[cumminsdieselgt]

The dealer told me 1/8" to 1/4" toe out is the recommended settings. So I went to my local Alignment/Frame specialist guy who has kept all my vehicles in alignment for 45 years.

In talking with my alignment fellow who does frames, etc. and straightens bent vehicles, here's what he told me to do.

1. Take a couple of jack stands and set them up at the front of the vehicle, one on each side about 2-3' in front of the tires.

2. Tie a HD rubber band on a long piece of string, like mason's string, orange or pink, etc., and hook it to the hitch on one side of the back of the machine.

3. Route the string around that side of the rear tire and have the string travel across the widest diameter (across the center hub) of the rear tire all the way to the jack stand in front of that side's front wheel, then over to the other jack stand, and going down the other side all the way back to the receiver hitch connecting the string with another rubber band to keep the string taut.

NOTE: Because the rear wheels are wider than the front wheels, there will be a slight gap between the string and the wheels in front with the wheels straight.

4. Adjust the jack stands in or out so that the string will just barely touch the front metal lip edge of the rear wheel that sticks out farther than the tire. This makes sure that the sting is parallel to the rear wheel and not the tire.

5. Center the rack (jacking up the front of the ATV a bit makes it easier) and see if the steering wheel is straight. If the steering wheel is off center and you are sure you are in the center of the rack, then the steering wheel will have to be removed and centered (if possible). Once the rack is centered (equal traveling distance of the tie rods on both sides of the rack), and the steering wheel is straight, lock the steering wheel if possible.

6. Using a good, straight metal ruler with 1/32" marks on it, measure from the inside edge of the string to the outer front lip edge and from the inside edge of the string to the rear lip edge of the front wheel with the string height such that it crosses the center hub of the wheel. Adjust the tie rod accordingly to achieve 1/16" to 1/8" less distance between the front lip edge of the wheel and the string than what you have at the rear lip edge of the wheel. If you set it to 1/16" toe out on each side, you will have the total setting of 1/8" toe out.

7. Adjust the other side front wheel accordingly. Be sure to check the tightness of the tie rod end lock nuts, and recheck your steering wheel for straightness and recheck the toe settings. Adjust as necessary.

8. Maximum is 1/4" toe out, or 1/8" on each side...

I understand that Caster and Camber are set with the struts and not adjustable. This may or may not be correct, I haven't seen it written down anywhere.

BTW, My ACE had an ungodly amount of toe out! It was truly unreal. The thing would not coast at all, if you let off the accelerator, it felt like a parking brake was on! Nothing bent, but way out of adjustment.

Hope this helps!

 

[Scoundrel]

I just tried this.

My primary concern was the placement of the jack stands.
I had heard of the string method before, but the last time I heard of it, it was suggested that I run the string around all four wheels/tires.
That did not work out well because the rear is wider than the front in most ATVs, so it totally threw off the measurement.
That is the reason for the jack stands - to get the front of the string to the same width as the rear.
But how do you make sure the jack stands are placed correctly?
Well, to be honest, I'm not 100% sure I got it right.

What I ended up doing was this:

I tied a string to a fixed point on the rear of the ACE, then wrapped it around one rear tire, past the front of the vehicle, around two jack stands, down the other side of the vehicle, around the other rear tire, and tied it to another fixed point on the rear of the vehicle. I used a rubber band for the last few inches, to give the string tautness. I might skip the rubber band next time and just slide the jack stands away from the vehicle until the string is taut. We'll see.

Then I adjusted the height. For the rear, I just hooked the string around tread lugs until the string passed the center of the hub on both sides.

For the elevation adjustment on the front, I raised the jack stands and hooked the string into one of the detents in the jack stand until the string was passing the center of the front hubs as well.

