Wheel Balancers

Wheel balancers spin a mounted wheel and tire to locate imbalance and show where and how much weight to add. This category covers passenger-car and light-truck balancers through to heavy-duty truck balancers with pneumatic wheel lifts. Hofmann, CEMB, Ranger, iDEAL, Rotary, Tuxedo and Coats are stocked, along with cones, adapters and lug bolt kits.

How to choose

Match the machine to the wheels you handle. Check maximum rim diameter and width, maximum wheel weight and maximum tire diameter, because heavy truck and super-single wheels exceed what a passenger-car balancer will take, and that limit rather than price is usually what decides the machine. Then look at mounting. Cone mounting is faster; flange-plate or lug-centric mounting is more accurate for aftermarket and hub-centric-critical wheels, and a lug bolt kit is worth having if you do a lot of performance work. Automated data entry, where sensor arms measure diameter, width and offset for you, saves real time in a busy bay compared with manual gauges. Consider whether you need diagnostic capability beyond simple balance, since road-force style measurement identifies tire and rim runout that a normal balance cannot explain. Check that a wheel lift is included if you handle truck wheels, because lifting a heavy assembly onto the shaft by hand is the practical limit for one technician. Power varies: many units are 110-115V single phase, while some heavy-duty models are 220V single or three phase, so confirm before ordering.

Installation, freight and what is included

Balancers ship by freight on a pallet. Most are bolt-down units and should be anchored to a level slab so the machine reads accurately. Follow the manufacturer’s leveling and anchoring instructions, because a machine that is not level will not calibrate properly. Calibration is a first-use step and is covered in the manual. Cones, adapters, hammers and weight trays vary by model, so check the listing for what is included. New equipment carries a 6-month limited warranty as standard, and the extended warranty offered on qualifying remanufactured drivetrain units does not apply here. Call 440-374-1039 with your largest wheel size and we will check that the machine covers it.