34 ford Toe IN

J Franklin said:
That is why I said your favorite tire shop. The shops I patronize can do the job right. Sure it can be done at home, but the question was concerning the easiest way.
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i see your point! My point is to rest easy that night knowing the job was done right. :D
 
I took my '46 to the local Ford dealer, where we have our daily drivers serviced, and they did a four wheel alignment check. The only adjustment they could make was toe in, which the Tech corrected. They told me when I made the appointment, that they would need the specs., as their info doesn't go back that far. The Tech had to convert inches toe in to degrees, as the computer system works I degrees. It cost me $100, and was more accurate than the tape measure method.
 

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get the wheels off the ground, wrap around the tire once with masking tape, have your helper spin the wheel while you make a nice line with pencil or fine point marker. works good to hold the marker on the edge of a piece of wood to be steady. make a nice line. if it sucks, do it over. tape is cheap. actually, in school they taught us to spin the wheel and spray paint around the tire, then scribe a line with a pick. i have found that the marker or pick is less likely to try and follow the tread pattern if running on smooth tape. you cant just measure from the tire tread, its not accurate. now have your helper hold the dumb end, you read the smart end. should be 1/16 to 1/8 i believe
 
51woodie said:
I took my '46 to the local Ford dealer, where we have our daily drivers serviced, and they did a four wheel alignment check. The only adjustment they could make was toe in, which the Tech corrected. They told me when I made the appointment, that they would need the specs., as their info doesn't go back that far. The Tech had to convert inches toe in to degrees, as the computer system works I degrees. It cost me $100, and was more accurate than the tape measure method.
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So, the "Tech" read the specs that you supplied, then told you the only thing he could check was the toe in. Oh but of course, you paid him $100 because he knew his method was more accurate.
 
Some of you folks have gotta be kidding me. These are JUST OLD FORDS, for crying out loud. A monkey wrench, a hammer, (and a tape measure) are plenty good enough. Hundred bucks? you got more to piss away than I have.
 
I did alignments at four different shops.
Nothing wrong with the tape measure method, nothing wrong with paying $100 to set the toe-in.
I wouldn’t pay it. I wouldn’t piss away money on booze, cigarettes, or gambling either.
Nor would I spend money in a strip club or a race track.
It’s kind of like spending money on a 50 or 100 year old car when for less you could be driving a newer on.
Whatever blows your skirt up.
If the specs for toe-in are 1/16 to 1/4 inch the tape measure is just fine.
It’s like getting excited because three of the tires have two pounds too much air and one is three pounds over the recommended pressure. Who decided what the correct amount should be anyway.?

The method Cas3 wrote above is exactly what the RollsRoyce dealers were doing when I
worked at the Rolls dealer in San Francisco in 1966 and 1977.
 
When I had a shop do mine they adjusted wheel bearings, straightened the tie-rod, and adjusted the toe for under $50. But that was a few years back. A good shop can do the job. The last time it was adjusted I did it myself with a profesional adjustment bar, spring loaded with the chains. If you are in a club maybe some member has one of those.
 
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After I put a new front end on my '40 coupe I adjusted everything myself, with basic tools, in my garage. Then took it to a buddy's shop and he used his 4-wheel laser machine......no changes from my initial set up needed.......the "old fashion" methods work just fine, if you are mindful of the specs and have a modicum of skills.
 
Aarongriffey said:
The method Cas3 wrote above is exactly what the RollsRoyce dealers were doing when I
worked at the Rolls dealer in San Francisco in 1966 and 1977.
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You brought back a memory.... The way I was taught, way back when, was to spray a stripe of paint (silver or white) down the center of the tread (wheel jacked up, spin by hand). Then, using a scribe, spin the tire by hand and scribe a line down the center of the tread. The scribe was a spring-loaded tool that was set on the floor, while rotating the tire by hand. Then, the tape measure method. Always hand-rolling the car forward, before the measurement(s). I've still got my spring-loaded scribe.
 
J Franklin brings up another important point.
Before attempting toe adjustment or setting you must check for any wheel bearing play.
Then spin each wheel to see if the wheel is running true. If more than 1/4 inch wobble in the wheel you need to replace the wheel. Check for bumps in the tires too.
You must check for play in the king pins or ball joints and check for play in the tie rod ends and drag link ends.
There is no caster or camber adjustment on a solid axle car but although the camber difference from one side to the other is not critticle the caster is.
If you have more positive caster on one side it will cause the car to pull to the other side.
Caster can be adjusted by twisting the solid axle. Camber can be adjusted by bending the axle as close to the end as you can.
I have seen tires cause a car to pull to one side. I can’t explain that one.
 
I just made my own tool . Since setting it up no issues and no wear problems.
 

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