1952-59 Ford Tie Rod Help

Has any one that has done a disc brake swap run into problems with the wheels not sitting straight. Right now with both sides run in as far as they will go my Driver side is almost straight (maybe a degree out) and the p***enger side is way out. I measured it out with the tie rod out and the wheel "straight" and it is about 1and 3/8" out. Measured the tie rod I have now and it is about 3 and a half inches from end to centerline.

Any suggestions?

 

I'm in the middle of this swap on my '54. Not sure if it's the same as yours, but I'm just about to the point of putting the control arms back in. Give me a couple of weeks and I might have the tie rods back in and I will try to come back to this thread and update it.

 

I know some on here have done the granada disc brake swap. Did you have to modify the tie rod ends to make it work?

 

Is your swap a granada one? I haven't done this myself, but I think it may help those that have done a swap to know if it is a granada one or a new after market kit. Also pictures are always good so we may see the actual problem ourselves.

 

You can use all your stock steering EXCEPT the outer tie rod ends which must be from the donor car so if your kit was made using Granada parts order Granada tie rod ends.

 

It is a granada brake swap kit. The granada ball joints are longer than the ones I have now so there is no way it would fit. Think I am going to have to cut the inner tie rods down to make it work.

Right now I am running all 55 steering and at full run in that it is still out. I will see if I can find a Granada tie rod and see if it is shorter.

 

You should be using your stock ball joints not the Granada's the spindle in the kit should already be reamed for them check out the article here:http://home.comcast.net/~robert.lewis23/disc.htm

 

I used the Granada spindles for my disk brake setup. The lower ball joint and tie rod joint have to be reamed to fit the original tie rod and ball joint. Also a shim is needed on the upper ball joint if I remember correctly. Nascar Dave can tell you all about it and provide all the services needed.
If I was going to do it again a kit from NascarDave would be the way to go. Your going to have
to do some serious scrounging, unless you have donor car, to not wind up spending just as much or more as one of his kits

Ralph

 

We could use more info are these granada spindles? Is it a bolt on kit to your spindles? Are you trying to set the toe in with the motor out of the car? With the weight off the front end it is hard to set the alignment. Let us know. Dave

 

Ok sorry for all the confusion, I posted this out of frustration with a lot of other things going on.

I am using the Granada Spindles (bought as a kit). I am still running all the stock steering from the 55 itself. Everything on the spindle mounted correctly but the toe is way out of align. At full run in on both tie rods one wheel is about straight while the other is toed in bad. I measured the one side that is toed in and it is about 1 and 3/8" out. I am not sure why it is this way but there is no more adjustment left in the sleeves.

For the record, when the drum brakes were still on the toe was perfect. So I am thinking I may have to shorten the inner tie rod?

 

I not sure if this will help or not but here is a picture of mine when we rebuilt the front end in my 55.

We used all of the stock 55 steering and suspension components (including upper and lower ball joints) and only had to ream the lower ball joint mount of the Granada spindle. I am also running have Aerostar springs. I'm guessing you have something else going on in how you have yours ***embled. A picture of your current setup would be really helpful in figuring out what is going on.

 

Just a guess, But did you center the steering box before bolting it all together?

 

I put Granada spindles on my 55 about 2001. After reaming the bottom holes in the spindles, everything bolted on. There may have been replacement parts on your car that match each other, but not factory parts. Re-read post 12, then make it fit.

 

Ok so I got it as close to centered as I can tell. Removed ever thing and ran them adjustment full in. Still got a little bit of toe in. So I am getting a tap and die set and going to cut 3/4" off each side and rethread them. That is all I can think of. Any input?

 

Hi, Do you know if these are original granada spindals or are they after market? There is an after market company that makes corrected steering granada spindles for 65/66 mustang. You may have these if they are after market. Is it possible to see a picture of the tie rods and the adjustment sleeve?

 

Dave I am not sure. I bought it offline from someplace as a kit. It said it was granada spindles. This is the only photo I have with me.

 

I checked around and found that most granadas have a number casted in the back either D5AA or D57AA and also have the ford logo on them. The after market corrected steering spindles have a casting of 65 on the back of the spindles right below the upper ball joint. The regular after market spindles either have 67 casted in or have no markings at all. I found the corrected steering spindles
that the pick up point for the tie rod is almost 3/8" dif. than a stock spindle. Hope this helps. Dave
Did you purchase this kit from Toms Cl***ics on E-Bay

 

I think it may have been Toms Cl***ics (looks like the kit I got but at the time did not come with drilled and slotted rotors) but can't be certain. I got it over 5 years ago when the car was stored at my parents house. This is the first time I have dove into it to see what is going on.

The 3/8" diff would explain why I cannot get them aligned.

 

Looking back at emails I think the kit came from ABS Power Brakes and it is an aftermarket spindle.

 

Hi, I would try and cut and rethread the inner tie rod only. Be advised that it may be left hand threads I would run the die down the threads cut off 3/8 0f an inch and bevel the end with a grinder then remove your die and it will clean up your threads. Rethread the tie rod about 1/2" more and reinstall the tie rod in the sleeve and try to get about 1/2" of threads sticking out of the sleeve on both tie rods. This should give you plenty of adjustment. Dave

 

Thanks Dave. I have a Tap and Die set coming in tomorrow so I will do that this weekend.

 

I managed to get my tie rods and steering link in today. I don't seem to have the problem you do. I also don't have my steering box in yet, so things may still change once I finally get that mounted up. Just from eyeballing the alignment it looks good and I have room on either side to adjust it still.

One question for you did you use your stock tie rod sleeves or new ones? After I finished everything up I got to looking at mine and the stock ones are about 3/8" shorter than the new ones I put on. I don't know if it would solve your problems, but it might help.

My disc brake set up came from tomscl***ic on ebay and the front end kit (tie rods, ball joints, bushings) came from http://a-resto-parts.com.

 

54 vicky, I like the look of your front end. Is it possible to get a picture of the lower ball joint at the spindle, I would like to see how Toms cl***ics sets up their spindles. Dave

 

How's this Dave? Let me know if you need any others.

 

Thanks for the suggestions and pics. I am making headway on it but am waiting to get an 11\16 die so I can cut new threads in. Thought my kit had it but I did manage to get them kind of close so I could get her back on the ground.

Will post a pic later

 

Aerostar springs with 1/2 coil cut.

 

What bump stops are you guys using with the Granada spindle/Aerostar combo? The stock ones were too tall. I can't imagine there being much of one in there with 1/2 a coil cut. The front is going to settle after you get some miles on the car.

 

Right now the stock one still has a bit of room before it hits. Once it settles I will probably end up modifying them to have clearance if I have to. To me it is still not low enough but wife told me to hold off till after we have it back on the road. If it is too low I may just bag the front.

 

This was mine after it settled. It was riding on the stops and had no travel at all. I've since removed them for the time being.

 

I think the reason I might have a little more room is that my spindles are aftermarket so I don't think they gave me the drop most have gotten. I am hoping that the stance will drop just a little bit more then I would be happy. How low does it since now that the stops are out?