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1990 K5 Duramax Blazer (BroDozer)

LB7 Duramax and Allison 1000 5 speed in a 1990 Chevy K5 Blazer
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@Truckman4life guess what i picked up from Summit Racing yesterday? :D

I used the 3M strip chalk (link below) to seal the outside of the AC Heater Box together and to the firewall. Picture looks different but when i picked it up it looked just like the one Truckman4life has.

www.summitracing.com

3M 7000028370 3M Products Strip Calk | Summit Racing

Free Shipping - 3M Products Strip Calk with qualifying orders of $99. Shop Adhesives and Sealants at Summit Racing.
www.summitracing.com www.summitracing.com

Being the right half of the box is fiberglass and not plastic i could not use the Plastic Resefacer on it (or didn't want to attempt it). So i tried a few paint option to get a good match and landed on a low gloss engine paint that matched really well (link below).

www.eastwood.com

Dupli-Color Engine Paint with CERAMIC GM/Chrysler Low Gloss Black Aerosol 12 OZ DE1634

Engine Enamel with Ceramic Low Gloss Black Aerosol - 12 oz.
www.eastwood.com www.eastwood.com

It drives me crazy how they just slather that seam sealer and fill all the joints on some of these older cars and trucks. Rather than glob up a bunch of chalk or sealer around the inlet and outlet of the condenser like factory, i elected to use some Daystar Firewall Boots. The top one fit great but the bottom one needed some finesse. I'll then use some black silicone to finish sealing up the seems at a later point.

www.summitracing.com

Daystar KU20040BK Daystar Firewall Boots | Summit Racing

Free Shipping - Daystar Firewall Boots with qualifying orders of $99. Shop Firewall Grommets at Summit Racing.
www.summitracing.com www.summitracing.com

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So, i think i stated this before but sound and heat are big concerns for me, especially sound. I obviously won't care when the top or doors are off but i do plan on taking some long trips in this thing when it is finished. That being said, i have done some major researching on all the different ways to reduce or eliminate sound and their effectiveness.

Some notable things I have learned (my interpretation of the information) are that most luxury or newer vehicles take a layered approach. First being the butyl or tar like adhesive paper which is meant to reduce vibrational noise and heat. This is mainly for large metal surfaces with little or no contour to stiffen the metal. This is the route most go and see it everywhere on interiors. It is my understanding that the Lizard Skin I sprayed basically accomplishes the same thing as this and I really wanted to avoid adhering a ton of this stuff all over the interior especially in areas that were going to be exposed.

The next layer is carpet underlay of jute padding of some sort. I absolutely despise this stuff as it deteriorates and holds water ect. This can be replaced with a foam-based product, in particularly a closed cell foam that wont hold water or deteriorate like jute will. The main purpose for this is insulating against heat while providing a layer of traveling sound wave protection (road noise). You can find this in a wide variety of options with open cell, closed cell, adhesive, backed ect.

Lastly, a layer of mass loaded vinyl or MLV that should be the strongest barrier for sound waves both from entering and leaving the cab.

Armed with all the information from the inter webs I knew I wanted to do a closed cell foam and MLV. I opted to skip the Butyl layer as I had already done Lizard Skin and I was trying to avoid adhesives in case I elected to go back in and change anything. I stubbled across a few companies that made a closed cell foam backed with a MLV and specifically for car applications. I knew that’s the route I wanted to go and narrowed it down to two options.

https://www.carbuilders.com.au/mass-noise-liner

https://www.secondskinaudio.com/sou...MI19C87tLc9gIVLz6tBh1PrgDqEAAYAiAAEgLI0_D_BwE

After reaching out to both of them and looking at their marketing I elected to go with Car Builders out of Australia. Their sheets covered more surface area which meant less seams and appeared as if there material was slightly thicker. Price was not really a deciding factor for me but they where pretty close, even with the expensive shipping overseas. (NOTE: do not order their MLV glue, they can’t ship it internationally.)
 
