complete rebuild

[shanemcg45]

I'm new to the site. Just found it today. I bought a 1985 4x4 K5 about 3 months ago and love it. There's never been a modification to the truck or aftermarket accessory on it. The body is straight and has vey little surface rust. I've been ordering catalogs, buying magazines and learning everything I can about K5's over the past few months. I'm curious as to what some owners and Blazer fans have to say about any recommendations from suspension to engine swaps. Any input would be greatly appreciated. It's going to be mostly an in town vehicle but will get off road from time to time. Thanks again for anything y'all can tell me.

 

[jekquistk5]

If you can dream it... it probably can be done. If your going to be a town to town guy, Id suggest leaving the motor fairly stock, and keep lift to a min. 33-35" tires are probably what you want as long as you do not wheel a ton. Other then that just look for posts, alot of guys will give updates on exactly what they are doing.

Oh and welcome to ck5

 

[dirtwarrior17]

If your motor is in good condition I'd say just get some bolt ons like manifold, headers, exhaust and maybe a carb. The stock motor will work just fine for what you want to do with it... but might need a little more hp for freeway hills otherwise you'll be doggin it in 3rd at 3500 and it'll eat your gas mileage. If the mods don't give it enough grunt you can always put a good cam in.

I have a 6" superlift with 35's on my 88 with dual steering stabilizers and dual ranchos on all four. its real stiff especially with straight axles but wit the bigger tires you can air em down and it'll ride like a caddy.

 

[shanemcg45]

Thanks. I just had some 33x12.50x15's put on a set of 15x10 Unique lockers (fake lockers). I'm not planning on anything over a 4" suspension lift. I'll search the posts to see what everyone thinks is the best brand of lift. The original 305 is kinda tired and sluggish. I'm considering buying a 350 crate motor. The whole steering/suspension system needs some work. It's way rough even on the road. And that's after new shocks. But once again, I appreciate the input and thanks for welcoming me.

 

[dirtwarrior17]

your welcome .... (pun intended)

I figured she had a 350...

a crate motor will solve your problems in a weekend. good luck

 

[Jonny-K5]

welcome to ck5! i wouldnt waist any money on that 305, get a crate 350 or 383 even, theres no smog in TX right>? your engine have TBI or carb? forget what 85's had.

as for lift, i like Tough Country EZ rides. OffRoadDesign sells them cheap. if you dont want to trim your fenders at all, go with 4". if you dont disconnect your swaybar you probly can run 3" without trimming. i put 3" on my truck w/ 33's, but a had to do trim the rear portion of the front fenders a tad. it made contact when offroad w/o swaybar connected.

as for the rear,i think the best setup is stock leaves and a shackle flip kit. ORD sells these as well, in either 2.5" or 4". to install them you have to drop your gas tank and remove the factory rivets that hold to stock spring hangers on. well worth the effort tho.

check out these guys:

www.OffRoadDesign.com

tons of cool parts for K5's. alot of guys here get parts from them, myself included.

 

[Z3PR]

I highly recomend ORD . They can put together a complete "kit" with everything you'll need. If you're only going 4", get the Tuff Country EZ ride 4" springs up front, and the ORD Shackle Flip for the rear. Quality ride. Give them a email or a call.

 

[rjfguitar]

but might need a little more hp for freeway hills otherwise you'll be doggin it in 3rd at 3500 and it'll eat your gas mileage.

Like I've told you before....it doesn't matter what engine you have, even a bombed cummins that could drag a house up a hill in OD, you have to shift out of OD going over hills for the transmission.

its real stiff especially with straight axles but wit the bigger tires you can air em down and it'll ride like a caddy.

You can't air down tires on the street. Maybe a couple pounds under the recommended PSI on the tire sidewall but not enough to make hardly any difference in the ride. Too low air pressure and you will burn up the tires, or even worse, pop a bead up front and roll the truck.

 

[jekbrown]

the best advice I can give you is to keep up the research before you buy anything. Figure out what you want and then find the least expensive / best way to do it. I got into modifying my K5 before I ever found CK5... I used some pretty lame parts that cost a lot more than better ones would have cost... mainly cause I didn't know any better. The best thing about sites like CK5 isn't that they show newbies how to mod their rigs... its that they show them how to mod their rigs as economically as possible. Anyway, there is already a wealth of info on the site. Browse the tech pages and do searches for stuff you're interested in. Tons of info to be had on almost any type of modification you might wanna do. Once ya got it all figure out, post up what your plan is and bounce it off the group.

j

 

[jekbrown]

welcome to ck5! i wouldnt waist any money on that 305, get a crate 350 or 383 even, theres no smog in TX right>? your engine have TBI or carb? forget what 85's had.

