dynomax Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 (edited) Ordered my Ironman 35mm/1.4" lift, but wondering about the camber bolts. I am not going with strut spacers or leveling kit, just the 35mm spring front and rear. Everything I Read on the AC lift is you need at least 1 or 2 camber bolts... What about OME, and what i got... the Ironman? Am I ok, because Ironman site says nothing about camber bolts, and I can't find anything saying OME needs it either. Will the alignment shop not have camber bolts, or are the vehicle specific or what? Anyhow, I didn't order any with my lift, should I?? I don't know what to do with them, will my alignment man?? He's even skeptical I will be able to line it up for some reason! Edited March 9, 2012 by dynomax Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rick13 Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 (edited) I don't know what to do with them, will my alignment man?? He's even skeptical I will be able to line it up for some reason! This scares me a little. And I'm not saying this to be a horse's backside, not at all. My point is that I don't know a whole bunch about wrenching, but even I know about camber bolts and how to adjust them. I'm worried, NOT about you, but about your alignment man. With such a small amount of coil lift within the strut, I can't imagine that they'd be very far out of alignment. If I were you, I would purchase a set (like the ones linked) and have available for your alignment guy. If you need them, you should only need one bolt per strut. Then, if not needed, return them unused for your money back. (Moog Camber Bolts (Advance Auto) Here is a simple diagram of how they work: Please (anyone) post up if you have a different take on this. Edited March 9, 2012 by Rick13 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devonianwalk Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 Rick said it (and illustrated it) right. I went with two bolts on each side to keep my camber as flat as possible. I was amazed to watch the whole assembly move when turning the bolts before torquing them down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pathfounder Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 (edited) The need for camber bolts depends entirely on the height of the lift. The upper ball joint is fixed. It is bolted to the chassis. The lower one is on a control arm, so when it moves up and down, it also moves inboard and outboard. When you lift the truck, you are moving the LBJ inboard, which increases the camber. So, you use camber bolts to undo the change. The more the LCA moved the LBJ inboard (the higher the lift), then the more out of whack the camber will be. EDIT: It's possible that the struts themselves have offset holes to make up the difference. Edited March 9, 2012 by pathfounder 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snow4me Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Does it matter which side the nuts are on, front or back? Thats not supposed to be a joke. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snow4me Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Any pics available? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devonianwalk Posted March 10, 2012 Share Posted March 10, 2012 Does it matter which side the nuts are on, front or back? Thats not supposed to be a joke. :-) I put mine on the way the illustration shows .. by pure chance. I don't see why it would matter which side of the strut? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pathfounder Posted March 12, 2012 Share Posted March 12, 2012 Direction would not matter, but orientation (clock) does of course. I would install them with the nuts trailing, to tell myself that they are being kept a tiny bit cleaner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stioc Posted September 19, 2012 Share Posted September 19, 2012 I just got these bolts (I'd prefer 0 to slightly -ve camber for better handling) so I can finally go get the alignment done so I'll be installing them tonight. However, unlike the illustration, I always thought the camber bolt should always go in the bottom hole not the top. That way the top bolt becomes the pivot point for the assembly. Anyone that's installed them care to comment? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theexbrit Posted September 19, 2012 Share Posted September 19, 2012 (edited) I'm like Devonianwalk, I have 2 camber bolts on each side. I had a fair amount of + camber after my lift, I'm guessing it's because I only have 10.5" wide tires on stock wheels. People with more backspacing on their wheels & wider tires (12.5 or so) don't seem to have this problem. I've always seen the bolt installed on the top in one bolt setups, not sure why it makes a difference even in assembly, as long as you have one bolt in it holds the hub although it would probably be a bit easier to use the top hole as a pivot point. I know someone will say that you shouldn't use 2 camber bolts on each side as they're only holding on the camber part of the bolt but the stock bolts are smaller than the hole anyway otherwise they wouldn't go in. So where does it hold on a stock bolt if it's not touching the sides? To me, as long as they're tight I don't see that 2 bolts will be a weak spot, I believe DVW has had his 2 bolts on each side for years & has not had any problems. Edited September 19, 2012 by theexbrit 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devonianwalk Posted September 19, 2012 Share Posted September 19, 2012 DVW has had his 2 bolts on each side for years & has not had any problems. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pathfounder Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I'm like Devonianwalk, I have 2 camber bolts on each side. I had a fair amount of + camber after my lift, I'm guessing it's because I only have 10.5" wide tires on stock wheels. People with more backspacing on their wheels & wider tires (12.5 or so) don't seem to have this problem. Wheels and tires would not affect camber, caster, or toe. Only scrub radius would be affected. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theexbrit Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Maybe I'm wrong but I have to disagree with you pathfounder, I tried a buddies 33x12.5" wheels on my truck & the positive camber disappeared completely. The wider the "stance" of the vehicle the more the vehicle seems to "settle" & hence the positive camber goes. At least that's how it seemed to me. Not trying to start an argument but why do I have bad positive camber after the lift & 1" spacer yet others like Devonianwalk don't have this issue with the same setup except for the wider tires & more backspacing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stioc Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 Andy, Pathfounder is correct that camber, caster, toe are not affected by the wheels or tires. They're suspension related; think of the strut and hub as a fixed one piece metal assembly for a sec. If the hub of this assembly is pointed inward at a 1degree angle, the wheel mounted on it will have the same angle regardless of its size. Of course, the static alignment changes as the cars drives and the suspension moves which is why many sports cars will run lots of negative static camber so when in a turn they get a full contact patch of the tire. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theexbrit Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 I agree about the suspension, it was after I added the 1" spacer that I got the positive camber & I see what you're saying about the hub being a "fixed piece", but why did the positive camber disappear with the 33x12.5" tire? Unless the extra width just made the camber look like it was less whereas in reality it was still there but "flattened out" for want of a better description, by the wider tire? It's also true what you say about sports cars having negative camber, I'd prefer a little negative rather than positive with a lift installed, as the positive camber on my truck increased substantially on tight turns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pathfounder Posted September 21, 2012 Share Posted September 21, 2012 With bigger tires, as in, bigger side walls, the tires are more compliant and would give the appearance of being more upright / correct looking. The actual camber at the wheel would be the same. You always want some negative camber when at ride height, because almost no suspension setups give you enough of a camber curve to keep the tire upright during turns (from steering itself and from body roll). Long story longer, bigger tires would allow you to get away with more which is what your observation would say. 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theexbrit Posted September 22, 2012 Share Posted September 22, 2012 (edited) I guess you're right, makes sense, it just looks like the camber has gone with the 33's, I bet if I drove with them they'd start wearing pretty quick on the outside edge. My bad for not thinking it out before opening me gob Edited September 22, 2012 by theexbrit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vmodi Posted December 16, 2012 Share Posted December 16, 2012 Here is where I ordered the camber bolts from: http://www.summitracing.com/parts/iec-81260/overview/make/nissan/model/pathfinder Thanks XPLORx4! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shoesandsocks Posted December 16, 2012 Share Posted December 16, 2012 damn summit racing is expensive looks like there 10 bucks for a pair at rock auto. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky2 Posted December 17, 2012 Share Posted December 17, 2012 Good write-up boys Finally a civil and informative one. Similar to "theexbrit" I had alot of camber with the AC springs did 2 camber bolts per side but ended up going a different route with camber adjustability. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky2 Posted December 17, 2012 Share Posted December 17, 2012 The need for camber bolts depends entirely on the height of the lift. The upper ball joint is fixed. It is bolted to the chassis. The lower one is on a control arm, so when it moves up and down, it also moves inboard and outboard. When you lift the truck, you are moving the LBJ inboard, which increases the camber. So, you use camber bolts to undo the change. The more the LCA moved the LBJ inboard (the higher the lift), then the more out of whack the camber will be. EDIT: It's possible that the struts themselves have offset holes to make up the difference. I offset my top bolt hole!!! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
projekz Posted December 17, 2012 Share Posted December 17, 2012 I'm running camber bolts right now but I'm a bit iffy on offroading hard with them since they're a lot skinnier than the original bolts. I'm probably gonna go ahead and offset the top strut hole. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky2 Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 (edited) You do not need camber bolts, but they're cheap enough. The struts should be slotted to allow the adjustment. The bolts just make it a little easier. If your struts aren't slotted, they can easily be slotted. The top hole where they bolt to the knuckle is the only one that needs to be slotted if yours aren't. http://forums.vwvort...vice&p=78633901 It still baffles me that such a universal and accepted design modification and/or engineered adjustment procedure is not common practice here at NPORA Edited December 18, 2012 by rocky2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
devonianwalk Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 It still baffles me that such a universal and accepted design modification and/or engineered adjustment procedure is not common practice here at NPORA We are a sheltered bunch. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rocky2 Posted December 18, 2012 Share Posted December 18, 2012 (edited) We are a sheltered bunch. Welcome to the machine ! It's like Neo getting out of the Matrix, not everyone can handle the reality. You are a slave, Neo. Like everyone else you were born into bondage. Into a prison that you cannot taste or see or touch. A prison for your mind. It's similar to the strut top-out issues that the AC coils create. I read so many people accepting it or justifing it and nobody figured out how to fix it. MAKE A LONGER STRUT I told "02psychopathy" that I lived near him and would be willing to help him out in anyway and he said thanx all was cool until yesterday when he discovered he assembled the strut incorrectly. I'm trying to free your mind, Neo. But I can only show you the door. You're the one that has to walk through it. Edited December 18, 2012 by rocky2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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