x2!
CK5
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71K5 - BP71K5's Just for fun build
- Thread starter bp71k5
- Start date
x2!
GRINCH
1/2 ton status
X3 I'll take one also
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
If anyone wants to buy one pre-made, here's the expensive option:
http://www.jegs.com/p/Dedenbear/750954/10002/-1
If you guys have a drill, dremel (with a cutoff wheel), and some wire it's fairly simple and shouldn't cost more than $50 for a DIY.
http://www.jegs.com/p/Dedenbear/750954/10002/-1
If you guys have a drill, dremel (with a cutoff wheel), and some wire it's fairly simple and shouldn't cost more than $50 for a DIY.
ChefBear
1/2 ton status
This is one of those times when I wish I understood electricity...
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
Didn't you just install one of those new wiring harness fuseblocks? Those things usually come with a few relay plugs to run more modern accessories already built-in so you wouldn't need this thing.
It all starts with electrons. They are the players of the sub-atomic world. They have a thing for protons, but they get around....
ChefBear
1/2 ton status
Did I mention my wrenching buddy bigbadchevy is an electrician. He rewired everything dash cluster etc. And he solders all the conections. 
Ya, he can have all the steaks he wants!
Ya, he can have all the steaks he wants!
Protons, Neutrons, Electrons, Morons..... One of these things does not like the others! 
(Disclaimer: This is a general comment about electricity and is not directed at any member in particular)
(Disclaimer: This is a general comment about electricity and is not directed at any member in particular)
ChefBear
1/2 ton status
Ha! I still don't understand though...
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
Update: Rust repair "complete"
Here's a couple shots of the last panel welded in place. I'm a little unhappy with some of the warping I got during the final weld process, but I'm going to ultimately line the interior with something that will easily cover the flaws.
The coating is an eastwood rust encapsulator to protect it from new rust. I'm really impressed with how durable this paint is compared to the rattle can stuff I normally use.
And here's the final shot with the fender back on and if you can look closely, you can see that the bedside area behind the door sticks out a little due to the bondo the previous owner used to fix something there. I'm going to leave it for a while so I can drive this while the weather is nice.
Here's a couple shots of the last panel welded in place. I'm a little unhappy with some of the warping I got during the final weld process, but I'm going to ultimately line the interior with something that will easily cover the flaws.
The coating is an eastwood rust encapsulator to protect it from new rust. I'm really impressed with how durable this paint is compared to the rattle can stuff I normally use.
And here's the final shot with the fender back on and if you can look closely, you can see that the bedside area behind the door sticks out a little due to the bondo the previous owner used to fix something there. I'm going to leave it for a while so I can drive this while the weather is nice.
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
I also made progress on the front axle. I'm still fixing a shackle issue I found, but this just needs lube and a final torque on the U-bolts to get it rolling. One thing I did discover is that the Dana 60 brake caliper brackets only "look" like they are the same. Once I had the bearings and locking hubs installed I discovered I had them on backwards and that the calipers wouldn't fit right.
that sucked...
So an hour later things were all greased back up and ready.
I also installed the crossover steering components and ultra beefy tie-rod. I'm actually turning out to be lucky because when the wheels are turned to the far lock on the left, there's only about 1/16" clearance between the tie-rod and the front diff cover.
that sucked...So an hour later things were all greased back up and ready.
I also installed the crossover steering components and ultra beefy tie-rod. I'm actually turning out to be lucky because when the wheels are turned to the far lock on the left, there's only about 1/16" clearance between the tie-rod and the front diff cover.
Looking Good! 
Man I gotta get busy.
Man I gotta get busy.
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
Update: Front end complete
I really hit the garage this weekend and got everything greased up, driveshaft shortened, shackles installed, locker tested (with wheels off the ground) and took it for a test drive.
It was fun to drive it again. I got it up to about 50 mph checking the steering. Luckily, no death wobble yet. I have about 1/2" of toe-in so I'll have to tweak that.
Also discovered I needed a 30A fuse to protect the fans. The 20A and 25A popped pretty quickly. This is the finished relay box. There's actually two additional relays in the same space and the wiring (while still not THAT attractive) is way more organized than before.
I can't actually test the locker in the front until I get the new gears in the back. Here's my workbench all cleaned up and parts layed out for that process. I'm impressed with the build quality of the ARB. This thing just looks beefy.
I really hit the garage this weekend and got everything greased up, driveshaft shortened, shackles installed, locker tested (with wheels off the ground) and took it for a test drive.
It was fun to drive it again. I got it up to about 50 mph checking the steering. Luckily, no death wobble yet. I have about 1/2" of toe-in so I'll have to tweak that.
Also discovered I needed a 30A fuse to protect the fans. The 20A and 25A popped pretty quickly. This is the finished relay box. There's actually two additional relays in the same space and the wiring (while still not THAT attractive) is way more organized than before.
I can't actually test the locker in the front until I get the new gears in the back. Here's my workbench all cleaned up and parts layed out for that process. I'm impressed with the build quality of the ARB. This thing just looks beefy.
GRINCH
1/2 ton status
Looking good and closer to wheeling.. Wish I was that close.
Too lazy to read all 30 posts again...
What are you running in the back that you couldn't go with an eaton? FF?
Where did you get all of your crossover parts?
