New member, you guys are my heroes.

[RadDadK5]

Gang, I see what some of you have accomplished and wow. I’ve had my 87 K5 for about 13 years and have still barely scratched the surface of knowledge.
I honestly bought it because I was young with a good job, it looked completely bad ass to me, was already heavily modified, and I didn’t have to do much (or so I thought) to have a sweet ride. Needless to say, had and still have a lot to learn!

Since then I’ve tinkered my way into some basic mechanical knowledge, but I’m still a complete novice who doesn’t deserve this beautiful beast!

Any tips on where to begin and general knowledge on routine maintenance or must haves is always appreciated. My goal is to keep it tough and simple, a regular street driver, capable of easily handling the off-road conditions primarily of the southeast (mud, swamp, sand), and to keep er’ looking pretty.

Thank you all for your contributions and kind advice, looking forward to doing my baby right with some help from your wisdom!

 

[Bent77]

Welcome aboard

What do you do now for basic maintenance?

 

[70jimmy]

Welcome to the board! Good looking rig!!!

Like bent said give us an idea of what you do now so we don't bore you with things like make sure there is fuel in the tank and wash it periodically.

Start with the routine stuff like tune up, plugs wires rotor cap check timing, grease the chassis, ujoints shocks, bushings, change fluid in axles, transmission, transfer case, steering components, wheel bearings.

Then if needed or wanted any upgrades you would like to do. There is a ton of knowledge and experience available to tap into no matter what you want to accomplish.

 

[1-ton]

You could get acquainted with the major vendors for older Chevy square body aftermarket parts like Off Road Design and DIY4X. You could go to their web site, and look at all the stuff they offer for our older Chevy trucks. Steering would be the first thing to look at with these old Chevys like frame reinforcement plates, brackets, and cross over steering.

 

[RadDadK5]

Welcome aboard

What do you do now for basic maintenance?

Primarily put out fires as they occur! Lol.

Seriously though, engine oil changes and fluid checks, mostly, with periodic external checks (hoses, moving parts, etc.)

I don’t have a routine for other components. Poor form, but I typically do other checks while working on repairs. Ie, heard some moaning from the drive train, spoke to a friend about troubleshooting, found the rear diff pinion shaft nut loose, tightened it, and only then notice my U joints could use a little grease.

I’d love to have a regular full vehicle inspection process…

 

[Bent77]

If you don't do an annual trip or something, set a time of year that you will do a major go through on the vehicle and get it done.

Don't forget these things are not new. Items like rubber seal, vacuum line, coolant condition should all be on that list



Had the differential been worked on at some point? It's not common for the nut to be loose

 

[RadDadK5]

Welcome aboard

What do you do now for basic maintenance?

If you don't do an annual trip or something, set a time of year that you will do a major go through on the vehicle and get it done.

Don't forget these things are not new. Items like rubber seal, vacuum line, coolant condition should all be on that list



Had the differential been worked on at some point? It's not common for the nut to be loose

Awesome, have you ever seen/used a good checklist for annual go through?

And yeah… had the diff serviced a couple of years ago.

 

[Bent77]

Awesome, have you ever seen/used a good checklist for annual go through?

And yeah… had the diff serviced a couple of years ago.

I use my own checklist at this point, so I probably wouldn't be of much help. I'll have to see if I have one of my Moab lists


I use a white board screwed to the back of the shop door



That loose pinion nut is very concerning. Me personally, I'd be on exploratory surgery duty for that

 

[RadDadK5]

I use my own checklist at this point, so I probably wouldn't be of much help. I'll have to see if I have one of my Moab lists


I use a white board screwed to the back of the shop door



That loose pinion nut is very concerning. Me personally, I'd be on exploratory surgery duty for that

Thanks man, I’ll dig into it… any idea what would cause it to back off? My understanding is a new is designed to lock on until it is replaced correct? Perhaps it was undone during the service and not replaced? Not sure why it would have been loosened intentionally, maybe unwanted vibration/motion somewhere along the train…?

 

[Bent77]

Thanks man, I’ll dig into it… any idea what would cause it to back off? My understanding is a new is designed to lock on until it is replaced correct? Perhaps it was undone during the service and not replaced? Not sure why it would have been loosened intentionally, maybe unwanted vibration/motion somewhere along the train…?

My axle guy crushes the sleeve with the old nut, then puts the new one on after. This maintains the integrity of the threads

 

[Wes Harden]

The pinion seal was probably replaced at one point, and the old nut was used.
This is kinda of critical nut to tighten. I am guessing a ten bolt rear axle, using a crush sleeve.
The crush sleeve sets the tapper cone bearing preload. Very important for bearing life.
My question is how did you tighten down the nut?
One item seldom checked is the vents for the diffs, t case and transmission. Check these for dirt build up every oil change.

 

[RadDadK5]

My axle guy crushes the sleeve with the old nut, then puts the new one on after. This maintains the integrity of the threads

Thanks bent, I’ll check into it a little more.

 

[RadDadK5]

The pinion seal was probably replaced at one point, and the old nut was used.
This is kinda of critical nut to tighten. I am guessing a ten bolt rear axle, using a crush sleeve.
The crush sleeve sets the tapper cone bearing preload. Very important for bearing life.
My question is how did you tighten down the nut?
One item seldom checked is the vents for the diffs, t case and transmission. Check these for dirt build up every oil change.

Wellll, I know it’s calls for a certain torque but I just used a ratchet and got it just beyond hand tight…

 

[RadDadK5]

You could get acquainted with the major vendors for older Chevy square body aftermarket parts like Off Road Design and DIY4X. You could go to their web site, and look at all the stuff they offer for our older Chevy trucks. Steering would be the first thing to look at with these old Chevys like frame reinforcement plates, brackets, and cross over steering.

Thanks 1!

 

[RadDadK5]

Welcome to the board! Good looking rig!!!

Like bent said give us an idea of what you do now so we don't bore you with things like make sure there is fuel in the tank and wash it periodically.

Start with the routine stuff like tune up, plugs wires rotor cap check timing, grease the chassis, ujoints shocks, bushings, change fluid in axles, transmission, transfer case, steering components, wheel bearings.

Then if needed or wanted any upgrades you would like to do. There is a ton of knowledge and experience available to tap into no matter what you want to accomplish.

Great tips 70, thank you very much.

 

[TJ1978]

Welcome, and good luck.