[K30_Blazer]

Gonna start a build thread on my 87 Jimmy to document his rebirth. Bought used with 90k on it in 1994 I daily drove it until 99 and since then he turned into a camping, surfing, bike hauler etc. Slowly broke down and deteriorated to a sad state. About 8 years ago I put new heads, suspension and tires, but with the 165k on the motor and busted ball joints and less than dependable transmission, I just wasn't using it anymore.

My wife had enough. Fix it or get rid of it. Easy to decide.

So, I began a week ago with the pickup of some 1 tons. My plan is to go full ton, with about a 6 inch lift. Rebuild the motor, swap in an overdrived TH400 and strip out the old interior and replace. 38 BFG KM2's are going on, along with a new bumper and winch. I will start with some quick pictures of where I am right now, and what Truckasaurus looked like years ago.

this was from about 8 years ago,

Picking up my axles.

Came with Detroit rear, 4.56, limited up front, fresh rebuild and crossover.

trying to decide if the additional expense is worth it for what I am gonna do for High Steer.

spent about two days wire wheeling degreasing, grinding and cleaning the axles. Then painted.

the parts begin to grow on my bench.

 

[K30_Blazer]

Thanks to pirate I met a local selling some BFG KM2's with rims and a winch!

My ORD frame repair and shackle flip showed up the other day.

My disc conversion from lug nuts 4x4 came too. His supplier accidentally sent me 1/2 ton calipers, but we were able to get it sorted.

Picked up new rotors and pads for the front too.

Thats all for now, but I hope to keep it going. I have an A-Bomb coming from DIY4x along with diff covers and rear shock in boarding kit.

 

[Ten_Bucks]

Very nice build so far. What type of wheeling do you plan on doing with this rig?

Scott

 

[Camok5]

I know this blazer and I recognize the Yellow jeep in the background of the first pic as well. I'm a friend of Robs and had the Camo blazer that used to be around town. Glad to see you still have it and plan to rebuild it. My poor blazer is still alive and needs tons of repairs but I sold it to a friend in Lompoc.

 

[K30_Blazer]

Very nice build so far. What type of wheeling do you plan on doing with this rig?

Scott

Well general all around bashing with an emphasis on exploration and off road travel. I have a growing family and love to get out in the back country and camp off the grid. I want a vehicle that we can go to Moab, baja, Death Valley and everything in between in safety and relative comfort. My kids love the blazer and I need it to be ultra reliable, capable and dependable. I am not a huge rock guy but I want to be able to get where I want to go with no worries.

Hope that makes sense. I am quite honestly going to overbuild this K5 for what it is gonna see on a regular basis but that is all right with me.

I know this blazer and I recognize the Yellow jeep in the background of the first pic as well. I'm a friend of Robs and had the Camo blazer that used to be around town. Glad to see you still have it and plan to rebuild it. My poor blazer is still alive and needs tons of repairs but I sold it to a friend in Lompoc.

Holy ish! Flash back. Yea, that jeep is Robs brother. I think Rob was out with us that day. Didn't you and I run Miller jeep trail once years ago?

 

[chevyman7579]

Clean looking blazer, definitely like the family rigs.

 

[phoneguy]

Well general all around bashing with an emphasis on exploration and off road travel. I have a growing family and love to get out in the back country and camp off the grid. I want a vehicle that we can go to Moab, baja, Death Valley and everything in between in safety and relative comfort. My kids love the blazer and I need it to be ultra reliable, capable and dependable. I am not a huge rock guy but I want to be able to get where I want to go with no worries.

Hope that makes sense. I am quite honestly going to overbuild this K5 for what it is gonna see on a regular basis but that is all right with me.


I'm planning a build very similar to you, kind of a jack of all trades master of none, and lately I've been getting into out of state multi day trips and would like to take along my wife and son. I'll be watching this one for more ideas.

 

[K30_Blazer]

got the axles cleaned, and all back together. Just waiting on the diff covers and they are gonna be complete.

Next step is to start on the truck. I need to clean and strip the frame much the same way I did to the axles. That is gonna be a messy job. I know I have a crack at the steering box, but are there any other areas that are known to crack?

I will be putting the DIY4x shock inboard mounting kit in the rear along with the A-Bomb up front. That should stiffen up the frame considerably.

Also need to get a 2wd pump. Want to get it on the cheap, but not having much luck at the local yards so far.

 

[carbonprint]

Well documented so far, way to go! Nice set of tires and wheels and sounds a good deal.

