Wheel weights----ADHESIVE vs CLIP ON---

[Jolly Roger]

Bought tires at Costco and when they mounted them to my after market Fuel rims they used clip-on style weights instead of adhesive style weights.

Which ones work better?

I go off-road every once in a while and live in a cold weather climate so clip on weights sound like the better option. However many have said to use the stick on adhesive weights especially if your installing them on clean new rims like I am doing. The 4x4 guys say to use silicone or aluminum tape over the stick-on weights for added strength.

I had made two appointments at the tire shop, one today to have the tires put on the rims and balanced with adhesive weights...
and one appointment Monday to put them on the truck.

The plan was to go home with the tires today and silicone/tape the weights, install on Mon.

To my surprise today after telling them I wanted adhesive weights, they installed clip-on style weights instead. Should I just keep them that way or have them redone?

 

[Tonyrodz]

Bought tires at Costco and when they mounted them to my after market Fuel rims they used clip-on style weights instead of adhesive style weights.

Which ones work better?

I go off-road every once in a while and live in a cold weather climate so clip on weights sound like the better option. However many have said to use the stick on adhesive weights especially if your installing them on clean new rims like I am doing. The 4x4 guys say to use silicone or aluminum tape over the stick-on weights for added strength.

I had made two appointments at the tire shop, one today to have the tires put on the rims and balanced with adhesive weights...
and one appointment Monday to put them on the truck.

The plan was to go home with the tires today and silicone/tape the weights, install on Mon.

To my surprise today after telling them I wanted adhesive weights, they installed clip-on style weights instead. Should I just keep them that way or have them redone?

I prefer the clip ons myself. I've had a few of the stick on type fall off--they don't always fall off tho. With custom or new rims I like to put the clip on style on the inside of the rim, just in case they scratch the rim.

 

[Rocket Man]

I prefer the clip ons myself. I've had a few of the stick on type fall off--they don't always fall off tho. With custom or new rims I like to put the clip on style on the inside of the rim, just in case they scratch the rim.

If they only put weights on the inside, they can’t balance them as well as if the weights can be located to the inboard or outboard direction as well as around the circumference, especially for wide wheels. I’ve watched as they balance them, and the good machines have a location that pinpoints the distance from the inside or outside. I like the stick on weights for this reason as well as the ability to hide them behind spokes. I’ve been told that if I only let them put clip-ons on the inside of the rim they won’t guarantee the balance.

 

[Jolly Roger]

I prefer the clip ons myself. I've had a few of the stick on type fall off--they don't always fall off tho. With custom or new rims I like to put the clip on style on the inside of the rim, just in case they scratch the rim.

Thanks Tony! I appreciate your input. Ive had a few of my old tire shop palls get back to me as well and they agree with you. (static balance inner clip weight) They said unless I plan on scrapping rocks with my rims they wouldn't go with adhesive weights.

I ask around the other forums and I might as well be asking Pepsi vs Coke. Seems to be about half and half out there.

 

[Jolly Roger]

If they only put weights on the inside, they can’t balance them as well as if the weights can be located to the inboard or outboard direction as well as around the circumference, especially for wide wheels. I’ve watched as they balance them, and the good machines have a location that pinpoints the distance from the inside or outside. I like the stick on weights for this reason as well as the ability to hide them behind spokes. I’ve been told that if I only let them put clip-ons on the inside of the rim they won’t guarantee the balance.

Wheel width seems to be one of the larger dividing lines between the two options for sure. Im running a 8.5" wheel with 285/70/17s

caliper clearance is another issue brought up with the adhesive weights..

 

[Rocket Man]

Wheel width seems to be one of the larger dividing lines between the two options for sure. Im running a 8.5" wheel with 285/70/17s

caliper clearance is another issue brought up with the adhesive weights..

Might be ok with static balance but that’s never worked for me, I always ended up with vibrations at higher speeds, usually 60 and up. I’ll never do static again.

 

[SnowDrifter]

I prefer stick on at every opportunity. You might need a hair bit more weight than you would with clip on due to both a reduced cylinder height and diameter with respect to a rotating circumference, but I've found it to be fairly minor and worth the trade offs.

Stick ons also won't get ripped off while off-roading. They also won't scratch/gouge the outer rim of the wheel like the clip variety do. BUT, and this is a big but depending on the condition of your rig; if you have a clear coat failure on your wheel, stick ons won't adhere wheel or will be apt to fall off. An installer worth their salt will clean up peeling clear coat and corrosion (as opposed to a quick wipe with wire brush, rag, and cleaner) prior to installing them. But then that begs the question of if the wheel is in that bad of shape, would you care about that? Meh. Give/take

Stick on:
Need more weight
Don't gouge wheel
Aesthetic
Less apt to shift or come off during offroad use
Surface prep

Clip on:
Less weight
Faster
No reduction in clearance for tight fitting applications

 

[iamdub]

^^^ This.

