87 K30 Buildup

[Dunleavy2004]

ALL PICS DELETED FROM SERVER I WAS USING. CLICK LINK BELOW TO SEE OTHER BUILD THREAD AND I WILL POST MORE PICTURES HERE AS I CONTINUE THE BUILD.
http://www.pirate4x4.com/forum/showthread.php?t=550340


I started this buildup in the fall with an 87 K30. Its got a 454 with TBI, TH400, NP205, D60 front and 14b rear. Truck was incredibly clean when i bought it and i have bene making modifications to it since while keeping it as clean as possible.

That is the truck how i bought it.
First thing i did was pick up a set of steel wheels and some 37" SSRs.

Next the rear blocks came out and were replaced with ORDs 4" shackle flip. A couple of the leaf springs were taken out too, made for a much softer ride and also leveled the truck out a little.

Also did a Ubolt reverse kit and the greasable bushings.

 

[Dunleavy2004]

After a couple weeks running around i upgraded to 35 spline outers in the front, added a Powertrax and new greasable ujoints and some tera locking hubs.

On my next trip with the truck, the exhaust came out of one of the manifolds and i decided to go ahead and replace it. Got some hedman headers and a box of stainless 3" and a magnaflow dual 3" inlet, single 4" outlet muffler.

You can also see the detroit about to go in the 14 bolt.

Can see where the transfer case support was in the way coming out of the header, had to make about 6 or 7 bends in abaout 8 inches of 3" pipe to get around it.
Everything got tucked up high and there is little chance of it getting ripped out.

While doing the exhaust also pulled off all the california emissions controls that were on the truck. With the headers, better flowing exhaust and minus the emissions controls, truck got a pretty noticable power boost. Muffler works great, can barely hear it idle from inside the cab at a light, but on the throttle it sounds great.

 

[Dunleavy2004]

Had to pull the PTO winch off because of interference with the headers. Also took off the front bumper and trimmed the front a little to clear the tires a little better. Replaced the trim and is hardly noticable.

Also installed the ORD steering box brace.

I have a 12000lb milemarker hydraulic winch to replace the PTO one with and am looking into a PTO driven hydraulic pump to run it instead of using the steering pump.
Detroit is installed in the rear.
After i got both lockers installed i was heading to a trail and lost 3rd gear in the transmission. Got back home and after a little research and ordering some parts pulled the transmission and rebuilt it. Made a few upgrades like a transgo shift kit and was going to install a 34 element sprag but someone had beaten me to it in the transmission, so i left it. Truck shifts great now cause of the transgo kit. Can hardly feel it cruising and under throttle the shifts are firm. New clutches and seals and everything, transmission should last a while now. In the mail right now are some ORD crossover steering parts and im also looking around for tube so i can start on some sliders and bumpers.
This is about where the truck is right now.

 

[resurrected_jimmy]

I'm jealous. Good looking truck

 

[muddybuddy]

i have been following your thread on pirate, sweet truck!

 

[Dunleavy2004]

Truck as it sits now.

 

[Dunleavy2004]

Thanks, i decided to go ahead and post the thread on here too. Lot more chevy guys who can help out and offer suggestions.

 

[thatK30guy]

Forgive me for sounding arrogant when I ask "why" would you do this to a perfectly good, clean truck?
I know its your truck and your money, but its a Silverado and 1 ton. This is a very, very rare truck. I would have left it alone instead of butchering it up. I'd use any other K30 to do the type of build up you are doing. An M1008 would have been a better choice.
As I said before, I know its your truck and money, but still don't see the justification of ruining a perfectly good truck.

 

[Xtremegmc80]

subscribed good looking truck!

 

[Dunleavy2004]

Point well taken about keeping it clean, i want to keep it as clean as possible. Its a DD for me too, runs great, im not looking to destroy it.

 

[rjfguitar]

Point well taken about keeping it clean, i want to keep it as clean as possible. Its a DD for me too, runs great, im not looking to destroy it.

I understand what "thatK30guy" is saying. The point was that you had some NICE aluminum rims on the truck, replaced with with cheap steels that are heavier and only marginally stronger, look no where near as nice as the alums., and you removed the front bumper and it appears in the last pic you cut the front part of the fender.

Now, I'm not saying those things against you, just pointing out things that a "resto" guy thinks at first sight.

It's your rig, and I won't at all look down on someone for making a once very clean near perfect rare K30 into a capable offroader that is now visually less stimulating, because it belongs to you and if you like it that is what matters.

I will agree that you could have found a better truck to start off with. Guys like me and K30guy get wood over finding a mint condition truck like that, as it's a great starting point for new paint, trim, interior, etc without having to replace body panels, fix rust, trim falling off.... your '87 would be the perfect specimin for a minor, cost effective restore, that could allow you to park it in front of a GM dealer and make you think it's 1987 all over again if you didn't know what year it was.

