DIY Digital Camber and Toe Tool for $55

[lorenkb]

The alignment of my front end is just a "tad" off at the moment, and it's time to do something about it. I'd rather do it myself than pay a shop, but before I can do that I need the proper tools. Enter another DIY project!

My goals going into this were A) Cheap B) Accurate C) Simple. I think I've accomplished all of that with the following setup.

Here's what I picked up from the local Home Depot Racing. I erred on the side of caution and bought more hardware than I needed.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2682/4452844728_56b67f1278_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452844728)
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4059/4452866830_ac9a16789f_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452866830)

Heres the rundown on what you actually need:
-Digital Level (1) @ 39.99
-Steel 1" square tubes (2) @ $10.47 each. MUST BE STEEL to work with magnetic level
-5/16"x2.5" bolts (2) @ $0.23 each
-Wing Nuts (baggy of 3) @ $0.98
-5/16" Rubber Screw Protector (baggy of 2) @ $0.63
-Bungee Assortment Pack (1) @ 1.74


The bars are a pretty mild steel. I used a metal cutting blade with the jigsaw, and a titanium coated "Pilot Point" drillbit with no problems. Here I am practicing on the end of one tube:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4038/4452071547_3799c86875_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452071547)


Cut both bars down to length. I went with 29" and it worked well for me after all was said and done. A squirt of WD40 now and then will help keep things cool and well lubricated during cutting.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4006/4452073573_86f481a67d_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452073573)


Time to start drilling holes. I started 2" from the end for the first bolt hole. Take your time and use the right process here and your life will be much easier.
1) Mark your center
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4049/4452075665_0b035b88ef.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452075665)

2) Punch your center
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2759/4452855422_1a0fd6abea.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452855422)

3) Get the drillbit started
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4052/4452857348_a565cb2abd.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452857348)

4) Spray some WD40 as a cutting fluid
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4044/4452083227_67ae043bf1.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452083227)

5) Continue drilling
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2796/4452860862_24881b2558.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452860862)

Mark and drill the top and bottom holes separately. In case you missed that the first time, MARK AND DRILL HOLES ONE AT A TIME! If you try and through-drill both top and bottom you will have crooked holes. Ask me how I know :unamused:

One set of holes down. Note the "extra" set of holes due to my insistence on through-drilling the first time around.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2697/4452077923_924715477e_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452077923)

Mark, drill and assemble the next hole location. The distance required is going to depend on your particular wheel setup. Choose a distance such that the holes are as far apart as possible, but still have the bolts rest on the wheel surface, and not the tire. For the stock 06/07 wheels I ended up with 18.5" between bolt centers.
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4068/4452862770_8345d6546a_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452862770)


In my case I went back and drilled a third pair of holes to match my 15" rally tire setup as well. For my Team Dynamics Pro Rally 1 wheels this distance was 15.5" between bolt centers. At this point you can slap the digital level on (gotta love magnets)!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4034/4452864752_944344d9bb_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452864752)


Grab a couple of bungees from your assortment, and BAM! All done!
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4017/4452098687_670a11d9c4_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452098687)


Bungeed on:
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4061/4452870330_59e0c8b9c4.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452870330)http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2698/4452872066_964d299736.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452872066)


And ready to measure total toe:
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2786/4452093081_3d5b36c763_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4452093081)


So there you have it. Camber measured to the nearest 1/10 degree and total toe measurement all in one cheap and easy package.

[GravelCrewMedic]

Very well done!!

[MConte05]

Have you compared your readings to an actual Toe/Camber gauge tool or alignment rack?

[rollo]

I feel stupid, or maybe I haven't had enough coffee yet this morning. Or both. I want to know how to align my suspension but the whole thing is just a giant cloud in my head filled with laser beams and plumb lines.

What is the purpose of the bolts? Why are they only on one side? And how do you determine toe?

:? <- me :roll:

[Carl S]

Nice!
The $215 SmartCamber gauge is just a $30 digital level on a frame. The level is the exact same as a craftsman one that they dont sell anymore with a different sticker. You can do a caster sweep with it vertical too.

I'm a fan of string boxes for doing toe. They're the only simple way that I know of that takes the thrust angle in to account.

The most important thing I've found for doing accurate alignments yourself are having turning plates. All you need for those, though, are 8 12" squares of something (linoleum tiles, hpde plastic, mudflaps, etc.) Make a sandwich out of two of the squares with grease smeared between them and put one under each tire.

[WAM]

I feel stupid, or maybe I haven't had enough coffee yet this morning. Or both. I want to know how to align my suspension but the whole thing is just a giant cloud in my head filled with laser beams and plumb lines.

What is the purpose of the bolts? Why are they only on one side? And how do you determine toe?

:? <- me :roll:

Hey Phil, I do all my own alignment. Corner me at GH and I'll give you the rundown. To your questions, the bolts space the bar off the bulge of the tire so the bar is parallel to the wheel when being used vertically as a guide for the level to get camber.

For his toe measurements you use both tubes, horizontally as shown in the final pictures and then one or two tape measures to get the distances between tubes fore and aft of the tires. Subtract those numbers to get toe. It can be a little rough if one part of the sidewall has lettering sticking up etc. And toe is usually spec'd in degrees, not inches. Easy enough to convert with a calculator if you remember your trig.

