New Tires - Alignment issues?

[HiTechRecneck]

Here's what I got from Stew:
2002 Ford F150 Alignment specs – Lightning
Left front Right front
-1.20 degrees to 0.20- Camber Same
5.70 degrees to 7.70- Caster 6.20 degrees to 8.20 -Caster
-0.18 degrees to 0.08- Toe Same

Cross Camber -0.70 degrees to 0.70
Cross Caster –1.20 degrees to 0.20
Total Toe –0.35 degrees to 0.15


Preferred:
LH Caster 6.7
RH Caster 7.2
LH Camber -0.5
RH Camber -0.5
LH Toe -0.05 (slight toe in)
RH Toe -0.05 (same)

Can't see yours too well, so compare what you have.
Again, credits go to Stew!

[TMOY2000]

I have run thru many tires/combos alignments etc on my 2k h/d truck since it has over 260k on her. I have been down that road several times as with the prices of the larger tires exceeding what the total cost of what my first ten or so vehicles were total! LOl (i was lucky in the early 70's when I came of age the old muscle cars could be gotten in the 400-1k range easy, example, my h/s ride number 1 was a 1967 SS396.bought it for 450$ from the original ownerin 1972). I know 90% of these shops do alignment "by the book', in other words w/e the machine tells them. Almost any "chain" store to me is a huge no-no!Most of the newer guys don't have a clue except to set it up like the specs show, which invaribly is just the stock F150 spec.even tho it shows "Harley Davidson" specs ask them to actually compare the readings/specs for your truck vs. a reg F150.I have yet to find them different except for the title.
All that being said, find a rep/oldskool shop, usually the corvette guys can tell you, those things are very picky 4/w aligned and talk about tire costs!, anybody doing those as a specialty will usually know how to "read" your tires, custom set the alignment. On race cars this is an extreme must!.lots of et and safety on the track with a drag car and win or lose on the oval. I have run dirt trackl and NHRA S/S both very successfully and the hours of set-up time on chassis is an absolute must! I am very very lucky to have friends locally who have frame machines and my tire guy has been running his Father's shop since the 70's and the shop itself has been open since the stone age!.....lol.they custom cut auto glass also...they also can "render" housings(straightening/adjusting the actual rear/front end housing/axle tubes squaring. A real body shop can set-up your truck on a good frame machine to check for any diamonds in the frame/set-up itself, you might be surprised what that will find! I have seen many vehicles absolutely NEVER wrecked that showed up in bad shape, usually from truck/train transpost when new!
Find a shop from references, talk with the guys, show/tell them whats up with your truck and my experience is they have been there done that, also ask them if they can follow-up once or twice every 3k to re-adjust ad-lib after the tires register.
Maybe if your real lucky you will find a shop who still does tire sipping, I truly cannot believe more performance tire shops don't do or even know what that is anymore. True tire treads and on-car various speed balancing are almost a thing of the past but one cannot imagine the differences they make until you've had that done. Honestly ask around or find the right shop and I believe you'll be amazed and count every dollar it costs as morth than worth it!
I have gotten as little as 8k on a set of tires and as much as 56k on a set of 240 tires, rotation if possible and aligment is a must, besides, when they run true the 1-1.5 mpg will pay for itself if your a driver such as I am. Good luck!
Since my truck is getting real close to semi-retirement I grabbed two sets of the old/crappy eagle 2's, but i got both sets for $810, 275/45 front and 305/50 rear is my combo now. I bought cash and carry, took them to the "wobbly wheel" (our local shop's nick) and had them all mounted one set stock h/d wheels other set my H/D black's, on-truck balanced after all 8 tires being sipped. The perforemance from the ugly stock type OMGawdyears is truly amazing when doing this as I have run three sets like this before. I have run the high dollar run-flats to the exotic Jap tires and for the money these work as set-up, for me anyways. Besides I now have enought treads for the next 80-100k or so on "97, and if i figured it right that should put me past ability to drive anymore, lmmfao.time will tell.
Sorry for the longest reply ever, just my thoughts to your question. also, one last thing, that wear pattern your pic shows appears to be from too narrow a wheel with too little shock, when ever a tire registers the "cupping" like that 99/100 it reveals poor shock stability and or poor lower a-arm control (bushings/bent or in serious need of clunk/w's IMHO, ask the men ya trust.
Good Luck!

[Merlin]

I looked at the Hankooks too - let us know how they wear!
Like the tread pattern!

They still look brand new!

Kook's are pretty quiet and they have a 50K tread life warranty.
Almost all the different tires for our trucks offer NO manufacturer warranty.
At the price of tires I really want something that lasts and has a warranty.

Reviews:
Hankook Ventus ST RH06 295/45/20
Rating Scale: 5 Excellent - 1 Poor:
Dry: 4.7
Wet: 4.6
Snow: 3.3
Handling: 4.7
Comfort: 4.5
Noise: 4.5
Treadwear: 4.5

Overall User Rating 4.5



I'm not really concerned about Snow: (3.3 rating) in Sunny south Florida

[iHarley]

Here are the alignment sheets before and after the new front tires.

What are the correct alignment specs for the 03 HD?

Yes, I know this is an old thread. Are your alignment specs correct???

Looks off per the page in my 2003 factory manual (Lighting Section), also the nice drawing on the left doesn't match some of the values on the right sheet.

[BRIANV]

when i had my falkens put on i asked the same question. Stew told me to get the shop to set the alignment on my hd to lightning specs. No issues since.

this ^^^^^