77 Blazer - The Beast build

[ZombieK5]

Made some "next steps"

Winter is around the corner and need some inside the garage projects. Dana 60 should be done and buttoned up soon.

14 Bolt has been sitting next to the frame since it was removed this summer.

Busted out the media blast gun and Oppps....air compressor was dead. Had to replace the pressure switch. Had one sitting around thankfully. Also changed the oil, oil filter and air/water separator. The Eastwood scroll compressors are VERY nice but they do require some regular maintenance.

Blasted the axle (3hrs of work). Have mentioned I hate media blasting. If you EVER do this, use a FULL FACE mask with the good filters!!! Also use the disposable face glass(plastic) protectors. The media will destroy the clear plastic very fast.

I used coarse coal slag to cut thru the heavy multiple layers of paint and corrosion then used fine coal slag to blast off the final layer of paint/rust.

Final step was Metal Prep treatment/wash. Good to go for POR15.

Also blasted my 205np transfer case in prep for disassembly and rebuild.

Now I have enough work for the winter.

 

[ZombieK5]

FINAL PATTERN with new Bearings on carrier and pinion.... It is what it is.

Backlash .008
Pinion Preload 23 inch lbs

Lock Tite on carrier bearing caps??

 

[Truckman4life]

I loctite any thing that spins or that can cause massive damage if it comes loose.

 

[folkenheath]

I treat the carrier bearing caps like an engine main bearing cap or a rod bearing cap. Oil or moly lube on the the threads, and torque to the appropriate spec for the fastener and the lube. If you torque it dry it may not be tight enough for the proper tension. I

 

[ZombieK5]

More slow progress. Got the lower Kingpin bearing seals pressed in. Was almost no issue. Used the old race over the seals and gently tapped them in with a hammer. Small bead of RTV along the edge. Easy Peasy.

 

[ZombieK5]

2nd item done today was installing the kevlar/poly bushings in my ORD Custom Springs. Bought these more than a yr ago. No serious issues other than figuring out which bushings go where....

1. Used silicone grease (quite expensive). Lubed up the bushings and squeezed them into the spring eyes. Most went in without issues.

2. Lubed the bolt sleeves and tried to slide them into the bushing center holes. Hand to use a large C-Clamp to get them in fully. Not too hard to do but the Clamp kept sliding off.

3. Filled the greaseable bolts with silicone grease first. Next I coated the inside of the sleeves with grease and inserted the bolts. Almost like I knew what I was doing.

Planning to put on the frame this weekend. Definitely made some progress.

 

[ZombieK5]

3rd thing I did today was clean up my ORD front shackles. These came with the truck and were covered with peeled paint and corrosion. Media blasted them amd tried out my new DIY Black Oxide coating kit. Prepared the solution and dropped the shackles in.

In the first photo you can see one Shackle in the solution already getting black. It was in for about 20 seconds at that point. The other three are in my hand getting ready to go in the bucket.

5 minutes later they were covered with black oxide. Kinda nice. I'll give them a coat of paint for extra measure and then get them on the K5

 

[folkenheath]

I've found the black oxide work and looks great, but rusts rather easily, a coat of paint it a good idea. The only time i use the black oxide is when I the paint would be too thick, but then if you don't keep it oiled it will rust.

 

[ZombieK5]

I've found the black oxide work and looks great, but rusts rather easily, a coat of paint it a good idea. The only time i use the black oxide is when I the paint would be too thick, but then if you don't keep it oiled it will rust.

Thats why I used it. I had to drill the holes for the ORD Shackles to fit the new greasable bolts. The tolerance is close and a heavy coat of paint would interfere too much.

 

[ZombieK5]

NOT EASY or not as easy as some ppl say it should be.

Removed the front axle U-Joints. These suckers were in place for a long time. I thought it would take maybe 2hrs but that turned into 5+ hrs.

The C Clips fought me for a longgggg time all but one came out. The last one required me to use a cutter to cut it in half before it could come out. The OEM Tool worked ok. It got the job done but I had issues. I, of course, oiled the tools main bolt but there was a hole in the main cup that was covered by a plastic cap. Inside that cap was the end of the bolt that had a large grade 8 nut on the end. I didn't lube that nut and that caused damage. It still worked but it galled the inside of the bore where the nut sat. I finally Lubed and it still worked.

Gonna media blast the shafts to get rid of the old paint, clean the ujoint cup bores and get ready for new Ujoints.

 

[Truckman4life]

Baby Tiger Tool, that's cool! We used those for big truck u-joints.

 

[ZooMad75]

Nice tool. I’ve just used a bfh and a couple of sockets.

 

[ZombieK5]

Nice tool. I’ve just used a bfh and a couple of sockets.

I tried that method before and ended up scalloping my thumb. I basically peeled the skin from one side to the other when I missed with the hammer. I figured The $99 was well invested just to keep my fingers intact. It worked pretty good. I would recommend it to anyone trying to do this job themselves. The tiger tool version is much more expensive. This is kind of a knockoff but worked very well. The bad part is this tool is for larger universal joints and won't work with Drive shafts. They have a smaller version for drive shafts that I'll probably end up buying.

 

[folkenheath]

Nice work!

I use a big bench vice and some old sockets. No skin loss and it works, every time pretty much.

I remember one time there was a stubborn one, one of the modern "injected plastic" type in my fathers truck. He needed a hand and we couldn't get it to break free. So he got out the torch to melt the plastic inside and started heating it up so I could tighten while he heated. I said, hold on a sec, and I put on some safety glasses, only seconds later the molten plastic shot out of the joint and hit my safety glasses right in front of my eye! I was so glad not to have molten plastic in my eye!

Although now that I bought an old used hydraulic press, I just use that with some sockets, it's even easier than the vice.

 

[centexk5]

I pay the local shop $20 and sip coffee. I hate changing u-joints. Never had an easy one.

 

[ZombieK5]

The axle shafts were covered with at least two, probably three, layers of old paint. Had to use BOTH paint Stripper and Mineral Spirits to get all of it off. The main axle shafts are from SPICER. The stubs are aftermarket but 35 spline. Paint them next then the new Ujoints.

 

[ZombieK5]

Got the front axle ends cleaned up and painted with black POR15 Engine Paint. Hope to get Ujoints pressed in this week.

 

[ZombieK5]

NEW PARTS DAY!!!!

Big thanks to Heath at Volcano Manifolds- Innovate Engineering LLC!!

Hedman Stainless Hedders.

Suggestions about cerakote or other treatments??

 

[ZombieK5]

Slow progress...

Dana 60 pinion seal in and new 1410 yolk ready for install.

Re-torqued carrier bearing caps and greased axle tube inner Seals.

 

[ZombieK5]

Axle shafts are together and seem to function fine. The long shafts are maybe at the end of their life. These Ujoints don't budge but went in much easier than the ends.

Also got the carrie/ring gear done. The new cover fits perfect.