Front axle castor wedges

Series Landrover springs are symmetrical, that is the length of spring in front of and behind the spring is the same. This means that as far as the spring itself is concerned, if the spring is sagged there is no change in caster. (The height of the shackle end will change very slightly as the spring is deflected, but without calculating this I think the change in caster angle would be insignificant)

So unless there is one or more broken leaves, spring sag will not affect caster. And if you have four inches of play in the steering, caster is the last thing to worry about!

John

oky doky....

cool stuff thanks guys, guess ill start looking at reconditioning the steering box.

I just want to get this stupid car registered and on the road! its all this little things that is holding me back...

if it was already registered then i would be happier to pull the box apart but as its not registered it will just be one more task that takes forever (work 6 days a week) to get done....

im holding back the rant....

haha...grrr

Hi there,

I'd recommend starting from the wheels and working back to the box. If the ball joints look like they've been there for a while, I'd replace the whole six as it only needs a little bit of wear in each to cause major wander. They don't last very long and wear can be hard to detect by either eye or feel. While the rods are disconnected from the relay check the relay bearings - a piece of water pipe over the arms for leverage is helpful. Check for wear in the worm by tightening up the ball adjuster while the wheels are straight ahead until the steering as a bit stiffer than you'd like, then turn the wheel out to full lock and see if it gets stiffer or seizes up - if it does, the worm is worn (they usually wear in the centre of the range first) - or the worm bearings are shot but you'd expect to hear / feel noises in that case. However beware if the box has been filled with grease instead of oil - sometimes done to disguise and quieten a worn-out box. Also after the play is removed IMO it's essential to set the toe-in correctly. Without any toe-in it will track and wander however good the steering.

Cheers

Thanks to everyone with your helpful advice!

I decided to start fresh and get my toe in totally correct! This has made a HUGE difference. Now i dont have to battle to keep straight.

The box has been adjusted but is just a little light at the moment.

But its evident that it is in serious need of an overhaul. Still alot of freeplay, but is less obvious with the car wanting to head stright.

Everything has been topped up with grease.

And after playing around to fix a stiff linkage to the carby i changed some springs over and readjusted the linkage and i can now get full throttle out of the 202, where as before i was not able to use all of it.

Finally the car steers straight, stops quickly and goes up hills

engineer test is booked in for next week and im looking forward to posting some pictures of the car with its little sticker allowing me to drive it on roads legally!

Thanks again to everyone!

Does it behave differently on dirt roads to bitumen highways? Highways tend to have ruts in them, caused by heavy trucks. The ruts tend to be of a wider track than the Land Rover. This tends to make the Land Rover track from one rut to the other, appearing to dance about. Having a good toe-in helps to keep it straight by taking up a bit of freeplay from the tie-rod. If it shudders a lot when going over train lines and pot holes, suspect the swivel housing bearings. There is a washer that needs to be pre-loaded correctly, with the swivel housing seal and tie-rod end both removed, to provide resistance to turning. This does the same job as a bit of a steering dampener.
Aaron.

G'day Coffey76 :)

The series landrover swivel hubs are manufactured with a 7deg inclination,so there is no need to fit wedges,here are a few specs which you may find helpful.
1. wheel bearing freeplay 0.004 to0.006 thou inch (0.10-0.15mm)
2. swivel hub preload, 14 to 16 lbs (pounds) at steering lever eye,without wheel attached. set with fish scales
3. front wheel camber 1 1/2 deg
4. front wheel Caster 3 deg.

5. wheel alignment.1.2 to 2.4mm 3/64" to 3/32" conventional tyres
NOTE: 0=ZERO toe in with Radial tyres ;)


CHECK, steering pitman arm at steering box,the large nut 1"+ & lockwasher will often work loose allowing excess play,tighten and fold lockwasher over 80ft/lb.

CHECK, that all pinch bolts on relay arms are tight,55+ft/lbs


Max play at edge of steering wheel 1" (25mm) to 1 1/2" (37mm)


Hope that is of help


cheers

Thanks for that info it will come in handy when i attack the steering box.

Once its registered (monday next week) I plan on fixing the freeplay in the steering, which at the moment is about 3 inches. But fixing alignment has solved the random tracking issues.