Atl-atl's K5 Blazer Four Wheel Camper "The Crawlin Cabin" documentation thread!

[Atl-atl]

Your fuel line runs real close to your ex-manfold, ,but it might be the carb is tune to sea-level and when you get high it can't suck enough to draw enough gass,your Gass line should not hang wide over the finder.Jm2cw.

The carb was tuned in Tucson so ~2400 feet above sea level. Phoenix where I live is ~1000 feet above sea level. Sedona is ~4500 feet above sea level. The realistic difference is not that much. Plus it was vapor locking simply from the heat, before I had even gained any significant elevation.

As for the gas lines. Below are some better pictures. The hard line out of the carb is up and out of the way, over to about the frame rail and then it tucks back to the fuel pump. The line coming from the tank runs up the inside of the frame and turns 90 degrees into the pump. That is where is closest to the exhaust manifold. Seems like thats the factory location which is crazy, it should be on the other side of the frame. The fact that the fuel pump is an inch away from the manifold is also crazy. Its no wonder these trucks have such common vapor lock issues.

 

[Moody Bricker]

I never seen a line from the pump to the carb run like that,it should run right side of the pump up by the timing chain cover,behind the alternator then next to the valve cover the a hard right to the carb.I would show u a pix.of one of mine but out of 4 ,2 were not stock,the other 1 is a 85 so much hoses and other shit ,the 454 is put up for the winter.sorry I can't help

 

[Atl-atl]

I never seen a line from the pump to the carb run like that,it should run right side of the pump up by the timing chain cover,behind the alternator then next to the valve cover the a hard right to the carb.I would show u a pix.of one of mine but out of 4 ,2 were not stock,the other 1 is a 85 so much hoses and other shit ,the 454 is put up for the winter.sorry I can't help

You are definitely still helping! Thank you. Now I know what to look for with a factory line replacement from the pump to the carb.

 

[ZooMad75]

The carb was tuned in Tucson so ~2400 feet above sea level. Phoenix where I live is ~1000 feet above sea level. Sedona is ~4500 feet above sea level. The realistic difference is not that much. Plus it was vapor locking simply from the heat, before I had even gained any significant elevation.

As for the gas lines. Below are some better pictures. The hard line out of the carb is up and out of the way, over to about the frame rail and then it tucks back to the fuel pump. The line coming from the tank runs up the inside of the frame and turns 90 degrees into the pump. That is where is closest to the exhaust manifold. Seems like thats the factory location which is crazy, it should be on the other side of the frame. The fact that the fuel pump is an inch away from the manifold is also crazy. Its no wonder these trucks have such common vapor lock issues.

You are right, elevation change is not the cause of the vapor lock. My 75 never had vapor lock and the fuel line was routed in the factory location up the front of the block to over the front of the manifold.

Heat is causing the vapor lock. That line is somebody's piss poor attempt to avoid vapor lock. The problem is the heat off the exhaust manifold is cooking the fuel in that line as it radiates off of it. Look at all the surface area of the line to catch heat on. I'd get a pipe nipple for both the pump and the carb and route a 3/8" rubber fuel line up the front of the block behind the alternator and then up to the carb over the intake manifold. I prefer the right hardline routed this way, but the rubber will do just fine for now. Here's a shot of the line in my '75 for an example (crappy old pic).


The factory fuel line from the tank is normally on the inside of the frame rail. I know it sounds odd since the outside of the frame rail would aid in heat shielding. But it's the way they were done and like in most cases, didn't have a problem at all. Mine didn't and I drove it in 100 degree weather or up to 13,000' elevation. You are on the right track to gut the added garbage to the fuel system. Get the saddle tanks out and you probably need to replace the rest of the rubber sections in the fuel system as most of them could be 20 years or older. The vent lines included.

 

[Atl-atl]

You are right, elevation change is not the cause of the vapor lock. My 75 never had vapor lock and the fuel line was routed in the factory location up the front of the block to over the front of the manifold.

