picture of Tow rig After lift/tires

[1-ton]

I'd say he's clutching at straws.

That is one of the reasons I posted my reply. I did not hold much stock in the dealers blow off they gave to the problem.

Also, Caster does not cause pulling (Camber will). Caster is more about directional stability when it comes to handling chararistics.

 

[perp]

The rear lug nut thing sucks I will admit, but my only other option is to buy Lug centered wheels and there are only a few dually wheels in 17". I looked at them and they are VERY expensive (weld velocity8 @ 599.00each)

I appreciate the link to the other site. I had never heard of it but i will check it out for sure.

what do you guys think about this Idea: the bottom arms are adjustable. they have an excentric bushing much like a newer Jeep does. I figure the dealer is required to set the axle to spec only and i figure this adjustment is to set the castor/pinnion angle to factory spec all at once . Do you figure i could add + or - castor to both sides at the same time by moving this adjuster (equal amounts on each side) and by so mabe find a compromise between the two wheels? i figure the odds are that one C is welded right and the other (pass side) is rotated, so at stock spec one is dead on and one is way off, perhaps i can "split the difference". one a little to the + of specs, and one a little - of the specs. Anyone think this is a bad Idea?

 

[kyser_soze]

Looks good! Glad to see another member who has joined the lifted duelly club . Did you use blocks? I don't know if a shackle flip kit is out there for the Dodge but I used one on the K3500 and absolutley love it.

 

[ARAMP1]

what do you guys think about this Idea: the bottom arms are adjustable. they have an excentric bushing much like a newer Jeep does. I figure the dealer is required to set the axle to spec only and i figure this adjustment is to set the castor/pinnion angle to factory spec all at once . Do you figure i could add + or - castor to both sides at the same time by moving this adjuster (equal amounts on each side) and by so mabe find a compromise between the two wheels? i figure the odds are that one C is welded right and the other (pass side) is rotated, so at stock spec one is dead on and one is way off, perhaps i can "split the difference". one a little to the + of specs, and one a little - of the specs. Anyone think this is a bad Idea?

Without any way of seeing how much you're moving it, it's a bad idea. You could do the trial and error method, but chances are, you won't get it on the first try. Also, on some vehicles, (I don't know about the dodge truck) you set the toe last because changing the camber/caster changes the toe. I think you're on the right track though. I'd see about taking it to a shop that could set it to a nice compromise like you are describing.

 

[perp]

You are right about finding a qualified shop to try it, on the old K5 I'd take a swing at it, but on something this new I simply do not trust myself.

 

[perp]

Looks good! Glad to see another member who has joined the lifted duelly club . Did you use blocks? I don't know if a shackle flip kit is out there for the Dodge but I used one on the K3500 and absolutley love it.

Thanks

I used the superlift kit and it had blocks, but they are REAL beefy. shack flips would be cool to keep the spring plate away from the tire, but i do haul with it and the only easy way to keep the top side overloads was with blocks

 

[southernspeed]

You are right about finding a qualified shop to try it, on the old K5 I'd take a swing at it, but on something this new I simply do not trust myself.

I wouldn't just start guessing at settings like that, too many implications. Go to a proper alignment/suspension specialist and get them to check it out. I'm very dubious about what the dealership told you.

 

[sled_dog]

Also, Caster does not cause pulling (Camber will). Caster is more about directional stability when it comes to handling chararistics.

Caster WILL ABSOLUTELY cause a pull. Caster is the setting we use to correct for road crown. You set the left front just slightly less positive than the right front and the car will want to pull to the left. But because the road crown makes it want to go to the right it cancels out. Here is a quote straight from the Ford training course on Alignment:

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Caster is a directional control angle only. That is to say, if caster is not within specifications, it may cause the vehicle to drift or pull. It will not cause adverse tire wear patterns. As stated before, caster is the relationship between the strut/ball joint centerline axis and true vertical as seen from the side of the vehicle. Caster is used to aid in the directional stability of the vehicle and to aid in steering wheel returnability.[/FONT]

 

[perp]

Who knows of a good alingment shop in the metro Phoenix area, some place qualified for this kinda thing. I haven't every gone outside of the dealer for alignment work before.

 

[1-ton]

Caster WILL ABSOLUTELY cause a pull.

I have to retract the statement because I did not know he had independant adjustable Caster on the front end. There has to be quite a difference from one side to the other in Caster to develop a pull (say 5-degrees or more). Any difference less that 5-degrees is going to be little more than a barley noticble drift, and that would have to be on a perfectly flat street.

 

[sled_dog]

still don't agree. We only use about .5 degrees to correct for road crown, this will cause a slight drift like you mention. Much more than that will start to cause a pull. Granted I'm not talking a 4 lane change in a matter of seconds, but I consider it a pull rather than a drift when I can let off the wheel and the vehicle changes lanes for me in the amount of time I wouldusually take to do so.

 

[1-ton]

still don't agree. We only use about .5 degrees to correct for road crown, this will cause a slight drift like you mention. Much more than that will start to cause a pull. Granted I'm not talking a 4 lane change in a matter of seconds, but I consider it a pull rather than a drift when I can let off the wheel and the vehicle changes lanes for me in the amount of time I wouldusually take to do so.

I have two trucks right now with a Dana-60 that have about 1 to 1.5 degree in Caster difference, and I have no pull at all (slight drift yes, but pull no). One degree is a tiny amount. Your talking about 1/32 of an inch. Most auto manufactures allow a window of 3 degrees or less to be within factory specification tolorances. I am not sure how you could even get .5 degrees. That is such a miniscul amount, it would be hard to get an adjustment that small on purpose.