Easy alignment jig

[roadmonster]

"The thing I tried to avoid was a moving tool. Solid tool, moving tire."

??? I don't understand that statement. I have a "track stick" similar to your toe-in jig left over from my stock car days. It has to be moved from the rear of the wheel to the front of the wheel, sometimes more than once to compare measurements. These plates are put in place and not moved until the job is finished. Yes, saw cuts can be used instead of a holesaw; just a matter of preference. The radius is cut out of the top to clear hubcaps, spokes, wheel weights, etc.and also reduces overall weight. If you put braces or props on these, they need to be adjustable; not all wheels are 90 degrees from the ground. Some street driven cars (especially those with beam or tube axles) have positive camber and many race cars have negative camber.

Good points. Not trying to be critical of your solution. I understand the purpose of the cutouts, but you can just cut the boards below where interference begins. Camber does not affect parallel, so 90-degree boards will work with any wheel. Your solution is obviously effective. By "moving tool" I meant something that was jigged up against the tire and moved with the tire. The camber would tend to make the top edge fall away from the tire and I don't see anything to keep it in contact. This post was aimed at newbies (which you obviously are not) to encourage them to do their own alignment. It is not in any way an argument about which method is best. The stick is quite accurate or I wouldn't use it on my own car.

 

[meangreen]

Not criticizing your way either; just offering an alternative...

Yes, the stick is fairly accurate. The one I have has little bolt heads that rest against the sidewall of the tire about 12 inches from the ground. First you have to insert it under the car, stand it up, and adjust it so the bolt heads are touching both tires at the rear sidewall of the tires. Then carefully slide it out from under the car without bumping the adjusters and move it to the front of the wheels and see if the bolt heads are clearing the sidewalls by the appropriate amount. Ugh! It's pretty accurate, but a pain to use especially at the race track where space was sometimes at a premium in the pits. Your method, with a measuring device mounted right on the apparatus, would be easier to use because once you have the rear measurement you can use the increments on the ruler to determine and make adjustments without moving the stick a second time.

The plates took up much less space in the truck and were much easier to use at the track. Also, in our stock cars, the right front wheel was decambered about 8 degrees while the right wheel had about 5 degrees positive. We just slapped the plates against the tire sidewall and stuck them with 2" masking tape. It works good that way so I just do the same on street driven cars.

Both of these methods are good and your stick method is probably better if a smooth enough surface is not available for those plates to rest on.

JR

 

[Shadey]

I have done the marks on the floor before and it worked nice for me. I will have to give this a try to see if it matches up.