Heat is causing the vapor lock. That line is somebody's piss poor attempt to avoid vapor lock. The problem is the heat off the exhaust manifold is cooking the fuel in that line as it radiates off of it. Look at all the surface area of the line to catch heat on. I'd get a pipe nipple for both the pump and the carb and route a 3/8" rubber fuel line up the front of the block behind the alternator and then up to the carb over the intake manifold. I prefer the right hardline routed this way, but the rubber will do just fine for now. Here's a shot of the line in my '75 for an example (crappy old pic).
View attachment 338151

The factory fuel line from the tank is normally on the inside of the frame rail. I know it sounds odd since the outside of the frame rail would aid in heat shielding. But it's the way they were done and like in most cases, didn't have a problem at all. Mine didn't and I drove it in 100 degree weather or up to 13,000' elevation. You are on the right track to gut the added garbage to the fuel system. Get the saddle tanks out and you probably need to replace the rest of the rubber sections in the fuel system as most of them could be 20 years or older. The vent lines included.

Ill check a few local parts stores for a prefabbed hard line. If not Ill order it from LMC for $25. I was up late working on my Tacoma last night and hit my funny bone so hard my hand went numb for 20 minutes so my elbow has been sore all day. I did not get around to deleting any of the fuel system junk today but I did adjust the hood a little bit(still need new springs) and do a few other things. Discount Tire busted one of the TPMS sensors on my Tacoma so I was dealing with that today and have to go back tomorrow morning which is annoying. Literally everything is old, cracked, dry rotted etc. on this truck so Im mentally prepared to replace all of the lines between the tank and fuel pump if necessary. Hopefully just the soft lines. Even though the body has some rusty spots on this truck, the bolts that appear to be seized have all broken loose in typical rust-free-arizona style so I might get lucky. Im going to start by deleting all the saddle setup, then drop the stock tank, pull the sender, replace the sock, check the vent line and replace if necessary and trace the lines up to the pump replacing anything that needs it. I dont want to go too overboard since this all might change with a motor swap.

 

[ZooMad75]

Ill check a few local parts stores for a prefabbed hard line. If not Ill order it from LMC for $25. I was up late working on my Tacoma last night and hit my funny bone so hard my hand went numb for 20 minutes so my elbow has been sore all day. I did not get around to deleting any of the fuel system junk today but I did adjust the hood a little bit(still need new springs) and do a few other things. Discount Tire busted one of the TPMS sensors on my Tacoma so I was dealing with that today and have to go back tomorrow morning which is annoying. Literally everything is old, cracked, dry rotted etc. on this truck so Im mentally prepared to replace all of the lines between the tank and fuel pump if necessary. Hopefully just the soft lines. Even though the body has some rusty spots on this truck, the bolts that appear to be seized have all broken loose in typical rust-free-arizona style so I might get lucky. Im going to start by deleting all the saddle setup, then drop the stock tank, pull the sender, replace the sock, check the vent line and replace if necessary and trace the lines up to the pump replacing anything that needs it. I dont want to go too overboard since this all might change with a motor swap.

Good plan. AZ rust free is good to have as a starting point but you are right about the rubber.

 

[Capt Ron]

Sorry it took me so long to tag in....#life!?!?
OK L29, Zoo hit all the hi points. If you go that route I do have a few pointers.
While the engine is out replace the Dist, injectors and fuel pressure regulator. It is way easier while it is out and these items seem to be a wear item on the L29.
The fuel lines exit by the back of the drivers side by the distributor. It's tight back there once you run the hyd clutch line but you would be well served to cross the fuel lines over the bellhousing area and run the lines down the pass side frame rail.
Try to find a set of square body big block exhaust manifolds, the fit is much better than the GMT 400 manifolds.
If you have any more questions on the L29- Nv4500 install drop me a line.

Ok stock fuel line....
Chevrolet and Gm for that matter ran the fuel line close to the front of the block so that it is in the airstream of the fan. Even though it is "heated air" from radiator it is still cooler than the rest of the engine compartment. The stock steel line ran in the stock location will in my opinion give you the best results until the modern engine install. Some old school tricks to help vapor locking include wooden clothespins on the steel fuel line, four or so corn cobs, yes corn cobs, laying on the intake manifold by the carburetor and spacing the back of the hood up to help exhaust hot air.

