frt wheel alignment .....

[tallen4392 69]

Do you guys have any tricks to align the frt wheels after replacing the tie rods or do u just eyeball it ???

[8ntruck 7,034]

Maybe match the measurement from the edge of both rims or tires to the pivot bolt on the axle with the steering gear centered.  That should get you close initially.

 

Being used mostly on dirt and grass at low speeds, you probably don't have to be spot on

[RandyLittrell 3,885]

Just eye balling is fine, but you could measure from the front of the tire edge to the rear of the tire edge. 

 

 

 

 

Randy

[WHX?? 48,847]

I always just drew a string from the rear wheels to the fronts but Randy obviously has calibrated eyeballs... Probably line of sight gets it close lest you plan on going 55 MPH or plus! 

I will add some fellas like a little toe in or toe out depending  on what the tractor is being used for. 

[Jeff-C175 7,202]

I just did mine with rods from Lowell.

 

With the rods off, center the wheel push the seat forward and use a couple bar clamps to clamp the seat to the wheel to hold the wheel stationary in place.

 

Set the rods as close to the originals as you can and install then just snug.

 

Measure between the front of the wheel and the back of the wheel, they should be but might not be parallel.

 

If any difference is small, adjust one of the rods to give abojt 1/8" of toe in.

 

You may needto adjust both if the difference is larger.

 

My old rods were really worn!  I had almost a half inch toe out.

Drives MUCH better now.

 

By the way,  unless there is zero wear in the axle bores, the spindles and your wheel bearings are perfect, the flanged bushing at the front of the steering shaft is perfect, there will be enough slop to make the whole excercise sorta pointless, but it feels good to be at a point that feels good.

Edited December 16, 2020 by Jeff-C175

[ebinmaine 67,760]

I was taught to take two pieces of metal just less than the smaller total. Say if there's 24" between the tires. Use two 20" pieces. 

Place one atop the other and hold with vise grips at the least measurement. 

 

Let's say you want to have 1/8" tow IN. Center the steering wheel best you can. Lock the pieces of metal between the FRONT of the tires. Then move the metal to the back of the tires. There should be a space of 1/8". 

 

[RandyLittrell 3,885]

3 minutes ago, WHX24 said:

I always just drew a string from the rear wheels to the fronts but Randy obviously has calibrated eyeballs... Probably line of sight gets it close lest you plan on going 55 MPH or plus! 

I will add some fellas like a little toe in or toe out depending  on what the tractor is being used for. 

 

Toe out helps going into the corners and toe in will help when coming out of the corner, all depends on how you set up your race tractor!! 

 

 

 

 

Randy

[roadapples 6,983]

Toe in should steer easier...

[gwest_ca-(File Mod) 11,069]

Tractor wheels often do not run true but at low speed it does not matter.

Center the steering wheel if you can.

Standing on the left side of the tractor put a mark on the inside of the right tire at the 9:00 o'clock position. Take a horizontal measurement to the left tire.

Roll the tractor until the mark is at the 3:00 o'clock position and take another measurement between the tires.

Get the back measurement 1/8" wider than the front and you are done.

 

Garry

[953 nut 55,389]

10 hours ago, RandyLittrell said:

 

Toe out helps going into the corners and toe in will help when coming out of the corner, all depends on how you set up your race tractor!! 

 

 

 

 

Randy

You failed to include tire stager!            If most of your turns are to the left you want a slightly larger tire on the right.                 NASCAR fans know all about this stuff.                      

[Lee1977 6,681]

2 hours ago, 953 nut said:

You failed to include tire stager!            If most of your turns are to the left you want a slightly larger tire on the right.                 NASCAR fans know all about this stuff.                      

If you are dirt tracking you also want the right rear tire larger or pumped up tighter then the left.

 

.

[RandyLittrell 3,885]

5 hours ago, 953 nut said:

You failed to include tire stager!            If most of your turns are to the left you want a slightly larger tire on the right.                 NASCAR fans know all about this stuff.                      

 

I was trying to keep on topic at least a little bit!! I used to crew on a sprint car, so i'm all in on stagger!! 

 

 

 

Randy

[Mickwhitt 4,647]

Just bought a set of rod ends to replace the worn steering track rods on Fred. 

