Restoration Order

[Chief Brody]

Has anyone compiled a "list" of the best order in which to restore a Blazer?

For example:

1. Inside bed and floorboards
2. Dash and all Dash components

etc....

Trying to get an idea of what order I should think about doing things...

I haven't figure out how to search this entire forum yet from one search box

 

[ryoken]

I've worked in a resto shop, and done dozens to various degrees personally...

thats a little bit of a wildcard depending on how bad the truck is, how extensive you wanna go and drivable you wanna keep it...


a general rule of thumb tho is that you always wanna do the spraying/refinishing aspect of a job first... get the large, dirty projects over with... no point in installing a new shiny part when you need to sandblast/paint around it...

this also translates to the overall rig... it's not like you wanna do the exterior body work, prime paint, etc without considering your door jambs, engine compartment, etc...

right way? ya start with a complete disassembly, strip and prime everything, assemble the truck to allow for any assembly mods/fitment issues, disassemble, refinish parts, assemble...

like i said, depends on how far ya wanna take it...

 

[79rustyk10]

body off
frame stripped
begin frame assembly
have body stripped
seal body/begin metal work
drivetrain into frame
paint underside/inside of body
body on frame
fenders/hood/doors on
final paint
then the bazillion smaller bs things that consume so much time.

just a quick outline that I came up with. Havent done a body off resto yet.

 

[Chief Brody]

right way? ya start with a complete disassembly, strip and prime everything, assemble the truck to allow for any assembly mods/fitment issues, disassemble, refinish parts, assemble...

That requires undoing some welds? or does the body come off the frame without undoing welds?

 

[ryoken]

the body bolts to the frame thru 10 body mounts...

a resto of that magnitde requires a good bit of time, tools and funds... there are varying degrees to how a "resto" can be done.. and how well... 100% sweet, as good as the factory or better? thats the route needed to take....

you can certainly "clean up" and redo sections at a time, keeping it on the road.. it certainly wont come out as perfect as the previous mentioned route.. but it can be done and turn out nice..

 

[Chief Brody]

you can certainly "clean up" and redo sections at a time, keeping it on the road..

Can you elaborate a little on this...what things can I do and keep it drivable...
also, are there things you consider a "must" for any restore?

 

[ryoken]

well, you can bring certain areas thru degrees of done... an example... you can pick projects that take a weekend, or as much as you can get done in a weekend.... frame has some rust, peeling paint, etc? you can strip, prep, clean, prime and paint a nice section of it in a weekend with the right tools and equipment.... get some time the next month, do another section....

keep the projects small scale, with the overall result in mind... bodywork... do A panel a weekend... pull a door, put it on sawhorses, strip, bodywork, put it in primer, maybe trim out the door jamb area with paint, reinstall... drive around with it in primer, till you get another panel done.. rinse.. repeat...

as far as musts... eh, thats based on what someone wants and feels are important...smooth freshly painted frame, decent paint, etc are things i look at in a "resto"... or you could just paint it, leave the underside ratty and buy a brand new interior from LMC, etc... depends on whats important to you...

obviously mechanical function is huge... and just that alone can eat up tons of money on replacing/upgrading suspension, engine components/overhaul, brakes, etc...

 

[gotblazers]

im doing a BODY ON restoration of my 73 k5 with only 70k orig miles on it so my list might be different than yours but here it is.

1.transmission crossmember
scrape it
simple green and wire brush
rinse it off
repeat process minus scrape
2.drill out the rivets around the transmission cross member
3.on bottom of blazer from firewall back make sure that the surface is relatively clean so we can pressure wash with simple green and then rinse with clean water. Use compressed air on all mating surfaces.prime the entire bottom with rustoleum primer paint chevy orange.
4.replace suspension bushing w/polyeurathane
5.install transmission & transfer case
6.engine compartment wiring harness
7.finish and install engine
8.install exhaust headers and hook up exhaust
9.install carbeurator,and connect all linkages
10.connect all engine well eletrical
11.recondition front clip,clean,primer paint
12.install front clip,radiator,all coolant hoses
13.fill all liquids before starting engine
engine oil
transmission fluid
coolant
transfer case lubricant
14.get body rust in rear panel,door post welded up
15.primed and painted,reseal white top
16.replace all weatherstripping and mount roll bar
17.new tires and alignment
18.interior fixed up to extent we want
19.Sound system