For measuring camber, level...
For measuring camber, level the gauge and just read the amount on the vial, for a manual gauge, or the display on a digital gauge. In our test of Intercomp's caster and camber gauges, the camber readings came out the same for both gauges. Make sure the car is at ride height with all of the weight in the car, including the driver. Air the tires up to operating pressures. These settings may change once the car is raced and the tire temperatures have been evaluated.
As the chassis dives, the...
As the chassis dives, the upper ball joints are pulled in toward the centerline of the car. This causes a movement toward negative camber in both front wheels. The greater the angle of the upper control arms, the more change in camber from chassis dive. But this is not all that is happening.
Besides chassis dive, when...
Besides chassis dive, when we turn the car left, the chassis also rolls. As the chassis pickup points move in roll, the upper ball joints move to the right. This causes the LF wheel to further lose camber toward the negative and the RF wheel to move toward positive camber. If we combine the effects of dive and roll, we see where the LF wheel will lose in both dive and roll where the RF dynamic camber will be a product of combining two movements that are in opposite directions. That is why we can achieve a net zero change in camber at the RF wheel.
CONCLUSION
Remember that caster settings are mostly adjusted for driver preference and comfort, and camber settings are important so that the front end will have the maximum amount of footprint and traction to use to turn the car at midturn. Many of our problems related to a car that won't turn well come from incorrect camber settings and camber change problems.
Often, a car that has a serious push can be helped by analyzing and adjusting the static camber as well as knowing the camber change amounts. For dirt cars, taking tire temperatures may not be feasible, but measuring tire wear can tell us a similar story as temperatures. The more wear, probably the more temperature that part of the tire experiences. Even wear across the tread translates to more even tire temperatures and the best camber settings.