 

[K30_Blazer]

started work on the Jimmy today. Ripped out all the carpet and seats and all the other crap. I was pleasantly surprised to see that I had very little rust. I was expecting more especially in the driver foot well as I have had a leak there for years. Guess the drought does have some benefits.

I will wire wheel down all the rust spots and repair before lining again.

What are thoughts on the LMC polyvinyl flooring. Looks pretty decent but the reviews are a little spotty. Not cheap at $350.

Also was gonna try the Frost King Duct Insulation instead of Dynamat or the equivalent.

Been hunting for seats to replace my aged stock ones. My daily driver is a 2005 M3 and I love the seats in it. I found that many owners have upgraded to carbon seats etc, and I have found a black set down in LA of $400. May have to check them out. I measured the ones in my car and the mounts are 18" X 18" so shouldn't have an issue getting them in the truck.

Here is a google photo of the seats I am talking about.

Here is the progress from today. Felt good to finally tear into my truck. Luckily one of my neighbors is doing a remodel so their dumpster has been seeing local night time visits from the dumpster fairy.

 

[K30_Blazer]

my lug nuts arrived today so I couldn't resist throwing them on quickly. Almost killed myself in the process. Man, those axles are freaking heavy. Duh. Ha ha

 

[K30_Blazer]

so, finally got started on the inside of the truck. Luckily I don't have a ton of rust. I was expecting more as I have had a leak in the footwell for years, but there really wasn't anything too bad.

I had the cracks in the floor where the seat bolts but that was expected. I stripped everything out and lay down some rustoleum bedliner. I then put some frost king duct insulation in. I have the polyvinyl floor coming from LMC. That will be the final floor. I am trying to cut down on noise and heat and so doubled up.

My cracks weren't too bad. I was able to just seam seal weld a couple and others I just threw some scrap metal patches on. I am not welder, more of a grinder, but learning.

my DIY4X in boarding mount showed up.

the worst of the rust. Some on the door frames and tailgate but not too much.

the worst crack

the tailgate looks decent. Not sure how durable the rustoleum is but I can always spray it again.

 

[K30_Blazer]

 

[K30_Blazer]

diff covers arrived. I painted and installed them tonight. I also finished lining the interior with the Frost King. My LMC poly vinyl floor shows up tomorrow so I will be setting that too.

 

[sterlingfire]

The diff covers are pretty cool, very durable at the least! As for the rustoleum, I used it all over my build, and have had bad luck with it, it will easily scratch off using my finger nail.I'm not sure why,I followed the instructions and even used self etching primer like they suggest, but oh well, mine is a wheeler anyhow. I'm not looking for anything pretty at all.

 

[SMKYTXN]

The diff covers are pretty cool, very durable at the least! As for the rustoleum, I used it all over my build, and have had bad luck with it, it will easily scratch off using my finger nail.I'm not sure why,I followed the instructions and even used self etching primer like they suggest, but oh well, mine is a wheeler anyhow. I'm not looking for anything pretty at all.

Good looking build you have going here. I'm going to have to agree with sterling here, Rustoleum has given me nothing but problems lately. It doesn't seem to want to set up, even after following all of the cure times on the can. I've had the same problems with the stuff out of a quart as well. It used to set up hard as a rock, but somethings changed in the last couple of years.

Good luck getting everything back together.

 

[[email protected]]

Very nice Bud!

Looks like your going in the direction we (My bro and I) did for our 78' Blazer for our dad. If I can throw in some ideas/suggestions...........

-Box the frame at the steering box.
-Add material or get an ORD engine crossmember. They like to rip...
-Maybe a T-case brake for an E-brake?
-I would look into more of a 4" lift, to keep it lower and more stable
-Instead of TH400(which is a great tranny) look into a 4L80E. The OD will really come in handy
-And remember your on the right track and there is no reason to hack anything. It looks great and you will end up with a reliable strong dependable truck.......

 

[K30_Blazer]

that is disappointing to say the least. I never expected it to be that durable, but to hear it is just flaking off kinda sucks. What would you all recommend then for a solid base coat? I am also planning on rattle canning the entire truck so I want something that will be durable for the exterior.

I would just go OD or camo, but if I want my wife to drive in it ever again I will need to make it something other than that....:laughing:

What is the consensus on Por 15 for an undercoating?

 

[DMANbluesfreak]

For what it's worth, I've had good luck with rustoleum lately... maybe it's a regional or batch thing?

 

[sterlingfire]

Por15 is pretty awesome imo. I used it on a trailer I built about 6 or 7 years ago, and it's still there, going strong. It had only come off in two small spots right near the tongue. Where it sees the most abuse from rocks and other stuff coming off the wheels of the truck.