What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

Crab walking K5... ideas?

Metal Twister

Metal Twister

1/2 ton status
Joined
Jan 8, 2010
Posts
323
Reaction score
0
Location
SoCal Diego
I was informed that my 77 Blazer crab walks down the road. What causes the the rear to track the front off to one side? Ive measured body to frame on all corners and tire to frame on each corner. everything checks out ok with the exception of the front left corner tire to frame is 1/2" wider than the left. Im scratching my head. I know the history of the blazer and its never been smacked hard enough to bend the frame rails. Any ideas?
 
Optical illusion created by a narrower rear track width...

Rene
 
Rene is probably right.
Just to be sure, drive striaght down a dirt road and then go back and look at the tracks.
The tire overlap should be the same on both sides. If its really crabbing, it should be obvious.

If it really is, assuming that you have not done something weird to the suspension, shorter spring on one side than the other, something like that.

Then, you may have sheered off a kingbolt and the axle tube has slid on the spring pack.
 
USSkoval said:
I agree.

Unless a center pin is sheared on a rear spring.
Click to expand...
Darn it, I typed too long. You beat me to it.

BTW, when I was growing up, we always called it a kingbolt. Not sure why.
Around here I mostly hear center bolt, or center pin.

Anybody ever hear kingbolt besides me?
 
I never have, might be an older term (no ageism meant BTW)

Rene
 
center pin....


in a K5's case, it'll be an illusion due to the track width. BUT in many vehicles cases that you'll see on the road, it's indicative of frame damage.... tho certain subframed 70's GM's where VERY prone to this due to frame misalignment...
 
I never have, might be an older term (no ageism meant BTW)
Click to expand...

HA! Don't sweat it, I predate Ageism!!!

And, given that the first time I heard it was when I broke one on my 1960 CJ-5 along about 1971, it may have fallen out of the vocabulary by now.
 
I've always heard it called dog tracking :D

crab walking would totally sideways,,, wouldn't it?

that would be interesting, and a serious problem :tongue1:
 
friend of mine had his 2000 silverado lifted at 4wp's once and his was crabbing....turned out they installed the rear blocks upside down and backwards...go figure
 
Fordum said:
Darn it, I typed too long. You beat me to it.

BTW, when I was growing up, we always called it a kingbolt. Not sure why.
Around here I mostly hear center bolt, or center pin.

Anybody ever hear kingbolt besides me?
Click to expand...

Kingpin? i hear that a lot.
 
We call it dog tracking here. We use crab walking for rigs with four wheel steer. We use center pin.

King Pin kinda makes sense though. I knew what you ment.
 
I actually did some crabbing in my old CJ once.
No way to prove it now, of course, although the guy who was with me is still around and might remember.

I was way back in the swamp and they were logging in the area.
The log trucks had worn the ruts out so deep in this old swamp road, that I would have gotten high centered if I tried to stay in the ruts.

So, I was easing along in 4Low splitting the ruts until I came to a tree right alongside the road.

Nothing to do but try to carefully cross over.
Somehow managed to get my Jeep perfectly straight across the road with the rear wheels in one rut, and the front wheels turned the way I wanted to go in the other rut.

Let off on the clutch, and the rear wheels just turned slowly wearing off the edge of the center, and the front wheels pulled us along.

Dead sideways.

We looked at each other and started laughing. I just sat back, let go of the wheel and gave it a little more gas.

We drove along that way about a mile or so, past some astonished loggers, doing about fast walking speed, until we hit a hard spot where the ruts were not so deep and it climbed out.

My first and last time "crabbing".
 
Been there done that except only for a few hundred feet, it was only a short section that had lots of water still after the rain and the ruts were from the 5 ton army trucks.:whistle:
Fordum said:
I actually did some crabbing in my old CJ once.
No way to prove it now, of course, although the guy who was with me is still around and might remember.

I was way back in the swamp and they were logging in the area.
The log trucks had worn the ruts out so deep in this old swamp road, that I would have gotten high centered if I tried to stay in the ruts.

So, I was easing along in 4Low splitting the ruts until I came to a tree right alongside the road.

Nothing to do but try to carefully cross over.
Somehow managed to get my Jeep perfectly straight across the road with the rear wheels in one rut, and the front wheels turned the way I wanted to go in the other rut.

Let off on the clutch, and the rear wheels just turned slowly wearing off the edge of the center, and the front wheels pulled us along.

Dead sideways.

We looked at each other and started laughing. I just sat back, let go of the wheel and gave it a little more gas.

We drove along that way about a mile or so, past some astonished loggers, doing about fast walking speed, until we hit a hard spot where the ruts were not so deep and it climbed out.

My first and last time "crabbing".
Click to expand...
 
CherryK5 said:
Kingpin? i hear that a lot.
Click to expand...
But a kingpin is what lets the knuckle turn on a heavy-duty axle - the beef version of a ball-joint. I have seen many square-nose Chevy's accused of dog-tracking over the years because the rear track is like 3" narrower. The optical illusion is more pronounced with a lift.
 
Thanks guys, now im anxious to get behind another k5 to see what it looks like going down the road. I wasnt sure if there was a name for it so "Crab walking" it was. :haha:no wonder nothing came up in the search, I should of been looking for "Dog Tracking". Now I know. thanks for the help, I checked all the bolts over "Kings and Queens" :doah:everybody is in place and in good working order... Who knows why its Lizzard lunging?:confused: :D
 
Last edited:
Lizzard Lunging I like that one.

The wider your tires are the more it seems to do it.

Had tons of people tell me my blazer was dog legging or whatever you want to call it. I even measured everything to prove to a buddy it wasn't, he still thought something was screwed up, I don't think I ever convinced him it was just an optical illusion
 
I think the terms are relative to location...
If you live near the ocean, it's crab walking.
If you live in/around the desert, it's lizard lunging.
All other locations, dog tracking.
:D

and 'Kingpin' was a great movie.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom