and rear. Another unique thing we learned is that vintage Chevrolets
have different suspension pivots, depending on the year. The 1951 pivots
are threaded in place and, in 1953, the pivots were pressed in place.
Therefore, it is important to know the exact year of the vehicle you are
working on as some parts may be different.
Once disassembled, Dave cleaned all of the old parts he intends to
reuse, and being a meticulous craftsman, painted the components prior
to installation.
After buttoning everything back together, the car was driven onto the
alignment rack. Modern technology would call for a Thrust-angle
alignment, where the rear wheels are checked to ensure they are running
“square” with the front wheels. The rear fenders of the old Chevy didn’t
permit his gauges to fit on the rear wheels, so only the front suspension
was aligned.
Vintage Chevrolets are similar to other American cars of that era that
have kingpin front suspension as they have a pivot at both the upper and
lower control arm, instead of ball-joints on later cars. This may frighten
the young alignment technician fresh out of trade school. However, old
manuals are available to guide those unfamiliar with the older
technology. On the Chevrolet, and similar cars with kingpin suspension
of that vintage, caster and camber settings are made by removing the
rear grease fitting of the upper pivot and inserting the appropriate-sized
allen wrench. This rotates an eccentric so caster and camber adjustments
can be made.
singke
(singke)
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