If they're balanced and the sight of the weights doesn't bother you, then leave it. Personally, I'd rather not see the weights and have never had an issue with the adhesive ones coming off. I have no problem with using clip-ons on the inner lip and adhesive for the outer.

Functionally, well, Chris summed it all up.

 

[Jolly Roger]

After combing the internet even more, the clip-on weights seem to be the choice of the masses. Seems as though one forum will lean one direction while another will swear by the other.
But if I take the 4 hours of searching and reading all together the clip-on style weights seem to win. Im not doubting anyone. Im now more confused as ever as to what to do.
I got these sitting in the truck ready to mount tomorrow....should I tell them to take off the weights and re-balance with stick-ons?

 

[Jolly Roger]

And ...just in case you needed a laugh today.

 

[wjburken]

And ...just in case you needed a laugh today.
View attachment 231984

WTF!

I have never seen that many weights on a wheel. How does it ride?

 

[Jolly Roger]

WTF!

I have never seen that many weights on a wheel. How does it ride?

Its not mine bro, found it during my search on static vs dynamic balancing. Thought Id share.

 

[Tonyrodz]

I had a bent rim once--didn't even use that many weights!

 

[wjburken]

I have heard of this type of thing happening but typically because something was loose inside the tire like a busted tpms sensor that got busted off when mounting a new tire. Here is an interesting article I found on the subject called “chasing weights”.

https://www.tirereview.com/chasing-catching/

 

[OR VietVet]

I vote for the clip on weights and have them on my rig's wheels. If someone doesn't like the look of the clip on weights, stop and think about that you only see them when sitting still. Where the clip on weight does the best job for controlling vibrations is when they are rolling and you cannot see the weights. Also, if you mount a tire on a wheel and then the balance shows a need for a large weight, say anything over 1.5 ounces, the wheel/tire needs to be broken down again and spin tire 180 degrees and rebalance and if still have a problem then they can be turned 90 degrees and redo the balance. The tire and wheel guy may not like it but it is part of the job. All tires and wheels have a heavy spot on them and if they are mounted close to each other then you need more weight to counter balance.

 

[iamdub]

...Also, if you mount a tire on a wheel and then the balance shows a need for a large weight, say anything over 1.5 ounces, the wheel/tire needs to be broken down again and spin tire 180 degrees and rebalance and if still have a problem then they can be turned 90 degrees and redo the balance. The tire and wheel guy may not like it but it is part of the job. All tires and wheels have a heavy spot on them and if they are mounted close to each other then you need more weight to counter balance.

Yes. Better brand tire manufacturers do some of the work for you by testing the tire and placing a red (high point of radial runout) and/or yellow (point of lighter weight) dot(s) on the tire. When I was a tire/grease monkey, I was sometimes mocked because my OCD ass would try to balance tires or at least minimize the amount of corrective weights needed by repositioning rather than always just following what the machine said and sending it on it's way.

 

[OR VietVet]

If the balancer asks for weight and you put it on and it adds up to 6 ounces, is it balanced....yes it is. But you also have at least 2 heavy spots on top of each other. I am OCD myself and proud of it. I want the tech that understands what we are saying and strives to do the job the best way possible. Less comebacks and happier customers.

 

[DougAMiller]

Purely anecdotal, but I pick up wheel weights laying along the street when I go for walks, and I have never found a stick-on weight, they are always the clip-ons. I have picked up a lot of them over the years.

 

[Rocket Man]

I believe in the real world it depends on several factors such as wheel diameter, width, type, and the type of vehicle. I know there’s no way to properly balance any of my wheels with clip ons that would look good, especially my 26” billets. No way are clip-ons going on the outside of my wheels. I guess you can mainly see them only when it’s stopped but that’s pretty damn important to me. My tire shop knows that for me, looks as well as function is important so they know what to do. On my custom motorcycle wheels, I never used rim weights period. It was done with either balancing beads or a product called ride-on which was a semi liquid that not only sealed a puncture but also balanced the wheel as it was spinning. It's drawback was cost. I am considering balancing beads for my wheels next time I buy new tires. They sure worked nice on my Harleys. I just looked up the chart and it calls for 4 ounces for my 305/40/22’s. You can't use balancing beads on all tires either, just mainly for low-profile or motorcycle. Here's a wheel on my Harley Nightrod that will never see weights. I've tested the balance up to 120 and the beads work. For wheels where they can't be seen or looks don't matter, neither would the type of weights matter to me. Both clip-ons and stick-ons can fall off if not applied properly.

 

[SnowDrifter]

After combing the internet even more, the clip-on weights seem to be the choice of the masses. Seems as though one forum will lean one direction while another will swear by the other.
But if I take the 4 hours of searching and reading all together the clip-on style weights seem to win. Im not doubting anyone. Im now more confused as ever as to what to do.
I got these sitting in the truck ready to mount tomorrow....should I tell them to take off the weights and re-balance with stick-ons?

View attachment 231974 View attachment 231975

Personally I'd start by going back and telling them to use the right weight. Wrong clip shape for the profile of the lip

Edit: Also not hammered on all the way