Technical Possible bent spindle? HELP

Hey all, so at a loss with what could be going on with my 31 Tudor. My drivers front tire leans way out and on the tire I just replaced that was on the car when purchased was severely warn on the outside and the inside was maybe 60% life. I did not notice this with the fenders on, and after the last 10 months of replacing an endless list of parts, wheels/tires and most recently the engine, the lean is more noticeable.

I have aligned the Toe as best i can, getting it with in a quarter inch, probably could have gotten it better. The car rides true, does not wonder and does not have any sort of death wobble. The wheels are 35 fords and they are also true. I do how ever have issues when turning, with a installed needle bearing sector housing, there's no difference in my opinion from before. I would assume with this much positive camber it would not help, but worsen the steering difficulty. Tires are brand new Coker firestone in 600s in the front at 35psi. I have done some half assed measuring of the axle and it does not seem bent. So this leads to the spindle as I'm not familiar on how to tell if its bad and did not notice anything during the brake overhaul. But at this point, with my schedule, newborn and family life, I don't have the time to guess and start replacing things that are not necessary. Please see the pics which are not the best but they show a little of what I am talking about.

 

Toe within a 1/4" is not acceptable. Stock axle specs are: Max is 1/8" and 1/16" toe in is preferred. Have you checked the king pins for wear? Loose or worn out wheel bearings? Bent frame? The only way you can tell and/or adjust the camber is by bending the axle. King pin inclination , if you suspect a problem, needs to be checked by a competent alignment shop. Caster is only adjustable by bending the wishbones. None of these adjustments, except maybe the toe in, can be done at home by an amateur. You need to have the front suspension checked and corrected by a good alignment or frame shop. Make sure you check to see if any shop is experienced with straight axle alignment before you let them go ahead. If you are planning on running radial tires, you need to tell the technician. Alignment specs are going to be a little different with radials.

 

How does a spindle get bent. ?

 

King Pins felt fine, no excessive wear. Hubs are brand new and bearings were also good and reused. Frame and wishbones do not appear to be bent, but a machine may very well find that to be the case. Ive had almost the entire front end apart and everything lines back up with zero issue.

 

dont know.. have been told they can be but would take one hell of a hit.

 

Has to be the axle. If it is as off as it looks in the picture, you should be able to eyeball the axle end with a digital level to confirm.

A bent spindle would put the drum out of whack with the backing plate and cause other grief.

 

I agree on the axle being the problem, lots of positive camber. Un dropped model a axles are not expensive. I would change it.

 

I replaced every single part except the brake rods and backing plates when doing the brake system.. backing plates were reused and everything lined up great. The digital level is a good idea for sure. Thank you

 

you can use your phone as a digital level too, you know. just need the app

 

35psi?

I never run those over 20-25psi.

35 is a radial tire pressure.

You probably have a bent axle.

Find a shop that works on big rigs. They know how to straighten axles, or will know where to send you.

 

As Rich B says,the AXLE.

 

To check camber ,
Set car on level ground
Use a straight edge cross rim /wheel lip , ( North & South) with a level or degree wheel and compare L side to R side
( Camber) if that far off will be more then a few degrees differences from side to side,
Or a tool





There are a few other way to do @ home,
Camber can be adjusted at home but you have to think outside the box and have more than a Handheld toolbox

 

I've called around for truck shopsvin my area. No one will touch it. 35psi was I believe the recommendation on cokers website and tube. Could be wrong tho.

 

I did this on the center area of the hub cap area..was significantly different. I was thinking of using my winch and attempting to bring it back in a hair, but not sure how that would work

 

I don't see a lean in your pictures, but it does look like your tires are toed out. Unfortunately, your pictures are taken too far away to tell. I think you are describing a condition of too much positive camber or outward tilt of the top of the tire from vertical. If you get the car on a good, flat surface there are many ways you can measure and compare side to side. A level that fits against the rim is a good way. Compare the position of the bubble on both tires. You can use a carpenter's square set on the ground and pushed up against the tire. Then measure the distance from the bottom of the tire to the square. Or a plumb bob attached to the top of the tire and measure the distance from the bob to the tire. Use any of these methods to compare one front wheel to the other.

I should also mention that tires that are worn on both the inside and outside are a sign of underinflation. A tire with too much positive camber will show wear on the outside edge. Also, the car will tend to pull to the side with the most positive camber. Toed out tires show wear on the inside of both tires.

 

Proper tools; tho I've seen pictures of it being done with chains and a steel beam.

 

That might be the maximum pressure.

 

I'm currently at work, but is as good as it gets for the moment.. I will get a better straight on pic in theorming

 

I'll have to lower them a bit..won't hurt the ride quality that's for sure

 

I am experiencing positive camber. The tire that was taken off was near bald on the outside..good tread on the I side.. passenger tire was normal wear. Tires are currently not toed out

 

Click full Image it just makes its better and easier to see when you upload your photos,
There few ways to check rule out ,
For checking purposes to compare swap your front wheels/tires left to right then check your camber ,again on the wheel/rims see if it stays the same. If so
Then maybe get car close to ride hight like with wheels both side , pull wheels suport weight of front end both sides , use a socket on bearing of drum or known flat Machine surface
( mice socket to be square) take a reading ,
Angle Finder /degree,,, go from there.
There needs to be a lot of checking to see if axle or spindle , bent ,,,, Keep notes measurements angles

If spindle ,Need press & heat ,
Maybe compare to other spindle ( Bent )
If you find bent , another used one.
Axle can be done on car with spindle removed & bar threw King pin hole & heat popsicle orange.

is you car stock Ride height ?
If so Some where here I have seen stock
Camber , caster specs that where FoMoCo
Like 1919 -1940ish in apost
Green book maybe ?

If not stock ride ( rake )
Caster 5-7 deg typically
But not set in stone

 

Car is stock ride height. I'm gonna have to get some measurements done and report back.

 

That kinda leaves those of us with flip phones by the wayside , eh ?...

 

If the spindle was bent that much, you'd be having issues with your brakes/hub in my mind. It is probably the axle and you should be able to at least figure out if that is your problem. You can always pull the brake drum, backing plate and spindle and put a rod through the kingpin bores and get an idea (side to side) how far you're off. You can buy a digital angle gauge for not a lot of money - they are really handy if you're planning on working on frames/suspensions and cars in general in the future.

Best of luck!

 

Sure sounds like a bent axle. Get ahold of Oki Joe at joe@joesspeedshop.com or 580-268-3704. For Model A axles, he is the best in the business. He has sold and repaired several for me and for countless others on here.
Warren

 

well...not really. They need to be taken infinitely far away to be able to see the toe in. Or taken from the top.

To get a picture of the camber, you'd want to have the camera pretty far away, and zoomed in as far as possible. The idea would be to get far enough away that you can just fit in both front tires into the picture frame, at maximum zoom.

Basically, it's impossible to accurately show wheel alignment with photos on the internet.

 

Older alignment shops familiar with straight truck axles could bend it back correctly. You might need to make some tooling today.

 

Figure out what is wrong - if it is the axle then pull it and send it to one of the guys that can straighten it for you. And whole you're at it, maybe drop it a bit! LOL

 

This is a banger, not a hot rod, why would he drop it?
Warren

 

You bring up a very good point ... why would anyone, anywhere, at any time drop an axle or for that matter, modify ANY part of any vehicle ever?

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