post tire spacer shimmy re-visited

Think I posted about this a while back... I got a 2012 6cyl trd 6-speed manual 4-door.
When I got the truck about a year ago, it came with a lift and after market rims and tires (a little bigger then stock). Back then I noticed I got a shimmy (steering wheel vibration, seats shaking, etc) I was lucky enough to get the original stock rims and tires that came with the truck, that the dealer happened to have. After a while trying to figure out the shimmy, I eventually changed back to the stock, and of course, shimmy went away.
I like the look of the aftermarket rims and tires, so I just put them back on, thinking maybe the shimmy might go away. Not the case. Still got it. So, figuring the above info, I am guessing it's the spacers? I was gonna try just the rims without spacers, but as you can probably guess, they would hit the brake housing. Now, back when I had the problem, I must have had the tires balanced 3 times, last being the road force balance, and still had the shimmy. So would it be safe to say it's the spacers?
Next question would be, if I got some new spacers, do you think that would solve the problem. I am not sure of the brand I have now, but maybe they are warped? I've seen new ones for around 100 bucks. Not cheap but not out of the question, but would rather not buy them, install, and find out I still got the shimmy. I also read that maybe changing the lugs, but I do have the self-centering cone shaped ends on now, so don't think that would make a difference. Any suggestions. Any brand recommendations. If it means paying a little more for a better spacer that wont warp or give me a shimmy, so be it.
Also, maybe a lower profile spacer. When I tried to put the rim on by itself, the clearance was close, barely scraping on the brakes. I think I got 2 inch spacers...would have to measure to be sure, but can I get a not so wide spacer. This would also solve another problem...with the wheels sticking out past the fender a little, it kicks up alot of dirt on the truck. Anyway, what are your thoughts. Wanted to see what you all had to say before I move forward.

 

Yes very well could be. I wouldn't go bigger than a 1.25" spacer. The best brand out there is SpiderTrax. I run them and lots of others on here do as well. I've never seen a complaint or heard of a failure. SpiderTrax are hub centric, they will center up perfect and you won't have to worry about them being out of round or "warped". As far as your dirt problem.... Well you can do flaps and flares but id just let the mud fly. It'll wash off!

 

just ordered the spidertrax like you suggested. Can't wait to get em and see if they solve the shimmy problem. I actually called the company and the people there were very friendly and helpful. I just wanted to see what they had to say as far as the problem I was having. Hopefully this solves it.
Once I get em and install em, will follow up with another post. Thanks again.

 

where the after market rims hubcentric? I ask because you can get rims that fit that aren't hucentric...if not, that probably was the problem

 

Great! I hope it solves your problem. One thing about it, if it dosent help you can rule out spacers being an issue. You will be impressed by the quality of the SpiderTrax.

BTW, my rims are "lug centric" and i use them with the SpiderTrax spacers. They work perfect and i have no issues like yours, just saying so dont be concerned if your wheels arent hub centric.

 

From doing a little research I think my rims are lug centric as well. They came with the truck, so I didn't really have much say in it. lol. But I'm hoping that the spacers will solve the problem. Now that I think of it, I guess I could have put the stock rims on the spacers to see if I still get the shimmy. What the spidertrax spacers have that mine don't are the lips that center the rim. I'm hoping this difference solves it. The aftermarket rims I got with the truck are Ion Alloy brand and I think the model is 171. After checking a few sites, one said they were not hubcentric. In the past in dealing with this, I had the rims/tires balanced 2 or 3 times (last time road forced) and was told the rims were fine each time, but still had the shimmy. So hoping it's not the rims, but you never know...
If I still get the shimmy with these spidertrax, I guess next step would be to find some hubcentric rings (if I could find the right size), as these would make the lug-centric rims hub-centric. I guess we'll see. I'm hoping the new spacers solve it, though. I wonder if they could have balanced the tires with the spacers on the rims and that would have solved the problem back then? hmm. Anyway, thansk for the replies. Definitely makes me more confident in which way to go with this.

 

Your doing the right thing. But no its not possible to balance rims with spacers attached. Also if your rims arent hub centric then the ring on the Spider Trax wont matter, thats what its for, hub centric wheels.

