What's new
CK5
Register an account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members.

Inspirational Photos..... SANDBLASTING begins on the frame!!!

Greg72

Greg72

@MIGHTASWELLK5
Staff member
Super Moderator
Joined
Mar 5, 2001
Posts
17,071
Reaction score
5,716
Location
Austin, TX
OK guys.....I promised I'd post more pics as I got them.....here's a few new ones to show you that I wasn't just sitting around "relaxing" today!!!!
cool.gif


<a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albuo35>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albuo35</a>


I've already used up 300 pounds of sand, and I'll probably need at least 600 more at the rate I'm going!!!!
laugh.gif


ENJOY!



-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
Oh, and just to clarify......I actually DID remove a few factory rivets....

You'll notice that the rear leaf spring hangers are missing (Doing ANOTHER ORD shackle flip!)...I'm sure getting good at those!!!
laugh.gif


And I also removed the upper rear shock mount brackets from the frame. I am going to a "long travel shock" solution, and they were going to be in the way of some "other" plans I've got!! (SSshhhhhhh......)
cool.gif


Now you know....the REST of the story.



-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
Oh...what a dream to have my own garage that wasnt crammed with a '72 BMW and thats not half the size of your garage that you can actually walk past the car that is half the size of our blazers. My truck wont even fit in my garage!!!! its to wide and to tall!!! so my brother and i to try to coerce our dad into adding the 3 car garage on the side of our house that he has been considering by leaving our projects sitting in the driveway for days, sometimes even weeks, on end so that all he hears is "Bill, it looks like a salvage yard around here" and "why in the world do we have 8 cars and only 4 people in this family and half the cars arent even driven once a week." and "im sick of having to dodge puddles of oil when i get home from work on my way from my truck to the door" Maybe hell get sick and tired of hearing from our extremely understanding mother nagging and give in. Oh well....thats just me dreaming
smile.gif


Evan

1970 Blazer, <font color=orange>ORANGE</font color=orange>, 3-speed manual, 33's <a target="_blank" href=http://community.webshots.com/user/aksidentproan>Love Shack Pictures</a>
 
Very cool Greg!
smile.gif

Inspirational too... I've always dreamed about doing this... what you are doing starting from scratch... every nut and bolt baby!... but i'll probally have my blazer done by the time i'm your age.
laugh.gif

I like <a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albuo35/aam>This Photo</a> what you called "foreshadowing" with the frame all sandblasted and your blazer in the background.
That picture will be killer to have and look back on once you get it *ahem* "completed".
shocked.gif
cool.gif

Just like all the show cars at Hot august nights or wherever... they have a photo album of the frame up build.

Hey just curious...
So with that new frame you want to do all new suspension to that frame you mentioned new shackle flip... What suspension? And then you want to put the 14Bolt FF and 8 lug D44 under that frame, maybe find a TH-400/NP205... and are you going to swap the 427 eninge out of your existing blazer or build up another engine?
...And then finally swapping the tub... you gonna get it painted before or after you drop it on the new frame? What color did you have in mind?

THEN... what are you going to do with the old frame??? Start from scratch on that baby and find a rust free tub, and do it all again? build a 2nd blazer? you'll already have 1/2 or 3/4 of that 2nd blazer.
... or not.
Hey, I'll buy your old frame when the time comes! I got dibs.
cool.gif

How's that for 20 questions?
smile.gif


Take it easy,
Ryan

[Real Men Don't Care About Gas Mileage Or Rapid Tire Wear!]<a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albuo19>
MY 1972 K/5</a>
RyanB.
 
Ryan,

Yeah I was kinda hoping that the finances would eventually allow me to just keep building the "new" frame one piece at a time.....14 Bolt, 8-Lug D44, maybe a TH400 or 4L80E....NP205....NP203 with the Wagoneer 3.6 Gearset....CV driveshafts.....maybe a whole new motor too.....but that's REALLY pushing it!!!
smile.gif


Once I have the "new" frame ready, I figure I'll have also been doing some touchup work on the body...filling in all the extra holes, adding re-enforcements, etc. I would really like to Line-X the underside of the body once I have it all taken off. That will give me some additional time to choose a "real" color for the rest of it.

So, YES I will end up with a pretty complete "extra" rolling chassis, once the conversion is finished. And if you want "dibs"....I will put you first in line. All you'll need to do is take the parts off......every last nut &amp; bolt........and then...........
laugh.gif
cool.gif




-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
Ryan,

Oh by the way, I called Dynatrac just for fun last week to see what an end-to-end High Pinion D60 would cost..........are you sitting down?
.
.
.
.
.
$5400!!!!
.
.
.
.
.OUCH!
shocked.gif
I knew it was going to cost me some money.....but now I really KNOW I better stick to the 8-Lug D44 idea for my buildup!!!!



-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
Beautiful work Greg!

Oh, and nice pool.
cool.gif


<font color=blue>Outside of a dog, a man's best friend is a book. Inside of a dog, it is very dark.</font color=blue>
wink.gif
 
Hey greg,
Looks good man, but 10,000 questions just like everyone else, is there not a crossmember in front of the fuel tank? I know the trucks have one but haven't paid attention to the blazer. Also is there a number stamped in the top of the drivers side frame rail?

