read them closely, you can get through the calibration process. If you plan on doing any wheels over 18 these are the machines you want to go with.

The assist arm is helpful with the lower profile tires. The quality is good for Chinese product, welds are nice and the construction is strong.

The Uprights had been welded together at an angle so when bolted onto the base they did not stand upright, the cure was to bend the tabs at the bottom to compensate. The spindle and cones were a joke, the cones were such a loose fit on the shaft and had been drilled off centre, I ended up boring them out to take a larger shaft that I had spare and then re-cut the cones so they ran true.

It was a few hours work that I did not want but for this price maybe I should have expected it. On the up side the bearings ran smooth with no play. In Summary, it is barely useable out of the box so if you don’t have the tools to fix the issues mentioned I’d look to pay more for a better built wheel balancer, on the other hand if you don’t mind modifying it a bit to sort the shoddy workmanship you can have a reasonable balancer very cheaply.

The actual frame & rollers are good quality, the problem is the cones that slide into your wheel. They are not drilled out dead centre so no matter where you position them your wheel wobbles so trying to balance it is impossible.

The way I got around it is by using the wheels axle shaft which is perfectly straight.

A simple cheap and effective way to balance your own wheels. Dont be fooled into thinking the tyre pros use anything other than one of these. Excellent item to go with the bead beaker

This wheel balancer worked great. I am tired of paying to have my tires/wheels balanced at these high volume tire stores,only to leave and my car shakes on the highway. You know the kind of tire shops im referring to.

The shops where all the tire guys look like teenagers at a tire changing competition. Sometimes they will have three different guys balancing my tires and they look like they are racing each other. Their work is always rushed and sloppy.

When you take your vehicle back and complain,they treat you like your stupid or something. I was able to balance my own tires at home and my truck no longer shakes. When you use this balancer, you must follow the directions and have patience and you will have good results.

It is a precision instrument so you have to treat it right. It was hard to slap down the cash for it but I am no longer at the mercy of the tire shop. Dont forget to order some wheel weights. You have to have them.

M. Stockwell.

I opted for the slightly more expensive Ranger RWS-1B Bubble Wheel Balancer because of the videos I had watched YouTube on Bubble Wheel balancing. My wheels sat squarely on the centering cone of the Ranger RWS-1B Bubble Wheel Balancer which made balancing much easier.

I have balanced 5 new wheels and tires and I am having no problems so far. I was able to get up to 95 mph on a test run with no vibration at all. You just need to take your time when balancing. The more wheels you balance the easier it gets.

The title says it. With a discount I think I paid around $45 for this and it shows. The base is really warped, and while it comes with leveling feet for the bottom side (and you need them) the top side is still warped of course.

Also the uprights are not square and straight either. In fact one of mine looked like it had been run over as it had a big dent in one side. It took quite a bit of messing around and putting various washers under the uprights to get them even remotely in line with each other (on first assembly they were about 2 inches out of alignment!).

Also, the cones are a bit of a loose fit on the shaft (meaning I’m not sure how centered a wheel would be) and the shaft is corroded right where it needs to roll smoothly on the bearings. Having said all that it did actually seem to work the one time I used it.

And just in case you’re into this type of thing, this is not an item you will proudly display for it’s engineering prowess. But, like I said, it is cheap so maybe I shouldn’t have expected anything better.

I’ll probably return it though.

Arrived just a couple of days after placing the order. Everything was neatly packed. Assembly was very minimal and simple. Set up for use is easy. I was able to get both the front and rear tire balanced in just a few minutes.

The only thing I thing I would change is the bubble level. Would be nice to have it mounted to the base of the stand so it would always be right there and you wouldn’t have to keep up with it.

The Black Widow Balancer works well to balance my motorcycle tire. Was easy to assemble, The directions called for a 6mm hex head wrench when it actually took a 5mm, but maybe it was a typo in the directions or something no big deal unless you had went out and bought just a 6 mm wrench and had to go back to get a 5 mm.

