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building two fiberglass k5 blazers at once street and mud

T

tomuchstuff

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Ok so after a couple of weeks looking at the 1977 fully fiberglass k5 I picked up and reading all there is on the web that can be done to the k5 trucks I have made a choice as to how to move forward on the project...

To start off and give you an Idea of my thinking I'll start in the beginning. I picked up a 1977 blazer with a fiberglass US Body with doors and tail gate and clip, the full kit, over 14,000 in just fiberglass alone. The truck has been lifted and sits on 36.5" rubber with 10" of space between the fender and the tire. Both front and rear drive shafts have been extended and the frame mounts that bolt the body to the frame were extended to the rockers to mount the cab and bed roll cage...

NOW like lots of guys I'd like a street driven monster truck that will take on all most any thing I throw at it, but can still cruse at 75mph down the express way..

Thing is it ant going to happen..

SO I bought a 1979 blazer k5 cheyenne package with 84,000mi and a mint intereor. The truck is covered in rust but thats her only truble..

This brings me to my new plan and the start or a couple new project treads..

I will build two trucks for under $5000 :woot:... One will be a frame off restoration of a 1979 k5 cheyenne package using the fiberglass body off the 1977. The second will be a true off road toy using the gutted body skin meaning no steel floor hung over a roll cage. I plan to keep the tilt clip on the mud truck, and stock clip on the frame off....

first link is my past work the toys I built..
others are of the 77 glass k5

https://picasaweb.google.com/35bertram

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/Hesqr9uPsAbO5eTz7ny-iQ?feat=directlink

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/2vB-qoSgnxh7r80wwlPvnA?feat=directlink
 
sounds like a good idea
you can take the rusty stuff, cut the fenders up, and bring them in on the ends (boatsides??) for the caged truck
 
Personally, I would keep the whole fiberglass body together. It's nice to save a few pounds on the front end of a bogger, sure, but if you're going to smash one up, it should be the old steel one.
 
that's what he means I think
use the fiberglass one of the stock, street truck, and the pieces of the steel body for the caged truck.
 
K85 Octane said:
sounds like a good idea
you can take the rusty stuff, cut the fenders up, and bring them in on the ends (boatsides??) for the caged truck
Click to expand...

thats what I am thinking... the rear 1/4 can get trimmed and can just pull the clip off if I need the travel up front...
 
Blue85 said:
Personally, I would keep the whole fiberglass body together. It's nice to save a few pounds on the front end of a bogger, sure, but if you're going to smash one up, it should be the old steel one.
Click to expand...


Ya but I am not in love with the new style grill in the clip, some one had it special made to fit the newer 90's style grille and the hood is molded in its 90's shape, there is no going back .. I was thinking the Cadillac Escalade grill kit they make may be kinda funny.... I was thinking of pulling the clip off if I want to get crazy....

I'd like to replace the steel clip at some point with glass fenders and hood that are correct for the truck... or maybe the us body tilt clip thats the correct style. I have to check the 79 truck and see where exactly where she is rusty...
 
Last edited:
Cornfield creations said:
If you feel like letting go of that gauge bezel in the 79 let me know. Or even the stainless dash trim. I'd be interested!
Click to expand...


I bought the second k5 for the intereor and trim, I know I'll still need to replace some trim and intereor parts. Is there a replacement sorce for trim and plastic other then the local junk yard?
 
ryoken said:
doubtful.... :whistle:
Click to expand...

very nice truck I think I have seen the tread b4. what size are you tires and lift?

in south florida we have mud thats all a crawler has no real point other then climing the sides of the express way over passes. I can throw a lot of cash in to a swam buggy but do not want a 20,000 stick in the mud. funner to beat on a scrap wagon...
 
tomuchstuff said:
very nice truck I think I have seen the tread b4. what size are you tires and lift?

very nice truck I think I have seen the tread b4. what size are your tires and lift?

In south florida we have mud thats all a crawler has no real point other then climing the sides of the express way over passes. I can throw a lot of cash in to a swam buggy but do not want a 20,000 stick in the mud. More fun to beat on a scrap wagon then a traler queen trust me I have 4 and one if a 20,000 boat...

