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New Member Mechanical Questions

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derek.cobia

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Crawford, CO
Hi everyone,

I just bought a 1989 K5 with a 4 inch lift and 33’s. I’ve taken it out for the past couple of weekends and I’m already addicted (currently in Moab typing this as I sit by the campfire). Anywho, I’m a hands on kind of guy but my mechanics skills is fairly limited. That said, there are already some upgrades I’m thinking about and I was hoping y’all could point me in the right direction.

A few things you should probably know before I get into the list. I’m brand new to the 4x4 world. I have some experience trail riding/crawling but they weren’t my vehicles, so I’m not very well versed in 4x4 mechanics language (or any mechanics language for that matter). This will also be my daily driver to some degree (definitely during winter), so I don’t want to do anything that will mess up the mechanics if driven daily. That said:

1) locking differential - Should I start with front or rear? Any recommendations? Given it’s a daily driver, would this impact how it’d drive around dry concrete turns or are there different variations of “locking” that will allow for some slip?

2) Wench - seems important. Any recommendations? Do I need a new bumper to mount, need to weld mounting brackets, are brackets designed to go around the bumper, or do I just bolt through the bumper?

3) Rooftop tents - We traveled around in a bus for 3 years before we settled in CO, so we’re nomads at heart. Any recommendations for overlander setups that will accommodate a family of 4?

4) Third row seating facing the rear - Has anyone done this and if so, how’d you do it? Seems standard bench seats would work but I’d have to build a box to lift it up a bit.

5) light bar - because trail riding at night just seems badass. Any recommendations?

6) Solar - I’ve realized how bad it’d be if our battery were to go dead 10 miles in the mountains. Does anyone have solar panels for overlanding and if so, are they mounted or do you pull them out and set them up on the ground.

7) Spare/full sized tire rack. Assuming we’ll be using a rooftop tent, rear swing arm mount, I’d assume? Any recommendations?

Aside from that, what are “must haves” when off-roading for emergency purposes? And given our overlanding style, does anyone have any other recommendations regarding easy setup and breakdown for camping/over-landing? I’m not stuck on a rooftop tent. Not doing so would allow for emergency stuff and spare to go on roof but maybe that might be too heavy for some rock crawls.

Anyway, sorry for the long winded first post and if this is more appropriate in a different thread, please let me know.

TIA for all y’all’s help. Can’t wait for Blazer bash and can’t wait to meet other people to go riding with (we’re in Paonia, BTW).

Cheers
 
1. Given that this is a driver and not a hardcore rig I would say locker in the rear only. I run a Detroit in the rear of my K5 but I am 8 lug swapped (14 bolt). The 10 bolt front in your rig is fine but adding a front locker is going to stress it to the max. A locker in the rear will get you through an amazing amount of terrain. A selectable locker is the most versatile but costs the most. A non selectable is fine but does have handling quirks. My Detroit is a little sketchy on ice but I am used to it and can predict what its going to do. All other terrain the full time locker doesn't bother me at all and its nice to just have the traction all the time.
2. There are options for a bolt on winch bumper out there and also winch cradles that work with a stock bumper.
3. I am not a rooftop tent guy. They add a lot of weight up high. I like a trailer but its personal preference. Also you can set up camp and then go wheeling without constantly packing up and setting up again.
4. I put tahoe seats in for my 2nd row, I think they could be used for 3rd row as well but both require some fabrication.
5. I have run several ebay china light bars both on my squarebodys and snowcat. They are all the same until you get up into the high dollar ones like ridgid or baja designs. Just find a good deal and go for it.
6. I would go portable on the solar panels, help keep them from being damaged when not in use. Plenty of room in a square for a 2nd battery under the hood too.
7. Get a rear bumper with a beefy swing out tire rack. Lots of discussion here, use the search.
Have fun in Moab, one of my favorite places.
 
Looks like you found us from the world of IG. Welcome to the madness.

1. Locker, I agree for more DD duty go with just one out back. A lunchbox style locker from lock-right or Aussie locker is pretty simple to install in an open carrier. If you have an open diff that is. Look on the inside of your glove box door for a label. This is the SPID label that should have all the options yours was built with. Look for the code G80. That is the option code for the factory gov lock locker. If you have that, the lunchbox lockers won't fit in that carrier.

