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CK5
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Story of two '72 K5's build
- Thread starter scottishdave
- Start date
RudyO
1/2 ton status
Another tip for the fluids- use one of those black plastic potting containers from the garden center to catch the fluids. They are big, sturdy, and cheap. And if you know someone with cats, those 2.5 gallon kitty litter jugs are great for storing the used fruids until you take them in for disposal.
Brakleen is some good stuff- great for cleaning parts and can be found at WallyWorld. And if you want to be cheap- catch it in a pan, strain it, and put it in a metal container for re-use. It evaporates QUICK.
Depending on what you want to do with the frame, I've used Eastwoods' Chassis Black over thier Corroless rust stabilizer with good results.
Brakleen is some good stuff- great for cleaning parts and can be found at WallyWorld. And if you want to be cheap- catch it in a pan, strain it, and put it in a metal container for re-use. It evaporates QUICK.
Depending on what you want to do with the frame, I've used Eastwoods' Chassis Black over thier Corroless rust stabilizer with good results.
Yeah i have about 10 kitty litter jugs filled with fluids, I know how to catch fluids and what to put them in. When i am going i am going and i dont feel like stoping to go grab oil pans or anything else
Lift time
I am trying to figure out my lift choices for a good 4" set-up. I have a few concerns about ORD's 4" shackle flip as i am scared its going to sit my rear end noticable lower than the front so i have a few options i am looking at and would as always enjoy some opinions from the more experianced. I am also not looking for the best bargain...Just a good lift solutions that is very flexable and has a decent ride. Also dont want to go Junk yard shopping for springs, i would rather store buy new parts.
I WAS kinda torn between 2 things, But then i got to thinking some more....
#1 ORD shackle in rear with 4"springs in the front...Only concern is they say the shackle flip height is an "Approximate" 4" and i hate the saggy rear blazers. Plus my rear springs are tired and are probably a little saggy.
#2 Tuff Country full spring lift. Consists of HD EZ-Rides in the front and regular EZ-rides in the rear and all the brake and steering stuff. But i liked the idea of the stock ride and flexy shackle flip. Not sure how flexy 4" springs are or how nice they ride. Then again, im not crawling the rubicon, so...
Other Options...
ORD shackle flip with 2" EZ-rides and 4" HD EZ-rides in the front...I am hoping that if option 1 would leave the truck sagging that this would help...But i think it might leave the truck pretty low in the front especialy since i have no hardtop to add weight in the rear.
OR...Maybe just replacing my rear springs with some nice stock hieght custom or OEM springs and doing the shackle flip and 4" front springs.
Help....
I am trying to figure out my lift choices for a good 4" set-up. I have a few concerns about ORD's 4" shackle flip as i am scared its going to sit my rear end noticable lower than the front so i have a few options i am looking at and would as always enjoy some opinions from the more experianced. I am also not looking for the best bargain...Just a good lift solutions that is very flexable and has a decent ride. Also dont want to go Junk yard shopping for springs, i would rather store buy new parts.
I WAS kinda torn between 2 things, But then i got to thinking some more....
#1 ORD shackle in rear with 4"springs in the front...Only concern is they say the shackle flip height is an "Approximate" 4" and i hate the saggy rear blazers. Plus my rear springs are tired and are probably a little saggy.
#2 Tuff Country full spring lift. Consists of HD EZ-Rides in the front and regular EZ-rides in the rear and all the brake and steering stuff. But i liked the idea of the stock ride and flexy shackle flip. Not sure how flexy 4" springs are or how nice they ride. Then again, im not crawling the rubicon, so...
Other Options...
ORD shackle flip with 2" EZ-rides and 4" HD EZ-rides in the front...I am hoping that if option 1 would leave the truck sagging that this would help...But i think it might leave the truck pretty low in the front especialy since i have no hardtop to add weight in the rear.
OR...Maybe just replacing my rear springs with some nice stock hieght custom or OEM springs and doing the shackle flip and 4" front springs.
Help....
SuperDave,
It seems like I post this photo a lot, but I guess it's time to do it again....
This is a dirt-simple setup.... a set of Alcan front springs (~240 Lbs/in rate) and a set of STOCK '89 Rear K5 springs on an ORD shackleflip.
The truck rides soft (almost TOO soft) and as you can see it flexes like mad... the real limiting factor is going to be how much shock travel you have, since the springs will be able to give you a LOT more flex than an normal shock will allow. In these photos I'm running a 12" travel shock on all 4 corners.
If I were you, I'd go with a 4" front / rear shackleflip (stock spring) and see where you're at. The rear springs won't cost you anything to try and then you'll know how far off you are from the stance you want. You could do an ORD Zero-rate if you are a bit low, or a 2" lift spring if you really need to get the rear up to match the front.
