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@verizon.net
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