tools to get to do a good DIY wheel alignment.

[ryanprins13]

Thats sears usa, but i hadnt thought of them, thanks. Sears Canada's website was down for repairs. Canadian tire sells an 8 in one like that for $70, i just hadnt been looking for a torpedo level. I just bought this level on ebay for $37

http://www.ebay.com/itm/281221180493

And these longacre racing toe plates. For $108 http://www.ebay.com/itm/331724195351

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[ryanprins13]

so for alignment shims in the rear where do you guys get them and do you use 2x 1.5 degree shims or are you getting 3 degree ones somewhere? someone mentioned they got 1.5degree shims from summit racing and used 2 per side on the rear. rockauto sells moog and ac delco 1.5 degree shims for less than half of what summit does. Is there a difference in brand quality or build style? Last time I talked to skeeters_keeper he was still hoping to have some plates made for forum members by the end of december, if that doesnt happen I want to know which rear shims to buy, thanks.
heres the link to the summit racing ones for $14: https://www.summitracing.com/int/par...5200/overview/
The rockauto ones by moog and acdelco look the same to me for $6.50 and $8.57 respectively. https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...ent+shim,10657

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[gergorian]

What about using this? ( For those of us that have harbor freight) http://m.harborfreight.com/digital-a...uge-95998.html

[Advancedynamix]

What about using this? ( For those of us that have harbor freight) http://m.harborfreight.com/digital-a...uge-95998.html

That's very similar to the Angle Cube I originally used. The Angle cube was around 30 bucks online. The battery died and I ran to Home depot and bought a 6" digital level that I use now.
You'll want a straight piece of steel to stick that little level to when measuring at the wheels.

[Advancedynamix]

so for alignment shims in the rear where do you guys get them and do you use 2x 1.5 degree shims or are you getting 3 degree ones somewhere? someone mentioned they got 1.5degree shims from summit racing and used 2 per side on the rear. rockauto sells moog and ac delco 1.5 degree shims for less than half of what summit does. Is there a difference in brand quality or build style? Last time I talked to skeeters_keeper he was still hoping to have some plates made for forum members by the end of december, if that doesnt happen I want to know which rear shims to buy, thanks.
heres the link to the summit racing ones for $14: https://www.summitracing.com/int/par...5200/overview/
The rockauto ones by moog and acdelco look the same to me for $6.50 and $8.57 respectively. https://www.rockauto.com/en/catalog/...ent+shim,10657

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Most people use washers or custom made shims for over 2 degrees adjustment.

[gergorian]

That's very similar to the Angle Cube I originally used. The Angle cube was around 30 bucks online. The battery died and I ran to Home depot and bought a 6" digital level that I use now.
You'll want a straight piece of steel to stick that little level to when measuring at the wheels.

Hmm ok. I took a quick look on Home Depots website and couldn't find any 6 inch ones. BUT, I did find https://www.amazon.com/Digi-Pas-Digi...ct_top?ie=UTF8 If its good enough for the guys at Bad Obsession Motorsports it should be fine for me.

[Advancedynamix]

There ya go!

[ryanprins13]

Most people use washers or custom made shims for over 2 degrees adjustment.

Ok, thanks. Should you always keep front and back the same for camber or would it be beneficial at all to go negative 2-3 degrees on the front and only -1.5 on the back for simplicity of just using one of those shims?

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[Dragonhealer]

Hey Charlie! What's your street cambers on Pedro?

[ryanprins13]

So my angle cube and toe plates arrived.

I ordered some acdelco and moog 1.5 degree shims for the rear from rockauto. They havent arrived yet. Im still not sure if the car would handle ok if you ran different camber front to rear but i am thinking of doing -1.5 degrees at all 4 wheels.

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[william]

I have -1.5 ish in the rear factory aspire rear, and run -3.5 up front . It handles great but I would like to have more in the rear and get my toe closer to 0 it's toe in now I believe , it's been a while .

[FestYboy]

Having dissimilar camber specs only changes where the car wants to balance at the limit. You'll never feel it during normal driving. The last few cars I set up had dissimilar camber specs on purpose.

[Advancedynamix]

Hey Charlie! What's your street cambers on Pedro?

Currently -4 degrees on all 4 corners.

[ryanprins13]

I have -1.5 ish in the rear factory aspire rear, and run -3.5 up front . It handles great but I would like to have more in the rear and get my toe closer to 0 it's toe in now I believe , it's been a while .

Thanks. Did you ever try it with 1.5 all around or just less in the front straight away?

Having dissimilar camber specs only changes where the car wants to balance at the limit. You'll never feel it during normal driving. The last few cars I set up had dissimilar camber specs on purpose.

Ok Thanks. I did a bunch of reading on alignments today and it seems the only people who question how to align their cars different from factory are those who want to race...
But I think -1.5 degrees all around will work well for what i want to do. Straight line braking tire grip will be more important than cornering grip i believe.
and slight toe in on the front and rear. Front should pull to zero toe when power is applied which will be all the time when im towing and go back to slight toe in when i let off the gas or brake is the theory in my head anyway.

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[Advancedynamix]

Thanks. Did you ever try it with 1.5 all around or just less in the front straight away?





Ok Thanks. I did a bunch of reading on alignments today and it seems the only people who question how to align their cars different from factory are those who want to race...

That's just the most common group that you'll find discussing camber, but it's not the only place for this topic. I've found the factory settings to be less than ideal on a good portion of the automobiles that I've owned, even for daily driving. Want 5 more mpg, 15k more miles from your tires and better traction everywhere? Many cars can reap the benefits of better alignment optimization.
Negative camber is also helpful in a straight line. It improves traction and stability, while reducing rolling resistance.
Your estimate is a good starting point. You may not be able to get more than a degree of negative camber in the front with stock replacement struts though.
Toe is critical to tire wear, more so than camber. Camber is often blamed for tire wear, but it's the toe that causes the scrub and wears the tire in the spot of most pressure. Neutral toe drastically reduces tire wear and rolling resistance. Neutral toe without a good amount of negative camber may feel unstable and might tend to wander. The negative camber helps stabilize the car. Kind of like skiing. When your not on edge at all the skis wander around, but tilt your knees in a bit and you gain stability.