2. Winch. I think it's a must have if you do go out alone, even on less technical overland type trails/roads. There are a couple of places you can go to for complete winch bumpers, and a couple weld yourself options. ORD and DIY4X sell complete bumpers and Four by Design sells weld yourself kits that are nice. This goes with #6 on your list in needing a second battery. There's room for a second battery under the hood. Simple 150 amp continuous duty solenoid can tie them together while driving and split them when the engine is off. This will allow the winch and any "house" electrical loads to pull from the second battery and save the main battery to start the truck.

3. I agree about what Hank said about the rtt points. Heavy, center of gravity goes up for minimal living space. Even if you get an annex to add enclosed space it's more stuff to carry. My buddy did one. It was pretty slick but he still couldn't stand up to get dressed in it. One other thing as a drawback is the cost of the loss in fuel economy. The soft shell versions are really bulky and will put a dent in the less than stellar fuel mileage these units have. I'd get a good quality ground tent that is quick and easy to set up.

4. Not seen anyone put a third row in a K5. There is room for it, but it will eat up your cargo area for sure. It will require fabrication to do.

5. Get the best lights you can afford. Having extra light is better than crappy stock lighting. There are some ways to upgrade the stock lighting to help out too.

6. Solar. I go for portable. But how much really depends on power demand and the size of your second battery. I go out for 7 days straight with an arb fridge and all my camper loads with 12v still in the battery by morning. I'll be adding solar to mine, but it's not a pressing issue in my case to rush to get it in.

7. Rear bumper and spare. The same companies also make rear bumpers, but not all have tire carriers. Most around here build their own. If you aren't handy with a welder you can farm it out to a fav shop or pick up a carrier that plugs into a receiver/tow hitch. Wilco is one that comes to mind. But getting the spare out of the truck will open up more storage.

Have fun in Moab. Get a few more posts in and you'll be able to post pics. We like seeing what you got.
 
I'm in the planning stages on my K5. I'm planning an on a similar setup and usage like you are talking about, daily driver, occasional wheeling.

1.) I am looking at either a drop in, as mentioned before, or something like an ARB to switch back and forth.

2.) Wench goes in the passenger seat. For a winch, I'm planning on a receiver mount setup with receivers on both front and rear. This would allow for multi-directional pulling, plus can be put on the car trailer, taken in out of the weather, etc.

3.) I don't disagree with a rooftop tent, but plan to mount on an offroad-type camping trailer. Less weight up high on the truck. Let's the trailer/tent stay set up while out wheeling. Adds cargo space, which will probably be at a premium in your family of 4 scenario. A friend of mine has one done this way that also has an add-on room that goes around/below where the tent flows out and adds another living space on the ground level.

4.) No help here, but seems like it would be a tight fit.

5.) No help here either, but there are plenty of options to choose from.

6.) Since I was planning on the trailer camper, it would have its own deep cycle battery for power. This leaves the truck independent and therefore won't have to worry about it draining the battery. I had planned on a portable, briefcase type of solar panel to charge the camper battery, or a small generator. If you are worried about the truck battery going down, jumper packs have come a long way in both size and power.

7.) The 33" spare fits in the stock location in the cargo area, but you definitely loose some space. Rooftop rack mounts give you the cargo area back, but would be a pain to get down when you need it. I've considered the swing out type mounts, especially if I could do a fuel can mount as well, but haven't finalized the idea yet.

Whichever way you do go, post up the progress. It will be nice to see your setup.
 
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Here’s a page with a bunch of trail prep ideas. Somewhere there’s a parts list thread that I guess I need to find also

Emergency scenario posts

Collection of all the Scenario posts by link! rollover-what-do-you-do engine-fire-what-do-you-do fire-extinguishers winching-recovery-techniques-and-safety. first-aid-on-the-trail strange-trail-fixes-that-work
ck5.com ck5.com
 
Thanks!
Bent77 said:
Here’s a page with a bunch of trail prep ideas. Somewhere there’s a parts list thread that I guess I need to find also

Emergency scenario posts

Collection of all the Scenario posts by link! rollover-what-do-you-do engine-fire-what-do-you-do fire-extinguishers winching-recovery-techniques-and-safety. first-aid-on-the-trail strange-trail-fixes-that-work
ck5.com ck5.com
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