Does investing in tire mounting equipment actually save money?

J.G.
By J.G. Pasterjak
Jun 23, 2024 | tires, wheels, tire mounting, wheel balancing | Posted in Shop Work , Tires & Wheels | From the June 2022 issue | Never miss an article

Photography by Chris Tropea

If you spend any time on track, then you know you’re going to go through tires at an accelerated pace. It just comes with the territory. And the expense of mounting and balancing those additional tires starts to add up.

In our case, we’d been paying a local tire chain about $130 to mount and balance a set of tires. We always got great service, but we still had to take the time to load up the wheels and tires, drive them to the shop, head home to wait, and then, finally, fetch the tires when they were ready.

We also noticed we were missing opportunities in the name of frugality. While $130 doesn’t seem like a lot of money, multiple expenditures of $130 add up quickly. Plus, we noticed that it becomes easy to not mount a set of tires when we probably should for testing, competition, or just a track day when we’re trying to produce consistent editorial. So that $130 you think you’re saving is a false economy, as it results in inconsistent results and frustration.

Obviously, we know our situation as a motorsports magazine is unique, but we have plenty of “civilian” friends who run two or three track days a month and go through even more tires than we do. This problem is not particular to our experience.

So we decided to explore our options for DIY mounting and balancing. The result was a set of BendPak mounting and balancing machines delivered to our shop: the R980AT mounting machine, featuring a single assist tower and swing-arm mounting head, along with a DST-2420 balancer.

The Practical Realities

Want to mount and balance your own tires? First, you’ll need some space. Each machine needs a good couple of feet on each side to operate comfortably, and a bit of a standoff from a back wall is handy as well. 

Next, you’ll need power. Both machines run on 220V from a 30-amp service. 

You’ll also need a good, dry compressed air source. Dry is a key word here. The mounting machine has a moisture separator built into its air inlet, but we added another one at the air source to further combat our dense, humid Florida air. 

The mounting machine is extraordinarily heavy. The floor of your shop isn’t so much holding it up as the machine is holding down the floor. You’ll need a flat, level concrete surface and some help–human or mechanical–to unload the machine from the crate. The balancer is easier to move but does require proper anchoring to a concrete floor.

Finally, you’ll need a few consumables, like wheel weights, valve stems and cores, lubricant for mounting tires, and a few specialized tools to deal with the aforementioned bits. 

Mounting and Balancing 101

Operating a tire mounter takes some skill, but anyone comfortable doing basic maintenance on their own car should be able to get comfortable using this equipment. 

We hadn’t mounted a tire since 1987, and the equipment was far less specialized back then, but the basic physics of the operation came back to us pretty quickly. Add in the more modern machinery, the absolutely invaluable assist arm, and a good online knowledge base with tips and suggestions, and you should be up and running in no time. 

The best advice we can give you? Your first few mounts and dismounts should be on a set of wheels and tires that you absolutely don’t care about, as the machine has the power to destroy anything improperly positioned.


One recommendation that we hope you’ll absolutely take to heart is to spring for the assist arm option, particularly if you’re on the short side (5-foot-6 kings represent) or routinely mount wide tires that are difficult to wrap your arms around. Our R980AT came so equipped, and the assist arm is a mechanical third hand that takes a lot of the physical effort and awkward motion out of mounting. It makes difficult fitments reasonable and simple fitments downright easy.

The DST-2420 balancer, meanwhile, is simple and intuitive to operate. It can handle wheels up to 30 inches in diameter, so your donk friends have a place to go to shed the shimmies. The simple display and interface make setup and operation smooth and easy as well.

Let’s Do the Math

Before you say, “I saw a set of this equipment on Craigslist the other day from a shop that had been hit by a derailed train for $400,” allow us to justify our decision to spring for the new gear–$5280 for the mounter and then $2615 for the balancer. (Note that BendPak occasionally runs specials or has promotions, but we’ll use the full list price for our math.)

The machines come with pretty comprehensive starter kits, including an assortment of stick-on and clamp-on weights. Consumables for each tire–assuming you use a new valve stem and core each time you mount, which we don’t always do–usually run under a buck. 

So that’s $7895 for two machines to perform a $130 service. Just on hard costs alone, that means the machines will pay for themselves with the 61st set of tires we mount–in well under two years at our rate. Then figure in the time and hassle savings plus the convenience of being able to mount and balance anything at any time, and the investment starts to seem very reasonable indeed. And yes, there is quality used equipment out there for less, but it doesn’t come with a warranty or a factory tech line.

The Ranger R980AT mounting machine’s assist arm greatly facilitates the process, while the brand’s balancer is easy to use. 

For an individual who wants to purchase the equipment for their own use, certainly some of these costs could be offset in the form of favors, chicken wings, or beverages from friends who now have a buddy with tire mounting and balancing equipment. For clubs or small groups of people who want to go in together, the math gets even more economical. 

