a-arm talk

[woodsracer144]

ok i've noticed that the a-arms sit alot of ways and the degree of the spindle is also... so what would the degree of the spindle do with how it handled?

[wilkin250r]

There are two different angles associated with the spindle. The angle inwards and outwards will adjust the CAMBER, whether your tires are straight up and down. It's generally best to have them leaning in towards the center just a tad, about 1/8 inch is a good overall setup.

The other adjustment is whether the spindles lean forwards or backwards, called CASTER. The tires themselves don't actually lean, because they're round, but it changes the spindle angles and how the tires turn when you steer. Having the spindles angles further back will improve high-speed stability, but your steering is less responsive. The opposite is true, absolutely straight up (zero caster) will steer easily, but be less stable at high speeds. A good overall setup is to have the spindles angled back about 5-7 degrees.

Pretty much all aftermarket A-arms (and some stock A-arms) will have a camber adjustment, but only the higher end arms will have an adjustment for caster.