[Fot] Steering

[malaboge at aol.com]

I am trying to get my steering and toe set up properly on my early (1956)
TR3.
When I center the steering gear with the tie rods all connected (equal turns
to both left and right lock), the only way I can get the alignment even close
is to adjust the tie rod ends such that the lengths are unequal by about a
quarter of an inch. I know from the manual that the lengths are supposed to
be
equal. They even give a length to use to set up toe prior to checking with
the
alignment gauges. Several questions come to mind. Is lock determined by the
worm and peg in the box, or by stops on the rods? Is it likely that a
previous
owner may have removed the drop arm from the splined shaft and replaced it
incorrectly? Or am I missing some critical factor altogether?

Also, I am modifying a set of late TR4 upper A-arms, in preparation for a
swap
to permit camber adjustment. I am able move the position of the ball joint in
by nearly 5/16" by cutting and bending out the shoulder of the rear half of
the upper wishbone, slotting the bolt holes and welding the thing up to make
it whole. I figure this will result in approximately 2.5 degrees rotation,
from +1 to -1.5 degrees. My race tires are 5.00 x 15 Dunlop vintage bias
racing on sixty spoke wire wheels. Does this seem reasonable for a
combination
of spirited daily driving and eventual track days? (Disclaimer accepted for
running the race tires on the street.) I am also replacing the TR3 trunnions
with a pair of late TR4 trunnions to provide negative caster. I find that the
new bushings, sourced from TRF, are an extremely tight fit on the new
spindles, to the point that they would have to be pressed on. Any advice on
how to obtain a proper fit? By the look of the old spindles, the original
bushings seem to have been improperly fitted too. They show a huge amount of
wear on the bottom half of the spindle, and heavy pitting all around.

Steven Preiss
spreiss at verizon.net
Steve-
Never mind the lock to lock criteria...Note the angles formed by the idler arm
and the steering drop arm (the one from the steering box), they should be the
same when the steering is straight ahead. B I can't recall if the arms are
actually pointed straight forward, or at an angle. BUT they should be parallel
or have the same angle off of straight ahead (although they will be degrees
left and right). B Does this make sense? B In Ascii this should look like /__\
B or |__|. B Set your steering up so that the arms are as above and use that
as the starting point. B Even up the toe while the arms are even and then deal
with the steering wheel. B The tie rods should be equal at this point. B You
may indeed have the steering drop arm on the box incorrectly, but that needs
to be checked with all the linkage disconnected from the drop arm, then you
can check the lock to lock issue.

2.5 degrees of negative camber is too much for most bias ply tires, they
usually don't work well with more than about 1 to 1.5 degrees negative camber.
B Which bushing style are you using, TR3? B If so, the metal bushings are
designed to be reamed to fit.

Off at an angle myself...
B B B B B B B B B B Nick in Nor Cal


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