Alignment Questions

[gint2]

So, looking at the Jeep from head on, it appears the top of my front wheels are tilted in, ie bent axle. I have already done the C gussets but never trussed/sleeved the axle. I took it to a local shop that does free alignment checks and here are the results:

                                                                     Specs
                Left             Right                   Left               Right
Camber      -1.0               -0.4             0.1 to -0.6       -0.6 to 0.1
Caster       4.6                4.0               4.7 to 3.7         3.7 to 4.7
Toe           .43                .49               0.09 to 0.12     0.12 to 0.09
Total Toe               0.92                                      .017 to 0.23

So, short of knowing my tie rod is toast and my tow is out, It looks like the short side of my axle is bent.

That leads me to my next questions:

1. Anyone know anything about straightening an axle?

2. With it being 1 deg, besides inner tire wear, will this damage my carrier? I know the inner seal may leak but anyone foresee additional damage I may cause by running it?

3. Anyone know of a good axle swap for a JK. Full size chevy D44, FSJ D44?   Please don't throw the off the shelf ones at me, I can't afford a PR 44 or a RJ 60.

4. Anyone hear of people swapping the axle tubes on a stock axle with thicker tubes?

According to the alignment sheet, the left rear looks to be a bit Toe in (.38), Camber in (-0.7). The Right rear is not bad with Zero tow and Camber in (-0.3).

[DOUG]

Can be retubed. 
http://sbcoffroad.net/

No good old axle replacements due to the tone ring requirement.  So you need a pro rock or a rock Jock or one of the after market tone ring kits.

No cheap solution unfortunately.

Sent off camber

[bear991]

Shops that do heavy truck alignments can bend your axle back to specs. All over the road class 8 tractors have a solid front axle. To align them they have to be bent. The guys that do this everyday will not have trouble doing this for you

[cru9]

That's pretty cool. Is that something that can be done on Jeep or would the axle have to be pulled?

[DOUG]

Definitely truss after a bend back.

Keep us posted.

Sent off camber

[bear991]

Should be able to do it with the axle still in jeep. I had one of my trucks hit a horse in south Fla. one nite,pushed the axle back to where both front tires hit the back of each fender. Straightened it out in about a hour or two. Same principle as correcting a frame rail. They don't move it fast just apply steady pressure and over time it will move

[gint2]

That's good news!
Do you know if when moving the axle tubes will that damage the axle shafts? I assume they use heat?? That will most likely damage the axle seals too. All said that's a cheaper fix then buying a replacement axle. Any recommendation of a local shop that you trust?

[bear991]

They don't use heat that would possibly weaken the metal. Normally it's done by using two opposing forces. They will chain down one part and use a big hydraulic ram to push in the other direction or pull depending on what is required. It's done in small increments and at a slow pace so the metal is not fatigued. I'll get you some info on a couple of shops I've used and pm you

[gint2]

Thanks! I really appreciate that. I would rather call a shop referred.


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