VCCA Home Forums TECHNICAL - 1945 AND EARLIER 1912-1928 Tie rod end adjustment

That is what I did and I checked the spinout of the tread and marked the tread half way across the tire with a strip of masking tape, so that it would be simular to the wheel sitting on the ground.. I also taped the angle iron and marked it with a sharpie even with the mark on the tire. I rolled the tire around 180 degrees and marked the tape even with the mark on the angle iron so that every mark was even. I lined the left hand mark even with the mark on the front and rear of the left tire . The difference in the front marks and the rear marks was what I called the toe in, you can also use the number of rounds you turn the tie rod and figure the threads per inch to get how much toe in you are putting in, if you have a reference to go by.
I also used a couple of 5 gallon pickle buckets to set the angle iron on since I raised the wheels off the ground. I don't think it is so much as to where on the wheel you do the measureing as long as the car is level and you measure both front and rear at the same height, I just like to use spindle high, it makes my math come out better for me. The pickle bucket was just about spindle high, I thought that would give more accurate information. I think toe in of each wheel would be 1/2 of the difference in the front to rear reading. so I guess I have about 1/4 inch of toe in for each wheel

I used a mark on the side of the tire and a plumb bob to measure the caster. There isn't an adjustment for caster, but I guess some Axle twisting or bending could be indicated if the castor is off also the camfer. I didn't try to change anything but the toe in. One of our LSR club members is a front end man from the old school and I decided if any more front end alignment is needed I would take it to him. To me that shows just one more reason to be a member of a VCCA Region. Help is always available from friends to friends.

this is the contraption that I made.



I didn't make it width adjustable, didn't figure it would ever be used on any other vehicle.

Great minds think alike. I am on my way to Home Depot after work to pick up some steel to make one too, but mine will be adjustable. i will post pics once complete. My thought was to use it to measure the rear, then adjust it down the prescribed amount and use it on the front.

by measuring the front first then the rear you can watch your instrument while turning the tire rod.

I used electrical conduit as the long rod, the uprights are "1/16 x 3/4 steel I had laying around.

That is why I have sons! The oldest is a licensed mechanic and the younger one needs to learn. In our family, all the boys have 10W30 in our veins.

Looks good to me. I use pickle buckets, masking tape, and a measureing tape, and angle iron for many kinds of projects. I just hope I haven't used them all up the next time I need to align a straight axle car or truck!

A great looking "contraption",and easily modifiable to suit any car.By the way,what model is the Oldsmobile you've got the "contraption" sitting on the hood?

that's my 71 Supreme SX

Short update:

I finally got to work on the car yesterday. Everything is now adjusted and well lubed. I check the toe and it was about 1/2" front to back, with no adjustment on my part, so i just left it. Unfortunately, I was out of time to go for a test drive, so stay tuned for the final results.

You need to adjust the toe in to the correct setting. 1/2 inch is way too much. You will find out in your test drive.

Hmm, farther up in the thread, Mr. Mack said he ended up with 1/2" toe and all is good. How much should I set it too? I know the manual says 1/8, but in all honesty, i don't know how you can get that accurate with 80 year old parts.

Keep in mind this is 1/2" difference front to back, not 1/2 per wheel from center.

It is a ferr piece between 1/8 and 1/2. Suggest you use the 1/8 measurment. MrMack will report the tire edge wear to us later.

the measurement should be 1/8" narrower in the front than the back. if everything is adjusted correctly the age of the parts shouldn't be a problem.

with 1/2" there will be excessive scrubbing of the tires but it sure should have tracked straight.

I had a little wander at 1/8" so I went to 3/16" and all is fine.

I am resurrecting this thread in order to begin year two work. Last year when i left off, one tie rod end was seized to the tie rod and would not budge. And on the other side the clamp around the tie rod is dubious, so I decide to get a new set from Gary Wallace. Arriving today, I discovered that he sent me a more modern pin type. They are labeled ES23-L and ES23-R. In discussion with him he said that is all he has for the 28 and the cup type are no longer available.

So here are my questions:

Has anyone here done such a replacement?
Does anyone here have an old complete cup style for sale if these don't work out?

I have found replacement parts on eBay and some from Model A suppliers. Don't remember if the ball studs have the right diameter stud end or not. Also understand that the Filling Station has parts that will fit the '28 tie rod ends. They also have the ball studs that have larger ball stud ends than the Model A suppliers. Between all of them rebuilding has not been a problem even if I end up with a few parts I can't use on a Chevy. If you don't find what you need send me a PM and I will check my stuff closer.

I checked the Filling Station and yes they have rebuild parts, but I need the whole units. My housings are in rough shape and the clamp on one needs replacing.

The replacement housings occasionally come up on eBay or you can try to find good used ones. If the search looks to be taking too long maybe yours can be repaired.

I found this listing at Vapinc: http://www.vapinc.com/chevy/Steering%20Parts/main.html

The list shell type and stud type. What has me confused is the ones I got from Gary are E23 and they list E29.

my brain hurts.

Well it's warmer today and I was able to get under the car and do some measurements and I highly doubt the e23 tie rod ends will fit. Unfortunately, the end that I thought was not seized is indeed seized onto the tie rod and did not fell like firing up the OA torch. with calipers I measured and it is close. However the stud size seems too small to fit where the ball is now and I am reluctant to take out the ball just to find out.

Any words of wisdom before I ship these back to Gary.

As my quest for new tie rod ends continues, I was just told that TWR part # ES 28 is a good replacement. Can someone confirm.

For 1928-9 the TRW ES28 was the stock replacement for the .791-16 thread tie rod. The ES10 3/4-16 thread end could be used but required the matching ET11 3/4 16 thread tie rod.
The 30-33 Chev used the ES29 which was also .791-16 thread but the jobber replacement was the ES23 and ET11 3/4-16 thread combination.
The difference between the ES28 and ES 29 is the taper of the stud .512 high taper and .493 low taper on the ES28 and .644 and .523 on the 29. If you do get an ES29 to fit into the tapered hole it may not draw down enough to be solid.

thanks for this info. i will try and get under the car tonight and measure the tie rod and threads, if my thread gauge goes this low. if not, I will have to count while on my back. the next issue will be the removal of the balls and this is the part that scares me since removal might destroy them. i doubt the holes have a taper and I have no clue who in town can do such machining.