 

[Atl-atl]

Sorry it took me so long to tag in....#life!?!?
OK L29, Zoo hit all the hi points. If you go that route I do have a few pointers.
While the engine is out replace the Dist, injectors and fuel pressure regulator. It is way easier while it is out and these items seem to be a wear item on the L29.
The fuel lines exit by the back of the drivers side by the distributor. It's tight back there once you run the hyd clutch line but you would be well served to cross the fuel lines over the bellhousing area and run the lines down the pass side frame rail.
Try to find a set of square body big block exhaust manifolds, the fit is much better than the GMT 400 manifolds.
If you have any more questions on the L29- Nv4500 install drop me a line.

Ok stock fuel line....
Chevrolet and Gm for that matter ran the fuel line close to the front of the block so that it is in the airstream of the fan. Even though it is "heated air" from radiator it is still cooler than the rest of the engine compartment. The stock steel line ran in the stock location will in my opinion give you the best results until the modern engine install. Some old school tricks to help vapor locking include wooden clothespins on the steel fuel line, four or so corn cobs, yes corn cobs, laying on the intake manifold by the carburetor and spacing the back of the hood up to help exhaust hot air.

No apologies necessary! I appreciate anything and everything you guys are doing to help. As for the swap, I have been trying to pace myself because I know this is a long process but I cant help but search craigslist, get excited and want to jump at the first donor I see. L29/NV4500 sounds great, so does LS, so does lift and tons and big tires but there are only so many hours in a day to work, work on the truck, work on the Taco, work on the house, research everything, get some exercise, camp, yada yada yada. You guys understand.

Now that I know where the stock pump-to-carb line is supposed to go it makes more sense and I will replace it with a stock line. As for the tank to pump lines, they still dont make a ton of sense but oh well. Im guessing the clothes pins and corn cobs are just cheap heatsinks. I hope I dont need a remedy like that, I prefer the least amount of stuff necessary to make something work. Im now in the mood to grill up some corn though hahaha. As for the hood, its already tilted up in the back because the springs are weak. I even tried adjusting the hinges today but it wasnt enough to drop the back down where it should be. I dont want this to be a fix either. Ive had 5 XJs and its super common in that realm too but I always got away with not having to do that.

There are an awful lot of this generation truck in AZ that seem to have been sitting since, well...the 70s and 80s. My boss has a fully restored 2WD C10 that he doesnt drive when its over 100 because of vapor lock. A good friend of mine used to have a K5 and had continual vapor lock issues. Im starting to think you just dont drive these trucks in AZ in the summer, at least not with a stock small-block Chevy motor. The more I learn about this truck the more a motor swap moves to the top of the to-do list.

 

[ZooMad75]

No apologies necessary! I appreciate anything and everything you guys are doing to help. As for the swap, I have been trying to pace myself because I know this is a long process but I cant help but search craigslist, get excited and want to jump at the first donor I see. L29/NV4500 sounds great, so does LS, so does lift and tons and big tires but there are only so many hours in a day to work, work on the truck, work on the Taco, work on the house, research everything, get some exercise, camp, yada yada yada. You guys understand.

Now that I know where the stock pump-to-carb line is supposed to go it makes more sense and I will replace it with a stock line. As for the tank to pump lines, they still dont make a ton of sense but oh well. Im guessing the clothes pins and corn cobs are just cheap heatsinks. I hope I dont need a remedy like that, I prefer the least amount of stuff necessary to make something work. Im now in the mood to grill up some corn though hahaha. As for the hood, its already tilted up in the back because the springs are weak. I even tried adjusting the hinges today but it wasnt enough to drop the back down where it should be. I dont want this to be a fix either. Ive had 5 XJs and its super common in that realm too but I always got away with not having to do that.

There are an awful lot of this generation truck in AZ that seem to have been sitting since, well...the 70s and 80s. My boss has a fully restored 2WD C10 that he doesnt drive when its over 100 because of vapor lock. A good friend of mine used to have a K5 and had continual vapor lock issues. Im starting to think you just dont drive these trucks in AZ in the summer, at least not with a stock small-block Chevy motor. The more I learn about this truck the more a motor swap moves to the top of the to-do list.

Fuel injection does wonders for the vapor lock issue, small block, big block and obviously LS engines. But the ethanol in our fuel don't help much with a carb either. Not much we can do about the ethanol though unless AZ has ethanol-free fuel available at the pumps.

