'97 Chevy Tahoe (2dr/2wd) mild custom

[likaroc13]

Figured I'd start a thread for my Hoe. A little back ground info first:

I purchased it from fellow member Sydwayz (aka Brian), who is(was) a more routine member on Fullsizechevy.com. I came across the Tahoe while doing a search on FSC. I posted in a thread about a 2dr Hoe I found on Auto Trader. Amongst the forum discussion, Brian mentioned he'd consider selling his. At the time, I had a '93 S-10 that I was trying to sell. I couldn't make any moves until it sold. However, I went ahead and got a little background info from Brian just in case I'd have the opportunity to buy the Hoe. Since it wasn't being advertised (only offered to me), that worked out great. Luckily for me, my S-10 ended up selling in early January 2013. I called up Brian soon after to discuss more in-depth. After acquiring more detailed pics & continued conversation, I felt comfortable enough to strike a potential deal. My wife and I rented a van to help with hauling extra parts, & we headed off on a road trip to Virginia. Upon arrival, I found the Hoe to look just as great as I'd hoped. After the test drive & look-over, there wasn't much question as to whether it was coming home with me to SC! Brian & his girlfriend were such hospitable folks. He even put us up for the night at Marriott & let me store the Hoe in his shop overnight. The next day my wife and I picked up the Hoe & set out on our return trip to Charleston. At the time we left, the Hoe had approximately 71,500 original miles.

It might not be much of a build thread considering this is my daily driver, but I'll try to document any changes that are made. I don't really have any extreme plans since most of the hard work has been done. I just plan to do a few subtle things to "make it my own."

Here's a couple older threads Brian had posted to give you a little more info:

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=370023

http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=373179


Leaving VA, headed for it's new home in SC:

[likaroc13]

Suspension specs are 4/6 drop with 2" DJM spindles & 2" Belltech springs up front; the rear has a 6" flip kit with helper air bags. The wheels are BOSS 338's in 18x8" all around, & the tires are Cooper Zeon 235/55/18 all around. I really wish the front wheels had more backspacing as the wider track width is noticeable. Also, I still have the steel, staggered 15" Vette rally wheels. My intention is to eventually get new tires for them & use them a few months or so during each year.

Few pics here, with additional ones at the link below:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9854319...7634732650277/

[likaroc13]

After our trip home, it was my goal to get some extra lighting in the rear. The taillights are tinted, make visibility lower during the daylight. I did a little searching for LED light bars & came up with an inexpensive, temporary solution. I purchased an IPCW light bar from Amazon. The first one that arrived wasn't equipped with the reverse light like I ordered, so I sent it back. When the new one came in, I tested the reverse light right away. Assuming everything was good, I finished getting everything into place. Since this was made for a truck, I had to remove the attachment tabs to allow it to sit flush on my roll pan. I attached some 3M double-sided tape to the back & bottom of the light bar to ensure it would remain in place. I also had to notch the plastic a bit to allow the driver's side barn door to close. After all was said & done, I tested it out. Some bozo didn't wire the darn thing correctly from the factory. When I use the right turn signal or brake, the reverse light comes on as well. I opted to just leave it as-is for now, & I'll spend a few bucks on a nicer unit next time.

Part # for the light bar:


Light bar in-box:


Notched plastic:

[likaroc13]

Here's a pic of the rear with the LED light bar installed:

[dragginmetal]

Black is a good color for a Tahoe. Looks real clean. I like the knock-offs on the rims also. That's a nice touch.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by dragginmetal

Black is a good color for a Tahoe. Looks real clean. I like the knock-offs on the rims also. That's a nice touch.

Thanks. Yeah the knock-offs were Brian's idea. When I picked it up, it had the original BOSS caps that he had painted black. I think he said some guys were giving him a hard time about them (knock-offs), so that's why he switched back. However, I like the touch of old school flavor they give. I put them back on shortly after getting it home.

[dragginmetal]

They do give it a old school flavor. Reminds me of when i used to play with wire rims. Early 90's when the reverse offset on lowpro 50 series BFGs tires were every where.

[likaroc13]

The next thing I did was install my front tag. While I'm only 31, I still lean more towards the old school stuff. I had some pinstriping done on my old '93 C-1500, some of which incorporated the Von Dutch flying eye. I knew I wanted something similar for my Tahoe, so I started brainstorming. After thinking & researching, I was able to find a guy on Etsy that had a vinyl graphics business. His site showed a pic of a flying eye decal, so I inquired about it. After determining the dimensions would work, I also found a company on Etsy selling blank tags. Since I couldn't find one locally, I had them ship me a solid black, blank metal tag. I then mated the two together & cleared over the whole thing.

This was the result before installation:

[dragginmetal]

That looks good. You plan to get some stripes on on the tahoe also. Or just leave it at the tag?

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by dragginmetal

That looks good. You plan to get some stripes on on the tahoe also. Or just leave it at the tag?

Funny you ask. I do have something in mind & have been debating for a while now. I've been a little hesitant, as I don't want to mess up the clean look it has. However, I have something subtle in mind that I think would break up the black nicely & fit the hot rod look I love.

I had a guy pinstripe my old '63 Beetle when we lived in Pensacola, FL. He was friends with the lady I got the Beetle from, & he came down from Kentucky to visit. He does killer work. After moving here to Charleston, I found out that there's a guy relatively local that does striping. After seeing his work in person on some of the local street rods, customs, & such, it's obvious he's great at what he does as well. So, I've been a little torn on who to have do the work. The guy from KY will be at Goodguys Charlotte next weekend, but I'm not quite ready. I really want to get some paint correction work done to remove some fine scratches & swirls from washing/drying through the years. So, I'm now leaning towards just having the local guy perform his magic when the timing is right.

