Made it back to Colorado.....

[jeff in co]

As a few of you know, this is the blazer I had many years ago (13 yrs) and finally found it on Craigslist in Seattle......

Well, we made it back alive! I flew out Friday evening to Seattle and started my long, 1,500 mile trip back to Colorado. With 37” tires, I can’t say it’s the smoothest riding rig but not bad. I was very surprised how well it went in a straight line and very minimal vibration. I started off at 7pm in the rain so couldn’t really get a good look at everything….just decided to go for it!

Made it to Idaho that night and stayed with my mother. The next day, off to Wyoming and stayed with my brother in Cody. Nice to get back there again. Actually, this is where I originally purchased the truck so it was fitting to have it home again for a day.

The final leg was into Colorado. Of course, during the heat of the day, the truck started overheating. So I had to watch the temp gage to be sure it didn’t get TOO hot. I was concerned with the heating enough to swing buy the local auto parts store in Casper and pick up a radiator, T-stat, coolant (50/50) and a basic tool kit. I wanted to at least have the stuff if the truck decided it wasn’t going to make it. Fortunately, I pulled over 3 times to let it cool down. Other than that, pretty uneventful.

The previous owner said he had a sporadic “wouldn’t start” scenario so this was definitely on my mind. Fortunately, I made the whole trip without incident!

The next morning in my driveway I went to start it….yeah……you guessed it, it wouldn’t start! Very thankful that it made it the huge distance and to have this happen at home in my driveway…..a blessing for sure!

I’ve had a few days to look it over and it definitely needs some work. I found that the sheetmetal under the driver’s seat was torn and needs to be re-welded. Lots of gremlins… need to fix window regulator, heater motor, dash lights, new rear tailgate and glass, plus a ton of interior pieces. I do plan to drop it back down to maybe a 2.5” lift and 33’s. Also need to find the correct top…..slider windows with tint.

Anyways, here it is at the border and another shot from 15 years ago……

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Good to hear man.

How much lift now? 6" maybe? Did they regear it for those big tires?

The floorboards should be braced/reinforced if you are unaware. The stock setup just isn't up to snuff. I got my '89 out of Seattle last year and the ONLY rusty place was where the front seat mounts on both sides had cracked and torn. Lots of sheet metal deformation. I had my super welder guy buddy weld some 3/16" plate steel in on top to brace it up. Worked great.

 

[jeff in co]

Good to hear man.

How much lift now? 6" maybe? Did they regear it for those big tires?

The floorboards should be braced/reinforced if you are unaware. The stock setup just isn't up to snuff. I got my '89 out of Seattle last year and the ONLY rusty place was where the front seat mounts on both sides had cracked and torn. Lots of sheet metal deformation. I had my super welder guy buddy weld some 3/16" plate steel in on top to brace it up. Worked great.

I'm not sure...I'd guess 6" or so. Looks like a combo of arched springs and a block. All I know is even the slightest bump while turning and I get some rubbing. I don't know about the gears either but plan on jacking the rear up and counting the driveshaft and tire revolution (I assume this is a decent method). I can also see if it's an open diff or not.

It's been in Seattle for about 15 years so there is some rust. I drove back with a "broken" seat the whole way until I finally got to look it over better. Noticed one of the bolts was gone in the rear and the sheetmetal underneath had cracks and was flexing a lot. So, good thing is that the seat may be good....bad thing is I got to fix the cracks and try and reinforce it. Thanks for the tip on the fix. I don't know how to weld so I'm going to have to hire someone out on this.

PO did rhino line the back end. Don't know if he was just covering rust or what? The back tailgate section will need to be replaced and it looks like some rust in the back end of the tub, but looks to be just on the edges.

I hope to strip the seats, carpet, etc this weekend and see the overall condition underneath. Hopefully in decent shape.

I am keeping my eyes open for a donor truck if possible. Missing a lot of parts and may make more sense getting a whole thing, strip the parts I need and then sell the remains. I have my eye on one and will check out this weekend.

Are the mirror holes in the door different from a 91' with power side mirrors vs. my stock chrome ones? Meaning, if I switched doors, can I re-mount my chrome mirrors and remove the power one without any signs of the power gear?

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Best method to check the gears is just remove the cover and look for the numbers stamped into the ring gear and/or count the teeth and divide.

Sounds about like mine. Lots of dubious work by PO's. Still, at least you can start over.