We figure we’ve made plenty of other specialized tool and equipment purchases that didn’t offer this kind of usefulness or payback. If you’ve been on the fence about adding equipment like this to your own shop–and you have the infrastructure, budget and space to support it–our experience is showing that this gear is an extremely useful addition.

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Comments
Toyman!
Toyman! GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
5/11/22 12:55 p.m.

Yes. 

Edit: You spent a good bit more on the machines and the answer is still, yes. 

 

s2europa
s2europa New Reader
5/11/22 1:33 p.m.

It's well worth it. You also can't find a tire shop open a 10:00 pm or 3:00 am, either. My manual Roger Krause tire machine ($300) has paid for itself many times over. I'm going to invest in a pneumatic one soon, since I am getting too old to do the manual one anymore. :)

SV reX
SV reX MegaDork
5/11/22 1:34 p.m.

I'd have to include the cost to build an addition on my shop to fit the machines...

Tom1200
Tom1200 UltraDork
5/11/22 2:11 p.m.

For those of you who do a lot of work it makes total sense. For people like me, who buy 2-3 sets of  tires per year (including race tires) it makes no sense whatsoever.  Also note the used tire place by me will do 4 tires for $85.

Good information on what the equipment actually costs.

 

APEowner
APEowner GRM+ Memberand SuperDork
5/11/22 2:12 p.m.
SV reX said:

I'd have to include the cost to build an addition on my shop to fit the machines...

That's the challenge I have as well.  I'd love to have tire machines but I don't want to give up any of the equipment I'd have to displace to fit them in my shop.

klodkrawler05
klodkrawler05 HalfDork
5/11/22 2:43 p.m.

We bought our pair of machines used for $1000, then invested in a really nice air compressor for $1200, we kept a tire fund jar and kept all our "tips" from helping locals do tires for $20-50  set. Once we recouped our $2200 we closed up shop to all but our closest family/friends.

Wound up with free tire changing equipment and as mentioned above, no looking for a tire shop at 10pm at night, or paying $85 to swap a set of nearly used up tires onto wheels for a local autox event so you can save runs on your good sets etc. Heck if you aren't balancing track tires (why would you) then you can pretty much swap a set of tires in the time it would take to load them in the truck, run them to a tire shop and get back home. let alone waiting for them to be done, then driving another trip to/from the tire shop.

Toyman!
Toyman! GRM+ Memberand MegaDork
5/11/22 2:50 p.m.
Tom1200 said:

Good information on what the equipment actually costs.

Their price is for really good equipment at retail. 

My machines were about 20% of what they spent, new and delivered. Granted this was 5-6 years and a pile of inflation ago. 

 

Tom1200
Tom1200 UltraDork
5/11/22 4:18 p.m.

In reply to Toyman! :

Understood I remember a couple of you detailing what you spent.  Even at $1500 it would still take me 10-15 years to recoup the cost and I'm also lazy. The tire place a mile from my house turns them around same day. 

I also have 3-4 Llanteras open until midnight. I live in a heavily Hispanic neighborhood; there's taqueria truck in the same lot as the tire shop so I can get a yummy snack while I wait. 

SupraFiend
SupraFiend New Reader
5/11/22 4:41 p.m.

It's worth mentioning the risks of doing your own wheels too.

I worked in mechanics shop just out of high school, and I found it a little challenging to get good at mounting as I didn't have to do it everyday. Slipped the press once and caught the edge of the rim and cracked a customers aluminum rim. That was a bad day.

Later in life I brought a pair of 10inch wide JDM wheels I wanted to squeeze some 225s on. The kid who did it didn't identify that the combo wasn't going to work and ended up gouging up the rim and ripped the tire. The shop paid to replace the tires and had the wheel refinished. A buddy of mine had the same thing happen to him once too.

If you run really low profile tires on fancy rims, I would recommend taking them to a pro with a high end machine.

 

bearmtnmartin (Forum Supporter)
bearmtnmartin (Forum Supporter) GRM+ Memberand UltraDork
5/11/22 5:01 p.m.

How often does a tire need balancing? I have a friend who is in the tire business and he says new or undamaged tires rarely need balancing as they are naturally round when manufactured. (makes sense). He thinks balancers are often just a scam. And when you think about it, why do tires always need weight? Ever spun a new tire that the machine said did not require something? 

Heavy trucks rarely have wheels balanced other than steers. I have six old unbalanced 11r22.5 tires on the fossil and they run very smooth. I never balanced drive tires in almost two million miles in heavy trucks.  After impact damage or a skid or abnormal tire wear sure, but without those factors i am not convinced. I never heard of anyone balancing circle track tires either. The speeds are not as high as a road course but on a half mile track we will see over 100 for twenty minutes. 

Feel free to discuss!

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