Centramatic Wheel Balancers Legit?

Yes, especially on the steer tires.

 

I've owned my own tractor since 2002. The first one was a Freightliner Century, which I had for a year, the second one is a Volvo which I still have.

I never believed in them, but my steer tires always started getting abnormal wear patterns like waviness or certain dips in the tread in certain spots before I even had 40k miles on them.

I had new shocks put on every 100k and my kingpins were good.

I started seeing ads for Centramatics and started seeing them on trucks all the time.

I decided to try out a pair, so I bought a used pair off of eBay in 2010 and at the same time I had a new set of Michelin XZA2+ steer tires installed.

I was able to get well over 100k miles on them before they needed to be replaced because they were getting old and dry rotting and I didn't want to risk driving on them in the summer time.

The next set of steers I installed was Bridgestone R283 in 2015 and they are still wearing smooth and even with plenty of life left in them.

I probably have about 90k miles on them and they are still perfect.

I also have a full set on my drives too.

So the answer the your question is, yes they worked for me, maybe not for others, but I believe it was money well spent.

 

Yes.

 

Yes

 

Not a snake oil IMO.
They can't remedy bad alignment or any suspension issues, they eliminate imbalance and are more effective than weights glued to the rim. I have them on all 3 axles. My steers are over 175K now and I'll let them reach 200K then they will serve at least another 100K on trailer. Drive tires look good too. Besides, they are cheap enough... why not try them and see for yourself at least on steers?

 

Get balancing beads.

 

I've used both the centramatics and the beads. I think in the long run the beads are a little cheaper, and I like them better.

 

They were on the steer axle of my truck when I bought it 5 years ago. The steer tires have worn evenly and the truck has always gone down the road smoothly. It's a freightliner classic. Apparently its supposed to have a shimmy from what people say but this one never has. Not sure if they have anything to do with it.

 

Yes. They work.