Wandering/darting issue

My '46 that I just finished building likes to wander or dart as I'm driving it down the road. I'd say the problem starts at 35mph. My speedometer cable broke so I don't have the exact speed. It has 2.5" lift yj springs and is spring over. I put the rocky road high steer kit in too. New steering box as well. Have the ties towed in too. The tires are 34x10.5 TSLs. It has a steering stabilizer as well.

Is it because I'm so tall that it wanders or am I overlooking something? I've driven a few stock trucks that do this as well.

 

How much are you toed in? What is your caster set at? What does your drag link angle look like? Ball joints or trunnion bearings tight? Wheel bearings adjusted? Do you have a locker in the rear?

 

What Nick said but insufficient caster would be first on my suspect list.

 

Drag link is very close to flat. I don't remember how much I towed it in. I'll have to check when I get home from work this weekend. I have an OX locker in the back, but that doesn't matter since it is disengaged. Would I have screwed up my caster angle when I angled the diff a little for my driveshaft angle? The front is a Dana 30 NT.

I've been thinking about going to stock YJ springs. Right now I think it is a bit too high.

 

Angleing the pinion up will go to less positive caster, so probably.
Take an angle finder on the bottom of the lower ball joint (nice flat spot to measure from) and determine what your caster is. The top of the knuckle should be angled back and bottom forward of zero. Report back with measurements. As others have said 5-7 degrees positive is what you want. Positive caster is with the top of the knuckle angled back from vertical. Toe usually causes wandering but in extreme cases can cause the vehicle to "dart". Again, make sure all other components are tight as play can be cumulative and cause similar issues.

 

Yes, all of what people have said is correct. The only other things I can throw in is your tires, some of them want to follow the wrong things in the road. The SOA isn't helping you either.

 

I was going to say tires too. I had a set of the 34x10.50 LTB's on a toyota about 8 years ago. They were great off road, but nearly unusable on the freeway. They would wander like crazy, and wouldn't balance right.

 

Caster angle is 0° and it is toed in about 2.5°. Guess my caster is what the problem is!

 

I hope you mean .25 degrees toe in.

 

I fixed the caster today and it drives like a dream now! Thanks guys!

 

Awesome!

 

Happy for you. We love success.

 

I just got on the road yesterday, this is exactly the same issue I'm having, darting around at just about any speed. I'll check my caster tonight and report back here.

 

Great to hear you got it resolved! We RR-SOA guys need to form a group. Mine is a n/t 30 with custom stock width springs and "Z" link. Giving serious thought to the high steer kit.