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"Bolt-on" Single cab conversion

DK5

DK5

1/2 ton status
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Hey guys I was just thinking, I could really use a truck sometimes. then it came to me.. what about a bolt-on single cab conversion? so we can use our blazers as trucks temporarily if we need to and not have to worry about the weather or theft in the cab (plus the cool look of a truck)

anyone heard of/tried this? there is a guy not far from here that tried to make something out of plywood to cover behind the cab.. functional, but not pretty. I was thinking of ways to make one maybe out of fiberglass or steel that could be bolted onto the stock halfcab locations and still look good, maybe even with a rear-sliding window. only issues would be properly weatherproofing it. either way there would be lots of fabbing to do. bedliner would be cool with it too.

anyway just an idea that i'm going to ponder for a while.. what do you guys think? is it do-able?
 
DK5 said:
Hey guys I was just thinking, I could really use a truck sometimes. then it came to me.. what about a bolt-on single cab conversion? so we can use our blazers as trucks temporarily if we need to and not have to worry about the weather or theft in the cab (plus the cool look of a truck)

anyone heard of/tried this? there is a guy not far from here that tried to make something out of plywood to cover behind the cab.. functional, but not pretty. I was thinking of ways to make one maybe out of fiberglass or steel that could be bolted onto the stock halfcab locations and still look good, maybe even with a rear-sliding window. only issues would be properly weatherproofing it. either way there would be lots of fabbing to do. bedliner would be cool with it too.

anyway just an idea that i'm going to ponder for a while.. what do you guys think? is it do-able?
Click to expand...

This used to be available. A half cab kit. I'm looking for one too...

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=216409


attachment.php
 
I'll add...

The top section was fiberglass, and accepted a standard pickup rear window. The lower piece is a steel bulkhead that bolted in, and allowed a weatherproof seal and also served to block off the cab from the bed.

I would absolutely *love* to get one of these. It'd make a Blazer SOOOOOOO much more versatile. You'd have the option of a full K5, a pickup, or topless... or a hybrid. Run the half cab kit, and pop out the rear window (much easier to manage than a full top) and it'd be like running topless, but the bulkhead would still be intact. If a rain storm popped up, just put the fiberglass section back in.

One last thing...the heat and A/C would work *much* better if it were only having to heat or cool 1/3 of the space. :cool:
 
DK5 said:
thanks man that helps alot, i didn't know there were kits for this. i did a quick search and couldn't find anything.
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There was a company making them called Creative Products. They went out of business and their website is no longer up. Before the site went down, I emailed them. I got a response that said they would still make the fiberglass piece, that I'd have to supply my own window and weatherstripping (no biggie) and that they would provide the drawings for the steel bulkhead to either fab myself or have a metal shop fab for me.

Unfortunately, they're gone. :crazy:

Someone on another forum told me of a complete truck somewhere in North GA, but it wasn't for sale IIRC. I want that kit. I mainly want it to be able to replicate it. I'd use it as the basis for a custom application...
 
what is the name of the kit? i'd like to find some more pics of it, i've never seen this setup before.. it just came to me today. its a wonder this isn't a more common setup, you're right it would very versatile. the more i think of it the better I like it.

do you think it would be possible to fab one from a regular cab truck to fit? or are the dimensions to far off. I know the cab on the blazer chopped a little shorter.
 
DK5 said:
what is the name of the kit? i'd like to find some more pics of it, i've never seen this setup before.. it just came to me today. its a wonder this isn't a more common setup, you're right it would very versatile. the more i think of it the better I like it.
Click to expand...

IIRC, it was just called a "half cab kit". I've also seen it referred to as a "half top". If you find anything new, do post it here. There is or was a member here that had one installed on his truck, but his name escapes me. It was on a red truck, and the fiberglass part was just primer-gray.

If I installed on, I'd probably leave the steel bulkhead in full-time. I sold my back seat and have no plans to ever run one again. The bulkhead would keep cargo from shifting forward and hitting the front seats. Plus, it'd be one less thing to remove and reinstall later when I switch back and forth between the full top and half top.

DK5 said:
do you think it would be possible to fab one from a regular cab truck to fit? or are the dimensions to far off. I know the cab on the blazer chopped a little shorter.
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It's certainly possible. I thought of chopping the back off a cab, drilling holes, then reinforcing around the holes...maybe welding in some tube to support the holes. Grind it all level, then weld in some sheet metal to form the "mating surface" where it meets the back of the cab... more fab to create the sealing surface at the bottom for the bulkhead.

I'd have to think hard about how to create a bolt-in bulkhead. That's why I need more pics.
 
this was the halftop my k5 had when I bought it. Made by glasstite or something like that I think. They are pretty rare and pretty valuable, especially to the street truck crowd. I sold mine for $600
DSC03383.jpg
 
MNorby said:
this was the halftop my k5 had when I bought it. Made by glasstite or something like that I think. They are pretty rare and pretty valuable, especially to the street truck crowd. I sold mine for $600
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Thanks for that... Yeah, I remember the Glasstite brand as well. Forgot about that one.

Edit: Since Glasstite is still in business, I wonder if they could or would still make the Blazer parts, even though they're not listed on the website...???
 
someone needs to get ahold of one of these and then become a member and start mass producing them, or at least be able to make them on demand
 
heres another one, this one is the glasstite version i think. owners name i cant remember but the truck was wrecked or something.

blazertop1.jpg
 
obijuan said:
heres another one, this one is the glasstite version i think. owners name i cant remember but the truck was wrecked or something.
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I've seen that truck on here before. Love it...

I had managed to push my half-cab dreams to the back of my mind temporarily...until this thread came along. :doah: :crazy:
 
muddybuddy said:
someone needs to get ahold of one of these and then become a member and start mass producing them, or at least be able to make them on demand
Click to expand...

I actually half-heartedly asked Ryoken if he'd be interested in making them, since he's so good with fiberglass. He said his plate was fully, and I understand. There's a whole lot more people still waiting on his dash (myself included) and this would take away from that.

Really, if someone had one of these, I'd probably pay them to take it apart, photograph it really well, and take some key measurements.
 
jonrpick said:
I actually half-heartedly asked Ryoken if he'd be interested in making them, since he's so good with fiberglass. He said his plate was fully, and I understand. There's a whole lot more people still waiting on his dash (myself included) and this would take away from that.

Really, if someone had one of these, I'd probably pay them to take it apart, photograph it really well, and take some key measurements.
Click to expand...

yea if someone had really good measurements it would probably be pretty easy to replicate.
 
DK5 said:
anyone try emailing glasstite? maybe they still have measurements... i might try if no one else has already
Click to expand...

I may later this evening... it's worth a shot.

muddybuddy said:
yea if someone had really good measurements it would probably be pretty easy to replicate.
Click to expand...

Anyone that's good at laying down fiberglass should be able to handle it. It's not a complicated piece as far as I can tell.
 
if i can find another hardtop near by im gona cut it and see what i can come up with, because it will have all the mounting holes in the correct place and then ill put the back of the top on it and use the blazer glass, and then figure something out to do for the bottom. it might be a little longer than that, but i should be able to do it for the cost of the hardtop.
 
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