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Can I get some help with my 73

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emuplayer66

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Chino, California
Hello. I bought a 73 Jimmy with a 89-91 Blazer front clip awhile back..I really wish I had the $ to get it goin.

It needs a major tune up, Fix the exhuast leak, get the steering dialed in...I can barely keep it on the road! It has about an 8 inch lift with 39.5x18 Boggers.

I'm not bad at learning mechanical stuff...I just need a lil help and experience.

As soon as I get some extra cash I am takin it for the tune up and to get the leak fixed.

I just bought a stock roll bar...I would like to add to it later.

I tore out the interior and it's time to clean out some rust...It has rusted through on the floor right by the doors.."in that crevis" what should i do to get rid of this cancer???
 
The full convertible Blazers are perhaps more notorious for rotten rockers than the 1/2 cab versions because of the rocker boxes. Because there's no steel door frame and roof, to add rigidity to the structure of the truck, the manufacturer put rocker boxes under the floor in the front of the cab. Over the years, these fill up with a ridiculous amount of moisture-holding junk.

I have a '73 Blazer and to solve this problem I cut out the rocker boxes and replaced the rockers with a piece of 2x4x.120 steel tube. The way I did it raised the body clearance by about 3" or so, since I cut the bottom 5" off of the truck. If you use the proper size tube (perhaps 3x3"?) and cut in the right place, you could do something similar and not have to modify doors - similarly retaining the normal Blazer body look.

To me, it seems, your situation is begging for custom rock sliders. ;)

Stock set up, floor all cleaned up, X marks the spot that needed replacing:
IMG_2909.jpg


Driver's rocker panel cut out - you can see that there's about 3" of rot packed into the rocker box that hadn't been cut out yet in that image:
IMG_3207.jpg


New slider tacked into place, provides the rigidity the Blazer body needs, while providing some armor:
IMG_3208.jpg


Since I cut my body up high enough that unmodified doors wouldn't fit, and thereby there would be no way to seal out the elements, I built some door kicker panels. You can see that this gets rid of that little valley that you are saying is rusted out on your body:
IMG_3374.jpg


I covered the interior and bottom of the exterior with Herculiner to prevent the truck from ever having rust issues again. Here's how she sits now (kinda, I've trimmed the fenders out some more since this pic and some other minor things, like back seats, etc.):

IMG_5535.jpg


Doors off, so you can see the kicker panel:
truck3.jpg


Hope that's helpful. This can be done in such a way as to retain some of the stock look, but given that you're on 40" tires, you probably don't care too much about the "stock" look. ;)
 
michaelgilitiuk said:
cut out and weld in new rockers go to lmc.com
Click to expand...


Yeah I saw those on lmc.

Do you think I can fix/patch the rockers if I cut out the cancer? Maybe with pieces of sheet metal? I don't know how to weld yet, but I was thinking self tapping screws? The problem is that the cancer part is in that crevis next to the door...
 
emuplayer66 said:
Yeah I saw those on lmc.

Do you think I can fix/patch the rockers if I cut out the cancer? Maybe with pieces of sheet metal? I don't know how to weld yet, but I was thinking self tapping screws? The problem is that the cancer part is in that crevis next to the door...
Click to expand...
that's not a very good idea. any factory created bend in sheet metal significantly strengthens the metal because it adds a 3rd dimension to which the load can be distributed. if you were to cut that out and take a small sheet of metal and screw it into place, you'd end up with a pretty flexy floor.

how much rust are we talking about? sounds like it's rusted through to the point where there are gaping holes; but if not, consider just using a product like POR-15. Unfortunately, if you really have a major rust issue, this isn't really a problem that can be solved without welding.

Consider getting on Craigslist and picking up a cheapo welder. I've seen old ones listed around $200 - usually they're arc welders which aren't as easy to use as a MIG or TIG (in my opinion), but it would be great for you to start on a welder like that. Then practice alot. Then practice some more. Finally, practice again. Then fix the rust. :wink1:

The options having a welder can open up to you are amazing. Buying a $600 bumper from a vendor here becomes about $100 in steel plus some of your time. A roll cage becomes about $1000 in steel plus some time, versus $2000+ to have someone build one...
 
