Can you adjust camber yourself?

[fowlken8]

I looked way back in time on all of the H3 forums and lots of images or links are dead or broken.

From what I gather, it's adjusted at the upper control arm.

I have some positive camber and it's now eating the tread unevenly. GREAT.

Michigan Metal Works adjustable tubular control arms.


some local shops are saying they can only align to spec. I showed them threads about it needed to be changed post lift, etc. Not much cooperation. I'm assuming I can eyeball something and measure properly and end up somewhere better than where I'm at now.

https://www.hummer4x4offroad.com/fo...3-Adjustable-Tubular-UCA-Installation-Problem

that guy had the same problem apparently. What to do guys? Any suggested things to tell someone? Maybe 4wheel parts?

 

[CaseyS]

Two methods I use that are very effective and will get you very close if you pay attention to detail.

The first step is to park on a good level surface. You garage is a good spot. As you pull in, focus on centering the steering wheel well and roll to a slow stop.

First method is less accurate. If you have a phone with a good straight side edge you can use an anglefinder app to check your camber angle. You are going to want to use a straight piece of metal as an offset. If you go to home depot or Lowes, you can find metal flat steel and aluminum. Cut a piece of that just long enough to reach from wheel bead to wheel bead across the major diameter. Place this on the wheel and then place your phone against it to read the camber angle. Whichever method you use, adjustable arm length or the eccentric at the pivot, remember that moving only one will also adjust the caster. I like to bring them both in or out an equal amount to have minimal effect on the caster. Repeat on the other side.

Now important. Start the truck back up and turn the wheel back and forth a bit and then pull back in like at the beginning. Remeasure and readjust again if needed. Repeat this as necessary.

Method 2. If you have a dial caliper (not expensive at harbor freight) you can tape a plumb bob on the fender and drop a line inline with the center of the wheel. Use a piece of wood or anything you might have to offset the dangle and let the plumb bob not hit the tire. If you don't have a plumb bob, you can make one with some floss and a heavy washer. Leave the loop through the washer loose so the washer hangs true. Now use the depth gauge end of the calipers to find the offset of the string to the upper and lower lip of the wheel. You can calculate the camber angle with a little trigonometry. arcsin(diff measurement / diameter wheel). Move the vehicle as above and repeat as necessary.

Toe is very easy to do with the eyeball check. Simply crouch in the front and look down through the leading edge of the front tire to the trailing edge of the front tire and line that up with the leading edge of the rear tire. If you cant see the rear tire in your sight line then you need to adjust the tie rod to toe out some. If your sight line falls on the rear tire, you need to toe in some. Make small adjustments and remember to move the vehicle and exercise the steering and then take another look.

This whole process may take an hour or two tops and will get you suprisingly close if you take your time and remember to move between checks and additional adjustments. Take a drive and then do a final check to make sure everything has stayed where you thought you put it.

Also: adjust your front ride height FIRST before performing any of the preceeding adjustments.

I have to do this on mine this weekend as I have redone all my bushings and steering rack. I can get some pics on the process when I get it done.

 

[Jeepwalker]

Those are great suggestions.

The reality is alignment specs are pretty wide. You should be able to get it using the above suggestions. Tow is more important for what you'd feel driving down the highway. Begin by raising the wheels and jerking violently at the 12:00/6:00 positions to feel for worn ball joints and hub bearings. then jerk back n fourth in the 3-9:00 position to test for warn linkages.

Once you get the caster/camber set, it'll throw off your tow, so you adjust that last. You can measure off the tread front to back. I made a little jig from hardware store parts and precisely cut wood that makes measuring a lot easier to set a tape measure across. Mainly bc I have a lot of vehicles to check/set tow on. Put the tires on the ground and roll vehicle back/fourth a few times to 'settle' the tires before starting the tow. I think I set my H3's tow 'in' (at the front of the tire) about 3/32" less than the back. Road-test to make sure your steering wheel is straight. Good luck, Let us know how it goes.

