I've been following the various alignment threads with interest, because I got ripped-off having it done last year ($1200.00), and don't want to risk it again, and, I have completely redone the suspension; rebuilt TA's, removed and replaced front a-arm bushings, installed Steeroids, etc.

Where do I start? How do I get the rear wheels in the right place? What tools ARE being used? I see the use of a lazer level, and other alignment stuff, but, I can't seem to grasp the concept explained by Norval and others as to how to "center" them in the first place.

 

The best thing to is get out there and start trying. Measure measure measure.
It may (will?) take more than 1 attempt to get a good understanding of it.
Just remember the whole point is to;

1. minimise tire wear.
2. make it drive nice.
3. maybe make it handle better

Simplistically you want the wheel straight up and down and pointing forward...

actually you want them tilting in just a hair at the top ( .5 degree Negative camber ) and just a little pigeon toed ( 1/16" toe in). This makes the car easier to drive.

Duck footed (Toe out) makes the car darty.

 

First of all you need to get a suspension book. You need to study up on how the adjustments interact with each other. Then you need to get an alignment kit from one of the vendors. Between the instructions in the kit and the right up in the suspension you should be able to figure it out.

BigBlockk

Later.....

 

$1200 for an alignment? Must have been a heck of a job??
Like Bigblockk said. You need to understand what you are doing, how things work, why you are doing this.
Understand by reading. I wouldn't do my own aligments with a laser level, a toe gage and NO a tape measure is NOT good enough for toe, a caster camber gage and some homemade turn plate.
Again understanding why and what you want to accomplish is most important.
You next alignment will cost $300-$400 but you will have your own equipment and an understanding of how to use it.
I had 2 screwed up alignments on my vet before I started doing them myself.
NO one touches my vet agian. Well test driving doesn't count.

 

You get a good book, read/understand and then ask questions and we can fine tune your knowledge.

 

[QUOTE=norvalwilhelm]$1200 for an alignment? Must have been a heck of a job?? They replaced the upper and lower ball-joints too.....

Like Bigblockk said. You need to understand what you are doing, how things work, why you are doing this.

Norval and Bigblock: Thank you. I do understand what it is I'm trying to accomplish, although not from the technical aspect that you do. Having said that, however, I feel like if I can get one rear wheel in the right spot, I'll have something to measure FROM. I realize that it will take, especially for a novice, many times around the car and around the block to get it RIGHT, but it's the getting started..........I will take your advice and find some reading material too.

 

I don't know, I guess I have a mind that operates like a machine. This stuff never really was that hard for me to understand. But I can see where someone not naturally inclined to this sort of thing could have trouble.

That being the case, it really wouldn't do you much good for me to tell you that the first thing you need to do your own alignment is a "level" drive way and a nice white garage door (at least the way I do um). The drive way is for laying out your measurements and the door is a magnifying glass that allows you to measure your measurements. Damn, that hurts just thinking about it. Good thing I don't think when I do this stuff.

You can make your own toe gage (by far the most critical adjustment is toe in/out) with a laser pointer or low power rifle scope. Then you project it up on the door to make the angles large enough to see and measure. If you're careful you can make your own camber gage but you must have a level drive way to use it.

Like Norval said, ya need book learnin boy, and then we can fine tune your method.

Remember one thing if you get into this. At best a botched alignment will turn these cars into ill handling monsters that are NO fun to drive. At worst, it can kill you.

BigBlockk

Later.....

 

Some years ago, when Norval and I became acquainted over the net here, I d/loaded some instructions for doing your own home alignments, and really it's quite simple, to me anyway...

first off, you need get a nice level garage floor, OR shim up the wheels onto pads that make the car absolutely level, side to side, and front to back...you need some 8-10' lengths of square steel tubing to do this accurately, and of course a level....
pull the car into desired position, make floor with majic marker at each tire location, remove car, lay out the steel with level on it, and be damn sure to verify each corner/tire location height very carefully, and with repeatable results, flip the lever around several times during this process to eliminate any possible chance the level itself is slightly off.....
now you know the height differances between corners of the slab, and you need build up the lo corners to the highest one all the way around....
for instance my floor has the right wheel lower then the left by 1/4 inch...so the plywood/formica I use for pads in front, to aide wheel turning, are 1/4 inch differance in thickness, the typical garage slopes toward the door so in my case I found about 1.5 inches and 2inches in the rear brought it up to level....

I use jackstands and monofill fishing line stretched tight between them, knowing the trackig/wheel centerline differances, I position the lines so there is a 3/8 inch differance between rear and front wheel centers, then the rest is easy...

I use two screws with spacers in a 2' aluminum level for laying on the wheel rim tire flange area, this translates to degrees with a table, and I get a damn good idea what the camber is, caster too, and also toe....

I am told I can't get toe correctly by measuring off the wheel front and trailing edge to the fishing line, but I get damn close, enough that tire wear is fine, and even so I guess that's close enough....

GENE

 

I like this gage to read caster/camber. It is about $130 AM and worth the investment. It magnetically attaches to the hub and other then turning the wheel reads camber directly and caster is the turning of the wheel, very simple.

 

You asked about getting a rear tire for reference. I use a laser level and a toe gage. I am trying for 2 things here. To get the toe right and at the same time have the two tires pointing staright ahead.
I start with the laser level, I place it on each tire projecting the beam straight ahead. If it misses the tire I place a large square beside the tire and project the dot on the square, but anything will do. I then repeat on the other side. You might be off , both sides are not the same. Pretend the passengers side is 1 inch off the tire to the right and the drivers side is 1/4 inch off the tire. This means the rear is pointing to the right. Which tire do you adjust???
I then measure toe, for toe I have a gage, could make it out of a piece of tubing wider then the car with pointers attached so you can pick up points on the tire 1/2 way up the tire, Set the gage at the back of the tire and then move the gage to the front of the tire and compare the differnece.
If the tire is toed in then adjust the drivers side , the one with 1/4 inch of clearance at the front.
If the tires are toed out move the passengers in, the one that was 1 inch out from the front tire.
Adjust and remeasure. If the toe is correct then both tires need adjustment.
Get the toe correct and at the same time both tires project the dot equal distance out from the front tire.
It takes a bit of fiddling but with new swing arms it is easy if you have a selection of rear shims.
With the caster/camber gage, a toe gage and a laser level you can do it.
When do you want to tackle bump???
In the large picture of the caster/camber gage you can see how I dropped the outer tie rod and welded and bolted a spacer to remove all bump.

 

I know this if off topic but I also made a gage to read bump. A flat plate is bolted to the hub, the spring is removed but everything else is hooked up properly, as the spindle is jacked up and down from it's normal ride height the dial indicator on the front reads the toe change, the wheel on the back of the gage rides against the aluminum plate pushing the gage in and out following the toe change.
I went from over 1 1/2 inches of toe change and settled for .007


Invest in the caster/camber gage and have it for life.