would a pre 76 blazer save me money?

[luk3]

could a pre 76 blazer save me money i know the front comes with dana 44 that way i woudlnt have to swap axles in front, what comes in the rear? or would this not save me any money?

 

[thatK30guy]

What do you mean by saving money? And the D44 in the front?

A '91 Blazer won't be any different than that '76 you are asking about. Blazers are pretty much the "same" in each part category. Just different names, numbers and sizes for each year.

There is no difference between most of the years in that you are worrying about swapping anything.

I have seen pre-'76 trucks with prices way more than post-'76 trucks. /forums/images/icons/shocked.gif They all depended on what they came from the factory with and what the owners had done to modify them. /forums/images/icons/wink.gif

 

[luk3]

ok thanks

 

[BlazerGuy]

I'd say it wouldn't save ya money because the older the vehicle is the more you have to replace. The upside to pre '76 is the full top(in some ways) and you don't have to have any emissions in most states....

 

[chulisohombre]

to me it all depends on the condition of the truck when you buy it.if you spend 1500 dollars on a truck,you will probably be spending more to get it in good running condition compared to a truck you may have paid 4000 for and been in good condition already.

 

[turd427]

i wouldnt buy anthing newer than a 75, full top is the way to go, then swap in a 60 and a 14 bolt, find a 73, most still had 205s in them

 

[mplogic]

Check out the specs section for all the equipment on the different models. I like the 73 to mid 79 models because they all have D44 front ends and 12bolt rears and the cheapest replacement body parts. The 12 bolt rears are almost as strong as a ford 9" rear end and there are plenty of locker/posi options for them. 80 was a good year too becase they had the 205 transfer case, but they switched to the 10bolt front which was a bit underbuilt (for much over 33" tires anyway). My personal favorite are the 74s because they had the fully removable top the D44, 12bolt combo and all tranny's came mated to the 205. You'll find a lot of blazers will have had drivetrain swapped out already so always check 'em out for yourself.

 

[thatK30guy]

</font><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr />
10bolt front which was a bit underbuilt

[/ QUOTE ]
This not true. The 10 bolt ranks right up there alongside with the D44 as the same in all the characteristics of each other. /forums/images/icons/wink.gif

 

[Tweetysuarus]

If its money you wanna save, then don't get into a K5, If its fun in the sun, sand and mud your after then buy any of the older K5's! /forums/images/icons/grin.gif
Bill C /forums/images/icons/cool.gif

 

[MaxCrack]

I don't know how much money you would save but it would make you cool having the fully removable top and all.

 

[mplogic]

Actually the D44 has a slightly beefier axle. 1.31" compared to 1.28 in the 10 bolts. Also the 10 bolts are all 28 spline shafts untill '89 when they were upgraded to 30 spline. All D44s are 30 spline. May not be much but, from what I've read (and been told by those in the business) there are far less D44 failures than 10 bolt failures.

 

[luk3]

ok thanks.

 

[thatK30guy]

Here's something to think about: Stephen Watson ran a 10 bolt front axle in his green Jimmy for a long time before upgrading to the D60. /forums/images/icons/wink.gif

 

[mplogic]

That's a good point. I wouldn't avoid a good truck just because it had a 10 bolt front end or bother swapping a 10 bolt for a dana 44 (although that's exactly what I ended up doing). /forums/images/icons/smile.gif But, all things being equal, I'd rather have a 44 front end than a 10 bolt.

 

[BlazerGuy]

Yeah but think about how much mods he did to it to withstand the abuse. It cost about the same as a D60, he had the 10 for better clearance!