I think all builds when completed should come with a summary page or at least an index. Especially Greg's
I will do one with mine if I ever get it done...
Too lazy to read all 30 posts again...
What are you running in the back that you couldn't go with an eaton? FF?
Where did you get all of your crossover parts?
I think all builds when completed should come with a summary page or at least an index. Especially Greg's
I will do one with mine if I ever get it done...
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
I've got a full floater in back so ARB is the only selectable option reliable enough for my use.
Crossover is ORD stuff, and the rest was collected from various ck5 vendors.
Oh yea, if it's ever "completed" I'll be sure to include some kind of index.
Crossover is ORD stuff, and the rest was collected from various ck5 vendors.
Oh yea, if it's ever "completed" I'll be sure to include some kind of index.
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
Update: ARB = DOA?
I've been noticing this thread has been more talk than tech so I'm going to cut down my chatter.
Before pressing on the gear, I decided to check how all the bolt holes in the carrier lined up with the ring gear. Here's what I found when i tried to insert a bolt through the carrier!
Most of the bolts were not able to be pressed all the way down because "the two halves of the carrier are made separately and some misalignment of the holes can happen". This is what the ARB tech told me.
Close-up
Here's what the tech said to do.
And here's the results. Seems to work fine now. You can see the amount of material removed on the cardboard. It's pretty minimal.
I've been noticing this thread has been more talk than tech so I'm going to cut down my chatter.
Before pressing on the gear, I decided to check how all the bolt holes in the carrier lined up with the ring gear. Here's what I found when i tried to insert a bolt through the carrier!
Most of the bolts were not able to be pressed all the way down because "the two halves of the carrier are made separately and some misalignment of the holes can happen". This is what the ARB tech told me.
Close-up
Here's what the tech said to do.
And here's the results. Seems to work fine now. You can see the amount of material removed on the cardboard. It's pretty minimal.
Dude that sucks. It does not give you a warm fuzzy when you shell out that kind of money and the holes don't even line up. Kind of a critical detail. With the minimal amount of material you removed, I'm sure it will be fine, but still....
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
Yea, it does suck but it would have sucked more if I had spent an hour heating up the gear in my oven so it'd fit over the carrier and then discovered the bolts wouldn't go through. I can deal with minor issues like that as long as I know about them first.
On this model ARB RD114, there are two countersunk screws on the mounting face of the ring gear that hold the two carrier halves together. I was able to loosen those two screws and rotate the carrier halves a small amount to get a couple holes to line up better before tightening the screws back up. I had to drill the rest out like the picture.
On this model ARB RD114, there are two countersunk screws on the mounting face of the ring gear that hold the two carrier halves together. I was able to loosen those two screws and rotate the carrier halves a small amount to get a couple holes to line up better before tightening the screws back up. I had to drill the rest out like the picture.
bp71k5
3/4 ton status
Update: Bedliner and cage preparation
I took a break from the rear end to keep the blazer drivable for a while. This allowed me to take it over to a local shop to talk about a cage and what I'll need to do to get ready for it (other than save money).
While doing that I know I didn't want to leave the bed and interior the way it was and began preparing it for a spray in bedliner. I figure the whole interior will need it.
Out came the plastic grinding discs to remove all the surface rust and loose paint. This was not fun, but very nice to see when the dust settled.
I'm not too concerned about making everything perfectly smooth since the bedliner will cover lots of imperfections. There are some holes and big dents I needed to weld up.
After welding up some small holes with just weld material, I got to the larger holes where the roll bar used to be. I didn't want to try just globing a bunch of weld to fill these.
I found a punch set from harbor freight for $5 to see if I could make some quick filler plugs.
It works pretty well even with thicker sheet metal using my press. You can see the magnet is holding a 1/2" plug in the hole. Pretty cool and a lot less work in the end. Still have to make 7 more and weld them in.
I took a break from the rear end to keep the blazer drivable for a while. This allowed me to take it over to a local shop to talk about a cage and what I'll need to do to get ready for it (other than save money).
While doing that I know I didn't want to leave the bed and interior the way it was and began preparing it for a spray in bedliner. I figure the whole interior will need it.
Out came the plastic grinding discs to remove all the surface rust and loose paint. This was not fun, but very nice to see when the dust settled.
I'm not too concerned about making everything perfectly smooth since the bedliner will cover lots of imperfections. There are some holes and big dents I needed to weld up.
After welding up some small holes with just weld material, I got to the larger holes where the roll bar used to be. I didn't want to try just globing a bunch of weld to fill these.
I found a punch set from harbor freight for $5 to see if I could make some quick filler plugs.
It works pretty well even with thicker sheet metal using my press. You can see the magnet is holding a 1/2" plug in the hole. Pretty cool and a lot less work in the end. Still have to make 7 more and weld them in.
Cool tool.... ! For only $5, I'm going to have to pick one of those up for myself. I've already had a few moments where I've tried to create a round patch "freehand", it's not easy.
What are you going with for the spray in bedliner? I've heard a lot of stories now that Line-X will fade (no UV protection) and maybe the Rhinoliner is the better product? Or are you doing a self-applied spray on of some sort?
What are you going with for the spray in bedliner? I've heard a lot of stories now that Line-X will fade (no UV protection) and maybe the Rhinoliner is the better product? Or are you doing a self-applied spray on of some sort?