My point is that the shackleflip is probably going to be part of whatever solution you choose if you want a softer ride, so you might as well install that first before you buy some rear springs you might not need/want. There's not really much you can do up front to fine-tune the lift...once you install the 4" springs, you'll get what you get. The rear is where you can make adjustments with longer shackles, zero-rates or even a 2" springs to get things dialed-in.
BTW- A longer rear shackle is pretty easy to build and you can easily get 1" of extra lift with a 2" longer shackle. I've got some photos of that modification in my gallery photos if you want to check it out.
It seems like I post this photo a lot, but I guess it's time to do it again....
This is a dirt-simple setup.... a set of Alcan front springs (~240 Lbs/in rate) and a set of STOCK '89 Rear K5 springs on an ORD shackleflip.
The truck rides soft (almost TOO soft) and as you can see it flexes like mad... the real limiting factor is going to be how much shock travel you have, since the springs will be able to give you a LOT more flex than an normal shock will allow. In these photos I'm running a 12" travel shock on all 4 corners.
If I were you, I'd go with a 4" front / rear shackleflip (stock spring) and see where you're at. The rear springs won't cost you anything to try and then you'll know how far off you are from the stance you want. You could do an ORD Zero-rate if you are a bit low, or a 2" lift spring if you really need to get the rear up to match the front.
My point is that the shackleflip is probably going to be part of whatever solution you choose if you want a softer ride, so you might as well install that first before you buy some rear springs you might not need/want. There's not really much you can do up front to fine-tune the lift...once you install the 4" springs, you'll get what you get. The rear is where you can make adjustments with longer shackles, zero-rates or even a 2" springs to get things dialed-in.
BTW- A longer rear shackle is pretty easy to build and you can easily get 1" of extra lift with a 2" longer shackle. I've got some photos of that modification in my gallery photos if you want to check it out.
Thanks for the post. It is pretty helpful.
Here is what i think i am set on...
Tuff Country ex-ride front springs and the ORD shackle flip rear, since they sell this in a nice little kit. I am betting on since i have no hard top or cage right now my rear wont sag very much. If it is then i will throw on a zero rate or new springs.
Only thing i am debating now is to get the HD Ez-Rides with thier 395 lb/in or the regular EZ-rides and thier 295 lb/in. The HD's 395 is still alot lower than all the other springs listed on the CK5 spring chart and might be a good balance especialy when i run a winch.
Here is what i think i am set on...
Tuff Country ex-ride front springs and the ORD shackle flip rear, since they sell this in a nice little kit. I am betting on since i have no hard top or cage right now my rear wont sag very much. If it is then i will throw on a zero rate or new springs.
Only thing i am debating now is to get the HD Ez-Rides with thier 395 lb/in or the regular EZ-rides and thier 295 lb/in. The HD's 395 is still alot lower than all the other springs listed on the CK5 spring chart and might be a good balance especialy when i run a winch.
SD,
Your thinking is correct. Most of the time the HD version of the Tuff Country springs are used for guys with a heavy aftermarket bumper and winch setup.
I'd probably still be tempted to use the softer rate even with a winch....admittedly, the HDs will support more weight at static ride height, but once you're trying to flex the suspension the "sprung weight" of the truck doesn't change. You're going to get less uptravel over a rock, because the spring is effectively pushing down with an extra 100Lbs of pressure over the EZ Rides. The truck will lean more, and flex less...
Then again, if you really ARE planning to go with one of those huge freight-train style bumpers, the HDs are probably the right way to go.
Your thinking is correct. Most of the time the HD version of the Tuff Country springs are used for guys with a heavy aftermarket bumper and winch setup.
I'd probably still be tempted to use the softer rate even with a winch....admittedly, the HDs will support more weight at static ride height, but once you're trying to flex the suspension the "sprung weight" of the truck doesn't change. You're going to get less uptravel over a rock, because the spring is effectively pushing down with an extra 100Lbs of pressure over the EZ Rides. The truck will lean more, and flex less...
Then again, if you really ARE planning to go with one of those huge freight-train style bumpers, the HDs are probably the right way to go.
BTW -> Be SURE to tell them that you have a 1st Gen truck when you order (69-72). The front springs are shorter than the ones on the '73+ year trucks so you want to make sure they send you the correct ones. Now that I think about it, the shackleflips are completely different also.....
Thanks for that last tip there.
No i am not really a big fan of those gigantic Mad Max looking bumpers, I actually want to mount a winch behind the stock bumper. I have seen a few people pull it off and it looks very clean.
