85 crew cab

[(541)COLD_beer]

i have a 85 chevy crew cab 4x4 and want to put a newer motor in it. but cant make up my mind... i have a 97 silverado truck with the 5.7 vortec that has 180,000mi on it that i can use and wont cost me much to swap... but if i spend all that time re-wiring the truck to use the 97 wiring harness for the motor and tranny i would rather put a 6.0 in it or a 5.3 with a 4l60e or i keep thinking about a cummins but don't know anything about diesels? oh and i don't have a lot of cash to spend on this build but i was wondering about selling or trading my 97 silverado extra cab short bed 4x4 for the 6.0, 5.3 or cummins... this crew cab is just a family truck. not looking to build a work horse or a race truck out of it. any info would be awesome


soon to be short bed, with 6'' prerunner fiberglass up front that converts it to mid 90s front end, i will pull the bedsides also... not sure how its going to look though. and will run 35s on 20'' wheels... going to switch to 37'' tires when the 35s die. will also build prerunner bumpers front and rear. was also thinking about making it a mega cab by adding the 4'' of cab off a stander cab... there's just not a whole lot of room in the back of those crew cabs. well not fro me I'm 6' 2'' I'll try different seats first though

[phishninmn]

that should be sweet when its done

[(541)COLD_beer]

thanks... i hope so. just picked up a short bed for it and the guy gave me the cab too. so i'll cut the 4'' out of the back of the cab and put it up to the back of my crew cad and see if i like the looks of it.

[USSkoval]

I think you will find that doing that little cab extension will be A LOT harder than it sounds... and for very little gain.

Oh, and why the heck would you get a shortbed if you're just going to remove the bedsides? Just remove the sides from your stock bed and shorten the floor. Or was the bed free?

[N2TRUX]

I agree with USSkoval. The added length along with a short bed is going to give some awkward proportions. If your set on adding to the cab I would consider cutting down the long bed. Once you lift it it will look better if longer.

[(541)COLD_beer]

i'm not pulling the bed sides off the bed... i'm pulling them out about 3''
or so just above the rear wheels. heres a pic 0f my 01 that i did it to.
and yes i got the bed and cab for free. i wanted to cut a long bed down so
that i could fit a dirt bike in the bed with the tail gate shut, about 85'' on
the inside of the bed but not sure if i have time to do it all. i have to
move it out of the shop and into a dirt field before the end of the month
plus i have to move everything out of the shop and everything out of our house as well.

and as far as adding to the cab its just an idea for right now but i do love how much room is in the back of those dodge mega cabs. but they look funny though with the bed being under 6' not sure how long they are. but i know what you guys are saying about looks and i will just have to see what it looks like when its up there. and with the right seats i think i can gain the room im looking for

cant blame me for trying

[USSkoval]

OK, I see now. How did you do that with the bed sides? Cut the wheel house loose, jack it out, then weld in a strip of metal to make up the difference?

[(541)COLD_beer]

yup, that's exactly what i did. but i'm not sure what its going to look like
on this body style... cause of the crease going down the the bed. i'll give
it a shot though, if it ever stops raining.

[(541)COLD_beer]

so heres a pic that my wife helped me photo shop... my new thoughts are cutting the back of the cab off down the center of the rear doors and adding about 9''. so that the rear door is the same length as the front. i can get a donor cab for a good price and i'll cut that one 9'' longer and put it up and see how it looks. im not sure if im going to use a short bed or a long bed cut down to 85'' id? what do think of the looks?




new pic

[geod919]

Don't cut up that poor cab!
Give it to me, and you can have mine, haha.

[ahsom79vette]

I think you should leave it the way it is and just restore it & add your 20"s. There arn't many of those crew cab 4x4 duallys, w/diesel titles- around. But then again you never have listened to me!!!

[(541)COLD_beer]

i do what i want!!!

[(541)COLD_beer]

think it might look better if i take about 2'' out of the rear doors and cab on the photo shop pic?

[N2TRUX]

Here's a quick and dirty with paint. This is what I would do but go single wheel. This would be much easier than cuttingdoors, making custom glass, etc.

I would stretch the back of the cab just enough to get the space you want. I would use the long bed and take a section from in front of the wheels to balance the length of the bed. The key to pulling this off is getting your proportion right.

[(541)COLD_beer]

Originally Posted by N2TRUX

Here's a quick and dirty with paint. This is what I would do but go single wheel. This would be much easier than cuttingdoors, making custom glass, etc.

I would stretch the back of the cab just enough to get the space you want. I would use the long bed and take a section from in front of the wheels to balance the length of the bed. The key to pulling this off is getting your proportion right.

thats what i was going to do in the first place but i keep changing my mind on what i want... heres a new pic i made

[ratty 46]

I think that cab stretch would be quite the undertaking. I'd hesitate unless I'd had some experience with that type work before. That's not just patch'n a panel!!

But ..... on the other hand ... you gotta learn some how. Why not on your own truck. GOD knows your friends won't let you do it to theirs!!!!!

Best of luck.

Ratty 46

[ahsom79vette]

Wana trade? I got a really nice FORD ud like!!!

[Daniellane]

u looking to do something like this?

[(541)COLD_beer]

im going to need a lot of beer for this one

[(541)COLD_beer]

ya... i love that truck... my fiberglass converts the front to mid 90s though and i cant afford rear glass but it should look good when done