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NEWBIE. Question about buying a K5

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yatesK5

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Hey everyone! New to CK5 and new to 4Wheelin!

First off I bought a bronco for some muddin!(plus broncos are CHEAP) and loved it, so I decided I wanted something nicer to start my own build. I decided an old 70's K5 would make an awesome rig so went searching craigslist. I found what seems to me like a great deal, but just wanted to run it by some K5 know it alls to check...

Heres the add, hes only asking $1500 OBO. And I talked to the guy, the engine was just rebuilt..he doesnt know how many miles are on the truck, or the tranny and trans case. He is also wiring up the lights for me, and says theres nothing wrong with it. Steers good, drives good, 4x4 works great. Anyone opinions or info would be great...thanks!

'Up for sale is a 1977 K5 Blazer with the half convertible top. I bought this back in October(not running) with the intentions of rebuilding it to become a weekend desert toy, haul a boat, whatever. It was just going to be my toy. I tore it down to the short block and rebuilt it with new seals and all new bolts. She runs and drives now. I'm selling because I've changed my mind and decided to keep my Jeep and make it my toy and then buy something else as my daily driver. I've got plenty of pictures to show where this vehicle started if you are interested.

It has Chevy 350 backed with a TH350 tranny and NP203 transfer case. Chevy 12 bolt in the rear and Dana 44 up front. Bench seat up front and bench seat in the rear. She's got an new Edelbrock intake, Holley carb, headman headers, and flowmaster exhaust. New alternator, fairly new radiator, and Optima yellow top battery. All Autometer gauges(speedo, tach, fuel, oil, temp, and battery). I put in an Alpine amp and a pair of Infinity speakers to hook directly to an Ipod for the tunes. She's currently running on 38.5x15 Super Swamper TSL's...they do have rock rash and gouges from the previous owner, however they do still hold air.

Currently doesn't have any working lights. I just never got around to getting those wired up. Keep in mind, it is an unfinished project, so its not a show vehicle by any means....since it was going to be just a toy, I didn't really care too much about her looks. But would make a great start for anyone looking for a toy or a good base to start your own project."

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Looks like a good deal, id just keep in mind if your gona do any amount of wheeling in that thing to either get a th400 or sm465 cause that th350 wont hold up!
 
slyguy_22 said:
Looks like a good deal, id just keep in mind if your gona do any amount of wheeling in that thing to either get a th400 or sm465 cause that th350 wont hold up!
Click to expand...

geez, don't scare him, that's like saying a 10 bolt will break if it see's dirt.
 
Ok thanks for the info. I figure if the tranny is original im going to have to atleast have it rebuilt anyways, so good to know. Any opinion on which trans is better? And do you have any price tags to go with them? (used + rebuild if needed) Also do you know if the dana 44 and 12 bolt rear will hold up to the 38" tires? thanks!

So it seems like a good deal for the money?
 
Just casual romping, few hill climbs, mud, minor rock crawling. Nothing to extreme
 
3/4 ton trucks and sub's from '73 to 79 or so (maybe a few more years) had them and they bolt right in. 1 ton 14bff's will work but are not exactly bolt in.

i wouldn't worry about that yet, just get it and upgrade stuff you break when that time comes.
 
Sounds good. Any recomendations where I should start with the upgrades? Lifts, shocks, lights, winch, ect? Im new to all this so dont really know where to start.
 
Id stay away from the 14sf rears, there not bad but if you do some searching you can find a 14ff for same money. if your gona keep the front d44 then dont put a locker in it keep it open. as for trans the th400 & sm465 are both as close to buillit proof as ur gona get. I have the sm465 with np205 twin stick and i love wheeling with it. I know alot of guys with the th400 that work great too. id say its just a matter if you want to shift gears and such. the th400 would be less involved in swapping in ur rig. (aka floor cutting finding pedals and such) Search craigs list. Id just wheel it till its toast. I wasnt tryin to scare you but just wanted to give you a heads up. (i spent bout 800.00 having my th350 built with shift kit and it lasted bout a year n a half) Needless to say spending money on a th350 or a 10bolt is like pissin in the wind. (when it comes to larger tires) just my $0.02
 
Id say it looks like a good start. get lights workin. make sure everything is bolted down properly. ie. battery, seats etc. Go over the suspension and make sure everything is tight, seen alot of guys slap things back together just to sell them. Last thing you want it a wheel coming off the first time out! check your ujoints makesure they are tight with no play. take it out wheeling and see what it will do. Id take a second rig along with you, just in case. things id recommend fire ext., winch/comealong, cage/rollbar.
 
haha alright cool. I'll probably go with the th400 then just because I dont want to do all the work to get it back to manual. Whats the diff. between a 14sf and the 14ff(I dont even know what that means other than its beefier than a 10 and 12 bolt) what about getting a dana 60 for the front? pricey? hard?
 
The 14 bolt SF has a 9.5" ring gear. The 14 bolt FF has a 10.5" ring gear. You lose more ground clearance with a 14 bolt FF. The 14 bolt SF is roughly equivalent to the SF Dana 60. The 14 bolt FF is equivalent to the Dana 70... plus the 14ff you can unbolt the cover and pull out the each side seperate.
 
the 14bsf and 14bff refer to semi-float and full-float. The Full floater is a much better and stronger design. Wheel the truck and see how it handles what you want to do. Blow up the rearend, put in a 14bff and convert the front to 8-lug (easy to do). I wouldnt worry about swapping the trans out. Th350s aren't weak trannys. They can be built strong. I have about $950 into mine, it has just about every upgrade possible and im running dual t-cases and 42" tires.

This truck looks like pretty good start. Good luck
 
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