K5 help for a friend (kinda long)

[RampageFSJ]

I have a friend who is wanting to trade his 88 F 250 for an 85 Chevy blazer. The blazer has a newly rebuilt 350 dropped in, and I`m guessing a 700R4 tranny with an NP 208 T case (please correct me if I`m wrong). It has some rust and a couple of minor holes. It also has open 10 bolts front and rear with 3:42 gears. My auto teacher is the current owner and he`s going to weld in a new floor, replace the bent front axle, and fix the rear window. My friend wants to get it and use it as a DD. My teacher estimates that it gets around 12-14 MPG, which would beat the crap out of the F 250`s mileage. Does that sound right to you guys? And does it sound like a good deal?
It`s currently stock and my friend wants to modify it down the road. We were thinking along the lines of a FF 8 lug D60 rear from a military dodge pickup that from what I`ve researched, has 4:10s. For the front, we`d use a D44. The only one around here has 6 lug hubs, but there are two 8 lug 10 bolts here and I was wondering if it was possible to swap 10 bolt hubs onto a D44. Then, for a lift we were thinking of doing a 52" spring swap in the front and a home made shackle flip in the rear. Then run 35" tires that I have laying around until he can get a set of H2 tires and wheels. And finally, give it a higher clearance skid plate and probably a lunchbox locker in the rear. I was thinking that that would be the best plan for his intentions and budget. What do you guys think?

 

[dremu]

Well, I'd be scurred of a truck with a bent front axle -- accident, or creative abuse? Either way, springs or frame could be tweaked, etc.

That said, yeah, 12-14MPG is about right for an OD-equipped truck with 3.42:1 gears. Note that putting big tires on it, regardless of gearing, WILL hurt mileage.

10-bolts and D44's share the same outers, so yes, you can switch hubs, rotors, etc to convert to 8-lug. Might be cheaper or simpler to switch the whole axle if the donor axle has gearing to match the rear end. D44 and 10-bolt are similar strength, no reason to use one or the other except for what you have available in terms of gears, lockers, etc.

-- A

 

[Leper]

Find a military truck that has 14FF and a 60 in the front. Crossover steering, 4" front springs with a zerorate to move it forward 1.5" Shackle flip(4") in the rear with a 2" lift 56" Burban spring.

 

[RampageFSJ]

There aren't many CUCV's around here, especially one that can be traded like that. It's going to be his first 4x4, so I think it will be a good base vehicle to learn with. I never thought about the frame being tweaked, I'll check with my teacher for it's past and give it an extensive going over tomorrow. Also, I was thinking about a D44 because it is easier to do crossover steering with it.

 

[zeroz400]

If its his first 4x4 then i would just do a basic lift. Front springs and a shackle flip in the back. 52" will make it a project, not a DD. Remember....KISS!

 

[RampageFSJ]

I was just considering that because of his budget and the fact that we have some 52's in a 2wd junk blazer here.

 

[dremu]

There aren't many CUCV's around here, especially one that can be traded like that. It's going to be his first 4x4, so I think it will be a good base vehicle to learn with. I never thought about the frame being tweaked, I'll check with my teacher for it's past and give it an extensive going over tomorrow. Also, I was thinking about a D44 because it is easier to do crossover steering with it.

D44 is the same as 10-bolt to do crossover; you need early D44 flat-top knuckles, which not all D44's have, regardless. Otherwise they're the same.

Not trying to be argumentative, just letting you know to keep your options open. I have flat-top knuckles off a 6-lug truck on an 8-lug 10-bolt and it worked out well.

-- A

 

[RampageFSJ]

Don`t military dodges have NP 208 transfer cases? If so, and it has a fixed yoke rear output, would I be able to swap the outputs out for the fixed yoke one?

 

[RampageFSJ]

I've been reading up and found that it's possible to put 35's on a blazer with no lift and some do able trimming. I also have a set of 3/4 ton (10 bolt and 14 bolt) axles with 3.73 gears. I was thinking that I could swap those in for him and let him use my 35" mud terrains till he can get his own 35's. He said that he may want to lift it a little so it may get something like a 2" AAL kit. I was wondering if it would be smart to do something like this to the truck. I know that the key of using big tires with no lift is keeping the tires under the truck and not sticking out. So I was wondering if the tires would fit under the truck with the 69.5" front end, 67" rear, and the wheels have (I think) 4.5-4.75" of backspacing. The tires are 35x12.5.

 

[broncoman6524]

I put AAL on my truck. It rides better and it did lift it about 1-1.5 inches. They were REAL easy to install too. One suggestion...DONT go mudding the day before you work on you susp. its never any fun to work on when its covered in mud water and sand. I run 33's now and i think my truck looks great. Although i realy wish i did have 35's

35's outa fit w/ the AAL. i have NEVER come close to rubbing my 33s although it would probaly be wise to trim the fenders a little bit. Just to be safe

 

[outlaw53]

Hey Y'all, i'm the friend he's talking about, i'm new to this website, and to 4x4 Rampage got me addicted to it. I have class in an autoshop and can check anything that y'all might suggest. Thanks for the help.