caster correction 411?

[landcruiser3DP]

i’m reading up on caster correction and would like to understand it but also the slee document (and the OME document) on caster correction bushings is hard to understand.

slee seems to say to use a Plumb Bob which would imply you are dripping s line from a point while under the vehicle? but this makes no sense to me since it won’t be plumb to anything except gravity.

and this document from OME is showing a perpendicular from a line through the /center/ of the rear hole and the /top/ (?) of the ID on the front hole. i know it sounds trivial but it doesn’t make any sense to me.

does anyone understand the install? and can anyone give me a quick down and dirty on what i need to know?

ALSO. i have six OEM bushings. so i won’t be using the casters. can anyone also give me the lowdown on caster correction plates and how they work?

 

[landcruiser3DP]

plumb bob instructions

 

[NLXTACY]

If using OME's s***ty caster correction bushings then LANDTANK has already taken all of the guesswork out of the equation:

80 Series OME 2 Degree Caster Template

LANDTANK 80 Series 2 Degree Caster Template (CAS-2)

absolute-wits-end.com

If you want to use OEM bushings, the RIGHT choice, then you have to use caster plates or caster correcting arms. The plates you can get here: 80 Series Caster Correction Plates- 2.5in.

The arms you can get from @Delta VS

 

[landcruiser3DP]

If using OME's s***ty caster correction bushings then LANDTANK has already taken all of the guesswork out of the equation:

80 Series OME 2 Degree Caster Template

LANDTANK 80 Series 2 Degree Caster Template (CAS-2)

absolute-wits-end.com

If you want to use OEM bushings, the RIGHT choice, then you have to use caster plates or caster correcting arms. The plates you can get here: 80 Series Caster Correction Plates- 2.5in.

The arms you can get from @Delta VS

thanks joey. yeah, i am going with the OEM bushings. and trying to read up on wtf the issue is because i don’t understand it.

so 3” lift i get the 2.5” plates. we’re rhere install docs that come with those? is it basically just taking that rectangle out of the lower end of the supports or was there enlarging the holes with a right angle drill? and no welding?

which arms am i looking for at Delta again please?

 

[NLXTACY]

thanks joey. yeah, i am going with the OEM bushings. and trying to read up on wtf the issue is because i don’t understand it.

so 3” lift i get the 2.5” plates. we’re rhere install docs that come with those? is it basically just taking that rectangle out of the lower end of the supports or was there enlarging the holes with a right angle drill? and no welding?

so it depends what your NET lift is. If you add spacers then that affects your caster and which plates or arms you choose.

yes on the 2.5 plates it’s just that notching. It’s recommended to do a stitch weld front and back to keep the plates from shifting long term.

 

[landcruiser3DP]

so it depends what your NET lift is. If you add spacers then that affects your caster and which plates or arms you choose.

yes on the 2.5 plates it’s just that notching. It’s recommended to do a stitch weld front and back to keep the plates from shifting long term.

thanks. i’m not finding it the easiest topic to wrap my head around despite doing a lot of reading up here. to be honest i was thinking about it and i don’t even get how these things work. on the surface it looks like a pair of holes that get bolted through the OEM bushings - like center to center.

can you /drive/ it over somewhere to get it welded up? or do the plates get fit up with a certain degree of correction on each plate - or one each side - and you have to do it without moving it?

and no one has busted out one of those four plates after cutting them below the hole? i’m somehow not crazy about taking meat out of those just from an initial
look see.

are landtanks’s less “destructive” or more “destructive” than slee? i didn’t quite catch which was less destructive or what landtank’s were doing that slee’s weren’t...

 

[NLXTACY]

You can drive perfectly fine without welding. But off-roading with axle articulation exposes a wallowing of the holes when not welded. If it’s just street you’ll be fine until you find the time to get them welded up.

 

[landcruiser3DP]

You can drive perfectly fine without welding. But off-roading with axle articulation exposes a wallowing of the holes when not welded. If it’s just street you’ll be fine until you find the time to get them welded up.

sorry. does the kit come with instructions. the 2.5” kit requires notching 4X and then you are opening up the diameter of the existing flange holes was that it?
was there a thread that sort of explains what they do and how they do it? the linked threads discuss a lot but they don’t quite walk though the 101 level questions imho.

 

[SNLC]

Get a current caster reading. Pay the $60-75 to have it aligned, make sure you get the print out. Now you know where you are at, now you can shop correctly.

I personally like 4.5* but anything between 4-5* works well for me. I don’t like less than 4* and don’t feel more than 5* is needed and can create probs.

FYI, I have an OME medium front, ARB bar only extra weight. It was at 0-.5* like this so 4* is what will best fix my caster.

