78 K20 modernization project

[68 TT]

I had been mulling over my plans to change the 78 K20 to an overdrive automatic, installing a newer motor, converting it to EFI and upgrading it to power windows & locks and adding sport mirrors to it.

The truck has been so reliable and solid I had second thoughts about tearing it apart. I found a 74 K10 on CL for a reasonable amount of money that was missing the drive train.

I picked it up on Thursday and it came with an extra front clip and another set of axles & tires attached to the Blazer they were on because the kid didn't feel like taking them off of it to give me what was in the ad.

The 74 is a bare cab with nothing under the dash but it had factory A/C so it will be much easier to install than putting A/C into my heater only 78 K20. It also has the auto trans 4x4 tunnel so I won't have to fill that hole where the shifter goes through on the K20 and it has a sliding rear window the K20 also does not have.

The Blazer floors are really rusty and it has had some metal fatigue issues in the door jambs so I am just going to part it out and put the best stuff from the two onto the 74 K10 and scrap the rest of it. I thought about making it an off road beater with all the serviceable parts that come off of the other two trucks but don't feel like spending the money to make it safe to drive or put a drive train into it.

One of the clips that came with the new acquisition is a near perfect 70's vintage set that is painted exactly like my 78 K20 so that will be going onto the 78 to fix the damaged driver side fender and cancer infected passenger side fender. I may take the driver side door off of the Blazer to put onto the K20 if my attempt to straighten out the damaged edge on the current one doesn't turn out.

Pics of the clip swap on the 78 K20 to follow after I get the K10 and K5 merged into one and the carnage cleaned up.