With all that, I ordered 3 sheets of their Mass Noise Liner, and some of their templating film. Defiantly get the templating film haha. For the seams I ordered some Noise Grabber Acoustic Vinyl Tape which worked well.

https://www.carbuilders.com.au/mass-noise-liner

https://www.carbuilders.com.au/heavy-duty-templating-film

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09B94FMK8?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2_dt_b_product_details

Overall, I am very happy with the quality and how it turned out. It was incredibly easy to work with and cut with both knife and scissors. I was also able to drill up from the bottom to cut clean holes through it to mark out the mounting points. I then laid the MIP flooring form LMC in the sun for an hour and got it loosely roughed into place. I will begin finalizing the MIP flooring as I add the interior pieces. This is how it all turned out.

www.lmctruck.com

1/8" Thick Molded Industrial Polyvinyl (MIP) Floor Mats

Explore our blazer jimmy mip mats for Chevrolet Blazer, GMC Jimmy and Chevrolet/GMC Suburban 1973-91. Ideal for revamping and personalizing.
www.lmctruck.com www.lmctruck.com

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I’m seeing a lot of new shiny mounting hardware on some of these pieces. Assuming it’s not all factory stuff, are you just matching up new clean aftermarket pieces with the factory stuff or subbing in hardware?
 
greatwhitez71 said:
I’m seeing a lot of new shiny mounting hardware on some of these pieces. Assuming it’s not all factory stuff, are you just matching up new clean aftermarket pieces with the factory stuff or subbing in hardware?
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I little of both! I have different motivations depending on the project. I'm very into having matching hardware as much as possible so that you don't have to have 5 different sockets out for the removal of one part. Or sometimes i just didn't like the way they through bolted things with an exposed point on the other side. I often try to substitute with hardware that is commonly found or as you see later i use a LOT of flange bolts to avoid washers. The washer thing might be something i need to discuss with my psychiatrist? IDK :haha:

A good example you will see coming up is the way i mount the gas peddle. Factory used three long pointed bolts that are approx. 1/4-20 that dead end into the engine bay. I installed that shroud which would have made it difficult and ugly to do that. I tapped the hole to be 1/4-20 and used button head allen screws that come in from the engine bay. Leaves a cleaner look in the engine bay and i use flange nuts on the inside. Pictures to come.
 
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Truckman4life said:
You would like Cat engines and equipment. Most are only a few different size bolt heads. All just use a single flat washer.
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I work for the equipment department for a LARGE construction company and we spend millions on CAT equipment a year. I may have been around a piece or two :whistle: :haha:

You might be on to something there. :thinking:
 
The thought you put behind the hardware is exactly the type of stuff I want to shoot for when I tear back into my truck. The constant mix and matching or having to find a specific factory bolt is aggravating.

And I hear you in the flange head bolts, definitely worth doing when possible.
 
greatwhitez71 said:
The thought you put behind the hardware is exactly the type of stuff I want to shoot for when I tear back into my truck. The constant mix and matching or having to find a specific factory bolt is aggravating.

And I hear you in the flange head bolts, definitely worth doing when possible.
Click to expand...
I hear ya! It defiantly takes some patients and can add up quickly and be tricky to find a decent replacement at times but to me it is worth it going forward and makes things cleaner at times. This website has been my best friend when it comes to finding hardware. I just create a list and place a big order to help keep cost down.

Bolt Depot - Fastener Shopping Made Easy

www.boltdepot.com www.boltdepot.com
 
So haven't had much time to make any progress but was able to get a little side stuff done. My future plan is to be able to remove the doors and run tube doors when i want or no doors. This means doing the door hinge modification (i will get to that later) and making the wires quick disconnect. I plan to run these Deutsch bulkhead connectors (link below) at any location that makes sense such as firewall and door jams ect.

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I wanted to sink them as far into the door jam as possible to allow for clearance, but this meant opening up the holes that were currently there. I made a guide for the 2" hole saw out of scrap metal since there was no center hole to control the movement.

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After ordering some new rubber door conduit from LMC, i used the metal retainer on one end as a guide to create an aluminum bracket so the bulk head would not spin in place while connecting or disconnecting to it. I also had my brother laser cut me a spacer ring out of delrin to set it back in the door jam farther. I then sanded down the 2 sides to match the bulkhead. I then used the metal retainer to cover it all up and im really happy with how clean it came out and should be plenty of clearance.

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Damn.

That is very nice. To bad they were not that way from the factory, but they also didn't expect the doors to come off very regularly.

Martin
 
I have been struggling to convert my doors to electric and wanted to do it nicely besides drilling and running wire through it. Even though my doors will never come off unless it needs hinge work or something I wanted to create a secure point.

Thanks for posting this.
 
Fancy said:
Thanks Guys! I can try and post some pictures of dimensional drawings or CAD files on the 2 pieces i created if you would like.
Click to expand...
Please do man. I'd love to see the cad file on that. Been thinking of doing the same
 
You should put together a “kit” And sell the bracket and spacer ring, and then folks can source the connectors themselves
 
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