But....as the saying goes, the early bird gets the worm and it's yours so have at it!

But hey.... I like the headers!

 

[thatK30guy]

Bobby, I went back up and reread the whole thread again and while checking the pics over again, I could only say one thing: it was enough it could make a grown man cry.

 

[BulldogK5]

I tried to post this earlier but I am in total agreement with rjfguitar & thatK30guy about the cutting and removal of things. Mind you, I was wondering when whoever bought this truck was going to show up on here. You see, I am a little partial to the whole clean thing because I was apparently quite literally one day late to trade/purchase this truck. I loved everything about it from the time it was posted a year ago up until he took it off the forum in Nov.

You will also have to forgive thatK30guy because he was interested in it for himself as well, IIRC. Anyway, I found the next best thing, albeit a lot longer, to haul the family around in and be able to daily drive. I will keep up with the thread because I want to see how it evolves.

What I wanted to know earlier was, what did you do with the Alum. wheels and PTO winch?

 

[thatK30guy]

Couldn't have said it better, Ward. As I said above in the other posts, it's his truck and money. Just saddens me to see a K-series truck (especially a rare Silverado K30) get the "treatment" where as a nice, shiny, virgin-bodied truck would seem better to retain that style since these years of trucks are getting harder and harder to find in pristine condition.

Take the '86 K30 thats posted up for sale in the F/S forum: its the same color as this '87 and also in excellent condition. Then look at the price the seller is asking. I don't think you're gonna find someone who will butcher that truck up. That truck would be much better off living a "show truck" life. Its not every day that you will see a '73-'87 truck in the condition like that one is.

On my trucks, the thing I like about them is to leave the body alone and add the lift and tire treatment to it. I love the stock look but with the jacked up stance.
If I wanted to build a play truck, I'd use a beater truck that ran good. M1008's make excellent bases to build with. Silverado's do not, IMHO.

 

[Avery4jc]

subscribed

 

[thatK30guy]

I like your truck, Avery. The way its lifted and big tires but no mods to the body.

 

[Avery4jc]

yeah but it barely clears w/o cutting and I think that I'll have to soon.

 

[Dunleavy2004]

The wheels and tires that were on it went back to the guy who i bought the truck from for the set or tires that are on it now. The winch and front bumper are still in my garage and im working on possibly using the winch in the rear. I did have to use the winch once while i was on a trail up in the mountains to pull a jeep back over the edge after they had driven off and it pulled great so i would love to reuse it. I took the PTO off while the transmisison was out but was too concerened with getting the transmisison back in and working to mess with it too much since it was my first tranny rebuild and i wanted to see how it had turned out. Sorry to disappoint you guys, but so far the only body modifications that have been done is that little trimming in the front. I do not want to have to trim anymore, and from the looks of it i should not have to. Again, I want to keep this truck as clean as possible.
That being said, personal preference, i did not like the wheels that were on it, and i did want to build more of an off road vehicle, so that was the direction that i chose to go in.

 

[BulldogK5]

That being said, personal preference, i did not like the wheels that were on it, and i did want to build more of an off road vehicle, so that was the direction that i chose to go in.

I never saw a good pic of the wheels but it's not like they were Hellcats or something either. I understand the need to build a more trailworthy rig also. I have taken 2 K5's and built them up (one more than the other) and people thought I was crazy for using such a nice rig. Look at the red & black K5 I have now and you would think I was insane for taking one that was that nice and cutting it to wheel. I didn't actually do it, bought it from another member several years ago, but I would have considered the lift and all if I had bought it stock. That would have eventually turned into the cutting but I would have been real nervous about it. Since it is already done I won't have much issue with doing more.

My crewcab will be left in pretty much the condition it is in though and it will be used to haul toys, kids & family, tools and even a tractor when needed. It has a 6" lift and 35's but I will never wheel the hard stuff like I will the K5.

I commend you for doing what you need with it.

If you ever want to get rid of the winch let me know. I'll trade you a ramsey winch bumper for it. The one on the crewcab that is.

 

[thatK30guy]

That crew cab (hmmm...nevrenuf!) is exactly how I like to see trucks built. I wouldn't even change a thing on it. Its perfect in my eyes.

Your Blazer, while it looks good now, I wouldn't mind as much to cutting it up, etc., etc. The thing is, Blazers are a dime a dozen. You can get them just about anywhere. So it don't pain me to see them butchered as much as a rare truck like an '87 V30 Silverado.

FWIW, I've been searching for an '87 V30 Silverado literally for years. I still have not found it yet. Sure there have been some for sale online but all the prices are too high or they're junk. It took me 3 years to find my very first K30, which was an '84. Then I found my current '85 one year later and bought it because it was a Silverado. I bought that sight unseen. It was what I had been looking for but not quite. That ever elusive '87 is still out there waiting for me to snatch it from its owner...........