My first 4wheel drive

[planedr]

I have my first 4wd.
A 76 K5. It's also my 25th vehicle(I'm not very nice to cars, and I get bored with them quickly) I got a good deal on this and I plan on making this a father son project, my son is 9 and he fell in love with it the first time I took him for a ride with the top off!
I am going to lift it, but I don't know much about this kind of stuff.
Here are the plans,
4" lift, rough country $319.00(I take it the blocks are no good?)
ORD shackle flip kit $189.00 (has anyone used Sky Mfg, they are about $150.00, or should I just get ORD?)
33" BFG all terrains (Or some suggestions) I'm looking for some original truck rally wheels.
And what are 0 rates? do I need them?
14b FF? whats that? Do I need that? Do I have that?
I'm learning so be gentle on me. I'm an airplane mechanic so I am mechanically inclined, I saw someone say "built not bought", and I plan on doing everything myself.
My kid wants to name the truck GD II (Grave Digger II, his favorite monster truck)
Sorry so many dumb questions.

 

[lectric80]

Well to answer some of your questions:

Blocks can allow axle wrap and cause issues.
ORD shackle flip is a good product, you can also look at DIY4X a vendor on the site for this.
33" BFG all terrains are great for on road, not so good off road. Depending on the terrain, you may want to go with some mud terrains. All Terrains will load up and become slicks in the mud
Zero Rates are like an add a leaf, but don't add anything to the spring rate. They give you an inch of extra lift, and allow you to move the axle forward or back 1" or 1.5". You shouldn't need it.
14BFF is the rear axle in 3/4 and 1 ton trucks. It is much stronger than the 12 bolt rear that will be in the Blazer. The trade off is that it also has a much larger center section, meaning a little lost clearance. Advantage is that a broken axle will not fall out, unlike the 12 bolt you have. It is up to you, but many people have found that with 33's you shouldn't really need this axle. It is a direct bolt in, but you would need 8 lug wheels, and you would have to convert the front to 8 lug or get a Dana 60 front to match.

And welcome to the board, the $25 dollar membership is one of the best investments you can make on your truck. It really opens up a lot of option on the board.

 

[planedr]

I really like this site and plan on joining soon.(no money, just bought the truck!!!)
Thanks for the info!

 

[bradshawtech]

That reply from lectric is some of what you can expect from a membership but with photo's and alot more. Also you wont be bombarded with ads. great brotherhood here. You most likely have something to offer with your Av background.

 

[SnackPack]

Another Colorado member! Excellent -- be sure to drop on by the Rocky Mtn Region Forum for trip schedules and parts.

Welcome,
Adam

 

[ezoliver]

Welcome to the K5 family....

No dumb questions here!
I think you will find that the CK5 forum is a SUPER place to get info for your truck and get many, many, many of your questions answered.

It is well worth it to pay the $25 for the membership....ask me how I know

I think most guys like Tough Country springs over Rough country. (ORD sells them) I went with 4" Tough Country EZ rides.
As far as the Sky vs ORD shackle flip - the Sky stuff looks good, I have not seen it in person though. I went with ORD stuff, and I can say that the quality of materials and the workmanship is flawless!

Another good thing about ordering from ORD is that stuff only takes 1 shipping day to get it where you and I are!

PS - when you do join - send me a PM about those wheels I have...


Looking forward to doing some Colorado wheeling with you in the future!
Later!
Eric

 

[badmix]

it depends on what your wanting to accomplish with your truck.

I have rough country 2" lift and am running 33" tires, have 305cid , 700r tranny and 4:10 gears with locker in the rear, IMO, this is just about the perfect DD combo. You dont need 4" lift unless you want bigger tires or just want a lifted up truck, but 4" lift and 33s will look funny IMO.

The 14ff is good, but not needed with only running 33s. Even 35s are marginal, when you go 38s its probably needed, most ppl that run bigger tires, run bigger and harder trails/mud, so it goes hand in hand.

I agree with buying a membership here. This place has saved me ALOT of money from just the researching and has saved me some major headaches just from the technical responses ive gotten.

 

[offroadblazer764x4]

lets see some pics