Alignments...

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redfastback said:
Your #'s came out good. He did good on factoring in right side caster for road crown. THe difference is between the 2 is right about where it should be. 4* pos caster is gonna feel great at high speeds....
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Ok, I forgot about people doing that for road camber. But is 0.7 difference quite a bit for that?

And for that do you run the more caster on the right or the left? It should pull a little to the side with the more caster.

IMHO, running 3.5 degress negative camber on the street is too aggressive. If you had marks on the chassis to adjust it to 3.5 at the track I can see that. But with street driving I've heard 1 to 1.5 degree is about max with radials for a car that's not used for a back and forth commuter. The wider the front tire, the little less you should run.
 
yes you always run higher or more caster on the right or pass side i like 1/2 to 3/4 more but 1.0 deg with that older car should be fine. 1.5 deg. neg. camber is abount max for highway or street use. autocross 3.0 deg should work well but i,ve never did auto cross. thats good numbers for tire wear. even camber and a caster lead. the rack is just 4 wheel hunter rack with a hitch on front thats real cool.

P1011416.jpg
 
Caster shouldn't make it pull, on flat or crowned roads. His difference isn't that much. I never fo above .5 neg camber for street use. If I install a-arms with delrin or del-alum bushings, I run about 1/16th to 1/32nd toe since they have hardly any deflection.
 
autoxcuda said:
IMHO, running 3.5 degress negative camber on the street is too aggressive. If you had marks on the chassis to adjust it to 3.5 at the track I can see that. But with street driving I've heard 1 to 1.5 degree is about max with radials for a car that's not used for a back and forth commuter. The wider the front tire, the little less you should run.
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I run just a hair less than one neg. deg. camber on my skinny 14's. But if you did any actual straight line driving you would want less. But the roads I drive on are like a road course so if I run anything less than that I wear the outsides.

I said racecars and autox. I was talking about race only cars.
 
ramenth said:
If you're going to check with a box store ask for their top alignment guy. Some of the shops I've worked for we shared alignment duty, but other shops we had the alignment tech, and that's all he did. Personally, that's the kind of shop I preferred, simply because it's that guy who knows the equipment in and out who can compensate for sticking plates, a wrack which is slightly out of level, etc. (been there, done that.) This is especially important for the older systems which used strings to tie the heads together or the older laser systems. A guy who can compensate for the slight irregularities is someone who knows his stuff. Ask to talk to that guy.

If you're looking at customizing the specs on the alignment, like throwing in a a little extra camber, just be aware that some of the box stores aren't willing to do this as it means increased tire wear and they like to keep things within factory specs so a customer doesn't come back b****ing that the tires are worn. So ask some questions.

If you take it to a shop ask for print outs of before and after. Look at the prints to make sure both sides are in where you want them. Some guys will get it to the green and lock it down, even if the measurements aren't the same side to side. Some of the box stores don't allow the customers to be in the service area. Ask about that, too.

If you're going to customize your specs ask them if they mind if it takes a while. Test drive it, get a feel for it. If it's not where you want it, then do it again. It might take a while and you might have to pay more, but make sure they know what you want right off the bat and have an understanding that you're not a pain in the *** customer, but a good one, who knows what he wants and is willing to communicate it. If they think you're a pain in the ***, then beware of what you get! So it's important to have good communication right up front with your desires.
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X2 on the guy who ONLY does alignments!
Our 69 just had tires and alignment done. Our local shop has 2 guys who ONLY do alignments and have been there many years.
When I went back to pick up car the lady told me they charged extra $10.00 for tightening front wheel bearings before the alignment so it was $55.00 not $45.00! THANK YOU!! I hadn't even noticed and probibly wouldn't have! I know it's not BS for extra$ becaus they do so much for free when I just "Stop in" for stuff.
Thanks to the great tech who knew his tweaks!!:cheers:
 
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