 

[Atl-atl]

Fuel injection does wonders for the vapor lock issue, small block, big block and obviously LS engines. But the ethanol in our fuel don't help much with a carb either. Not much we can do about the ethanol though unless AZ has ethanol-free fuel available at the pumps.

Unfortunately there is not a lot of ethanol-free fuel to be found in AZ. Crazy considering how far we are from anywhere that grows corn. Not like they are refining the gas here anyway, just trucking it in so I guess anything to help big oil earn a buck by charging the same price but using cheaper ethanol that burns hotter/faster so people have to buy more of it. Would be really nice if people actually paid attention to where their money was going. You'd think in such a conservative state...ahh who am I kidding, not going to get political in here.

Found this nice graph showing the different temps at which fuels become vapor. At slightly above ambient temperature, the difference between E10 and pure gasoline turning to vapor is like 30 degrees Fahrenheit. Sounds like a lot but the pure gas and pure ethanol fuels intersect at about 78 degrees Celsius/172 degrees Fahrenheit. With the air in Phoenix summer sometimes being 120+, the stock fuel pump being an inch away from the exhaust manifold, water temps at 190+ on a "cool" engine, these temps dont even matter. The fuel doesn't stand a chance of staying under 172 degrees. Its a surprise the truck runs at all.

https://www.grabner-instruments.com/-/media/ametekgrabnerinstruments/files/pdfs/application vapor pressure vl ratio of gasolineethanol blends.pdf

I wonder if having the incorrect fan shroud could cause a lack of cooling of underhood components. My water temp is low but maybe the radiator is just so efficient the water temp is fine but the air isnt flowing correctly to cool everything else under the hood. I might pull the fan shroud and trim it tomorrow.

 

[Moody Bricker]

The next time your under the hood,grease up the hinges so you don't bend the hood,I would like see some pix of the saddled tanks,,thanks

 

[Atl-atl]

Well here comes the weekend update motherlode. Last Thursday I decided I was going to get working on fabricating a tire carrier rear bumper. Did a ton of research because it was 105 degrees outside and I couldnt stand to actually work on the truck. Four days later I basically got nowhere hahaha. On the bumper that is. Ive been wanting to learn how to weld basically my whole life. So I started talking to a friend of mine up in Flagstaff about what/how/when for a new rear bumper and decided to go pick up so square stock to get measurements and a better idea of just what will work. Ive landed on using 4x4labs tire carrier swingout setup and also their misc. clamp bracket to make a receiver hitch that swings out with the tire, that I will mount my 1UP bike rack to. A lot of the reason I go camping is to ride bikes and I want a way to leave the bike in the carrier with the ability to swing it out of the way for access to the rear door. A trailer hitch with a swing out accessory just wont cut it.

I watched a bunch of youtube videos so naturally was 100% sure I could buy a $125 flux core welder from Harbor Freight and make myself a tire carrier bumper for $400 instead of paying $3000 to buy one. Boy was I wrong.

Yeesh, I will not be quitting my day job.

Cleaned up with a flap wheel it isnt terrible. Especially for this literally being the first time Ive attempted to weld in my life.
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I picked up a 72" piece of 3x6" 1/4" wall steel tubing. I pulled the rear bumper, breaking every bolt except one, cleaned the rust and dirt off, sanded and painted everything. Busted out the jackstands and quickly realized I need to cut down the frame that I just spent a bunch of time cleaning up and painting. The stock bumper is a real clamshell that hides the fact the frame sticks way out behind the truck.

Looks terrible from this angle but it will get shaped a little and its not as wide as this makes it look.

womp womp

Easily can lose 3" of the frame and still fit a spare tire carrier etc.

Still thinking about integrating these folding steps. Im not getting any younger

So after that debacle, I decided to move onto something significantly less annoying...the fuel system, or should I say, the fuel systems issues HAHAHA!!!

 

[ZooMad75]

Great effort getting going on the bumper. Your base is pretty similar to mine. So much so, you might want to go look at the construction. We did not reuse the bumper brackets. We made our own out of 1/4" stock welded to the bumper and it bolts onto the frame with existing holes. It was easier than trying to adapt the factory brackets.

Bumper build

 

[Atl-atl]

Round 2 from the weekend! Put the bumper project on hold and decided to get gassy. My fuel gauge doesnt work, my tank takes 30 minutes to fill with gas, the truck vapor locks like mad when its hot, the truck has saddle tanks that were no longer hooked up and in pretty bad shape. So I went to town. Pulled the filler neck in preparation for dropping the tank and as soon as I got it out I noticed a weird sound, something was inside the filler neck...

