Kaleb

Does anybody run water in their tires to lower their center of gravity? Just wondering if it is worth doing. If so would you ever run it on the road? Does it limit your braking ability?

KevinInSac

I wouldn't do it personally. I would imagine that i might rot the tires. You wouldn't park your truck in a creek and leave it there for a very long period of time.

The idea of the water sloshing around in the tires seems like it would throw thing horribly off balance too.

OSU4Runner

Never heard of that before. Doesn't sound like a good idea...

Intrepid

It is more of a thing that comp guys do than regular weekend warrior types. You would be honestly surprised how far off camber you can get a regular truck before it goes over without water in the tires. I wouldn't worry about it.

OSU4Runner

How does water in the tires help? Never heard of it before.

Ringmaster

They "Load" Tractor tires, Skidsteer tires, Logging skidder tires, Garden tractor tires, etc. to add more weight to the vehicle for better pulling ability.

Not a good idea for anything that travels on-road.

Kaleb

I only asked because trail gear sells a water fill adapter.
http://trail-gear.com/wheels.html

4rnr

Its a Comp thing. by filling the tires with water you can add around 1000-1500lbs of low, unsprung weight. Is makes the buggy super stable and I would imagine it would increase traction with extra weight but since it is unsprung you wont feel the charecteristics of a heavy rig.

As for you (if your rig is whats in your avatar) its not really intended for you.

I was thinking about this today. If I filled my tires with water and decided to drive it on the road what charecteristics would I get. Because Im pretty sure the water isnt rotating mass, even though it is in the tire, The water should not be rotating. It should be like when you fill a glass with water and spin the glass, the water(any liquid) doesnt move. Even if the water eventually starts to spin when I brake the tire will brake but the water will just simply "free spin".

Kaleb

Fill a water bottle half way with water and roll it on a table. Now stop it. Now do the same thing with an empty bottle. Which one was easier to stop? Thats right the empty one. It is still mass in motion that the brakes have to stop.

James Dean

It may not rotate at first, but it would start after a couple hundred feet at high speed. Not only that but it adds to the wheels rolling weight, and if I'm not mistaken an object in motion tends to stay in motion.

SoCal4Running

My daily driver has water filled tires, of course its a 30,000 lbs forklift and we have the tires filled for ballast not traction. Max speed is 25mph and I dont notice any side affects by having water in the tires. It handles like a battleship no matter what.

4rnr

Right, but thats simply because of the enersia(sp). I know it will be harder to stop. but would it be harder to stop than if you simply put 1000 lbs in the bed?

Is it really rolling mass?

Im honestly asking, I get bored at work and was pondering this

It doesnt really matter, and is off topic

Kaleb

I guess it's a rolling mass depending on how much water is in the tires, and how fast the vehicle is traveling.

1000lbs of water in the tires vs. 1000lbs of weight in the bed...

That would be interesting to find out.
I never really thought of it that way.

James Dean

Yes, it is rolling mass. The same way that for ever inch of wheel and tire you increase, your supposed to increase brake rotors by 1/4". It's not the same as adding 1000lbs in the bed. I have alot of drag and circle track friends and tire weight makes a difference.

4rnr

Because when you brake you dont necessarily stop the water from rotating.

4rnr

Huh?

but how would water fight the braking effort and how could the water force the continued rotation of the tire??

SoCalWheeler71

I'm a mechanic and I've seen some pretty corroded wheels just from having been filled up from a "wet" air source (compressor tank condensation). It doesn't seem to hurt the tires but steel wheels could literally rust to failure, and alloys can oxidize until the beads no longer seal. I also know that liquid inside rotating wheels has some very strange handling quirks on bicycles. You've all seen the X-Games BMX stuff on TV? I used to ride and my buddies figured out that you can't do barspins if you have "Slime" (a liquid tube re-sealer) in your front tire. No matter how hard you spin the bars it causes the barspin to stop abruptly before it comes all the way around. Not really relevant I know but still kinda interesting. Also in regards to how liquid affects momentum/inertia- Tanker semi trailers have crazy baffles in them because if there werent any the truck would lurch forward after stopping due to the liquid in a half full tanks shifting. So I don't think it would be safe to run water in your tires on a street driven rig. Don't the comp guys also run their tires half full of shot too?

Squeebs

It actually balances it.


Read the label of a can of fix-a-flat. even that will balance.

4rnr

Well as for corrosion, comp guys dont worry about it they dont get 40,000 miles out of a set of tires. And I, or any street rig that I know of, are not planning on doing this. Im just being that annoying 8yr old kid that asks why?, why?, why?, until you want to punch him in the temple.

As for tankers... sure I understand that. That why I distinguished between water in tires and water in bed. My question is just how the water in tires could become rotating mass.

Are we oficially off topic yet.

SoCalWheeler71

Ok, back on topic-
Yes, not a good idea, and yes!