| 1FaastC10 |
05-27-2005 10:18 PM |
for a 4x4, i would ditch the 2.73s. 3.42 and a set of 32-33" tires (which should fit at stock height would make it a much more drivable truck. the lower gears will help around town, and combined with the larger (than stock) tires, will only hurt you slightly if at all on the highway with a stock engine. since you're planning on beefing up the engine anyways, build for that powerband and you should be golden. you mentioned your powerband between 500-4000 rpms, NEVER run a small block under any kind of load at that RPM. lugging it down like that is just begging for failure. if you were just idling along, its a whole different ballgame.
the cheapest way to do the 3.42 swap would be to find someone who has upgraded their axles for strength reasons, and lower gears. 3.42 gears can commonly be found in Blazers and Suburbans of the late 80s and 90-91. probably the hot ticket would be to find a set of 82-87 light duty 3/4 tons. they'll bolt directly in, giving you bigger brakes, the gears you need, as well as the added strength of the 14 bolt Semi Floating rear axle.
i strongly recomend the rear axle upgrade anyways, i just broke a 10 bolt carrier, which in turn ate the ring and pinion. that was with a dead stock 170,000 mi truck, and bald 29" tires. and no, i wasnt abusing it.
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