 

you can get hubcentric rings that will help 'centering' the rim, lets say the aftermarket rims are 110mm center bore (fairly common), Tacoma's are 106mm...you then get the proper centering ring, in this case it would be a 4mm ring, and magically the lugcentric becomes hubcentric...

just check with a Discount/America's Tire and they may have them in stock, if not, they can get them...if you know the actual mm of the aftermarket wheels bore, you can snag a set from Ebay.

here is a link to what I am talking about...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Hub-Centric...Parts_Accessories&hash=item1e8a0f602d&vxp=mtr

I have used them on many different vehicles with aftermarket rims and had very good success eliminating weird vibrations...

since your hubcentric stock rims don't vibrate, and the lugcentrics do, it is worth a try, just sayin'...

 

If your saying the spacers you have now dont have the protruding ring then dont put your stock hub centric wheels on them. They have nothing to center themselves on.

 

I would bet your aftermarket rims are lug centric and like suggested need the spacers. Many of the aftermarket rims are 110 mm. center bore, to be able to fit multiple applications. I ran into this with my Moto-Metals when I got them, and had them balanced a few times before realizing the problem. Buy the correct hub centric rings, and have them properly installed, I suspect your vibration issues will be over.

 

Sorry to thread jack but this is a very similar question... I have lug centric wheel spacers and stock trd wheels and get a slight vibration... Do you guys think hub centric rings could fix this?

 

I bet they would, and for around 15.00 for a set of 4, it's a pretty inexpensive attempt at a solution. If you know the correct diameters inside and out, you can pick them up on Amazon .

 

If your wheel spacers dont have a flange sticking out for the center bore then the rings will do you no good.

 

Yeah I see what you are saying... The rings will center the wheel spacer on the hub but the wheel will still essentially be free floating...well I already ordered a set for $10 so we shall see what happens

 

According to http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=9SIA08C17N6723 (WTF, Newegg sells wheels now?) the center bore is 108 mm. You'll need hubcentric ring Gorilla P/N 108-106.1, which can be found on a number of web sites, such as

Gorilla Automotive 108-106.1 Wheel Hub Centric Rings (108mm OD x 106.1mm ID) - Pack of 4

http://www.amazon.com/Gorilla-Automotive-108-106-1-Centric-106-1mm/dp/B0032HQJ7G

The rings will probably be necessary to eliminate the vibes. Otherwise the wheel doesn't actually center itself over the 106 mm flange on the Spidertrax spacer.

Rings are not used when balancing the tire/wheel. Since the balancing machine clamps to the wheel with a cone-shaped piece, the wheel will be centered on the machine regardless of whether it has a 106 mm or 108 mm center bore.

 

I'd like to see pics of the OP's "spacers" (& wheels) that cause the shimmy...



Just so we're all on the same page.

 

sorry for not posting sooner. I been busy with a bunch of other things, so haven't had time to work on installing the spacers. I got them in the mail several days ago, though, so I should be good to go, but the more I think about the replies so far, I am thinking to play it safe, I am gonna order some of the rings some of you were talking about. Just need to pull a tire and measure the aftermarket rim hub size.
As far as pics, I'm hoping I can pull a wheel tomorrow and get some pics to post.

 

I finally got a chance today to put the new spidertrax spacers on. After a little test drive, seems to have fixed the shimmy. Previously was getting it between 40-50 mph, and now no more shimmy or vibration. From what I saw when installing, the spidertrax fit more snug to the factory hub, which is what I think made the difference. Plus, the extruding ring on the spidertrax, although there was still a slight gap between spacer diameter and the rim diameter, is definitely a plus in helping the wheel center better. If this didn't work, I figured I'd have to get some of those rings previous posts mentioned. Now, I haven't had a chance to take it out on the highway and hit some higher speeds (i.e 70, 80, 90, etc) but I think the problem is solved. It definitely has a smoother ride, and feels tighter. Even though the shimmy/vibration was happening at 40-50 the most, now, all speeds feel better for some reason. and it seems to handle more solid. So, thanks MagneticTaco79 for the suggestion on getting the spidertrax. They seem to have fixed the problem. I would definitely recommend them, even though they're a little more pricey. The company employees were very helpful when I called them with a few questions, also. There were brands that were cheaper, and they may have worked fine, too. But I figured after reading the reviews, I'll just go with the better ones and be done with it.

 

Can you place these hubcentric rings inside a wheel spacer that is not hubcentric, or are they only used on rims?

 

you would need two hubcentic rings per wheel, 8 total, and even then I am not sure they will work..hubcentric is really the best way to go...I have dealt with hubcentric rings before and they can be a problem, especially when having tires balanced or changed out, the techs that do this kind of work are hit and miss as far as paying attention, some times even loosing a ring, which is what I ran into more than once...