Now here is the tricky part: getting the right width and placement of each jack stand. To accomplish this, I moved each jack stand inward toward the middle until I could see the string bend against the front of the rear tire, then moved it back out again SLOWLY until I could JUST see light between the string and the front of the rear tire, and then nudged it back inward JUST A HAIR until the light disappeared but I could not see any bend in the string. I did this a few times each side until it was as good as I could make it.

At that point, I had a gap between the string and the front wheels.

The next step is to measure the gap at the rear of the front wheel, and the front of the front wheel. The difference between those measurements is the toe.
If the gap is smaller in the rear of the front wheel than the front of the front wheel, the wheel is toed out.
If the gap is larger in the rear of the front wheel than the front of the front wheel , the wheel is toed in.

Then you loosen the locknut on the tie rod end and rotate the tie rod until the gaps are where you want them.

In my case, I was surprised to find that my adjustment was very nearly spot on already.
This is the adjustment I made by eyeball when I got frustrated with trying to measure things before I heard about the string/jack stand method.

My left toe is 1/16 out, and my right toe is 1/8 out.
I decided NOT to try and adjust it further, for two reasons:
1. It tracked fine on the trail for 250 miles last weekend, no complaints from me, and...
2. Given the inexpert way in which I set up this test, there could easily be 1/16" error in the placement of the stands or in my reading of the measuring tape, which has a wobbly metal bit on the end and reads differently based on the angle at which I look at it.

I have never been good at fine adjustments on things like carburetors and wheel alignment, and if there was a professional I could trust to do it better than me using laser equipment or some such, I'd take it there to have it adjusted.
But since I found that my dealer is less competent than me in this regard, I'm going to go with "1/16" is close enough if it feels good on the trail".

View attachment 1197
View attachment 1198
View attachment 1199

 

[luvdamud]

We have used this method for years but instead of a string we use a long straightedge across the outside of the back tire from back to front. The string method would work great if you were alone and didn't have an extra set of hands. Great pics too Scoundrel!

 

[ACE Ventura Polaris]

I know this sounds like a stupid question but while this is great info on how measure for toe out would it be possible for someone to actually post pics and explain how to adjust the toe? I am mechanically inclined but I'd love to see how it's actually done

Any help would be greatly appreciated. And Happy 4th of JuLy.!

 

[Scoundrel]

Umm, Post #2 does exactly that.
Or am I missing something?

 

[ACE Ventura Polaris]

It shows measuring the toe in or out not how to actually adjust..

 

[Scoundrel]

Leave the vehicle on the ground, don't jack it up.
Set up the string as indicated above.

Hold the tie rod end (1) with one wrench while you loosen the locknut (2) with another wrench.
Once the locknut is loose, use a smaller wrench to grab the tie rod on the flat spot (3), and rotate it.
Which way you rotate it depends on whether you're on the left or right side, and whether you want the toe to go in or out.
Don't ask me to tell you which way is which because I always forget and get it confused, so I just turn it one way, and if it doesn't go where I want, I turn it the other way.
Make sure to roll the vehicle forward and backward a few feet after EVERY adjustment, so that the measurement is true, and not affected by the tire pulling against the ground.

Once you have it the way you want it, hold the tie rod end and tighten the locknut again.
Suggest doing both sides before you tighten it up.

Some vehicles have two sets of tie rod ends with locknuts, and once they're both loose the shaft rotates - but the ACE thankfully only has the outer ones, the inner end rotates freely.

View attachment 1287

 

[ACE Ventura Polaris]

Awesome!!! Thank you Scoundrel exactly what I needed! Off to the shed to set it up! My Ace has a wicked Toe in and needs adjusted! Thanks agin for your help and have a great 4th!

 

[Scoundrel]

Good luck!

 

[Lonnie Wrights]

I got around to checking this out this afternoon, one side was as good as it gets but the other side was out over 1/2. I checked to make sure nothing was bent or twisted since Colorado was pretty rough on stuff but everything looks good. We'll see how she does in a little while out on the back 20 acre's.

