Corner Weight Scales Home Made
Rod Kunishige - 9/29/2009


Through the years I’ve sought to get a set of Corner Scales and found them to be much too costly for my budget-sized mind. I did, however, get the information to make my own.


The instructions are as follows:


1. Design a lever with a 36” length.

2. The A frame device should place the point on a bath scale using a Ό” plate to spread the load.

3. The A frame base would rest on the floor.

4. A plate is used to carry the tire with the center point at exactly 9” from the center of the base.

5. Leverage is derived from 36” / 9” ratio to become 4.0 times factor. (I use 32/8” lever.)

6. Jack the car up and gently place it on the setup with the scale.

7. If it reads 250 pounds, than multiply by 4 for a total of 1,000 pounds on that one wheel.


My metal scrap heap included an old rusted fence base that formed the basis of my project. It measured 32” in length to the center lines of the end pipes. This means an eight inch tire center point (from the left) is needed in order to get a four to one multiplier.



Three tubes are added to steady the tire as a rack with the middle one forming the center line for the tire. These are welded in place. Two small blocks raise the rack to the same height as the scale (2.5”) and are inside the two side rails of the tool. Reset the scale with the rack on the scale. This zeros out the frame weight.



Level all four wheels at the height of the setup (about 3.5”). This insures more accurate readings. Raise the car once more and set the blocks, frame and scale in place. Make sure that the blocks are within the side tubes, and the other end is at the midpoint on the scale. The tire is located squarely on the center (8”) tube.



MGTD rough weigh in: Rt front, 130# x 4 = 520#… Rt rear, 84# x 4 = 336#.

Assumes right and left side are the same (they’re not) then 856 (520 + 336) twice is 1,712 pounds.

Factors to consider include the car is not level at all four corners, has no fuel in the tank, interior is missing, as is the folding top, windshield etc. My old 300# scale allows me to measure up to a 4,800 pound car. But it is a great exercise and now on to the Pantera.