 

[fowlken8]

Ok, so from the manufacturer: The new arms are designed to be adjustable so you can dial in your alignment for your suspension modification, including small lifts to accomidate larger tires. Adjustment in our out of the heim joints on the ends will determine your camber and caster amount, up to 1" of adjustment either way is provided.

 

[fowlken8]

Do I just remove the control arm completely....and tighten the heim's a full rotation each....and keep doing it until things look ok?

 

[CaseyS]

God that would be a real pain. I would just set the arms at mid length and then use the eccentrics to do the adjustments. Have you already installed the arms?

 

[fowlken8]

They came on my hummer. I’m unsure the best way to proceed. Brake masters, jiffy lube and a few independent shops said they won’t do it because it’s modified lol

I need to find a way to measure my positive camber. Jack the hummer up, remove the tire and translate the correction….. I’m guessing see where I’m actually at….decide on the degrees of correction and then re-measure while lifted without the tire and simply adjust the same degrees?

 

[amrg]

Do I just remove the control arm completely....and tighten the heim's a full rotation each....and keep doing it until things look ok?

Exactly! I had to do it twice and i think if I do it a third time ill be able to clear 39" tires on my rig with the 2" body lift.
But anyway, i read somewhere that fully tightened the arms are stock length, may need to clarify with mmw. But love the arms, no longer torque steer under full throttle and now im leveled to 24.25" (26.25" with the 2" bl)

Sent from my SM-G960F using Tapatalk

 

[Jeepwalker]

There are a ga-jillion 'how to' wheel alignment videos on youtube. Watch a few and you'll get the idea what to do. What measuring tools you use ultimately don't make a difference.

It's not that difficult. I've restored classic cars where I removed/blasted/painted every suspension part and installed new steering components and bushings. And literally slapped things together 'by eye'. Now when I say, by eye, I took my time to get things as close as I could bc I usually drove the cars to the alignment shop. After hooking things up, all the shop needed to do most of the time was adjust the tow (which I also set by eye, no measuring). I knew the alignment guy and stood there and saw the alignment specs. So it's not that difficult.

What you do need to measure primarily is the castor and the tow. The camber you can see if the top of the wheel is tilted too much in or out. After you get your old A-arms off, measure the length of the a-arm to the new ones and set the a-arm length the same (via the adjusting nuts). Then install them. Measure the caster with an angle tool and get the caster set properly (with jack under lower a-arm so it's fairly parallel to the ground. Then put on the wheel and roll the H3 back/fourth on your driveway a few times to settle the steering. I always roll mine by hand. Then inspect the camber to make sure the wheels are straight up/down perpendicular. Finally set the tow. You can measure off the tread or make chalk lines. You don't need any slip plates under the wheels ..just roll the truck back/fourth a few inches by hand and it'll allow the steering to settle as you make adjustments.

I've adjusted a lot of vehicles by eye. A lot of alignment shops do crappy work these days. If you find a good one and a good alignment guy, you're in luck. They don't want to do the real hard work anymore ..and good luck finding one who will make your steering wheel truly straight going down the road! By the time you take yer vehicle back a couple times to get the steering wheel straight (leave it and pick up a day later), you'll realize you couldda just done it yourself in 20 minutes for free (and just start doing it yourself after that).

But if you don't feel up to the work, or your schedule is real busy, find a good tire/alignment shop ..perferrably not a 'chain' shop ...preferrably one with an 'old-timer' who will take the time to do a good job on your vehicle.

 

[fowlken8]

So I messed around with it a little today.

I loosened the bolts and the silver plates attached to the pins inside moved up and down a bit. I was able to push the tire inward to what I thought was good and tighten things. I gave it excessive negative camber.

I thought I was going to have to remove the UCA completely and then adjust from there but apparently you can slide it on those pins? I adjusted again and got it a little better.

 

[Jeepwalker]

Nice. Congrats. Drive er around a bit. If it doesn't feel quite right, 'pulls' or wanders you can always tweak things.
:cheers: