I've seen a host of ways to adjust the toe in for the front tires and all seem to fall short in one way or another, (chalkline, 2x4's, chains, angle irons, etc.) The pictures show the guage I made about 30 years ago and have alligned dozens of cars and the results have been excellent. It's made of 1x4 wood and takes about 15 minutes to make. (1-pc x 6'0--2 pc x 10" and 2 pc. x 14") Assemble as in the picture--make the 10" feet project below the 6'0 crossmember so the crossmsmber is a little above the floor--the 14" risers are spaced 55"apart and the tops are 16" above the floor. Mark a center line on one riser and attach a piece of measuring tape or ruler to the other riser. Now to use it! First;Jack the front end and place on jack stands (tires 1" off ground). Next align the front tires with the centerline of the car. (I eyeball them to line up with the rear tires, but many other ways will work, just try to get them close to straight) Now slide the guage under the car and line it up to the rear of the tires--make a mark on the tire on the control side (I use tape to make it easy) and make a mark on the ruler side and remember the dimention. Now move the guage to the front of the tire, rotate the tires to bring the tape in line withthe guage, set the control end on the mark on the tape and then read the ruler end. The difference in the readings indicate the amount of toe in or toe out, and it is easy to adjust the tie rod to make the adjustment. And that's it! I'm sure I'm not the only one to use this method but I've never seen it on the FB, so I thought---oh,oh!! PS I've done this with the tires on the ground and there is no difference, so I like the jackstands.
Handy Dandy Toe In Tool
- Thread starter jetrod
- Start date
bdave_mcc
Senior Member
Good tool! one thing I was taught a while back was to jack up the wheels and use a something steady to hold a marking device or even just something sharp that will scratch a line onto the tire(I have used an old hacksaw blade with a point cut onto it) Hold the marking tool against the tire while being held steady on a jackstand or whatever and spin the tire to mark a straight line around the circumference of the tire. Use that line to measure off of. This will help compensate for any runout you may have in the wheel or tire assembly.
Fred S
Senior Member
I'm new to this, and a friend showed me marking a line on the spinning wheel method, and then we used a tape, to measure both sides. A two man operation, using the tape. This is a much simpler one man job. I think hinges could be used on the end boards, and bolts with wing nuts on the risers, allowing the whole thing to be folded up and stored flat. Thanks for sharing your invention.
Fullraceflathead
Well-known member
The Spring loaded Curtain Rod is still the most accurate and simple once you understand how and why it works IMO. It can even be used with slightly bent wheels.
Mike V. Florida
Well-known member
The only trouble I see is that if there is any looseness in the front end the measurement would be off when the wheels are on the ground.
BILL WILLIAMSON
Well-known member
Whatever method you use, the MAIN THING is to observe the tread wear, REGULARLY!-- IF it's SMOOTH, with NO signs of SCUFFING, from the outside in, or the inside out, & drives properly, YOU'RE GOOD TO GO.
Bill W.
Bill W.
Y-Blockhead
Well-known member
As strange as it sounds I couldn't find a spring loaded curtain rod locally so I made my own 'gauge'. I like 'making' my own tools anyway.
hardtimes
Well-known member
As strange as it sounds I couldn't find a spring loaded curtain rod locally so I made my own 'gauge'. I like 'making' my own tools anyway.
Good thinking
! What does the measure guage look like ?
Chuck Sea/Tac
Well-known member
How high up are you measuring? The 1/16" is for 6" off the floor.
Y-Blockhead
Well-known member
Good thinking
The 'measure gauge' I just mark the 'plunger' and adjust to 1/16" (+/- 1/32") toe in (~6-7" off the floor as Chuck said, front and back
Tom Wesenberg
Well-known member
For the plunger on the wood rod you could use a bolt or threaded rod and nut with 16 threads per inch, then set the nut to touch the wood when on the front side, roll the car forward and adjust the tie rod to get one thread showing on the rear.
Of course when the rear is changed, the front will be also, so be sure to recheck the toe in both front and rear after making the adjustments.
Of course when the rear is changed, the front will be also, so be sure to recheck the toe in both front and rear after making the adjustments.
Y-Blockhead
Well-known member
Good point Tom. Yes it wasn't actually as easy as I made it sound. I did have to recheck and have to readjust.
Another point Tom made is to only roll forward.
BILL WILLIAMSON
Well-known member
Refer to post #11.
Bill W.
Bill W.
Phil Brown
Well-known member
Made these up the other day, real easy to use just push up to the tire hook a tape in the cut in slot on one side and read the number on the other side. I like to use two tapes and just leave them there (one front and one in the back) as you make the adjustments
Got a set for the race cars that are made out of a bent aluminum plate that work real good too
Got a set for the race cars that are made out of a bent aluminum plate that work real good too
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Tom Wesenberg
Well-known member
The problem is unless the wheels and tires are perfect with no wobble the toe in could be off. 1/8" wobble is acceptable and if each wheel has 1/8" wobble, that could throw off the measurement by a lot.