major wheel shake out of the blue
 

i realize that this truck grouping is '67 to '72 but perhaps someone can chime in about my problem. the truck is an '01 silverado 2500. all of a sudden the other day at 50mph the front wheels started shaking badly. i'm talking scary. i checked the tires for tread separation but i couldn't see anything. my daughter said one time she had a similar event on her car and it was an out of balance wheel. anybody have any ideas or suggestions?
TIA,
buddy

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

Easy stuff first.... are the lug nuts all tight? Check tire balance (maybe switch F--->R and R--->F). Could be worn out suspension or steering components, including a blown shock absorber. Good luck!

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

You got mud in your tires...

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

It is possible you lost a wheel weight at speed.

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

Hard to see ply separation in tires . The outside may look good but the tire is shot. Not saying this is your problem but if everything else posted doesn’t result in a fix I would have the tires spun balanced if there is a whip in the tire it will be obvious. How old are the tires ?

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

thanks for the suggestions. i inspected the rims and there isn't one weight on either, inside or out. this is my around town beater until i get my '69 back in service so i usually put take offs on it. i'd guess they are a couple years old. i've had a couple car tires over the years that started to separate and it was visible. probably these larger truck tires are stiff enough to hold together better. i'll keep checking.

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

Try getting the offending tire(s) balanced. The tire guys may notice something you didn't.

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

Check your hub bearings.

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

Mystery solved. Had the tire shop pull the wheels and one tire was separating but it wasn't visible while it was on the truck. Thanks for all the suggestions. Much appreciated.

Re: major wheel shake out of the blue
 

That fits with the sudden appearance of the problem