Thanks for the help, once again it was very useful.
No i am not really a big fan of those gigantic Mad Max looking bumpers, I actually want to mount a winch behind the stock bumper. I have seen a few people pull it off and it looks very clean.
Thanks for the help, once again it was very useful.
RyanB and VTBlazer have both done the hidden winch / stock bumper mod successfully.
Shouldn't take much searching or PM'ing to get the help you need with that project.
Shouldn't take much searching or PM'ing to get the help you need with that project.
RudyO
1/2 ton status
Greg, what are the numbers on the ramp?
Ok so here is what i ended up getting from ORD
Regular 4" Ez-Rides for the front
HD greasable front shackle
front shackle hanger
4" Shackle flip
HD greasable rear shackles
Shocks
Drop pitman arm
brake lines
and since a few people have mentioned how handy they made things and i can deffintaly see how thats true...a 1" body lift.
A little more expensive than an average lift kit from a company like tuff country or trailmaster etc... and alot more expensive than shoping around Junkyards but it should end up being a pretty reliable, flexy, and comfortable set-up
Regular 4" Ez-Rides for the front
HD greasable front shackle
front shackle hanger
4" Shackle flip
HD greasable rear shackles
Shocks
Drop pitman arm
brake lines
and since a few people have mentioned how handy they made things and i can deffintaly see how thats true...a 1" body lift.
A little more expensive than an average lift kit from a company like tuff country or trailmaster etc... and alot more expensive than shoping around Junkyards but it should end up being a pretty reliable, flexy, and comfortable set-up
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Just over 1000.... forwards and backwards.
25* ramp IIRC.
Pretty damned good for such a simple suspension.
Here is a quick update:
Got a guy helping on the bodywork with me for a small fee...
Got my brake lines and e-brake lines from inline tube today, so everything is pretty much ready to start re-assembling once the sandblast is done.
Got a guy helping on the bodywork with me for a small fee...
Got my brake lines and e-brake lines from inline tube today, so everything is pretty much ready to start re-assembling once the sandblast is done.
Last edited:
Not a whole lot done today, I deciding to pass on manualy stripping the rust and just sandblasting and then deciding to pass on that idea and just manualy do it. So i have a buddy coming with anouther angle grinder and we are going to tag team the frame to speed that oh so fun process up a bit.
Here you can see the new brake lines and some of the stripped and primed frame. And i still need to pull that transder case and steering box, etc...
Here you can see the new brake lines and some of the stripped and primed frame. And i still need to pull that transder case and steering box, etc...
RudyO
1/2 ton status
Lookin good Dave- That must have been a 6x bonus! How much were all the new brake lines?
It wasnt too bad of a bonus, plus i have a pretty cool wife who sais that if i deploy 4 times to get shot at then i earned the money and should build myself a truck like i have been bitching about for so long. But i did end up trading in her old cavalier for an 06' Acura TL and giving her lots of shopping money just incase.
Anyway...The brake lines were a $362 for complete OEM hard lines and complete OEM E-brake lines. Stuff looks very nice.
I opted not to sandblast so i would not have to remove the old lines. This way i can remove pieces of the old lines, sand that area and replace with the new lines. Much easier than playing the brake line puzzle game.
Also...Ordered my 35x12.50r15 KM2's today.
Anyway...The brake lines were a $362 for complete OEM hard lines and complete OEM E-brake lines. Stuff looks very nice.
I opted not to sandblast so i would not have to remove the old lines. This way i can remove pieces of the old lines, sand that area and replace with the new lines. Much easier than playing the brake line puzzle game.
Also...Ordered my 35x12.50r15 KM2's today.
RudyO
1/2 ton status
You plan on going to discs in the rear? My 78 3/4 ton parts chaser has the 14ff and it was in serious need of brakes. After I went and bought all the stock rebuild parts and installed them, I came across a site for the disc brake swap. Even with the purchase of the adapter I would have saved money doing the conversion. E-brake is about the only thing you give up, but someone has pry found a way around that by now. Just a thought...
Drums, shoes, springs, seals etc was in the $250. range IIRC
Summit has a prop valve (just bought 2) for less than the Wilwoods and they look identical, with the same description.
Drums, shoes, springs, seals etc was in the $250. range IIRC
Summit has a prop valve (just bought 2) for less than the Wilwoods and they look identical, with the same description.
chevyuser74
1/2 ton status
dang, wish i had your ambition.
not bad idea, if i can do it for cheaper than fixing up these drums then i might just do that. Problem is i dont pan on keeping this 12-bolt. I plan on swapping in the 14ff i have sometime in the future and that will have a disc conversion.
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