Aligment Specs for a "72 - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

BraveDave · 02-23-2003, 08:42 PM

Believe it or not, I came home a couple of weeks ago and my dog had shredded my '72 shop manual. I need the alignment specs to see if the tech at Firestone did my aligment correctly. It still looks to me that the tires are kicked in slightly at the top. This just doesn't look right to me. Thanks!

Brave Dave

72CustomCamper · 02-23-2003, 08:57 PM

Be careful with original specs..especially if you have the original front coil springs (sagged out after 31 years of supportin' your cool truck).

Any good alignment shop should be able to give you a zero camber without any original data.

BraveDave · 02-23-2003, 11:11 PM

i have 1-1/2 inch dropped springs on my truck. he set the camber at -0.4 deg. i would have thought 0 deg. would be correct. the tires should be straight up at standing still. is this right?

72CustomCamper · 02-24-2003, 12:37 PM

Do you also have different wheels? The wider the tire is, the more important the zero camber is. The negative camber is good for vehicles designed for heavy cornering but over time it will wear the inside of your tire.

I would insist on a zero camber...

ChevLoRay · 02-24-2003, 02:57 PM

When I lowered my '69, I had a set of 15x8's, all around. With the conversion to discs on the front, the front track width was increased by about 2-inches. I had to go to a pair of 15x7's, before I could get it aligned. Since we had put on new springs, dropped spindles (2-inches) and replaced the upper/lower control arm shafts and bushings, as well as all 4 ball joints, AND the tie rod ends, pitman arm and idler arm, we actually went back to the original settings for the '69.

The shop manual for '69, has a chart showing the caster and camber in degrees, for 10-30 series vehicles. For a C-10, it shows a camber of .75degrees. The caster is shown to be -1.0, at a curb height of 4.25-inches. This dimension labled as curb height is shown to be the space between the upper/lower control arms. So, weak springs will affect the measurement and therefore the actual adjustment.

Where I have my alignments done, I can request before/after computer print-outs, to settle my curiosity.

02-23-2003, 08:42 PM	#1
BraveDave Registered User Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Magnolia, Texas Posts: 336	Aligment Specs for a "72 Believe it or not, I came home a couple of weeks ago and my dog had shredded my '72 shop manual. I need the alignment specs to see if the tech at Firestone did my aligment correctly. It still looks to me that the tires are kicked in slightly at the top. This just doesn't look right to me. Thanks! Brave Dave __________________ '72 Chevy Cheyenne Super, '56 Chevy Bel Air,'56 Chevy Nomad, '61 Chevy Impala, '64 Cadillac Fleetwood, 1966 Thunderbird Convertible

02-23-2003, 08:57 PM	#2
72CustomCamper Registered User Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Bremerton, WA Posts: 86	Be careful with original specs..especially if you have the original front coil springs (sagged out after 31 years of supportin' your cool truck). Any good alignment shop should be able to give you a zero camber without any original data. __________________ '72 GMC C20, "2500 Super Custom", Custom Camper, New 454 '93 K2500 Suburban, Old 454 (157K)

02-23-2003, 11:11 PM	#3
BraveDave Registered User Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Magnolia, Texas Posts: 336	i have 1-1/2 inch dropped springs on my truck. he set the camber at -0.4 deg. i would have thought 0 deg. would be correct. the tires should be straight up at standing still. is this right? __________________ '72 Chevy Cheyenne Super, '56 Chevy Bel Air,'56 Chevy Nomad, '61 Chevy Impala, '64 Cadillac Fleetwood, 1966 Thunderbird Convertible

02-24-2003, 12:37 PM	#4
72CustomCamper Registered User Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Bremerton, WA Posts: 86	Do you also have different wheels? The wider the tire is, the more important the zero camber is. The negative camber is good for vehicles designed for heavy cornering but over time it will wear the inside of your tire. I would insist on a zero camber... __________________ '72 GMC C20, "2500 Super Custom", Custom Camper, New 454 '93 K2500 Suburban, Old 454 (157K)

02-24-2003, 02:57 PM	#5
ChevLoRay Old Skool Club Join Date: Jun 2001 Location: Benton, AR "The Heart of Arkansas" Posts: 10,880	Maybe this will help... When I lowered my '69, I had a set of 15x8's, all around. With the conversion to discs on the front, the front track width was increased by about 2-inches. I had to go to a pair of 15x7's, before I could get it aligned. Since we had put on new springs, dropped spindles (2-inches) and replaced the upper/lower control arm shafts and bushings, as well as all 4 ball joints, AND the tie rod ends, pitman arm and idler arm, we actually went back to the original settings for the '69. The shop manual for '69, has a chart showing the caster and camber in degrees, for 10-30 series vehicles. For a C-10, it shows a camber of .75degrees. The caster is shown to be -1.0, at a curb height of 4.25-inches. This dimension labled as curb height is shown to be the space between the upper/lower control arms. So, weak springs will affect the measurement and therefore the actual adjustment. Where I have my alignments done, I can request before/after computer print-outs, to settle my curiosity. __________________ Member Nr. 2770 '96 GMC Sportside; 4.3/SLT - Daily driven....constantly needs washed. '69 C-10 SWB; 350/TH400 - in limbo The older I get, the better I was.

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