I am a little puzzled and disappointed with the little level supplied, but if you have a 6 inch torpedo level it works better than supplied level. Overall a fair deal for the price and you will pay for it with a few balance jobs.

I should have listened to the other reviews on here regarding them getting stuck in the valve stem. I bought some of these, put them into my tire, and on my first trip with some friends we all stopped to check our air pressure at a gas station.

Attached my pressure gauge to the valve stem, and a bead got stuck in the stem forcing the valve permanently open. Tire went totally flat. It was 100 degrees outside, and of course the gas station’s air pump was out in the sun.

I had to go back inside to ask them to turn the air on every 30 seconds, dripping with sweat. Didn’t help that the tire broke the bead from going totally flat. I was finally able to get the value unstuck with compressed air, but it wasn’t easy.

This happened to me 2 additional times while checking my air pressure before I’d had enough. Chose to pull both tires off my rims and remount them to get this garbage out of my tires. Do yourself a favor and pass on these.

We had a truck and SUV needing tires simultaneously and the cost was staggering. I’ve always considered one of these but could justify the convenience of sitting in Sam’s for 3 hours, somehow. 2 sets at once was my breaking point.

The difference between buying the equipment to change them plus all the tires was hundreds less. You’ll need a bubble balancer, weights, and some tire lube. Watch a bunch of Youtube videos if you haven’t already.

Yes, I suppose a dynamic wheel balancer does a better job, but we just drive the speed limit and ours feel great! If I was a race-car driver I’d go with dynamic balancing. Here are some thoughts and tips so maybe you’re more prepared going into it.

* You may see a guy in a video with great success using his mounted to a pallet. Maybe. If you’ve got a rotary hammer and the skill you can use some RedHead drop-in anchors and you’ll enjoy the rigidity of floor mount.

Remove changer from bolts and use bolts that go to flush so you don’t trip over them. * Use an old spray bottle to make a dish soap/water sprayer. Maybe 1/2″ of dish soap at bottom of standard bottle.

Use it like crazy. When breaking the bead get it good and wet and push, let it seep down, repeat. Very slippery. Same with every other step of removal. Also might help to loosen grim at the wheel/tire joint.

* You’ll eventually bend the thin strips that extend to the bead breaker foot. You’ve probably got the scrap and junk required to strengthen it, piece of wood between them, maybe some hose clamps around the whole thing.

Or just fashion something tougher. * Don’t forget the important step of cleaning the wheel where the tire makes contact. This is the difference between a tire that slowly loses pressure and drives you crazy and one that doesn’t.

Get as much off using non-abrasive methods as possible, then break out some scotchbrite. * Some folks will say you need a gigantic air compressor to get tires to seat and seal. I’ve done at least 14 with my tiny Makita MAC700 using a 100′ hose as a “tank”.

No issues. At all. The changer makes a nice stand to hold the tire while seating it in case you need to wiggle it around. If you look at some internet advice you will crash, burn, and die a fiery death because only professionals can change tires.

The cars I’ve done all ride smooth and we’re all still alive. They’re also holding air. Perhaps we’re just lucky? On the other hand, if this is intimidating to your skillset, there’s no dishonor in having the shop do it! We all have different strengths.

In all fairness it does the job, there’s a bit of a leaning curve, but once you get the first tire changed, its pretty much straight forward from there. The bead breaker is a bit flimsy, and you can easily bend it if you don’t keep it vertical / upright to the pillar, but otherwise it does the job.

There are no anti-scratch teflon / plastic tip covers for the pry bar, but you can easily provide those yourself from some thin wall teflon tube. lay the tire/rim on some cardborad over where the tire lays to use the bead breaker to prevent scratching your rims.

The tire hold down bracket is not easily suited for deep 6 lug bolt pattern rims, I had to tweak the star bracket to fit, really needs just a large thick round disc under the hold down screw, that would accommodate any wheel/rim configuration.

The Manual Tire Changer Harbor Freight offered back in 2018 was superior, it had a large tire dismount / mounting shoe that work quite a bit better than this version. All in All I got my 4 tires changed with this unit, with minor issues.