The original rods are fixed length so no way to adjust steering angle. 

I have a length of hard chromed steel bar used in hydraulic pistons which I will turn down and thread to tak the rod ends. It won't rust and should look good.

[oilwell1415 563]

I use only the latest laser alignment technology from Hunter.  Nothing is too good for my $500 tractor.  Not even a $40k alignment machine.

[ebinmaine 67,760]

2 hours ago, oilwell1415 said:

I use only the latest laser alignment technology from Hunter.  Nothing is too good for my $500 tractor.  Not even a $40k alignment machine.

I like your thinking pattern. 

 

No sense messing around and not buying the best you can. 

 

[Lee1977 6,681]

3 hours ago, oilwell1415 said:

I use only the latest laser alignment technology from Hunter.  Nothing is too good for my $500 tractor.  Not even a $40k alignment machine.

That's what's we all do,  "use what you have", not a thing wrong with that. 

[Achto 27,635]

6 hours ago, Mickwhitt said:

The original rods are fixed length so no way to adjust steering angle. 

I have a length of hard chromed steel bar used in hydraulic pistons which I will turn down and thread to tak the rod ends. It won't rust and should look good.

 

I like the hard chrome steel idea !!

 

I cut the ball joints off from the stock tie rods, then turn the ends down so that they can be threaded to accept the new ball ends. This way the original patina can even be kept if you wish.

[ebinmaine 67,760]

Anybody want to donate a lathe to me and the old ball n chain?

 

[Handy Don 12,277]

47 minutes ago, Achto said:

 

I like the hard chrome steel idea !!

 

I cut the ball joints off from the stock tie rods, then turn the ends down so that they can be threaded to accept the new ball ends. This way the original patina can even be kept if you wish.

Extremely clever, @Achto. Way to preserve and still get new function.

[WHX?? 48,847]

34 minutes ago, ebinmaine said:

Anybody want to donate a lathe to me and the old ball n chain?

 

Get in line and no cutting ....

[71_Bronco 1,072]

On my Commando 8, my stock set-up has the front of the tires slightly wider than the rear of the tires. Not sure if that was done for a reason, or if they are just worn (have a set of the adjustable tie rods from @76c12091520h I need to put on).

 

On my '62 Lawn Ranger, is has the fixed bar connecting the spindles, with the drag link between the steering and the fixed bar. Those wheels also have a wider space in the front than the rear of the tires.

 

[peter lena 8,649]

MICKWHITT, have been using  those heim joint for years , never had a failure or issue , I also use  3/8x 24  steel thread rod for the  rod itself , if you want to hide the thread rod , just grease  a rubber hose over the open thread area . also use  the heims  on other areas on my horses , for smoother easier response , pto lever  end , snow plow , blade angle  lever , steering quadrant lever rod . just my own experience , pete 

[Mickwhitt 4,647]

My guess is that because fixed length track rods were fitted there is no need to adjust them from the dimension set by the factory. 

True that toe in or out affects cornering but not in this low speed application not noticeable.

The castor angle is the determining factor in the wheels self centring but this is set by the axle geometry and is not adjustable as is the king pin inclination. Blimey this is dredging up memories from college when I did my vehicle engineering qualifications nearly 40 years ago.

I will be checking the Ackerman angles next lol Looks like it has power steering now with the chrome push rods. 

[Mickwhitt 4,647]

One other thing to consider is that if you want to make your track rods adjustable you need to have a left hand thread on one end of each track rod. Otherwise the length will not increase by turning the rod. With a setup having both right hand threads you can only change the length of the track rod by thread pitch per rotation of the ball joint. If that makes sense?

Mick 

[ebinmaine 67,760]

15 minutes ago, Mickwhitt said:

One other thing to consider is that if you want to make your track rods adjustable you need to have a left hand thread on one end of each track rod. Otherwise the length will not increase by turning the rod. With a setup having both right hand threads you can only change the length of the track rod by thread pitch per rotation of the ball joint. If that makes sense?

Mick 

 

I made the mistake of buying four right hand ends when I built mine so I had to remove them and turn them in/out a turn to adjust the length. 

Perfectly fine in my case because our ground is so rough it doesn't exactly matter.