'72 K/30 Longhorn Conversion

[mx289]

Very nice Longhorn you have there.
And you are making great progress.

Gonna be a cool truck when it's done.

[RThree]

Hey guys!
I have been parts hunting all winter and have come up with some good stuff! I had gotten my original 4 speed transmission and 205 transfer case all cleaned up and painted when i noticed a crack, we tried to weld it but it just didn't work out so i ended up switching to a different plan.

So instead i found a 1993 NV4500 5 speed transmission with over drive and then located a new 32 spline 205 transfer case that came with the better front drive shaft that with an adapter from Advanced Adapter is working out great!

While looking around i also found a Dana 60 Rear with 356 gears and a Detroit Locker, Lucky find!

So now I am aiming to have it driving by June so that i can take it to Pismo Beach on a family trip, Wish me luck!!!

[mx289]

Truck is looking good.


Keep up the good work.

[7dee2]

Sweeeet! Any more progress?

[RThree]

Hey guys! Just got back from a much needed vacation, but now back to the grind.
I found my rear 1972 Dana 60 with 3.56 gear ratio and a stock Detroit Locker in it! Now getting it all cleaned up and sandblasted for paint.
Does anybody know about the Detroit Locker from 1972 and if/how it's different from modern Detroit Lockers?

[RThree]

Originally Posted by RThree

Hey guys! Just got back from a much needed vacation, but now back to the grind.
I found my rear 1972 Dana 60 with 3.56 gear ratio and a stock Detroit Locker in it! Now getting it all cleaned up and sandblasted for paint.
Does anybody know about the Detroit Locker from 1972 and if/how it's different from modern Detroit Lockers?

Here it is.

[Tylerz181500]

loving this so far

[RThree]

Alright! Well i was able to get ORIGINAL 1972 4x4 hangers from Tom & Thomas (DLTRUCK1973) Big shout out to them thank you so much! And thank you to Brett (7dee2) for the hook up! Here they are all prettied up and painted. Ill be mounting them up tomorrow more pics to come!

[RThree]

Well today the we took and mounted the 4x4 hangers and pretty much fixed the rear ride hight problem it might need just a little 1 inch block to totally level out as the front is still a little high with my 292 6 cylinder. It should settle into a perfect stance with the 454 when i get that worked out.

So we torched off the rivets, cleaned off the frame of the undercoating and drilled the new holes. I will be doing a bed off restore of the rear eventually so its not as pretty as i would like but that will come later.

We also worked on moving the engine and transmission forward by an inch so when i do get my 454 ready to install we will have enough clearance for the distributer cap and will be able to bolt it right onto the transmission.

[7dee2]

Tom (MX289) did beat me to the punch on the hanger suggestion as well as the vendor. And he was right it looks good that does get it really close to level!

What did you decide to do for the rear hanger, rear position? In order of least to most lift would be the stock C20-30, then 67-72 K series, then square body 4x4 using factory type hangers (each step will change the pinion angle some). Here's a link to the ORD Shackle Flip Kit http://www.offroaddesign.com/catalog/shacklekit.htm if needed.

[RThree]

Originally Posted by 7dee2

Tom (MX289) did beat me to the punch on the hanger suggestion as well as the vendor. And he was right it looks good that does get it really close to level!

What did you decide to do for the rear hanger, rear position? In order of least to most lift would be the stock C20-30, then 67-72 K series, then square body 4x4 using factory type hangers (each step will change the pinion angle some). Here's a link to the ORD Shackle Flip Kit http://www.offroaddesign.com/catalog/shacklekit.htm if needed.

To my best measurements of the 4x4 truck my father-in-law is restoring the rear hanger seems to be the same height as my C 20 rear hanger. The only thing that seems different is the reinforcement right angle bracket that sits under the frame attached to the hanger for strength. Either way for the moment I'm going to stick with my current rear axle rear hanger until I do a bed off restoration on the rear of the truck. I might swap it out if I come across one in the meantime.


sorry Tylerz181500 I'm not sure what your asking...

[Tylerz181500]

wait dso you can do that and the stock 73+ truck brackete up front as well?

[Tylerz181500]

sorry i was tired that night but to conclude, my 72 had that bracket you added from factory instead of the other one.

[David_houghton92]

Lookin good, subscribed

[ryanroo]

this is a perfect build! i love it!

[sboris]

Wow. Love this. Thats a hell of a nice truck too. I like the look.

[Ol Blue K20]

Nice, very nice. Keep it up.

[rickcdewitt]

are you going to stay with 3.54 gears with those tires? nice to see another somewhat local build,i'm up near ukiah.

[RThree]

Originally Posted by rickcdewitt

are you going to stay with 3.54 gears with those tires? nice to see another somewhat local build,i'm up near ukiah.

That's the plan, the NV4500 I put in is the early (1993) version that has a lower gear ratio so it should work out well. I'm looking for better gas mileage.

[Vintage Windmills]

subscribed, I like your project and longhorns!

[RThree]

Hey guys, I'm finally back at this project after getting distracted this last year. The big delay recently was trying to find a cross member for my 292 to sit on after taking out the 2wd front assembly it sat on previously. After poking around and being laughed at for trying to find an original 292 4wd cross member it dawned on me that it had been sitting in the yard this whole time in the original 2wd cross member.

I figured I would cut it out of the front 2wd cross member assembly and fabricate my own 4wd cross member from it. A couple cut-off wheels later and a little time in the sandblasting room i had it out and cleaned up. Then with the help of my Dad we clean up the edges ground down the factory spot welded tabs down on the inside and made it look pretty. I think it turned out pretty well!

[RThree]

This weekend the plan is to get it painted, drill the new holes and mount it in the truck so we can set the engine down on it. Once that is done we can mount the transmission and start working on driveshafts!

[nobolt]

welcome back!
i bet you're happy you didn't get rid of the front end.

[RThree]

Originally Posted by nobolt

welcome back!
i bet you're happy you didn't get rid of the front end.

Yeah I definitely am! I tried to sell it as a whole a couple times but thankfully they all fell through. But now the outer parts are back up for sale!

[rickcdewitt]

Nice simple solution for the 292 crossmember.did you decide against the 454?