!!! Someone had filled the truck with a plastic gas can in the past and the little flexy nozzle popped off inside the filler neck. I bet they had no idea this was causing the slow fill issues. Moral of the story, be careful what you put in your neck!

Since I already had the rear bumper off it made dropping the gas tank easy.

Strainer sock is torn, couldnt find one locally and since my fuel gauge wasnt working I decided to just buy a whole new sending unit.

Then I decided to get to work removing the saddle tanks. Crawl under the truck and the first thing I notice is this wire. Its the power for the sending unit. Great work by the last fellow.

This was the wiring mess for the controls for the tanks. All the yellow wires were just spliced in with vampire connectors.

Nothing makes me happier than deleting crap and making things whole again.

These were the knobs for switching between the tanks. Required a super thin open end wrench to undo the lockring. Thankfully I had the right size cone wrench in my bike toolbox. Its funny how often I use bike tools on cars/trucks.

Then I unbolted the tanks. Each one was held up by two huge carriage bolts that went right through the floor. One under each front seat floormat and one just in front of each rear wheel well. Thankfully I was able to remove the rear bolts without cutting them or worse have to pull the camper off the truck ha! Also deleted the wires you see running under the carpet, they were for a broken CB that I removed.

The area above the tanks is remarkably well preserved. They were obviously there for a very long time. Also, looks like some kind of sheet metal pinch weld or something had to be trimmed to accommodate the tanks.

Aaand here it is in all its f**king glory. Someone mentioned possibly wanting this but I cant seem to find the comment. Hit me up if you're here. Free for anyone that wants to come to Phoenix and grab it. They are massive, I bet at least 20 gallons each.

So I buttoned everything back up underneath, replaced a bunch of rubber line for the main and return lines, rewired the power and ground for the sending unit, soldered all the connections, bent a new hard line for the pump-to-carb(which took three attempts btw) and the came across a post where someone mentioned putting fittings in the carb and pump and running soft line. Wish I would have seen that a couple days ago hahaha.

Drumroll........

FUEL GAUGE WORKS!!!! Fired right up, checked for leaks and everything is dry. Drove over to the gas station and it fills with gas like a normal vehicle WOOHOO!!! Feels so good to make progress. Although it did leak a little from the filler. The soft line between the filler neck and the tank is old and crusty and I think I cracked it when reinstalling the tank so Im going to replace that today but otherwise everything is good. Drove it for a few minutes and it seems to have better throttle response and make a little more power. I wouldnt be surprised at all if the horribly done fuel system was a real strain on the engine.

 

[Atl-atl]

Great effort getting going on the bumper. Your base is pretty similar to mine. So much so, you might want to go look at the construction. We did not reuse the bumper brackets. We made our own out of 1/4" stock welded to the bumper and it bolts onto the frame with existing holes. It was easier than trying to adapt the factory brackets.

Bumper build

Your bumper looks awesome, I like the spindle and locking hub idea for the swing. My plan right now is to remove the support "wings" for the stock bumper, cut the frame down about 3 inches, weld plates onto the bumper for its mounting that will extend 6" or so along the frame rails to add support in addition to actually being the mount for the bumper. Probably use 4 to 6 bolts per side for mounting. Someone had welded something to the frame back there in the past and cut it partially off. My guess is it was a trailer hitch. Im going to remove all the leftover crap as part of the bumper building process. They are welded to the wings so it all has to be cut off regardless.

 

[ZooMad75]

Great work on replacing the hard line. That looks pretty much like the factory routing.

Man an extra 20 gallons of fuel would be a major range extender, but carriage bolts right to the body is a bit iffy. It preserved the floor well though.

I though about clipping the end of the frame to tuck the bumper in more, but didn't want to loose the ability to put the factory pins back on the frame for the stock tailgate if I ever wanted to go back to stock. So to fill the gap and make a wider top step I had a Fab buddy cut and punch a plate to weld to the bumper and brackets between the frame rails. This will close off the area and give a wider spot for my foot to land on than the top of the bumper alone.

