Right time and place. Score!

Mart

Mart

Well-known member
So I happened to drop by my local scrappy and was having a mooch as usual. My eyes fell on a bit of kit that I recognised. Tracking gauges! A tenner later and they were mine!

These are the pukka Dunlop AG030 alignment gauges.

dunlop01_zps8000d454.jpg


The only thing missing was the mirror. A trip to the local glass shop and £5.70 later I had one cut to fit.

dunlop02_zps944bb189.jpg


The little lens where you do the readout is missing but I can still use it as is, I will make a little pointer to make it easier.

dunlop03_zpsb9faff08.jpg


I spent a couple of hours freeing them up and resetting the zero, and tried them on the front wheels of the coupe. I could read them well enough to see the coupe is running parallel to very slightly towed out. So that's the next job, to set that right.

Feeling quite pleased with myself. £15.70 well spent. You can actually still buy these guages but they are getting on for £500. Even older units still regularly fetch over £100.

I'm well chuffed especially as I was working on the front end geometry on the coupe, it couldn't have come at a better time.

Mart.
 
Priceless! I wish I could find someone locally who had one of those! All I got when I called around for an alignment was "it's not in the computer, sorry."
 
That sure looks better than the JC Whitney one I used years ago. I used to use it to set the toe in but would always take the latest project to a guy in town to check it out. Everytime he would say that it was right on the money but he had to charge me the $10.00 anyway for the time. He used to do alignments at the local Studebaker garage and when they closed he bought the equipment and for the next thirty years he made a good living in his own alignment shop. He sold the business and when I got my 37 coupe finished the new owners and a couple other shops told me they could not even check toe-in on my car same reason no specs for the computer to setup.Just sad.:(
 
Yesterday I used the chalk and stick trick to check the toe in on my 29 Packard. Right on the money! I ain't got no stinkin alignment 'puter
 
Ross F-1 said:
Priceless! I wish I could find someone locally who had one of those! All I got when I called around for an alignment was "it's not in the computer, sorry."
Click to expand...

Real mechanics are getting harder, and harder to find.

My best leads come from the drag racers I meet (they break lots of stuff;)).

37coop said:
a few words/phrases the locals wont quite understand.....like it .
Click to expand...

Looks like he's got it sussed...

I chat with a few folks from the UK on a guitar forum. We are separated by a common language.
 
37coop said:
a few words/phrases the locals wont quite understand.....like it .
Click to expand...

This is the interesting thing about variants of language. I prefer to use the terms common to my country, ie: Muguards instead of Fenders, Bonnet instead of Hood etc. In this way we share a little of our culture with our fellows, I like this aspect of communicating with others around the world.

Actually I like the banter that sometimes follows on... the last one I remember was a 'Barner' mentioning our word Bonnet. He couldn't understand why we would use such a word, as he only knew of the garment which covers a ladies head. Of course the point is a Bonnet does indeed cover a head, or heads if it's a V8.;)

Viva La Differance.
 
Fe26 said:
This is the interesting thing about variants of language. I prefer to use the terms common to my country, ie: Muguards instead of Fenders, Bonnet instead of Hood etc. In this way we share a little of our culture with our fellows, I like this aspect of communicating with others around the world.

....
Click to expand...

I correspond regularly with an Aussie and he calls fenders "wings", as I recall. It's all good, I like the international aspect of the forums. Especially some of the Norwegian guys, incredible skills.
 
Ross F-1 said:
I correspond regularly with an Aussie and he calls fenders "wings", as I recall. It's all good, I like the international aspect of the forums. Especially some of the Norwegian guys, incredible skills.
Click to expand...

I would have expected an Aussie to call a Fender a "mudguard" Wings are spoilers.
The area that we are being forced to change in is spelling because we use Microsoft, it wants us to use American spelling.
Over here we use "Vapour", "Apologise", "Aluminium", and a lot of other things that the spell checker tells us repeatedly, is wrong. (I lied about Aluminium)
What is a "turtle"? Is it the speedo drive gear?
 
He's a Southern AU'er, LOL, regional difference?!

As to "turtle", not sure, need context? Turtle deck on a T?

He did not understand my reference to a "freeze plug", because nothing freezes in his part of AU.
 
There is a thread about diff ratios, at the mo. Yes it is the speedo drive gear.
Another one I have come across is diffs being called pumpkins, or third members.
And yes, I remember the Frost, Welch, Core or freeze plug thread.
 
When spell checker highlites a word that is spelled differently just tell it to learn it, problem solved. Do it all the time.
 
As far as computer alignment, can't you just give them the specs to enter? That is what I did when I got an alignment on my 49. Gave him the pages from the shop manual and brought in sample pieces and showed him how the adjustments worked on the caster and camber. Was out of there in an hour and all was well.
 
"turtle" used to refer to the "turtle deck" (curved, domed trunk lid) on the older cars, shaped like a turtle shell. The speedometer drive which attaches to the torque tube is also referred to as "turtle".
 
I just used the gauges to set the toe in on the coupe. 18" toe in on a 28inch wheel equals 30 minutes approx. I was toeing out 20 minutes. Just about 1 turn on the track rod got it bang on the money. Took it for a good thrash and it really was very good. no lurching or surprises on the windy lanes, and tracked straight at speed (about 60mph) on the motorway including some bumpy bits over a bridge. I rechecked it after the run and the reading was exactly as before.

Very impressed with the gauges, very easy to use and very repeatable. Also as the last part of the steering improvements on the coupe a great success.

Mart.
 
1 more for the cultural exchange. The bludgeon is used to loosened the wheel knock offs, and then we have the spanner.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top