Where is the best place to put the angle finder to set the angle to get the proper pinion angle? I get different angles when I place it on the engine and then on the transmisson. What is the best angle to set it at? Ive seen around 3. And this is in a 69 Chevelle.

 

measure on crank pulley if possible. make sure it is perfectly vertical.....

 

Off of the Trans Output shaft is the best place, but yes the crank end should be inline with the output shaft of the Trans.

Also many of the engines machined surfaces should be parallel or perpendicular. I also checked the top of the engine with the Valley Cover remoted.

 

So do I want to set it to "0"?

 

Depends, live rear axle or IRS?
Link for live rear axle setup. IRS can be 0 degrees all around.
http://www.iedls.com/asp/admin/getFi...&TID=28&FN=PDF

 

generally I use more than one location just to be sure. If you go the website www.vibratesoftware.com they have very good information and even a program you can download to help you setup your drivetrain.

I setup my pinion angle based on their info and software and I am pleased the car is completely vibration free.

 

I'll check that out, and it is a solid axle. Thanks for the replies.

 

That's the BEST info/write up I've ever seen on drive line angles.
Sticky??

 

It's one giant infomercial for his software package. I don't see where it really tells you anything about setting driveline angles. Any why is it people only concentrate on inclination and never side to side alignment? U joints don't care what plane the angle is in.

By the way, that product seems like total overkill for just setting a driveline angle. I guess if it is free then why not.

You want the centerline of the tranmission shaft parallel to the centerline of the rear pinion. I used laser pointers. Like you are finding out measuring angles is inaccurate and time consuming.

This write up helped me

http://www.4crawler.com/4x4/CheapTri...line-101.shtml

It contains a link to using laser pointers

http://forums.hybridz.org/index.php?showtopic=43993

 

Agreed. I like the write up by Inland Empire. It says a 3* downward angle with your chassis level.

 

Huh???

 

Why would you set the chassis level? I am not understanding why you would set your chassis level and then set your engine/trans at 3*dwn. Isn't this assuming your rear end is at 3* up?

Wouldn't your normal ride stance have anything to do with it? I always thought you would want your eng/trans centerline parallel with your rearend yoke.

Will someone please chime in and give me the reasons and clearify it? If I don't get a dafinative answer this week, I'll have to research it this weekend.

thanks,
Jim

 

having the pinion and trans output parallel isnt that important in a car with the little movement it has. now if its on a off-road truck with alot of suspension movement then it comes into play more. just need to have some misalignment otherwise your u joints wont last very long. about 3* is what i have been told to run to facilitate oil drainback. possibly more for a rear sump. im running a gto pan

i set my body at the angle/stance (level in my case) that i think i will end up with and set it about 3* off the water pump pulley (was the same as crank) with my old iphone lol this is on my s14 and if i remember it had 5* up on pinion but to run that angle it would require a hole in the hood to get the trans tucked up. with 3* i could get the trans up and no hood trimming. i could kick the rear of the trans to get the 5* but didnt have the room.

 

I think the one guy said to level the chassis just so you can measure the engine tilt accurately. And I agree, the pinion tilt needs to match the engine tilt. A U joint at an angle doesn't rotate at a constant speed. It speeds up and slows down the shaft as it turns. By matching the angles the front and back U joints cancel out so the rear wheels turn at a constant rate. If the angles aren't matched, then the rear wheels speed up and slow down as they turn making everything vibrate.

Ride stance matters. Pinion angles also change with torque so you kind of need to ballpark that too. Set the static angle a little low and it will rotate into better alignment when under load.

Don't forget you don't have to move just the engine, changing the diff angle is an option. Jags that run sell wedge shaped spacers for leaf spring cars. I made new front and rear mounts on my IRS car to keep from putting the motor at an extreme angle.

I hear a lot of people say an engine needs some static tilt backwards, but I don't know how much that matters. Seems to me cars go up and down hills allthe time without burning out. Just do what you can and be happy.

I am a big advocate of making those $10 laser pointers. They made very quick work of evaluating engine, trans mount and rear diff mount changes. Like I said I made several mods until I got everything just the way I wanted them. And they ensure the engine centerline is not crooked in the chassis. Try and do that with an angle finder.

 

Nice swap going there. Besides the site as long as the motor to axle align is within a degree or so you should be fine.

I am starting a 5.3/4L60 into a 87 Elky this winter and have a BGN rear in already, SSBC all the way around with tubular front end and QA1's.

I'm in Vacaville.

 

thanks guys

 

The standard range is between 3-6 degrees. 3-4 is optimum. They make a simply level that has a magnet on it for setting the angle. Stick it on and read the gauge. Angle is off of ground level, not chassis angle. Engines are typically set down 3* to the rear Indland Empire Driveshafts has a great PDF file on how to measure.

 

wow....had no idea it was so specific. I just mounted my engine in the car for the best of all possible situations (ground clearance, trans tunnel clearance, steering gear clearance, etc) and then measured up for the driveshaft. I hope I don't run into any major problems.

 

The guys are right with the range of pinion angles, Find a V8 manifold sit it level, then measure the angle of the carby mounting face you'll find its close to these angles mentioned....

 

I set it to 3 degrees. Once the project is farther along I will be getting a set of adjustable upper control arms for the rear, so once I am ready to the rear end to final postion Ill check the motor angle (which is a downward angle) again to be safe and then set the rear (upward angle) to the same angle.