This is the best way to figure it out, don’t listen to bs about “you need x amount of caster correction for x amount of lift”. That’s hog wash, the axle swings on a radius as it moves this means as it gets lifted more, caster changes more. Oh and you really need the truck built up how it will be long term, meaning all accessories on it with the amount of lift you want to run and things like stink bug dealt with as well. Then get an alignment to know where you are and then buy the product you need to set it where you want. Otherwise, you are burning money.

Cheers

 

[landcruiser3DP]

Get a current caster reading. Pay the $60-75 to have it aligned, make sure you get the print out. Now you know where you are at, now you can shop correctly.

I personally like 4.5* but anything between 4-5* works well for me. I don’t like less than 4* and don’t feel more than 5* is needed and can create probs.

FYI, I have an OME medium front, ARB bar only extra weight. It was at 0-.5* like this so 4* is what will best fix my caster.

This is the best way to figure it out, don’t listen to bs about “you need x amount of caster correction for x amount of lift”. That’s hog wash, the axle swings on a radius as it moves this means as it gets lifted more, caster changes more. Oh and you really need the truck built up how it will be long term, meaning all accessories on it with the amount of lift you want to run and things like stink bug dealt with as well. Then get an alignment to know where you are and then buy the product you need to set it where you want. Otherwise, you are burning money.

Cheers

thanks man.

so are we talking put in the 3” lift, replace the cracked bushings with OEM and call it a day?

then get a final decision on whether i am adding any bumpers/sliders or second battery and ride it until it is fully equipped?

then i get it professionally sorted for camber and alignment?

 

[SNLC]

thanks man.

so are we talking put in the 3” lift, replace the cracked bushings with OEM and call it a day?

then get a final decision on whether i am adding any bumpers/sliders or second battery and ride it until it is fully equipped?

then i get it professionally sorted for camber and alignment?

Two issues with that plan,
#1 if you ended up going Delta arms you wasted $$ on bushings since their arms come loaded with them.
#2 how long is it going to take you to get it all kitted out? If that is awhile you are going to be driving around with awful caster until then which trust me sucks.

But yes, if yo don't do it in the order I said above, you will end up either having to little caster and or having to spend the money more than once to fix the caster. Be aware, caster plates weld on and require drilling, not fun to un-do that. And to be honest, suspension of any sort should not be selected until you know how it will be in the end. No front bar or winch is a lot different than a heavy front bar with lights and a big heavy 12k winch. A medium duty kit is fine for the first but won't give much if any lift for the latter.

Cheers

 

[baldilocks]

Forget bandaids and call @Delta VS

208-918-2646

or

dave@deltavs.com

 

[landtank]

thanks man.

so are we talking put in the 3” lift, replace the cracked bushings with OEM and call it a day?

then get a final decision on whether i am adding any bumpers/sliders or second battery and ride it until it is fully equipped?

then i get it professionally sorted for camber and alignment?

I recommend getting the truck to where you want the ride height and stance to be, whether or not all the future accessories are mounted yet.

then correct for geometry and such as needed. At this point if you do add more weight it’s a simple process of compensating for that weight with either spring spacers or new springs. That way you only deal with the geometry aspect once.

 

[Johnny Boy]

If using OME's s***ty caster correction bushings then LANDTANK has already taken all of the guesswork out of the equation:

80 Series OME 2 Degree Caster Template

LANDTANK 80 Series 2 Degree Caster Template (CAS-2)

absolute-wits-end.com

If you want to use OEM bushings, the RIGHT choice, then you have to use caster plates or caster correcting arms. The plates you can get here: 80 Series Caster Correction Plates- 2.5in.

The arms you can get from @Delta VS

Hi, why are they s***ty ? I'm looking for them as I look for 2" lift and caster plate correction (with cutting and welding on axle) will not be allowed here in Belgium (vehicle technical control is very strict with modifications )

 

[Johnny Boy]

.

 

[landcruiser3DP]

I recommend getting the truck to where you want the ride height and stance to be, whether or not all the future accessories are mounted yet.

then correct for geometry and such as needed. At this point if you do add more weight it’s a simple process of compensating for that weight with either spring spacers or new springs. That way you only deal with the geometry aspect once.

hi rick.
thanks for your input. i’m trying to do my homework here and it is a tricky topic. i think i follow.
so new shocks and coils with the new OEM bushings to replace a couple cracked ones?
can i just ask you what is implied by “ride height” and “stance”?
and i am correct in thinking i am going to deal with geometry later by adjusting spring spacers and new springs bust also doing the camber adjustment later by adding a new set of plates?