It was worth the expense, but requires some mechanical aptitude. I used the Harbor Freight bubble wheel balancer to balance the tires, which worked a treat.

This Pittsburgh manual tire changer works very well for car and pick-up truck tires. If you can, you should really bolt it to a concrete floor but it really will work bolted to a large and thick piece of wood or a pallet.

The bead breaker is adjustable and made the job easy with the long tool included you have a lot of leverage. I found it quite easy to remove and remount tires to the rim. The tire changer and all of the pieces are made of steel, there are no weak parts at all.

I do not have decorative wheels so scratching was not an issue for me but you should think about that if your wheels are very nice but there should be no real problem with damaging your wheels. Overall I believe everyone should own their own tire changer.

Doing my own tires saved me a bunch of money. The only down side is balancing your tires. You will need to take them somewhere to have it done or spend some extra money to buy a balancer of some type, there are several types available.

I do recommend this product. It does require some elbow grease but it will save you some cash. I am an ITC member so I only paid $32. 00 for mine which is cheap at twice that price!.

I’m not sure why the other reviewer left such a terrible review, since they gave no info to validate their opinion. I will say that we have owned one of these for over 12 years now, and it’s still working fine.

It’s a simple device, but it offers a lot of ways to engage your core. The wheel is much larger than a standard little ab roller, so it rolls a greater distance at faster pace, so it is harder to control – which is a good thing.

The ability to connect it to your feet is what really makes it unique, however. You can do like ups to work your lower abdominals, planks, alligator crawls, push ups, glute/ham bridges etc. Unless there has been a change in build quality over the years, I highly recommend it.

I bought this from seeing the actual picture, as a challenge for me. I received it, and was able to put it together easily within a few minutes. I immediately tried it (obviously not as the picture shows), and LOVE LOVE LOVE it as its a personal goal for me to reach.

As why I purchased it to begin with. Thank you.

The power wheel is by far the best “ab wheel” I have ever used. It has so many uses in addition to the standard rollouts you see on all the other ab wheels out there. It is big and beefy and ready to roll.

I really like the foot straps that allow me to “reverse” the workout.

Absolutely horrible peace of junk. Impossible to assemble right out of the box – non matching threads, incorect thread legths – requires heavy modifications just to assemble it. Is it any good for balancing anything? I doubt it.

The prop is held by a piece of rubber tubing? What a joke!.

A word of warning to would be purchasers. For a premium priced instrument, intended for accuracy, the manufacturing care is surprisingly poor. Three of the support rods were so badly engineered that I had to fettle the threads in order to add the nuts.

Doesnt fill a user with confidence. Finally getting it built, in use I am very happy with it. But Id have to question its premium price over other similar makes.

It is very effective once you get it working. Balances props, even large ones, spinners, spinner plates. I had a problem though, half of the base nuts, where the rods screw in, are faulty (or the rods are faulty) because can’t be ******* (faulty drives).

The one I got didn’t work. Returned it and didn’t get a replacement. Put wheel on. Bubble points to where weight needs to go. Did not add any weight. Removed wheel and turned 180 degrees. Bubble indicated weight needed to in a completely different direction.

Depending on where I rotated the wheel, the tool would indicate that weight should go to a different place on wheel. Could never replicate results. Tip, make sure to place wheel on mount and get measurement.

Then rotate wheel relative to mounting face on tool to see if you can replicate measurement. Tool should indicate weight needed at same spot on wheel. This basic procedure is not mentioned on youtube reviews.

Please report results.

I centered the cone perfectly. I put my wheel on the balancer and added my weights where needed. I turned the wheel 90° and put it back on the balancer and the balance was off at the same original location.

I adjusted the weights and performed the operation again. Next I tested a tire that was perfectly balanced on a spin balancer by a shop the previous week. This harbor freight balancer showed it to be out of balance.

I added weights to correct it and turn my wheel 90° and again this balancer showed imbalance at the original location. This thing is a piece of junk and I wouldn’t buy it if I were you.