Swap the front end?
CK5
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Already spent $700 on arms and brakes to fix the factory stuff.
I priced out what it would cost to replace all the factory balljoints, tierods, arm & strut rod bushings and came to about $305 if I remembered.
So I waited for someone to upgrade their upgrade in hopes it would work out. Front disc and 2 pot MC was a nice upgrade, just noticing that when I loaded the trailer.
So I waited for someone to upgrade their upgrade in hopes it would work out. Front disc and 2 pot MC was a nice upgrade, just noticing that when I loaded the trailer.
Well, just got the call.
Shop spoke to CPP tech support and they said I have "too heavy a spring rate" in the car because the lower control arm should be flat.
Thats what the shop is going with. Nothing has been done and now I have to pick it up before work somehow.
If I have to swap springs and then change my spindle back to stock height, Plank will sit. No BB. I can't afford this shit and already tried against my better judgement.
Shop spoke to CPP tech support and they said I have "too heavy a spring rate" in the car because the lower control arm should be flat.
Thats what the shop is going with. Nothing has been done and now I have to pick it up before work somehow.
If I have to swap springs and then change my spindle back to stock height, Plank will sit. No BB. I can't afford this shit and already tried against my better judgement.
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$355 so far to align the front
Not sure how much flatter these arms are supposed to be...
Maybe they need the tierod to drag the ground? Bullsht
This shop was so fixated on the toe IN and not wanting to cut the tierod shanks down to shorten the overall length. I told them fix the CAMBER, which pushes the lower balljoint out at least 1/2-9/16" which would also push the toe OUT. They couldn't grasp this because new car tierods are in front, which wouldn't toe out...they would toe in. They moved neither camber plate on the driver side, both are in the inner most position.
They charged me $50 to flip the FRONT plate around. Said it did nothing (again fixated on toe) I asked "did you flip both plates? Flipping both would push the BJ/ spindle out, because camber is wrong and same time it would toe out" The answer I got was they were trying to call CPP tech support. OMG
My driveway has a pretty good slope on it. This is the "over sprung springs" CPP says I have and a pair of 2" drop spindles. I still have the springs that came on the donor clip, in the pile. Looking at the CPP website, they appear to be the same. If they drop the front any more, I will have to change spindles. Once I get the car pulled into the backyard where the slab is level, I can test it better. PS- CPP sells the springs I am currently running. Not in their kit but separate. I bought elsewhere, cheaper.
Not sure how much flatter these arms are supposed to be...
Maybe they need the tierod to drag the ground? Bullsht
This shop was so fixated on the toe IN and not wanting to cut the tierod shanks down to shorten the overall length. I told them fix the CAMBER, which pushes the lower balljoint out at least 1/2-9/16" which would also push the toe OUT. They couldn't grasp this because new car tierods are in front, which wouldn't toe out...they would toe in. They moved neither camber plate on the driver side, both are in the inner most position.
They charged me $50 to flip the FRONT plate around. Said it did nothing (again fixated on toe) I asked "did you flip both plates? Flipping both would push the BJ/ spindle out, because camber is wrong and same time it would toe out" The answer I got was they were trying to call CPP tech support. OMG
My driveway has a pretty good slope on it. This is the "over sprung springs" CPP says I have and a pair of 2" drop spindles. I still have the springs that came on the donor clip, in the pile. Looking at the CPP website, they appear to be the same. If they drop the front any more, I will have to change spindles. Once I get the car pulled into the backyard where the slab is level, I can test it better. PS- CPP sells the springs I am currently running. Not in their kit but separate. I bought elsewhere, cheaper.
The bottom of both tires are about 1/2"-9/16" INWARD. (Using a large square on the ground)
With the passenger side FRONT plate being flipped, I can tell that sude camber is better.
I believe I can get all this worked out myself. F-everyone. My biggest concern is caster. Thats not an easy thing to check on IFS nor simple to fix without affecting another axis.
Also, brakes are done. I don't know how the front brakes might be affected with a spindle change. Meaning, would they still work
With the passenger side FRONT plate being flipped, I can tell that sude camber is better.
I believe I can get all this worked out myself. F-everyone. My biggest concern is caster. Thats not an easy thing to check on IFS nor simple to fix without affecting another axis.
Also, brakes are done. I don't know how the front brakes might be affected with a spindle change. Meaning, would they still work
Sucks there are not a lot of guys that use their brain and do actual mechanic work vs following what the machine tells them on the newer stuff and not being able to do anything else.
I ran into similar stuff at the dealer. We would take on some older stuff to align and I never gave it to the young buck.
It sucks they fixated on the toe and lower arm angle. I’m actually shocked they called CPP. What I’m guessing there is they may have only told them bits of information and not the whole thing or just heard one think like the arm needing to be flat and used it as a way out rather than just trying to align it.
Sadly I think you are right. You know the setup better than they do. Of course you sharing that with them as easy as that sounds comes off with them being insulted because you are telling them how to do their job and they get butt-hurt over it.
I’m going a ways back in my memory but I do recall when I was helping a tech of mine set up his circle track car we set the alignment without a machine. Tape for toe obviously but the camber and caster were set using a digital angle finder on the flat face of the rotor. Camber is as pretty easy to measure. Caster is measured on the sweep of the steering. I don’t remember actually how we did it as I was the one turning the wheel, but I’m sure you can find a process searching online.
It sucks they fixated on the toe and lower arm angle. I’m actually shocked they called CPP. What I’m guessing there is they may have only told them bits of information and not the whole thing or just heard one think like the arm needing to be flat and used it as a way out rather than just trying to align it.
Sadly I think you are right. You know the setup better than they do. Of course you sharing that with them as easy as that sounds comes off with them being insulted because you are telling them how to do their job and they get butt-hurt over it.
I’m going a ways back in my memory but I do recall when I was helping a tech of mine set up his circle track car we set the alignment without a machine. Tape for toe obviously but the camber and caster were set using a digital angle finder on the flat face of the rotor. Camber is as pretty easy to measure. Caster is measured on the sweep of the steering. I don’t remember actually how we did it as I was the one turning the wheel, but I’m sure you can find a process searching online.
I made a piece to measure camber and castor. It's a 1x1 angle about 20" long. Then two pieces attached to it. One at the bottom then another you can move in 1/2" intervals. Those contact the wheel bead surface and hold off far enough to not touch the tire. Stick an angle finder on that.
Wheels straight forward. Measure your camber and check vehicle level. If you're not level, add or subtract that to your camber values. IE: if it leans toward the driver side then subtract the value from DS and add to PS.
Make your castor measurements in pairs. DS rear sweep and PS forward sweep with it turned hard driver. Repeat turned hard passenger for the other pair of measurements. Then it's adding or subtracting to find the difference. Been a while since I did it and it took a couple tried beating my head on the hood to get it to sink in.
Wheels straight forward. Measure your camber and check vehicle level. If you're not level, add or subtract that to your camber values. IE: if it leans toward the driver side then subtract the value from DS and add to PS.
Make your castor measurements in pairs. DS rear sweep and PS forward sweep with it turned hard driver. Repeat turned hard passenger for the other pair of measurements. Then it's adding or subtracting to find the difference. Been a while since I did it and it took a couple tried beating my head on the hood to get it to sink in.
The fella that took on my '68 C10 had no machine. Did a number of my family's cars and they were always right. Not till just before he retired did a machine show up in the bay. Wish that knowledge got transfered.
