Front end alignment

[scatter]

My specs were in the white binder that came with the van when I picked it up from SMB west. They were typed up on an SMB letterhead sheet of paper.

[Zeta]

Originally Posted by jage

Ditto with mine (05)...

Anyone want to volunteer to contact SMB and see if you can get parts lists and alignment charts for ALL years of SMB 4x electronically (like the original Word file or whatever), then I can post them here...?

Ditto with Quigley and any other specifications we can get electronically.

Anyone ever do this? I need the specs for an alignment after a ball joint change--26k miles!

Z

[daveb]

If you do find the correct info please add it to this sticky.
viewtopic.php?f=3&t=907

[Stumpalump]

It is so simple to set on a solid axle front that you can google it and do it faster than driving over to a shop to get it done. Camber is fixed by the knuckle C, setting the steering wheel straight.. you can figure out yourself because it's so easy and toe is set by placing tape on the front of the tires and measuring the distance. Roll the vehicle so the tape is in the rear and measure again. The difference is the toe. Spin the tie rod adjuster so the distance when the tape is in the front is 1/16 to 1/8" less than when it's in the rear. It's really that fast and simple. When you're done with toe you adjust the drag link to center your steering wheel. That's the bar coming off of your pitman arm on the steering box. Do all of this with the weight on the vehicle and not jacked up.
Castor is fixed by the spring perch but if you want to check it you can put an angle finder on the top ball joint flat spot or kingpin. Turn the van 180 and park in the same spot and measure again. Average the two and that's your castor. Angle finders are $4.49 at harbor freight. You do it both directions to compensate for unlevel ground. Left and right rarely match. a couple degrees off is OK.
All you need is the tape measure for toe but if you want to see castor use this: http://www.harborfreight.com/dial-gauge ... 34214.html

[John and Dana]

One thing to ask the shop is if their alignment rack can handle a 10,000 lb truck. Most of the shops in my area said their racks couldn't handle that weight. Big O, Les Schwab, and Discount Tire all said no. I ended up using my local Ford Dealer.

Cheers,
John

[charlie56]

Originally Posted by Stumpalump

It is so simple to set on a solid axle front that you can google it and do it faster than driving over to a shop to get it done.

I have to disagree with you on this one.
I had a tape measure alignment done by an unnamed shop (OK, its the one that has worked on virtually every SMB on the West Coast) just before a week trip to Utah. When I got back, the fronts were completely toast. I took it into a local shop and had it properly aligned. Its been perfect ever since. Lesson learned, never trust a tape measure alignment. Here is the report.