64 Dart front end confusion

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OLDFARTSDART

OLDFARTSDART

Moe
Joined
Jun 12, 2011
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Tokeland wa
OK guys and gals
Heres my dilemma I`ve got a vibration and it seems to be coming from the front end. got new cragars,new tires, checked balance twice,front end alignment. hum!!! still there ,I have one party saying rebuild your front end,so I have it up on stands and front hubs off then my buddy comes over and says my front end seems ok shucks who do you listen to. can anyone tell me how can you tell if the front end needs rebuilding?????

Moe
 
Have you pulled the drums off? Checked for play in the wheel hubs, or inspected the bearings? If all else seems well, it could be a hub or brake problem. Sometimes a spring may stretch or break causing a shoe to drag or shudder. It doesn't always have a noticable effect on braking right away but, will cause a heck of a vibration.
 
Grab one of the wheels while the front of the car is on blocks and move it around with your hands to see how much slop there is. Replacing the bushings with polyurithane and new ball joints is definatly a nice idea.
 
If you had a front end alignment and they didn't say it needed rebuilt I would think that means something. Did it wear tires before? Does it drive straight? Is the steering sloppy? Are all the tires and wheels the same size? If so put the backs on the front and the fronts on the back then see what happens.

Polyurethane bushings are much rougher riding then the original style parts are according to some members. There have been many people that have suggested staying with the original type equipment for street driving. Do some research and choose for yourself.
 
With the front drums off I can't get any sloppy movement,and when I try to shake the he'll out of it and it seems reasonably snug
Moe
 
OLDFARTSDART said:
With the front drums off I can't get any sloppy movement,and when I try to shake the he'll out of it and it seems reasonably snug
Moe
Click to expand...

Are you putting jack stands under the LCA's when you are shaking things?

I chased a vibration on a car many many years ago and in the end found out a tire was out of round. I would think they would have caught something like that since they have been balanced twice.

Did the same place balance the both times?
 
vibration-- how is your ball & trunion boot at the driveshaft?

is your vibration at a certain speed? does it get worse on acceleration or deceleration?

if they aligned the car--your suspension should be ok,
do a search on vibration -- there has been many topics covering -- keep at it it will turn up, Lawrence
 
Vibration comes at 45 to 50' had vibration before new tires and wheels,I asked les swab
If the front end needed to be rebuilt the answere it got ,was hard to tell. The old tires had wear on the out side and had the vibration. Boot is torn on the driveshaft,and the vibration ,started about 1 1/2 months ago.shocks look young!!!! Not trying to get out of spending the money,but don't want to fix it if it isn't broke!!!
 
.......a vibration on the fronr is usually a u joint/shaft problem.........a shudder or shake or wobble could be anything on the front.....do u feel this on the steering wheel...kim............
 
oldkimmer said:
.......a vibration on the fronr is usually a u joint/shaft problem.........a shudder or shake or wobble could be anything on the front.....do u feel this on the steering wheel...kim............
Click to expand...



Yes the steering wheel is the only place I feel it!!!!!

Moe
 
If the boot is torn on the U joint, you need to get that taken care of. It won't be long for the world, but might not be the problem

Can you swap tires temporarily front rear, or borrow a different pair for the front?

Also, pull the front hubs and carefully check the RACES of the bearings. I once had a hub wear itself a little "pocket" where the inside race was loose. This was not readily apparent. You could drive the race into the hub, and it "seemed" tight, but once it was completely seated, it would ---move--- just a little bit in the enlarged pocket.
 
Front Vibration is usually out of ballance tires or out of ballance drums / discs or out of round tires. If this just started, sounds like tires. But you just introduced new wheels also. We used to ballance wheels on the car and that would get things very smooth since you were ballancing the whole rotating assy, drum / disc and all. Maybe have someone drive beside you and see if they can see and jumping in either front tire...
 
This requires two people. Get the car on jack stands in the front. Get under the car and notice where all of the steering linkage connections are. Have your friend grab a front tire at the 3 and 9 position and shake it back and forth. Not enough to turn the wheels, just enough to shake and loose motion. As they shake it, look for any lateral movement between any of those connections. Have them do this on both sides. If you see any slop in any connections, you just found a bad part. Now, have them grab each tire at the 6 and 12 position and shake. Look at the ball joints top and bottom and make sure there is no looseness there. To further check the ball joints, Lower back down on the ground. Then jack each side up independantly until the tire is about 2" off the ground. Slide under the car so that you can see the upper and lower ball joints for that side. Have your friend stick a long prybar under the tire and pry up and down on it and notice any slop in the ball joints. There should be none. Check all the bushings with a good visual inspection. The rubber should be good and firm holding its shape and not be trying to squirm out of the bushing shells. If the bushing rubber is torn or distorted badly, they should be replaced.
 
Oklacarcollecto said:
Are you putting jack stands under the LCA's when you are shaking things?

I chased a vibration on a car many many years ago and in the end found out a tire was out of round. I would think they would have caught something like that since they have been balanced twice.

Did the same place balance the both times?
Click to expand...

Jack stands under the frame. Balancex2 same company,different guy been going there 30 years. New wheels,new tires,vibration there with old tires and wheels
Moe
 
if you havent solved problem try a old school alignmend shop i found out the hard way on my sons 73 dart 4 wheel computer is not the best for our classics
 
Ok gang I replaced the front wheel bearings ,one was not good. Replaced rear universal bad and am in the process of replacing the trunnion universal dust boot.

Thanks all for your input will post results

Moe
 
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