83' Front Cross Member in 64' K10

[aotte1]

Trying to find information on retrofitting 1983 K10 front sway bar into a 1964 K10. Adding the front axle, PS steering gear box and steering linkage from the83' K10 to the 1964 K10. Considering adding the front sway bar too from the 83'. Lots of write-up doing this to 67 to 72s, with changed front cross member. What is best way, change the front cross member or make/add brackets to original cross member to attach sway bar to? Assume their are no interference issue in fitting it in a 1964 K10.

thanks,
Les

[andrewmp6]

The crossmember should bolt right in after you drill a hole or two,As far as the sway bar i have no idea.But you might have to rig up some brackets to hold it probably since the front of the frame horns are shaped different between the two.

[aotte1]

Andrew,
Thanks, I will do a test fit. The front cross member ( from 1983 K10) and sway bar are from the same 83' truck. The cross member mounts to brackets on crossmember that extend toward engine off of it. Will post some photos, of what it looks like.

Les

['63GENIII]

I just put a '74 sway bar in my '63. I used a piece of 2"x4"x1/8" square tube that I had laying around. My biggest concern is that it would look hokey. It turned out pretty good looking and matches the crossmembers that I installed to hang my rear mounted fuel tank (I have a few pics of those on my '63 spring swap thread). 4 bolts attach it to the frame and 4 bolts attach the sway bar to the cross member. It took about 3 hours to build it, another hour to install it and it works really good. It does not look stock but I don't think it looks rinky dink either. If you want a few pics, I'll get them tomorrow. Just let me know.

[Dsuper5]

64 suburban 4x4, 83 2500 front axle and cross member, hope this helps. I purchased a 2.5 lift spring set from Skyjacker for the 83, moved front and rear spring hangers to new location (longer springs) centered the axle and swapped everything in there including the sway-bar.

[aotte1]

63 GENIII, pictures would be helpful on how you did yours.

Dsuper5, thanks for your pictures.

63 GENIII, do think it improves drivability, would think cornering would be a lot flater

thanks,
Les

['63GENIII]

Hey Les, the cornering was never an issue before I converted the front springs to the 52" leafs. In stock form, the truck cornered really well. The front leaf packs did have an add a lift spring in each of them which I believe limited any real body roll. I think that the add a leafs are what ultimately forced me to do the conversion since it was also an incredibly bone jarring ride as well.
With the new 52" springs, the ride smoothed out considerably. I drove it for a few weeks around town before I took it on the freeway. That first time coming around a slightly off camber, wide sweeping turn at 65 mph was all it took. By that weekend, I had found a SB on CL and got new urethane bushings. It was installed by the next weekend. The cornering has improved dramatically with way less pucker and no white knuckles by the time I arrive to work. LOL. I wasn't sure how much I would gain from the 1-1/4 bar but it has proven very effective.
At the moment, its dark out so I'll try and get pics after work tomorrow.

['63GENIII]

OK Les, here are a few pics. They are not the best but hopefully convey the idea. Initially, I wanted the factory brackets to install but this turned out to be a little easier for me to source. Also there is the added benefit of having the SB running just a little closer to parallel with the springs. Im thinking that if it follows the arc of the axle as it moves up and down, it won't be as likely to fight the rearward travel of the axle thus trashing the SB bushings. IDK, either way here they are.

['63GENIII]

Please don't bust me out for my welds or the oil leaks! LOL. After finishing the back half of the truck, the front part slid way down on the priority list.