Another "truck pulls to the left after alignment" thread, need advice please! (1 Viewer)

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new bearings need to be pressed on and you really should tear the diff down and inspect it all in order to confidently rule it out as the source.
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Ok well it is my dd so Iā€™m thinking of things I can do in my garage before having to pull the diff. What about just checking bearing preload? I have an inch-pound torque wrench.
 
Sure, you will need to pull the inner shafts first.
Oh right. Def donā€™t have time for that. Let me think about the logistics of this, borrowing a car, and the next order of events.
Thanks RickšŸ¤™
 
Iā€™ve been thinking on this and I might have an idea how to check this out if the bearing is really bad.

Now chock the front wheels with something large preferably wheel chocks at the front of the tire and drive up against them.

The idea is to load up the pinion and force any play in toward the outer bearing.

Then set the e- brake and place the transmission in park.

The crawl under and see if there is any play in the companion flange.
 
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Iā€™ve been thinking on this and I might have an idea how to check this out if the bearing is really bad.

Now chock the front wheels with something large preferably wheel chocks at the front of the tire and drive up against them.

The idea is to load up the pinion and force any play in toward the outer bearing.

Then set the e- brake and place the transmission in park.

The crawl under and see if there is any play in the companion flange.
Excellent! I understand completely and will try this tomorrow. I also have a buddy coming over with new 31'' street tires im going to swap on mine and drive to see if it is my tires.

I guess I dont want to, or didn't plan on messing with the front axle or tcase as part of a lift.

One thing I will mention, as just another point of reference, is that on the freeway, at 60+ mph, when I am by myself, I can look over and see the passenger seat vibrating.:meh:
 
looking forward to your findings. I was thinking that if you have some ramps, they might work better. You could remove the rear drive shaft, lock the center diff and then drive up the ramps part way and place the tranny in park. The truck would then roll back slightly and rest with the front axle holding it in position on the slope of the ramp.
 
looking forward to your findings. I was thinking that if you have some ramps, they might work better. You could remove the rear drive shaft, lock the center diff and then drive up the ramps part way and place the tranny in park. The truck would then roll back slightly and rest with the front axle holding it in position on the slope of the ramp.
...at which point i would then crawl under and rotate the front shaft, feeling for play?
 
...at which point i would then crawl under and rotate the front shaft, feeling for play?
you won't be able to rotate it but what you are looking for is up and down play. And there will likely no be much at all even if it's bad. Place your dominant hand on the drive shaft just behind the u-joint and your other hand partially on the diff and fingers on the pinion dust cover. Then attempt to move the shaft up and down while concentrating on your hand that's on the diff for any movement.
 
you won't be able to rotate it but what you are looking for is up and down play. And there will likely no be much at all even if it's bad. Place your dominant hand on the drive shaft just behind the u-joint and your other hand partially on the diff and fingers on the pinion dust cover. Then attempt to move the shaft up and down while concentrating on your hand that's on the diff for any movement.
Roger that. thanks
 
Update.
So today I tried the suggestion by Rick to feel for play in the pinion bearing and with all my might, I could not budge the flange even a smidge.
Also swapped over a buddies new 31ā€ less aggressive tires and although they were quieter and seems to wander less, the vibration was unchanged at 50mph. So it is not my tires.
Also while the front was jacked up I checked the wheel bearings and calipers. All was good.
So I guess that means it is still a vibrating front shaft. But it is not the shaft itself, because at this point I have tried 4 different shafts. So it is a driveline angle, or a bent axle shaft or worn spindle or something in the front axle. Or front tcase bearing.
Any other ideas?
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Update.
So today I tried the suggestion by Rick to feel for play in the pinion bearing and with all my might, I could not budge the flange even a smidge.
Also swapped over a buddies new 31ā€ less aggressive tires and although they were quieter and seems to wander less, the vibration was unchanged at 50mph. So it is not my tires.
Also while the front was jacked up I checked the wheel bearings and calipers. All was good.
So I guess that means it is still a vibrating front shaft. But it is not the shaft itself, because at this point I have tried 4 different shafts. So it is a driveline angle, or a bent axle shaft or worn spindle or something in the front axle. Or front tcase bearing.
Any other ideas?
I think this might've been suggested already, but did you check the height of the greasiness on your knuckles?
If it's under halfway then the spindle bushings may not be getting lubed, and cause a vibration.

Edit: Not entirely sure, but looking at pics on page 2 I think it's high enough.
 
