Home  |  Forums  |  914 Info  |  Blogs
 
914World.com - The fastest growing online 914 community!
 
Porsche, and the Porsche crest are registered trademarks of Dr. Ing. h.c. F. Porsche AG. This site is not affiliated with Porsche in any way.
Its only purpose is to provide an online forum for car enthusiasts. All other trademarks are property of their respective owners.
 

Welcome Guest ( Log In | Register )

 
Reply to this topicStart new topic
> Wanted to rent alignment tool, DIY frt. end alignment
Harpo
post Dec 31 2011, 09:44 AM
Post #1


Senior Member
***

Group: Members
Posts: 1,304
Joined: 21-August 11
From: Motor City aka Detroit
Member No.: 13,469
Region Association: None



I would like to rent a DIY alignment tool. I have seen them for sale for $200 - $250 But because I don't anticipate ever doing this again it would be too expensive for a one time use. Does anyone have one and is willing to work out some arrangement?




Thanks

David
User is offlineProfile CardPM
Go to the top of the page
+Quote Post
SLITS
post Dec 31 2011, 10:16 AM
Post #2


"This Utah shit is HARSH!"
**********

Group: Benefactors
Posts: 13,602
Joined: 22-February 04
From: SoCal Mountains ...
Member No.: 1,696
Region Association: None



Nope ....

"String the car"

....four jack stands (or ?) of equal height. Stretch a line between two of them at the center line of the wheel hubs, equal distant away from the hub (each side of car). Floor of garage, pad, whatever, should be level (and no wind).

then a good ol' measuring tape to measure distances between the string and front/rear of the rims. Toe in / Toe out can be set this way'

Drop a plumb bob from the fender thru the center line of the wheel hub to near the ground. Measure from string to top and bottom of wheel and calculate camber.

User is offlineProfile CardPM
Go to the top of the page
+Quote Post
rgalla9146
post Dec 31 2011, 10:36 AM
Post #3


Advanced Member
****

Group: Members
Posts: 4,741
Joined: 23-November 05
From: Paramus NJ
Member No.: 5,176
Region Association: None



QUOTE(SLITS @ Dec 31 2011, 08:16 AM) *

Nope ....

"String the car"

....four jack stands (or ?) of equal height. Stretch a line between two of them at the center line of the wheel hubs, equal distant away from the hub (each side of car). Floor of garage, pad, whatever, should be level (and no wind).

then a good ol' measuring tape to measure distances between the string and front/rear of the rims. Toe in / Toe out can be set this way'

Drop a plumb bob from the fender thru the center line of the wheel hub to near the ground. Measure from string to top and bottom of wheel and calculate camber.

Those four jack stands go under the outermost ends of the suspension. Not the floor pan !
The hubs would be ideal.......if you have the nerve and a truly flat floor.
User is offlineProfile CardPM
Go to the top of the page
+Quote Post
TheCabinetmaker
post Dec 31 2011, 10:52 AM
Post #4


I drive my car everyday
*****

Group: Members
Posts: 8,335
Joined: 8-May 03
From: Tulsa, Ok.
Member No.: 666



I have a question about this method of setting up the strings. If you use the centerline of the wheel hub as a gauge to set the strings from, and assuming your are using the same measurement front to rear, I'm seeing the two strings as not parallel. First, the front track is over 2" (40mm) less than the rear. This is not parallel, and even if you adjusted the dimension in the rear, it would seem that the rear hub will not remain in the same spot as you try to set the toe. The pivot point is at the front inside of the trailing arm. It seems the track would change as you changed the toe. Having the strings perfectly parallel is the key to a successful alingment. In this scenario, it also seem that the toe on the front would be incorrectly set also because of the misplaced string.

I think the strings need to be set from the center of the car, but just how do you determine the exact center?

If my thinking is off base, please feel free to explain it to me.

BTW, I was a factory trained chrysler front end specialist in the 70's , also worked in a few dealerships, so I do have some alignment theory.
User is offlineProfile CardPM
Go to the top of the page
+Quote Post
SLITS
post Dec 31 2011, 11:10 AM
Post #5


"This Utah shit is HARSH!"
**********

Group: Benefactors
Posts: 13,602
Joined: 22-February 04
From: SoCal Mountains ...
Member No.: 1,696
Region Association: None



I can't write a book on how to do it (actually, I am just lazy).

You are correct that the strings need to form a rectangle with parallel lines to measure from. We place the jackstands about 1' in front of the car and 1' behind the rear to form a "perfect" rectangle by setting the distance between the jackstands the same.

The discussion was merely a method of doing it without buying or renting a tool. It will get you damn close depending upon the accuracy of your measurements.

Confused? Google it for the complete method.
User is offlineProfile CardPM
Go to the top of the page
+Quote Post
sixnotfour
post Dec 31 2011, 11:20 AM
Post #6


914 Wizard
**********

Group: Members
Posts: 10,809
Joined: 12-September 04
From: Life Elevated..planet UT.
Member No.: 2,744
Region Association: Rocky Mountains



redruM, I mean reRun;
http://www.914world.com/bbs2/index.php?sho...125788&st=0

for camber;
Taper is .017 per inch for 1 degree== 16" straight edge and a level==== 1 degree camber with 16inch str. edge is 16 x .017
Or;
http://www.furybusa.org.uk/camber.php


BTW Rays link appears to be broke ? Or he is tired of making copy ?

This works;
http://www.smartracingproducts.com/pdfdocs...ings_manual.pdf
User is offlineProfile CardPM
Go to the top of the page
+Quote Post
yeahmag
post Jan 1 2012, 11:46 AM
Post #7


Advanced Member
****

Group: Members
Posts: 2,448
Joined: 18-April 05
From: Pasadena, CA
Member No.: 3,946
Region Association: Southern California



The key to the toe alignment rig is to have horizontal bars that are exactly the same length. From there you are way ahead of the game than with jack stands as you starting with a parallelogram - easy to get to a perfect rectangle from there.
User is offlineProfile CardPM
Go to the top of the page
+Quote Post

Reply to this topicStart new topic
1 User(s) are reading this topic (1 Guests and 0 Anonymous Users)
0 Members:

 



- Lo-Fi Version Time is now: 30th April 2025 - 07:47 AM