 

[Atl-atl]

Great work on replacing the hard line. That looks pretty much like the factory routing.

Man an extra 20 gallons of fuel would be a major range extender, but carriage bolts right to the body is a bit iffy. It preserved the floor well though.

I though about clipping the end of the frame to tuck the bumper in more, but didn't want to loose the ability to put the factory pins back on the frame for the stock tailgate if I ever wanted to go back to stock. So to fill the gap and make a wider top step I had a Fab buddy cut and punch a plate to weld to the bumper and brackets between the frame rails. This will close off the area and give a wider spot for my foot to land on than the top of the bumper alone.

Thanks, that was attempt #3 on the hard line and I even kinked it but managed to cut the pump end off and reflare it one last time before it got too short. All in all it was about 4 hours of work just for the one line.

As for the rear, I dont have a tailgate and dont plan on ever removing the camper except the one time I replace the cabover bed and front wall. Also the previous owner welded angle iron and hooks for the aluminum steps onto the frame so that would have to be chopped off as well to ever go back to stock so Im just going to chop away the frame and make my bumper and like it hahaha. I did have the same though to simply fill the gap with plate to make a nice step out of the camper but I still want to tuck it up against the truck more. Even taking 3 inches out of the frame Ill still be left with a 5 to 6 inch step on top of the bumper and thats enough, especially if I get the folding stairs to work.

 

[ZooMad75]

I kinda figured as I put that up about keeping the frame uncut that you probably wouldn't go back. You will get a better departure angle for sure. I was shocked that I drug mine on the steep drops and climbs in Moab.

 

[Capt Ron]

A couple of pics on how I did mine. You can see how I modified my back rails to keep the bumper high and tucked in. Remember to leave enough room to access your fuel tank strap nuts.

 

[America.Mike]

Here we go. I started my search for a K5 Blazer with a Four Wheel Camper almost exactly five years ago when I first came across them and wound up with a Hawk in my Dodge Ram 2500. Since then I have remodeled three campers, one in a very substantial way. A year ago I nearly bought a non-running example with a camper that was in shambles, Im glad I waited. Ill spare the details since this build will be posted across multiple forums and lots of people have already seen my previous work. If you are interested Ill include links at the end of this post.

It has patina, it has a little rust, it has a crapload of character and without further adieu, we have my newly acquired (4/9/2020) 1978 Chevrolet K5 Blazer + Four Wheel Camper Blazer.

Cheyenne trim level, 4x4, 5.7 auto. Arizona truck its whole life. Picked it up last Thursday, drove it home from Tucson with no issues other than a little float in the steering. Cleaned it up and tested all the systems Friday (everything works!). Managed to kill the battery because I forgot to turn the camper lights off when I went to bed. Woke up Saturday morning, finagled my Tacoma out of the garage to jump the Blazer that was blocking it in and promptly drove straight to the Tonto National Forest for a quick "test run" with a good friend who takes great pictures and makes great videos. He's talking about moving to Austin and selfishly I want him to stay in AZ and document this build in a much better way than I ever could.

Technically it has had "two owners" but in reality it is a one owner vehicle. It came with a plethora of paperwork including the original order card for the Blazer, the original order sheets for the camper and lots of maintenance records of years past. As far as I can tell its completely original and stock, except for maybe the wheels. They at least seem to be period correct.

At the moment Im researching until my brain explodes every night. This is really helping quarantine but not my pocket book. I unloaded the second of my two motorcycles today in anticipation of this truck taking up all my free time and disposable income. My plan last year was to go crazy with a modern camper renovation, LS swap, long leafs, 40s etc. but this one is so nice and so original I dont know if I can bring myself to do that, at least not to the camper... For now the plan is to fix up the interior of the cab for creature comforts on long drives. Make the stock drivetrain as bullet proof as possible for long drives and start building some axles outside of the truck while I learn the ins and outs of the K5 platform. I camp 25+ nights a year and plan to do even more in this rig.


Thanks for reading.

Aforementioned build threads
2008 Dodge Ram 2500 + FWC Hawk build thread
https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...lar-cab-long-bed-documentation-thread.146703/

2018 Toyota Tacoma + FWC Fleet build thread
https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...fleet-shortening-documentation-thread.199234/

Oh man I have a soft spot for campers. Looks awesome man!