I agree on getting a welder. I thought I would only use it for the rust patching I had to do. That changed quickly! It is a Swiss army knife in the garage. You start using it for everything! custom tools, bumpers, roll cages, winch mounts, any number of household projects not even related to trucks!

Any welder will do and follow the advice...Practice, Practice, practice..then practice again. :-) you will be hooked. I am partial to a mig welder with gas. You should be able to pick up a used 110 volt one fairly inexpensivly. keep your eyes on craigs list.

Cheers,

Rufus
 
You need 15 posts. But you can also look at the body cancer sections in either the 69-72 or the 73+ forums for examples of the type of body repair necessary. A convertible top means special care when working on that area.
 
bp71k5 said:
You need 15 posts. But you can also look at the body cancer sections in either the 69-72 or the 73+ forums for examples of the type of body repair necessary. A convertible top means special care when working on that area.
Click to expand...
very true. what he means is that if you cut out the rocker, you need to support the body in such a way that the windshield frame and firewall don't cave backward... think taco shell toward the back of the truck...
 
well its been about 7 months and all i have done is strip the interior, scraped some adhesive, and stared at the stupid rust/cancer...

rereading this thread has kinda inspired me to get goin....maybe I'll buy a welder soon. I want to learn how to weld!
 
Get on it man! time to work on the junk :D. besides, reply to two of my rambling posts and then you will be able to post picks! That will allow us to give you a much better idea of how to fix that wonderful truck. Welcome to the "full Vert" club!
 
emuplayer66 said:
well its been about 7 months and all i have done is strip the interior, scraped some adhesive, and stared at the stupid rust/cancer...

rereading this thread has kinda inspired me to get goin....maybe I'll buy a welder soon. I want to learn how to weld!
Click to expand...

Welding is fun, its all about practice. But once you get it down there are endless possibilities to what you can do. Like was said, check craigslist and find a decent 110 welder, a 140 or 170 amp. That will do just about anything you want.
 
hello, my name is Rufusbooth and I am addicted to welding.

I cant agree with Vegas more! Once you get a welder for a specific project and you complete it suddenly you are welding EVERYTHING! it is almost like you start looking for excuses to weld (although you are not it just seems that way). welders are useful in so many ways.

When I got mine, I thought I would use it once or twice more after the first project...maybe. Next thing I knew I was getting 80 cubic foot bottles refilled on a regular basis and the jobber I go to for supplies knows me by first name.

CAUTION, welding is ADDICTING! :D Get one and have fun burning metal!
 
Welding smoke is addictive, with a welder, sawzall and a grinder you can do anything. And, do it your way.

With my truck i did it backwards, i did the floor first. Now I need to do the rockers still. I have some 3/16 plate and I'll make my own tube. Hopefully the finished product will come out something like colby's. Meanwhile here is the floor.

BlazerWeekendF1ve21.jpg
 
That diamond plate floor is FN sweet!

I thought of doing that...but like I said no welding skills and cant really afford to go to a fab shop...

I NEED to learn how to weld!!!!
 
step 1
Get Welder from craigs list (or other source)
step 2
Get some scrap metal
step 3
Weld!

That is all there is to it! practice, practice, practice. there is a lot of experience on this board that can help you out with any welding questions. the best way to learn though is to just do it.

just look into some kind of 110v mig welder. Gas is not required but i HIGHLY recommend it. at least get a welder that you can add gas to later.

I am sure we can all help out with any questions you might have.

Cheers,

Rufus

By the way, where are the peektures! :D

P.S. I found this on craigs list in your general area:
LINCOLN SP-135 PLUS 115 VOLT - $375 (POMONA)

not a bad deal as it has the gas kit with it. all you would need would be a bottle of gas.
 
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