VintAGE-Vans

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BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER.... A's, G's & E's


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Russell
donivan65
VanGo66
7 posters

    Caster angle?

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    VanGo66


    Number of posts : 65
    Location : Longview, wa
    Registration date : 2010-09-08

    Caster angle? Empty Caster angle?

    Post by VanGo66 Tue Mar 06, 2012 10:42 am

    Whats the correct caster angle for our vans?
    donivan65
    donivan65
    Governor
    Governor


    Number of posts : 12218
    Location : San Diego, California
    Registration date : 2008-05-12

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    Post by donivan65 Tue Mar 06, 2012 11:24 am

    The spec is 3 1/4 degrees,,,,,I have my rear end jacked up so I run 4 degree shims to bring the axle angle back to where it needs to be,,,,


    Caster angle? Repai211
    Russell
    Russell


    Number of posts : 698
    Location : Chula Vista, Ca.
    Age : 63
    Registration date : 2015-12-08

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    Post by Russell Fri Apr 06, 2018 8:35 pm

    Does anybody have the shims that go on the axle? Where can I get some and which direction do they face?
    I do not have the shims or a sway bar, the Van wanders some and I was thinking I should put the shims in for more positive caster angle?
    donivan65
    donivan65
    Governor
    Governor


    Number of posts : 12218
    Location : San Diego, California
    Registration date : 2008-05-12

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    Post by donivan65 Fri Apr 06, 2018 9:44 pm

    you want the front axle to be like motorcycle forks, so the fat side of the shims go towards the rear,,,,
    jrinaman
    jrinaman


    Number of posts : 890
    Location : zelienople,pa.
    Age : 59
    Registration date : 2011-03-10

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    Post by jrinaman Sat Apr 07, 2018 8:57 am

    I could not find 2" wide shims so I bought the wider ones in aluminum and ground them down. 1/4" from BOTH sides! summit has any angle you could want. I think mine are 6 or 7 degrees, a little over factory spec will help (within reason) I also set my toe in heavy too.
    m1dadio
    m1dadio
    Chevy Guru


    Number of posts : 1778
    Location : north saanich
    Registration date : 2008-10-06

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    Post by m1dadio Sat Apr 07, 2018 5:52 pm

    I found my van to steer much better with 7* caster, better straight line stability and better return to center coming out of turns.

    m1D
    VANagain
    VANagain


    Number of posts : 1046
    Location : San Diego, CA
    Age : 62
    Registration date : 2008-05-16

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    Post by VANagain Sun Apr 22, 2018 1:06 am

    I found another thing that really helps the return to center: greasing the kingpins!! My blue NY van was miserable to drive until I did that!
    AzDon
    AzDon


    Number of posts : 741
    Location : Lake Havasu Az
    Age : 67
    Registration date : 2014-01-20

    Caster angle? Empty Re: Caster angle?

    Post by AzDon Wed Jun 27, 2018 3:53 pm

    I got steel wedge shims from WFO Concepts wfoconcepts.com...… They come in 2" and 2.5" about $18 each....

    They have a center hole rather than a long slot...I chose these because I could bolt them into the spring pack, so that there would be plenty of bolt head exposed to index into the locating hole on the axle.....When you add shims, especially thick ones, you want to make sure there is enough spring bolt head sticking out to index the axle.....

    As Doni pointed out.....Adding nose-down rake rolls caster out of the setup and that caster needs to be restored by adding correct shims unless you like herding a vehicle down the road that refuses to go straight...

    On my van, the thick end of the shims are forward, because my axle is on top...

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