My system is similar, but I use plates instead of tubes and a carpenter square instead of the level. But we'll get the same numbers.

[erik*a]

My awesome crew did an alignment on my car while I did recce at my car's first event! They used string- So that being said this may be a good thing to make up for them in the future to have at the events.

I still had suspension related camber issues that I fixed with camber washers.

[lorenkb]

Have you compared your readings to an actual Toe/Camber gauge tool or alignment rack?

No, and I don't plan to unless I can find a shop that will let me play with their rack (teehee), or someone local who just got an alignment. I don't really see much of a point in it, the setup is plenty accurate.

What is the purpose of the bolts? Why are they only on one side? And how do you determine toe?

:? <- me :roll:

Bill has it right. The bolts are used like so while checking camber (just imagine the tire is on my car as opposed to sitting on my table ;)):
http://farm5.static.flickr.com/4015/4455740683_20359b6e8a_b.jpg (http://www.flickr.com/photos/25087570@N03/4455740683)

I left out the details on how to actually use the setup on purpose for now. When I get around to actually using the tools I'll either edit this thread or start a new one with the whole process (which, as Carl mentioned, requires more than just these tools to do a complete alignment).

[409industries]

Even after Bill and Loren's explanation of how the bolts are used to determine camber... im still a bit confused. This is something that i'd really like to learn more about because alignments ain't cheap!

[Arronstump]

1. loren you missed cal city for this...no wonder your on Maras list.
2. to read it correctly you need to be in the center of the wheel. cause your aligning the hub center the just the tire.
3. just bring these alignments to me, I have the alignment shop and the tools to get the job done.

[lorenkb]

1) No, I went and found a place that was cool with me working with their tech on the shop floor, and used their fancy laser alignment rack. Still on Mara's list though :lol2:
2) For what these tools can measure (camber and total toe) you can be anywhere on the wheel. You are measuring planar values, the center is irrelevant.
3) You're too damned far away :unamused:

Oh, and Matt, now that I have the no-**** alignment, I can go and check how accurate this setup is for you :mrgreen:

[Stockline]

http://www.longacreracing.com/images/products/setup/78260.jpg


I LOVE this thing. So easy, caster camber gauge.

$139 but well worth the ease of just sticking on with a magnet.


http://www.longacreracing.com/catalog/item.asp?id=129&catid=5

[Arronstump]

its ok i was put on maras list...then she took me off the next day, i guess your right with just the camber and toe....im only like 7 hours away

[beatersubi]

How do you ensure that the vehicle is level while measuring camber?

[WAM]

The method I use doesn't require level. But for bubble gauges, here's a technique:

Mark the location of all four tires on your floor with tape, paint etc.

Put one floor tile in each location. Take a 10-ft length of clear plastic tubing, nearly filled with water and compare water heights above each of the tiles. Takes two people, or you can figure a workaround. Place additional tiles on the low corners until all four are equal water height. Be sure to mark the required number of tiles when done so you don't have to do all this next time.

You can also set the tiles with a long straight edge and carpenters level, but the water level is more accurate.

And lastly, you can just measure on the unlevel surface, but turn the car around and measure again. Then average the two readings. Even less accurate, but easy. Probably gets the job done.

[lorenkb]

How do you ensure that the vehicle is level while measuring camber?

You don't have to, (within reason) which is the point of using the digital level to begin with.

You zero the level on the ground next to the wheel before measuring camber. This way, as long as you're on a reasonably flat surface, you get the difference between the non-level surface and the wheel: camber.

EDIT: +1 to what Bill (WAM) mentioned if you really do need to level the car. There's a handy set of DIY alignment videos on Youtube that illustrates the water manometer setup he mentioned. Skip to ~6:25 in the first video for the leveling portion.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sZoL1gaWedA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gjcP07VKVZM

[Carl S]

The great thing about rally, and most other normal driving, is that the road surfaces, car loads, and other conditions are so far from perfect and consistent that your alignments dont have to be 100% accurate to the hundredth of a degree. We're not a bunch of road racing ninnies that need to nit pick a 1/32" of toe or 1/4 degree of camber.

Hell, with the big dollar ohlins and rs&sp rally suspensions the offset washers for adjusting camber only come in discrete sizes, so you rarely can ever get it exactly "right."

And if you dont have the tools to do your own alignments and know how to use them, what are you going to do at service were you replaced a bent strut or tie rod end after you smack a big rock? Bring it to the closest alignment shop with friggen lazer beams? Not when its a 20 minute, or even an hour, service.

[bue car]

Firestone does lifetime alignments for 179.99. they also align my car how i want it, not factory. DIY is always good, but just an option for other people!

obviously not corner balancing..

[99subaru2.2]

friggen lazer beams sorry this just reminds me of Dr. Evil "sharks with friggen lazer beams attached to their heads" haha:jack:... well go on...

[bue car]

"You mean I have frikken sharks with frikken laser beams on their frikken head?"

"Yes dad"

"Mmmf....I love you"

best movie ever!

ps: Austin Power's fasha is teh tits!