Technical 40 Ford Straight axle alignment

I have a 40 Ford straight axle w/discs wishbones that aren’t split. I have been told that I have a Model A ball allow for clearance of the automatic transmission. My drivers side wheel sits a little bit further back then the p***enger front wheel. Is there an adjustment that can be made to set the wheels even? As for driving issues it goes straight down the road. I can let off the steering wheel and it doesn’t pull either way nor does it pull while driving. It gets a little bit of a rub on the drivers side sometimes, maybe a bump in a turn. Tire wear is even. Just trying to figure out what I can do to straighten it out so I can put a bigger set of tires on the front. Right now so am running 195/60/15. I want to switch to steel rims and WWW. Any ideas?

thanks
Rob

 

I would find something on the frame that I could measure from to see what is going on...Looks like they may have cut the wishbone shorter on one side...I don't know of any way to adjust that wheel placement without cutting the wishbone....

 

Are you sure it's not an alignment issue with fender itself? If it goes down the road straight and no weird tire wear, it might not be the wishbone.

 

Perhaps your fenders are not correct? I've got a truck here right now that has the same problem. It has fibergl*** front fenders and the driver side wheel opening is not right but the p***enger side is. The wheels measure perfectly to the frame each side

 

The frame itself could be tweaked slightly. These things have seen over 80 years of wear, tear and abuse,

 

I scratched my head on a similar thing for a month before I realized the fender on one side was tweaked.

 

I would also start with measuring the fender opening from some good reference points and see if that is wonky.

Can't see the whole wishbone in your picture; but it looks more like it is just spaced down; not spread wide like it would be if an A yoke was spliced into the wishbone.

 

For many years Vehicle's from side to side are different when you start to measure,
A methadon that I use is easy but very time consuming, a lot of up and down & measuring,
I start by getting vehicle up in the air & @ ride height like its sets on ground , finding center point front & rear withe Plum bob & tape measuring, of body or frame marking floor, after finding center points, then I take a laser that shoots/ shows lines, Options vertical and horizontal
( Not a dot)
Then I take a / mark reference points from the edge of the wheels/rim on each side , 3 o clock ( rear) front @ 9
o clock, take Notes , Plum bob centers of wheel openings , then same with center of wheel , Keeping Notes ,
Then you will see study what needs to move / whats out of line & where to the
Body / frame in relation to front & rear axle centers ,,,

Then start a plain to adjust what can be to Square or live with.

 

First measure the wheel base side to side. Just put a tape from the front wheel rim to the rear. If its the same then its a fender issue.

 

You could have a bent axle also. Like 29 Gizmo said measure the wheelbase first.

 

It may be an optical illusion but it looks like the left front fender sits a lot lower than the right front fender?

 

I was told by a 40 pro that the left and right fenders had different wheel well shapes.

 

rears too

 

Jack it up put the car on stands and measure wheel base on both sides from the center of the front hub to the center of the rear axle. That will really tell you if it is off in The ch***is or suspension. These things were not perfect side to side when they were new.

My own 39 has the fender that it was born with, with original paint still on them to prove it, and one is more than in an inch narrower from the shell well to the fender lip compared to the other side.

I’d be willing to bet it’s more a difference in fenders than in suspension if it drives nice and straight and doesn’t dog track.

 

40 and 39 deluxe fenders look the same.but are also different dimensions. I have seen cars with 2 different fenders

 

It’s my opinion too that the wishbone ball is a 40, not Model A. But it is spaced down for clearance. Which is probably straight down and not a cause of any misalignment.

I bet the difference in the way the wheel fits the opening is caused by a bent axle, or uneven openings. Do as they say and measure it out to verify. Might require a nice smooth floor and drawing a long centerline under the car. Use a plumb bob and squares to check the sides match off the centerline.

 

Drive it , no one can see both sides of the car at the same time ! Undue anxiety !

 

If you can move the wishbone ball sideways, by elonging the holes, you should be able to change the angle of frame vs front axle?
But that might not be the problem, as others have mentioned.

 

It's the fender , and I'm thinking the model a part is the top piece of a model a ball mount that goes in the a bell housing to make a top for your spaced down pivot all mount if the car drives great leave the suspension alone