I thought of building a tube chassis like I did for my 1969 dart or 70 cuda, setting up a doubler or buying an atlis, swaping dana 60's or rockwells and building them, looked at the th350 th400 700r4 nv4500 and t56 ratios looked in to kits bell housings and ran lots of math...

you can build it for rock crawling...
built dana 60
atlis or np203/np205 doubler
700r4 or nv4500
4 linked and coiled
cut fenders with 6 lift or so
40" or more of rubber

you can build it for mud....
rockwells
np205
th400
big leaf, big lift to keep you above the mud
44" rubber or tractor tires

or you can build it to drive.....
and keep it close to factory and drive to disney world or pull a boat or pull the boat to disney world.

The frame on the 1977 truck has no rust or cracking,, the body mounts have been extende off the frame and are full boxed in better roll cage mounting then some trucks in 4wd mags.. a little extra steel in key places and the frame is fine she has good travel for mud can get to 40 with very little trimming... unlike dana 60's, 12 bolt and dana 44 parts can be found in the junk yard so replacment axles if needed are cheep, np203 is also ezer pickings at u pull it junk yards..

The glass body will make a nice truck to drive with a smaller cage, a/c and may be 31" or 32" with little to no lift....
Click to expand...
 
2+1=3 one more truck to make this happen the correct way

well bought a 3rd k5 just a tub and clip but the parts I need to keep the mud truck the way she is and build a full glass street truck with proper tilt clip...

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/7Xz_25Z3MOaVjzIJbTDWmg?feat=directlink

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/xcprpeJbWJimpVugWyO3lQ?feat=directlink

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/3nWbpgr1whUrm9-PJDv6pw?feat=directlink

she will be in my shop next week.. have to look her over to see what parts will go into the street truck.. hope fully there is a dana 44 under her..
 
D44 and 10 bolt are a wash as far as strength goes.
 
AJMBLAZER said:
D44 and 10 bolt are a wash as far as strength goes.
Click to expand...


ya but I want a dana 44 for the street truck... rather have it then a 10 bolt...

the off road truck will end up with rockwell or dana 60 at some point but wont touch it till I have all the drive train parts including a 205 and maybe manual tranny to make the swap... I use what I have for now just to save mony on having my drive shafts changed more then once... 37.5 is a little small for a full time off road truck the chassis and lift kit
 
got one more glass blazer yesterday

The two lifted k5's are very close to each other,, The first one I bought is better by far, The white one with the full fiberglass body kit and the custom front clip and tale gate that US Body Source dose not even sell... The white trucks tub floor has better stringers fitted to the frame with no trimming, heavy lay up, the frame is cleaner and the welded work on it is correct and thought out, the roll cage was heavy wall tubing " now removed" the lift is better & bigger & taller, the truck is a larger 350ci and just a better off road truck all around...

now I am kinda going back and forth on if I want two 4wd blazers, I may just use the 1979 interior on the white big blazer. I hate to brake down a lifted 4x4 to go stock..

That leaves me some fun options for the second body....

one choice
I have a full chassis cuda on the side of my house rigged and rolling with narrowed dana 60 and strange struts I can change the roll cage for about 600 in parts and run the glass blazer... but a blazer over a cuda
shaking.gif


https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

Or I can slam and bag her and chop the top, just go in the other direction...
tongue.gif


Or what I like the most, make a short bed pickup / two door suburban.. By cutting the bed from the cab, make a custom removable rear pick up cab piece with rear window.. Then pull an 11" mold off the bed from the cut made at the cab to the wheel well. The part pulled frome the mold will be to extend the bed. I'd also have to make a removable part for the bed where it meets the cab, and extend the top in the center thro the window and have new glass window made to keep it looking right. Move the rear springs back 11 inches so the wheel base is 117.5, extend the drive shaft, brake lines and bumper and bed suports.

there both on 35" ground hawg's and us body sorce parts

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink

https://picasaweb.google.com/lh/phot...eat=directlink
 
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