My 305'd 85 jimmy has a Q-jet from the factory. TBI didn't come along until '87 if I remember right...

j

 

[Hossbaby50]

YOu need to decide what direction you want to go with the truck and then take input on what will get you there. If you want to tow alot then I would avoid using a shackle flip in the rear suspension. Use lift springs. They won't ride as well but they will be more stable when towing.

What size tire do you want? What type of tire do you want. What gear ratio do you have? What is your current combo of drivetrain parts? How much weight do you tow? etc etc...

Harley

 

[zx672]

Research before you buy.....

Welcome to CK5!

I am a pretty quit member...meaning, you can do a search and find the answer to just about any question you might think of on this forum. I purchased a 84K5 about a year ago, so I was in your shoes (it is my daily driver).

One peice of advice I will give you is that if you want to go have fun and go off-road do not spend a ton of money on a paint job. I have a pretty solid K5 minus my 305, but I never take it hard core wheeling because I invested a good amount of money in the paint.

Once you decide what you want to do, search the forums and find out what modifications fit your needs and budget.

 

[Jonny-K5]

YOu need to decide what direction you want to go with the truck and then take input on what will get you there. If you want to tow alot then I would avoid using a shackle flip in the rear suspension. Use lift springs. They won't ride as well but they will be more stable when towing.

What size tire do you want? What type of tire do you want. What gear ratio do you have? What is your current combo of drivetrain parts? How much weight do you tow? etc etc...

Harley

good post. when i did my flip, i didnt noctice any difference when towing. but i went with the 2.5" instead of the 4". results may vary of course.

My 305'd 85 jimmy has a Q-jet from the factory. TBI didn't come along until '87 if I remember right...

j

ya your right, i got off my lazy butt and checked the spec. sheet on here. 87 was first year. so that means it'll be that much easier to swap a 383 into your truck, no computer to calibrate or pesky tbi to choke off power.

 

[dirtwarrior17]

word. I wish i could go carb but im in cali and own an 88 and evidently you can't swap a carb motor into a vehicle that was originally efi because smog or some crap... Tbi is hp worst enemy.

 

[mini_mull]

I am in your shoes too. I just bought a '87 burb last week. You're lucky you found this forum. I've researched old posts and found almost everything I've ever wanted to know about every mod I could think of plus those I never even dreamed of doing. Make sure you check old threads before asking questions as most have been answered before. If you can't find it though feel free to ask as there are many guys who frequent the board with a wealth of knowledge and experience and they'll tell you exactly what they think. My last '87 Chevy PU was barely mod past stock with lift and tires (had to sell it after that) and I would already have done it differently with what I know now as compared to what I knew then.

(BTW, IMHO, TBI has it's benefits, such as not risking stalling out at wierd angles like a carb can, and improving gas milage. Plus I've been told the Holley TBI can power a motor putting out at least 350hp before starving it by Holley reps. Not saying I know it all (hardly anything in fact), or anyone's wrong, just that it's not all bad. This doesn't apply to the original thread though, so I'll stop typing now.)

 

[dirtwarrior17]

(BTW, IMHO, TBI has it's benefits, such as not risking stalling out at wierd angles like a carb can, and improving gas milage. Plus I've been told the Holley TBI can power a motor putting out at least 350hp before starving it by Holley reps.

for sure but that is as high as the hp is gonna get with tbi for a reasonable price. you can run a 4bbl setup for 1000 but you mide as well go mpi at that point. 350 hp is good enough for me.

what happened to your avatar? hunting accident? lol

 

[84_Chevy_K10]

Tbi is hp worst enemy.

That is totally false. Your worst enemy is that old technology your mill is built on and nothing else. With modern equipment, a 283 could outperform a stock 350 from 1988.

 

[shanemcg45]

I appreciate everyone's input. I was surprised at how many of y'all replied and had good information. I was just hoping one or 2 guys would tell me something. I'm sure y'all were all in my shoes at one time or another. I can't believe how much info is on this site. Up to this point I've gathered a sh*t-load of information but still had no starting point or know which direction to go or what brands of items to look into. I've been shopping different crate motors and found that for the most part, they all have a disclaimer that says "for off-road use only". The truck will be a daily driver, so would I be able to get the truck inspected here in Texas with one of these engines?

 

[bigyellowjimmy]

I appreciate everyone's input. I was surprised at how many of y'all replied and had good information. I was just hoping one or 2 guys would tell me something.

Ha ha, nope everyone throws their .02 in, then usually we begin arguing over something totally unrelated to the original subject. Take your post for example, its right on the verge of becoming a TBI vs Carb post hijack

 

[91GMCSuburban]

My first mod was gearing and a rear locker. I went from 3.42 to 4.10 gearing which allowed for bigger tires without loosing the "feel" of power. Now I do regret spending money on my 10 bolt rear end (wish I had spent the money on a 14bff).

My advice, start with researching this site and determine everything you want to do to your K5. Then plan it out (and document everything). When you are done, you will be an expert on YOUR truck.

GL