DEBrahms

You guys have nursed me through a brake light fix and a bad stalling problem in the past two weeks. Now I need wisdom on front end alignment, please. I'm getting significant tire wear.

How can I find someone who still does alignment on these old cars and what should I know and be careful about?

Thanks again!

Dave

Frankie the Fink

Best to talk to buddy's with vintage cars at shows or cruise-ins....they will know the best shop with the "old school" technicians. These cars have 'secrets' that the young bucks simply don't know anything about ... such as the 'hidden' alignment adjustment behind a front end zerk fitting (that one is always fun). I knew I had the right old guy when I offered him the manual on the car and he looked at me and spat out a chew of tobacco and said, "...I've done a few of 'em son!"

Donald #31176

You should contact your local Corvette Club and ask for references from members with C-1s. If you cant find one locally you could try using Tonys Corvette in Gaithersburg, Md. According to Mapquest he is about 150 miles from Holidaysburg, Pa.

http://tonyscorvetteshop.com/index.aspx

DEBrahms

Frankie, you mentioned "the manual on the car." Is that the ST-12 or something specific to alignment?

Donald, if I drove to Tony's in Maryland, my front tires would wear out before I got there. :-) Thanks for the link.

Dave

BobT59

Dave ...

except for the 58 vs 59, looks like we have twins in the pics...

BTW, I just replaced my tie rods and am about to schedule an alignment. My mechanic has all the newest equipment and I have the specs... he has done it before.

Some younger guys may scratch their heads on how to adjust the camber/caster....

Pilot Dan

There's a guy in NJ not too far from RT195 who is an old timer, with the old tools that does the work himself in a one car shop (nearly impossible to find anymore). If you would consider driving the car here from PA. , PM me and I'll give you his name. Pilot Dan

Frankie the Fink

Its covered in Section 3 in the ST-12 .... however most of us now run radials on these old cars and not bias-ply...so a good alignment guy will give things a 'tweak' to adjust for that...

DEBrahms

Bob, here are some decent pics of my '58 that you may not have seen:

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c1-a...-side-wtf.html

Dan, thanks for the offer, but I haven't taken my unit more than 35 miles from home. I need to get over my fear of being stranded way out there somewhere.

Frankie, I'll check out ST-12. I have bias rubber and think I'll hang on to it for a while. I bought this car for the full (fool?) 1958 driving experience. :-)

Dave

JohnZ

Caster and camber are adjusted with a 1/4" allen wrench, inside the rear of the upper outer bushing, after removing the grease fitting and loosening the clamp bolt at the top of the spindle support; tighten the clamp bolt again and re-install the grease fitting after making the adjustment.

DEBrahms

Thanks, John. I do have a 1/4-inch allen wrench and an ST-12. :-) That illustration is very helpful. I'll check with my guys in the local 'Vette club about who's a good C1 man in my area.

Dave

Pilot Dan

F/W/I/W I did my alignment on the 59 myself, bought the tools, and after setting up the steering box and drag link properly and on the high spots, did the alignment. If you are running radial tires as most who drive their cars for pleasure now do), modify the ST-12 Toe in spec to 0 to -1/16 total toe in for radials. These cars drove long distances back in the day and are more than capable of doing so these days if they are properly sorted.

DEBrahms

Dan, I admire you for being able to do what I view as a very complex technical procedure. That's something that I would never attempt.

Incidentally, speaking of tire wear, how many miles do you guys get from your replica tires? Which brands of replicas seem to be the best value?

Is it my imagination, or are the replica tires softer than "modern" tires? I haven't compared hardness ratings, but it seems to me that tires for everyday cars seem to wear much better.

Dave

Frankie the Fink

Most of the replicas are brand name tires modified for wide white walls, etc. No reason they shouldn't have the same longevity. I run Diamondbacks.

62Jeff

Even modern tires have a huge range of wear ratings.

DEBrahms

Thanks again, everyone, for all your helpful suggestions. FYI, for anyone searching this thread in the future, I found an excellent description of the alignment process for solid-axle 'Vettes: [B]Aligning Your Solid Axle Chevrolet Corvette - The Mystery Alignment: How To Align Your Solid-Axle Corvette

http://www.vetteweb.com/tech/vemp_02...e/viewall.html

Excellent pictures of the key parts.

Dave

DEBrahms

How are the rear wheels aligned?

Dave

Frankie the Fink

I don't think there is a rear wheel alignment on these cars....the radius rods on each side keep the rear axle straight. More knowledgeable folks can correct me on that I'm sure.....I'm always ready to learn something new.

DEBrahms

Frankie, I haven't been under the rear of my '58 recently, but I'm seeing conflicting reports about when those rear radius rods were added. This report says that they appeared first in '59:

Powertrain choices were again unchanged, but the 1959 featured a minor mechanical alteration of major benefit: the addition of rear-trailing radius rods that helped contribute to a slightly softer ride and noticeably less rear-end steering on irregular surfaces. The rods also helped counteract rear-axle windup, which was an unfortunate byproduct of a problem with the explosive torque produced by the most powerful engines, and the RPO 684 heavy-duty brakes/suspension option was given even stiffer springs -- all of which made for better handling.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/1959-corvette.htm

Then this report says that the '58 had them:

The 1958 Corvette was redesigned mostly in the front, with the most distinguishing feature being the four headlights (below). Popular for the era, they were emphasized by a long chrome trim piece (right) that ran the length of the fender.

The new style, credited to Harley Earl, had a more aggressive, almost mean look to it. It was also physically larger, increasing width by 2.3" (to 72.8") and length by 9.2" to 177.2". Also up was the weight, by approximately 100 lbs., with a corresponding performance penalty. Radius rods were added to the rear suspension, which cured some behavioral problems under hard acceleration.

http://www.web-cars.com/corvette/1958.php

Guess I should get off my butt and look it up in the ST-12.

Dave

mashinter

Camber and total toe are built into the axle housing. Individual toe is controlled by the frame and rear springs. If not equal side-to-side, you'll get dog-tracking (axle not square with the frame).

jim lockwood

Radius rods first appeared in '59. That second source is incorrect.

Jim