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1985 Chevy M1009 (CK5 build thread part 2)

Overview Gallery Discussion
Rear Spring Bushings and Shackles:
I had today off, so I got after replacing the rear spring bushings with a greaseable set from ORD, and also swapped on DIY4X shackles.
You rust belt guys are gonna hate me, as all the bolts came right out:
IMG_20250619_122625295.jpg
Man they were in good condition, which also proves to me this M1009 has low miles.
Old shackles and bolts:
IMG_20250619_133909873_HDR.jpg
New ORD bushings:
IMG_20250619_122833099.jpg
And installed:
IMG_20250619_123307914_HDR.jpg
DIY4X shackles are beef:
IMG_20250619_162003417.jpg
I can report a better ride, and we will see if it flexes a bit more.
 
cheavyk10 said:
Rear Spring Bushings and Shackles:
I had today off, so I got after replacing the rear spring bushings with a greaseable set from ORD, and also swapped on DIY4X shackles.
You rust belt guys are gonna hate me, as all the bolts came right out:
...
Click to expand...

Yeah, that would have required at least a sawzall maybe a 6" grinding disc on a 3.5" grinder. :haha:

Nice upgrades!
 
TH400 "Case Connector"
Last month, I had noticed a good ATF drip coming off the drivers side of the transmission, and found it to be leaking at the case connector for the kickdown switch. I pulled the pan to get the connector out, which revealed a flattened O-ring on said connector. None of my local parts store had a connector in stock, so I added another O-ring from the stash I have. Well, turned out not to work for very long. After I got home from Tahuya, the leak came back and there was a murder scene on my driveway. I found a new case connector with O-ring on Amazon for $23 and had it in a few days. Lucky me got to pull the pan again and install the new part, but at least now I can report I'm leak free. And the TH400 is probably more happy as it got fresh Dexron VI ....again.
Double O-ring fail:
IMG_20250715_082212945-1.jpg
No leaks:
IMG_20250715_082256778-1.jpg
 
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Not much new to report, just getting some more miles on the old soldier. Went camping this weekend, and put about 120 miles down. Mixed highway and back country roads driving. The M1009 loves to cruise at 60. And, the case connector has stayed sealed up.
IMG_20250802_162418204 (2).jpg
The white 84 GMC is my BIL's and where the tire/wheels that first came on the M1009 went.
 
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Let's go to Blazer Bash!!
I've been on a road trip to Colorado in my '04 Tahoe for almost two weeks (2800 miles!!) with no issues besides a headlight fire...LOL, buts that's a different story. Got home the middle of last week, had to work, so I only had this weekend to get the M1009 prepped for Moab.
I started with the prerequisite nut and bolt check, and found a few loose bolts here and there, like the lower front shock bolts and the rearmost steering box bolts. While I was under there, I saw some coolant dripping down around the starter. Further investigation revealed that the passenger side rear coolant crossover port block off plate was leaking. I had some spare gaskets already, so I got to work on that. Had to pull the vacuum pump to get to the plate. Cleaned it all up and reassembled. The plate wasn't in the greatest of shape, with some etching and kinda warped, so I flattened it the best I could and flipped it over. I will have to keep an eye on it, but in the meantime I ordered up some thicker replacement plates from Leroy diesel.
Then I saw some weeping from the fuel filter base. Great... I swapped box filters, hoping it was one of the gaskets on the box, but the leak came back. I knew this was going to happen at some point, as the bases are notorious for leaking, but the timing was indeed poor. I would of liked to pull the base to replace all the O-rings, (I'm thinking it's the water-in-fuel sensor O-ring) but there is no kit handily available. So, I bypassed the box, installed a three way shut off valve, and a 10 Micron inline filter from Evil Energy. The filter is cool because you can use different fittings on each end, so I have 3/8" on the inlet side and 5/16" on the outlet side, to match the factory hose setup. I'm not very proud of this setup, but it allowed for easy priming and will get me by for Blazer Bash.
IMG_20250901_104409155_HDR.jpgIMG_20250901_104425333_HDR.jpgIMG_20250901_104434993_HDR.jpg
When I get back, I will upgrade to a spin on type filter and housing. Unfortunately, the AC Delco G Van housing from the late 90's is out of production, so I may go with the Stanadyne FM100 or the unit off of a Duramax.
Now to go get this thing on the trailer!!
 
cheavyk10 said:
Let's go to Blazer Bash!!
I've been on a road trip to Colorado in my '04 Tahoe for almost two weeks (2800 miles!!) with no issues besides a headlight fire...LOL, buts that's a different story. Got home the middle of last week, had to work, so I only had this weekend to get the M1009 prepped for Moab.
I started with the prerequisite nut and bolt check, and found a few loose bolts here and there, like the lower front shock bolts and the rearmost steering box bolts. While I was under there, I saw some coolant dripping down around the starter. Further investigation revealed that the passenger side rear coolant crossover port block off plate was leaking. I had some spare gaskets already, so I got to work on that. Had to pull the vacuum pump to get to the plate. Cleaned it all up and reassembled. The plate wasn't in the greatest of shape, with some etching and kinda warped, so I flattened it the best I could and flipped it over. I will have to keep an eye on it, but in the meantime I ordered up some thicker replacement plates from Leroy diesel.
Then I saw some weeping from the fuel filter base. Great... I swapped box filters, hoping it was one of the gaskets on the box, but the leak came back. I knew this was going to happen at some point, as the bases are notorious for leaking, but the timing was indeed poor. I would of liked to pull the base to replace all the O-rings, (I'm thinking it's the water-in-fuel sensor O-ring) but there is no kit handily available. So, I bypassed the box, installed a three way shut off valve, and a 10 Micron inline filter from Evil Energy. The filter is cool because you can use different fittings on each end, so I have 3/8" on the inlet side and 5/16" on the outlet side, to match the factory hose setup. I'm not very proud of this setup, but it allowed for easy priming and will get me by for Blazer Bash.
View attachment 511798View attachment 511799View attachment 511800
When I get back, I will upgrade to a spin on type filter and housing. Unfortunately, the AC Delco G Van housing from the late 90's is out of production, so I may go with the Stanadyne FM100 or the unit off of a Duramax.
Now to go get this thing on the trailer!!
Click to expand...
I have a spin on housing you can have
 
Got back from Moab today.
Blazer Bash 2025 was great! The M1009 worked awesome, it was point and shoot the whole time. Even with 35's, I was able to take many of the hard lines. Quite a few folks were impressed, calling it "a sleeper". The low COG helped a lot too.
No breakage to report, but the sliders and diffs took abuse.
IMG_20250904_145929897.jpg
IMG_20250904_150112366.jpg
IMG_20250904_180942755.jpg
IMG_20250906_124127333.jpgIMG_20250906_124138403.jpgIMG_20250906_161534711.jpgIMG_20250907_151940368.jpgIMG_20250907_153642923.jpg20250906_131733.jpg
I stole this last pic from @kennyw.
Of course I was too busy living in the moment to take many pics.
 
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