Manual steering alignment specs

[73eldoconvert]

I just got a alignment tool and was working on my mustang.  Its a 66 with manual steering so it came with bias tires so thats what the manual gives specs for which is pretty much 0 of everything and thats what the alignment was when I started.  Looking at other manuals for later radial equipped cars I have around +3 camber seems to be pretty common but all my manuals are for larger power steering cars.  Its now set to +3 caster and the handles 100% better than it ever has but it is a lot of work to steer.  I was wondering if maybe a little less caster would make it easier without making it squirrelly?  Anyone have a manual for a smaller early 70's manual steer car that has radial specs in it?  Or a manual for a car that has specs for both manual and power steering just to see if they were different?

Any thoughts or comments welcome

 

[STDog]

Manual steering should have been the same specs. The gear ratio is different and/or larger steering wheel to compensate.

Else you want more negative caster to be easier to turn, but that also make is track less.
Since radials don't change caster as much as bias ply you need more positive caster at rest.
Move back to 0, 1/2 degree at a time. Road test it and see how it handles, particularly straight line tracking.


Experiment til you find what you want. Great thing about having the tools, you can tune it to your liking,

I posted the bias ply alignment spec for the '70 deVille a while back
Caster: -1/2o to -1-1/2o

or -1o +/- 1/2.

You mentioned the 77 C bodies were
caster +3  +-2

So +1o should be fine for radials, and be much easier to turn. It Just won't hold a straight line as well.


So

 

[cadlass]

Well with anything much over +2 degrees and manual steering, unless you are running the original wheel or equivilent dia.,it'll be a chore in the parking lot but should be  a blast rolling down the road, we used to set the old mustangs up so you could snatch the wheel and release it and the car would jump back to straight as if on rails, lots of fun stuff to do to those old 'stangs, check out MAECO motorsports, ask for mike or jim, tell him a redneck sent you.