[dragginmetal]

Well which ever way you go be sure to update the thread. I'm interested in seeing the outcome.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by dragginmetal

Well which ever way you go be sure to update the thread. I'm interested in seeing the outcome.

For sure! Hopefully I'll have something done by the end of the year or shortly thereafter.

[YBNORML]

Sweet Tahoe! I love those 2drs

[OARNGESI]

really clean

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by YBNORML

Sweet Tahoe! I love those 2drs

Thanks, me too! A guy at my high school had a white one lowered 3/4 on 17" Torq Thrusts, & it sparked my interest way back then.

Originally Posted by OARNGESI

really clean

Thank you!

[likaroc13]

By the way, it has the original engine (5.7 Vortec). Nothing special except a K&N filter. It has Magnaflow dual in/single out exhaust. I'd like to have a slightly larger diameter Y-pipe fabbed & tucked up higher & eventually "upgrade" the cats. My '93 C-1500 had lots of goodies, but I plan to keep this one mostly stock for a while. Maybe someday it'll get a LS swap.

This is a pic the PO took, but it still looks the same:

[likaroc13]

So, I discovered that my center console rear cup holder wouldn't shut snugly. While not a huge deal, I just didn't want mine to rattle. Not to mention, I'm a little OCD & a stickler for small details. I had to do a little brainstorming to figure out a cure. This is what I was dealing with:

[likaroc13]

My solution: I went to Home Depot & bought a couple different styles of small magnets. I also bought a small magnetic type cabinet latch/fastener, which would be used as my first attempted solution. Here's a link to the type of magnet I used. Of course I modified it a bit as you'll read below. The link is for a pack of them, but I think the single magnet I bought was less than $1:
http://www.homedepot.com/p/Amerock-M...0#.Umc-PhClqjN


In this first pic, I used the metal "strike plate" piece from the magnetic catch. Since my Dremel is only battery operated, it doesn't last long. It wasn't charged anyway, so I painstakingly hand filed it down to the size I needed. Then I wedged it it to the area you see. It was snug against the edge of the cup holder, but I hot glued it to secure it.



In this second pic, I cut that little tab off that originally slid into the grooves to hold the cup holder closed. After cutting, I filed the remaining plastic down using both my hand file & Dremel with sanding tool, leaving just a small lip. I didn't pull the console insert to snap a pic from the inside. I think I ended up trimming a little bit of the plastic just rear of that tab I mentioned, just so the magnet would sit flush. Then, I ended up cutting away the plastic casing to remove the two magnets inside the magnetic catch. I only used one of them as you see in the pic, flush with the inner side of the console edge & positioned slightly forward of the lip I filed down where the tab was previously. I also hot glued it to secure it in place.



And here's a pic of it shut after completion. As you can see, it does shut snugly now. My initial thoughts were to look into getting a stronger magnet someday, as it doesn't take much effort to open. However, I haven't had it pop open yet. So, I decided I'm not gonna mess with it unless it becomes an issue.

[JWall]

Good looking Tahoe!

Nice fix on the consoles rear cup holder... I've had a few consoles with that same issue.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by JWall

Good looking Tahoe!

Nice fix on the consoles rear cup holder... I've had a few consoles with that same issue.

Thanks! Yeah, I'm sure it's a common problem. It didn't make sense to replace an otherwise near mint condition console to fix the issue, so I had to come up with something.

[likaroc13]

Here's a couple pics of my "Chevy Only" decal courtesy of the one and only Dino. I debated on where to install it, as I also had a white colored decal as well. I thought about the white one on the rear barn door window corner, however I'd need something for the opposite side to balance it out. I also like the blacked out look of the rear, & the white decal would've detracted from that. So, I opted for the black for subtlety. It's not too obvious in the lower windshield corner, but the "right" folks will notice it.

[likaroc13]

Something I've been debating & thought I'd ask opinions on, is whether to keep the billet grille as-is or have it powder coated gloss black? I know you can buy them that way too, so I'm not sure which would be the cheaper route. I had also thought about keeping it as-is & adding a black billet bowtie to the grille center; or I could also go completely one-off & use some type of emblem from a classic Chevy car/truck. Btw, the billet grille is currently just brushed aluminum.

Nothing I'm in a hurry to do, but any thoughts/ideas are appreciated.

[dragginmetal]

I kind of like the idea of a black billet bowtie, but a black grille insert would match the rims. Chrome ring with a black center.

[likaroc13]

Originally Posted by dragginmetal

I kind of like the idea of a black billet bowtie, but a black grille insert would match the rims. Chrome ring with a black center.

Yes, exactly what I was thinking if doing the black billet grille insert. The chrome ring would stay the same. I tried to look for an example once before, but I can't remember if I found anything. I'll do another search & post the pic if I come up with something.

[likaroc13]

Ordered a set of these today:
http://streetsceneeq.com/product_popup.asp?id=605&img=1

A guy that works with my dad does paint/body on the side, & he'll be painting them for me. Gonna pick them up when I visit my hometown for the Christmas holiday. Should be able to get them installed sometime around the beginning of the new year.

If anybody is in the market for the factory mirrors, let me know. They'll be up for sale once these are installed.