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I am updating this thread as a continuation from this thread:

After the wheel-swapping experiment in post #71, the result was enough to persuade me to try yet another set of tires. Plus I had read tons on wheel spacers to question their effect on handling. So, my next move was to eliminate them as well as the aftermarket wheels, and the new 35ā€ toyoā€™s
I returned to the OEM wheels with 315 Falken all terrains, and no wheel spacers.
While this did not get rid of my driveline vibes, I am happy to say it DID eliminate the wandering left to right in the freeway, AND the vibration at 70 mph. @Broski was right when he said somewhere deep in a thread that there is just nothing better then the specs of the OEM wheel. And @landtank was right when he said the high speed vibes and wandering where the tires.
So Iā€™m left with a vibe at 15 mph and 40 mph.
All my research has led me to believe this due to driveshaft angle. More later.

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So here is the set up at this point and alignment sheet:
-Dobinsons 2.5ā€ long travel springs (C97-147VT) and (C97-146VT)
-Delta 3ā€ arms
OEM wheels with Falken 315ā€™s

Since this netted 3.5ā€ of lift in the rear I decide to address the rear pinion and driveshaft angles next. So I added landtank HD extended RLCA.

That did not affect vibration. But at least it corrected the rear driveshaft operating angles to less than 10 degrees and replaced the old bushings with new ones. (Concluding that I donā€™t think the rear shaft is vibrating)

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Caster looks to be just right. But is it????and the pinion angle is still not???

I then decided after talking to Dave at Dobinsons that the VT 2.5ā€ long travel were for heavy rigs. I did not know that at time of purchase. That is why the rear was so high. So I decided to swap springs. Again. This time went with even lower Dobinsons 2ā€ no load linear springs. (C59-169) and (C59-168).
This netted exactly 2ā€ of lift front and rear. They also handle really great on the road.
Now the rear shaft angle was over corrected so I added Dobinsons adjustable rear UCA to correct. (This also eliminated a speed bump clunk Iā€™d had for years! Yay!)
After talking to Dave at Delta we decided to leave the rear panhard lift bracket installed with the 2ā€ lift as it keeps the bar level.
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Caster looks to be just right. But is it????and the pinion angle is still not???

I then decided after talking to Dave at Dobinsons that the VT 2.5ā€ long travel were for heavy rigs. I did not know that at time of purchase. That is why the rear was so high. So I decided to swap springs. Again. This time went with even lower Dobinsons 2ā€ no load linear springs. (C59-169) and (C59-168).
This netted exactly 2ā€ of lift front and rear. They also handle really great on the road.
Now the rear shaft angle was over corrected so I added Dobinsons adjustable rear UCA to correct. (This also eliminated a speed bump clunk Iā€™d had for years! Yay!)
After falling to Dave at Delta we decided to leave the rear panhard lift bracket installed with the 2ā€ lift as it keeps the bar level.
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Ah so this is really good info for me.
I'm looking to run the dobinson 222/223 combo (1.75" springs in theory, 2.5-3 in practice) and thinking the 3" arm would be a good fit.

In targeting a 3" lift I'd rather start low and bring it up with spacers than get stuck with a 4" lift. My research is indicating the 2" spring should be fine for a 35" on factory wheels.

If I wind up with vibes I'll probably just crack the tcase and go part time + 10% underdrive while I'm in there.

Your truck does seem to be a vibratory unicorn- most folks aren't reporting issues with the 3" arms.

Good data here- appreciate you sharing the journey. Really anxious to see where your castor ends up.
 
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So I can see where you want to go with your build and I would approach like this: decide what lift you ultimately want. Then decide if that lift requires a part time kit. OR decide if the driving/wheeling style you have requires a part time kit. Then design the lift around that.
The reason I say this is so that you can avoid the almost 2 years ive spent chasing this down! and also in separate conversations with high profile land cruiser specific shops, they all said they do NOT do lift packages over 3" without a part time kit. :oops: To me that was alarming, but in reality they already knew what I didn't.
So, for example, if you want 3" (or higher) lift plan and budget for a part time kit period. And make sure to check and correct the rear shaft. If you want a 2.5" lift or lower, you don't need a part time kit.

Just remember the part time kit disables the ABS. and the ABS light is on constantly on the dash. There is an ABS work around that places the ring outside the birf, but that is sketchy in my opinion. I think there is a re-wire for the ABS light, but then that is more crap to fiddle with. Im just saying that the part time kit isn't just the kit.

Lots of posts (including me) with no issues or rubbing at all with a 2"lift and 35's

yes i was blessed with a "vibratory sensitive" truck!
 
From what I have read and seen, and discussed with those shops i mentioned, the ABS ring that rotates is moved to outside the birf. the actual ABS sensor is then mounted (relocated) there. It seems like it is now more in the way and more likely to fail. I have no experience with this, so maybe those that have used it can school me?
 

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