Nice work

Like em big and topless
You call THAT...a 4x4....LMAO?
 
Pam,

Thanks!.....you know, I haven't always had a K5 to put my efforts into. I used to spend a LOT of time working on the backyard. I built ALL that fencing around the perimeter of my property (420 feet) by myself one summer.....and then re-designed the pool and patio layout, and built that curved shade trellis area also!

I guess you could say I'm what happens when a "hyperactive kid" grows up....I'm always working on SOMETHING!
laugh.gif




-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
Les,

There are a couple of crossmembers not shown in the pics....they are "bolt-in" ones.......the engine cradle, and the one under the transfer case.

If you look at the photos, you can see that there is a crossmember at the VERY back of the frame, and there's one between the rear leaf spring brackets (the front set, not where the shackle goes)

That leaves a pretty good stretch of frame with no crossmember in it....but it seems correct, I don't recall seeing anything on my '72 in that area either!!!

As for "stampings"....there are a bunch of places where stuff is... but I think the most important ones are on the driver's side framrail on the TOP surface of the frame.

The first is just behind the steering box area, and the second (with the same alpha-numeric sequence) is before the body mount that's near the rear spring hanger.....those are both on the TOP surface.

On the flat VERTICAL surface of the frame there is a "different" number sequence that's on both the driver and passenger side "middle" frame area. (I've shown those in the pics already)....and there is a small marking near the "nose" of the framerail on the driver's side in front of the steering box. It doesn't look like any kind of serial number though....



-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
ttt

Added some pics of my progress today (Saturday).....it's starting to look REALLY good!!!
cool.gif




-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
You're crazy Greg. I think you are going over board now!
smile.gif


You've made a lot of progress in just a few days.
So next question...
When's it gonna go to be powdercoated now!?

I've been meaning to ask my teacher at nightschool where he got a couple of his street rod frames powdercoated locally here in san jose area... but i've kept on forgetting to ask him.



[Real Men Don't Care About Gas Mileage Or Rapid Tire Wear!]<a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albuo19>
MY 1972 K/5</a>
RyanB.
 
Ryan,

I don't think I am going to be rushing to get the powdercoating done right away....

The main thing is to get the frame "clean" so it's not such an eyesore in the garage, and then I can start fabbing-up stuff that I will need for the 1-Ton conversion. I was thinking of doing some re-inforcment welds on the existing crossmembers once I have some welding skills....

I'd hate to get the powdercoating done too soon, and then have to start drilling holes in it, or grinding parts of it off to weld-in new parts!!!
shocked.gif




-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
If you are not going to get the powdercoating done right away, a few words of advice...

Do not touch the cleaned area with ungloved hands. The oils in your skin will encourage surface rust in a matter of days.

Dave
 
Dave,

A small Craftsman 110V compressor (maybe 20 gallon?) and am $80 Harbor Freight 40Lb pressure fed sandblasting tank.

Believe it or not, the 40Lb tank is plenty.....the problem is keeping the air coming as fast as the blaster needs it!!! I swear that compressor ran almost non-stop for about 6 hours each day!
crazy.gif




-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
I was at Harbor Freight yesterday. Do the 40 gallon tanks come with the spray gun/nozzle?

Dave
 
Dave,

They come complete....the thing that sucks about Harbor Freight is that there are about 3 prices for everything. If you don't have the "right" part number for it they charge like $129.99. I had to buy it at that price and then go back with my catalog to show them it was only $79.99......and then they gave me a credit.

SO......go through your catalogs (they send one to my house every 3 days!) and be sure to find it listed at $79.99.....then BRING the catalog with you to the store. They will honor the price, but if you don't know it's supposed to be that cheap, they won't tell you.......




-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
Sweet, there ARE other idiots out there... My frame is painted and on stands (I used Eastwood's frame restoration epoxy paint - seems pretty tough when I was bolting the cross-members back on).

I keep telling myself that all this work on the undercarriage (just back to original, not making it better like you) is not wasted effort when after a year of road grime, it will all be covered up... I guess it's just a disease, but I'm greatful to see I have a comrade to keep me motivated. I just need to do you a service by posting my shots. I got 'em but just don't have the energy after toiling in the garage til the wee hours to do anything about them.

Thanks for the encouraging pics (nice garage).

72 Blazer; Disassembled for restoration; 383/350
 
IDIOTS!!????!?!?!
blush.gif


I don't know if THAT'S the word I'd have chosen to describe myself....Engineers tend to be a bit more fanatical about "the details" than some other folks....I'm sure you can relate to that.

Also, I am a Virgo which tends to make me even MORE anal-retentive than normal. Not too many people have drywalled and painted workshops.....I think it looks better than most areas in my house!
laugh.gif


Anyway, I am just one of those people who can't relax knowing that something wasn't done "right"....even if it's something that nobody else will ever SEE. Once I get it "perfect" in my mind, then I can relax and move on to the next project.



-Greg72

'72 K5 Blazer - 427BB/TH350/NP205/6" Lift/35x12.50's
<font color=blue>See it here: </font color=blue><a target="_blank" href=http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38>http://coloradok5.com/gallery/albun38</a>
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Latest Posts

Top Bottom