Tires rubbing cab mounts after UCA

I made an appointment with ratchets 4x4 in NH. Closest place to me that gets good reviews from the guys in my 4x4 group.

I’ll get the alignment sorted out before I do anything else.
Lesson learned. Don’t let town faire tire work on your truck.

 

Drivers side

 

Passenger side. Looks off doesn’t it?

 

Yep. They should be mirror images of each other.

 

You simply cannot eyeball an alignment. There are a number of factors that could contribute to the adjusters being in different spots. Assuming the alignment machine was properly calibrated, the print out is what you should be looking at. I'm going to assume that it was because if it wasn't, you would be complaining about it pulling.

Watch this youtube video so you can get a better understanding of caster. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=265&v=THemO9E7jq4&feature=emb_logo It should give you a visual of what has happened with the extra positive caster added by your control arms. To fix your problem without a CMC, you will have to go lower on your caster. You will see how that will impact your ride.

 

Your passenger rear cam don’t look right. It should be around the 9 o’clock position. Get a new alignment guy.

You cannot lower caster with the Uca that you have. Since it’s in a fixed position. The only way you can lower caster is using the cams on the LCA. Lowering caster on the LCA will push the wheels back towards the cab mount.

When people say to lower caster to gain more clearance, they’re talking about UCA. Like spc uca. So lowering caster with the spc uca will push the top of the wheel forward, away from the cab mount. But lowering your caster also make your truck ride like shit.

 

Yup like @Asianguywithatruk said in the last pic your cam tab bolt is upside down. I had a bad shop do that to mine once and I laughed about it with the shop that fixed it when they showed me.

 

Because his only adjustment is on the lower control arm. The only way to move the tire forward would be to move the lower control arm. When you do that, you are lowering the caster angle. His other option would be to pull the tire in by reducing the offset of the wheel, but he probably doesn't have room to do that since he is running spidertrax. I'm guessing he did that to clear the control arms. Maybe with the new upper arms, he doesn't need them? In any case, watch the video and it gives good explanation of caster, but you have to read.

 

I understand that the increase in caster is an effect of the JBAs (I'm running them also) but lowering the caster via LCA, will move the wheel/tire closer to the mud flap/cab mount. Or am I super confused?
(Completely possible, it's been a rough day)

 

Yep, that's what I was Thinking. Went back and read the last few post, and realized you just said that.

 

the index tab is just flipped 180* it won't hurt anything. There are two grooves on the cam bolt, it can only go on two ways, and they'll both give the same result.

 

Yep, Better caster angle. More rub. If you go SPC you can adjust the lower to help pull it forward as well.

 

You can still adjust camber/caster via the LCA no matter what Uppers you have. an adjustable UCA just gives you another point of adjustment. Otherwise you wouldn't be able to adjust a stock truck as the Upper ball joint is in a fixed location on the OEM UCA as well.

 

Postive caster is like this |/| in your wheel well. If you move the wheel forward via that LCA it will increase caster. If you move the upper control arm forward it decrease caster. The aftermarket UCAs that correct caster do so by moving it back. Ideally with the SPC upper arms, you adjust as much as you can forward with the LCA then adjust caster back with the UCA. This would push you as far forward as you can go then bring back to a proper caster setting. With fixed uppers, you are limited in where you can position the tire in the wheel well.

 

They move the upper ball joint back. See my post above. Caster is still adjusted by rear cam on LCA. Front cam is more for camber adjustment but they both go hand in hand. Changing one will change the other.

 

I'm not completely disagreeing with you, but I wouldn't go as far as to say that's "the right way" to do it.Otherwise there would be a lot more UCAs that are adjustable like the SPCs. I'm not aware of any besides Icon Billet and SPC. And they use different methods for adjustments. I understand that the JBAs increase caster by changing location of upper balljoint, but caster/camber is still increased/decreased by turning the cams on LCA. And I guess I didn't think the spacers were playing a role because he said the rubbing occurred when the suspension compressed like dips in road. IM sure they rub when he turns the wheels, but I know from experience with mine that the same way you increase caster on a stock setup (LCA cams) will also work with all fixed upper ball joints.

 

Agreed. It is really a need situation. Most people just cut their cab mount or get more lift. When the difference between rubbing and not is fractions of an inch, you have to fine tune and that is where those products find their place in the market. SPC is the only true adjustable ball joint that I know of. The others are fixed adjustments meaning that you set them before you install them and would have to remove to change.

I have always been surprised that no one is making a truly adjustable UCA for the Tacoma. I would love to see SPC make something like this for a Tacoma. I would be the first to buy them.

 

I apologize @Dryvah didnt mean to hijack/derail your thread. Just trying to get more useful information for you. @Sungod those SPCs in that pic are some sweet units. Guaranteed to give your average Firestone alignment guy an anxiety attack. Haha

 

Haaa, for real. "You want me to adjust what?"

 

You want to add threads to your control arms? You still thinking you want that aluminum turnbuckle?

Huh. Wonder why they don’t make em.