I believe I put pictures in my thread of how we fixed the seat mounts. It's in the garage here somewhere. Updated it a few months back. "I have a K5" or something like that is the title.

 

[jeff in co]

Found it, thanks!

Whoa......34 pages. This will take some time!

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=253533&highlight=seat

 

[AJMBLAZER]

http://coloradok5.com/forums/showthread.php?t=253533&highlight=seat&page=22

 

[POORBOYK5]

Where in the springs are you? Hefty fabworks could do the welding you need. I have my truck over there right now getting a ton of fab work done. They do some pretty impressive work. Let me know if your interested I can show you where its at.. Congrats on finding your rig again!

 

[jeff in co]

Where in the springs are you? Hefty fabworks could do the welding you need. I have my truck over there right now getting a ton of fab work done. They do some pretty impressive work. Let me know if your interested I can show you where its at.. Congrats on finding your rig again!

I'm in the NW part of town but would definitley be interested. Does impressive also mean "expensive"? I did notice that AJM's fix added a piece of flat stock to the existing floor. Did this result in raising the seat enough to notice it while driving? Basically, depending on the thickness of the plate, you're putting on a lift kit for the seats...

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Nah. 3/16" or 1/4" isn't going to cause issues. Heck, your stock seats have sagged more than that due to the padding collapsing.

 

[POORBOYK5]

They're a custom shop. If thats all you want them to do is put a plate in. I'm sure they'd be ok with that, they're pretty flexable. I guess swinging it by would be the best thing to do, that way you can explain what you want and they can see.

 

[jeff in co]

They're a custom shop. If thats all you want them to do is put a plate in. I'm sure they'd be ok with that, they're pretty flexable. I guess swinging it by would be the best thing to do, that way you can explain what you want and they can see.

Great! I sent them an email and he said no problem.....bring it in next week. Around $75-$100 if it's not too bad. Thanks again, appreciate the help!

 

[lak2004]

Great! I sent them an email and he said no problem.....bring it in next week. Around $75-$100 if it's not too bad. Thanks again, appreciate the help!

Chris (from Hefty) is a hell of a nice guy

 

[jeff in co]

Chris (from Hefty) is a hell of a nice guy

Yep, that's the guy.....cool.

Getting a new muffler put on and just got the door locks re-keyed to the original key blank (no door keys were provided at the time of sale ).

It did have an alarm in it too, so I pulled that out last night. Again, no remote so pretty much useless to me.

I got the heater fan to work now (broken ground) but I only get 3 of the 4 speeds. The high does not work. I'm going to take apart the dash this weekend to look at the wiring under the dash.

Also, I keep hearing the rear window clicking every once in awhile. Kinda strange so again, will check some of the wiring to see if the lines got tapped into somewhere.

It's getting better though....just a lot of work. But fun!

 

[POORBOYK5]

I work a block away from HF. Stopped in on my lunch, they were welding away on your floors. made me go look at mine.. no cracks yet, but looks like they're going to rust through! So I'm right in line with you on gettting that addressed. Rig looks pretty darn good! The U-pull should have a tailgate with glass. Saw a few last time I was there.

 

[jeff in co]

Yea, it was pretty nasty and I basically had a "full floating" seat. But not the kind I usually like. Hopefully Chris got everything fixed for me. I'll head out this afternoon to pick it up.

Yep, saw your rig out there too! He mentioned you may be dropping in a 454.....that should move that thing.

I've found some good stuff at the U-pull already.....just got a ways to go. Found that relay from the heater box and a new controller. Now it all works and I have a high speed on the heater. Picked up a window regulator and also some venting ducts. Got some new window motors at Napa for $32/ea so I thought now was the time to install some new ones.

I'll keep my eye open for a good tailgate. I would like to find the 89-91 era in white if possible. Who knows when the whole paint job will happen.

My main concern right now is getting the engine to run strong. Still sputtering just a bit when it's warm and in slow traffic. May just bring it to Al Serra and have them figure it out.

 

[POORBOYK5]

My main concern right now is getting the engine to run strong. Still sputtering just a bit when it's warm and in slow traffic. May just bring it to Al Serra and have them figure it out.

I've got a TON of ignition parts if you want to try a few thing before spending dealer$$ I've got modules, distributors, etc. I personally change out the temp sesnsor for the PCM on all of the TBI rigs I get as a preventitive maintenance measure. They make a world of difference if their bad. ($13). Have you done the normal tune up stuff already?