 

[70cyclone]

should notice a good improvement...more predictable push around corners. Mine was out only on the right side.

 

[Kevin92xj]

My brother and I both adjusted the toe on our Ace's today. Mine was out about 3/4" and his was about an 1". Been like that since we bought them earlier in the summer. Let me tell ya, it made a HUGE difference in the way it drove and handled. We set them with 1/8" toe out.

 

[Luv2fly4fun]

Just picked up the ace today,wife went out so I took it out of the trailer and threw on the front & rear bars and the roof so she thinks it came with it. She has not seen it yet.......... Anyway not even 100feet on it and noticed the alignment looked like I wrapped it around a tree , towed out and not aligned with the steering wheel.I eyeballed it then set it with a straight edge down the sidewalls front to back. I also picked up the front and back a few time s to settle it. polaris? ,dealer? someone is asleep at the wheel ,should have been set.

 

[Luv2fly4fun]

One thing to add I had to un clip the plastic clamps for the boot so the tie rod would rotate with out twisting the boot then reset them. I did not set a tow out because i just read the post after set the alignment so i will see how she goes First run tomorrow,still does not show 1 mile on the ODO

 

[70cyclone]

who knows what the spec is on these things, and you're right...you do have to deal with the boots so they aren't all twisted.
in theory if the toe is set to 0 the vehicle with tend to 'wander' while going straight...not sure thats really of any concern with the typical average speed and tire type on off road machines.
between fixing the toe issue and getting past the break in you will think you have a totally new machine.

 

[Lonnie Wrights]

After adjusting my toe-in I than found out my steering wheel was off, reset the steering and test drove it. Feels nice now.

 

[ted]

I purchased mine a month ago new with 3 miles on it. After reading the posts regarding toe I went and discovered that it was definitely out of align using the above string method. I would suggest everyone examine the front alignments. Thanks to all for the information.

 

[rockman]

The string method is a waste of time and effort and is confusing because of the difference in width from front to rear, plus sometimes the rear tires have toe built in which will skew the whole thing.

The easiest way is to look under the skid pan at the rear side of the front tires and pick a tread knob on each tire that will let a tape measure go straight across right up against the pan. Mark those knobs with a piece of tape.

Now hook a tape measure on one knob and measure to the outside of the knob on the other side. Write down the measurement.

Roll the vehicle forward until the marked knobs are on the front of the tire at center of tire height. Measure the knobs again and write down the measurement.

Now subtract the little number from the big number and divide by two and add 1/8" and adjust your tie rods until the front measurement corresponds. You will need to roll the vehicle back and then forward a few inches to let the tires settle to the new measurement and recheck the measurement. When you get this adjusted then roll the vehicle back until the marked knobs go around to he floor and then roll it forward until they are at belly pan height and check to make sure the toe is correct and make any small corrections.

If your steering wheel was centered when you were driving down a straight level road before you started the adjustment just adjust the tie rods on both sides the same amount and your wheel will still be centered. If it wasn't centered before you started the adjustment then you can adjust more on one side to center it up.

 

[Scoundrel]

The string method is a waste of time and effort and is confusing because of the difference in width from front to rear, plus sometimes the rear tires have toe built in which will skew the whole thing.

The method you describe as superior is the one I used to try and do before I learned the string method.
I could never get the measurement right using that method.
The string method works for me and for a lot of other people, so you might want to reign in your negative judgment.

 

[rockman]

Not me. I have used the three methods talked about on this thread over many years and many Polaris vehicles and the method I described is the easiest and best.
The method I described is more accurate than the other two because it measures from the same point on the tires for both the front and back measurements. A bent wheel will or hub will make your measurements meaningless with the other two methods.

Polaris vehicles are not precision built compared to something like an automobile. For instance, many 800 RZR s have toe out on the right rear wheel as much as 3/8". A friend of mine has on with it. But you would never know it by driving it.

You do it however you want. I am just trying to save people some time and needless work.