Momma's Grocery Getter Suburban Project

[kerber63]

Uppers after blasting and etching.

[kerber63]

Lowers after blasting and etching.

[kerber63]

Uppers after por15.

[kerber63]

Lowers after por15. It was a successful day.

[chad64chevy]

that por-15 stuff is some really great stuff I got 7-4oz. cans and a quart, also I got a gal. of metal prep and marine clean! I really should try using the stuff

[kerber63]

Originally Posted by chad64chevy

that por-15 stuff is some really great stuff I got 7-4oz. cans and a quart, also I got a gal. of metal prep and marine clean! I really should try using the stuff

A little goes a long way. I got a gallon of the metal ready, only used a couple ounces to do the control arms. I'm going to use it on everything I can - how else am I going to get rid of it all?

[66chevy43]

wow that cleaned up real nice. Looking good.

[kerber63]

Got some new parts today! 2 1/2" drop spindles with 6 lug discs and loaded calipers. I've blasted the spindles to get rid of the oily residue they were boxed in, etching and por15 will happen tomorrow. Check out the calipers - eeeeek! gold. We'll definitely be getting some caliper paint for those things.

[kerber63]

Also on the agenda for tomorrow will be etching and painting front and rear sway bars. The front came off a late 70's 3/4 ton - 1 1/16" , and the rear came off a late 80's camaro - 7/8".

[kerber63]

Got the spindles blasted and etched, then painted.

[kerber63]

Along with other miscellaneous stuff.

[kerber63]

Next up to tackle is the front crossmember.

[kerber63]

I tore the upper perches off the crossmember and got everything all cleaned up. More por15 for those then I bolted it all back together. I also sanded the frame and cleaned it, then laid down por15 there too.

[kerber63]

Got everything greased up and popped the rotors on and set up. No calipers yet until I get bigger wheels to clear them. I used some furniture dollies to roll the whole setup under the frame so I could keep the whole thing from rolling around the spindles and slamming into the ground. It wasn't too hard to get done by myself. Bolted everything to the frame and a complete suspension swap is done.

[kerber63]

FYI, the frame had to have the lower forward UCA holes elongated to mate the '72 setup. Everything else lined up perfect.

[kerber63]

Here's a good before and after.

[kerber63]

Well it's been a while since I've done any work on this beast. I changed jobs and moved to Salem at the end of summer. It's been parked under my carport since then, waiting for me to make time for it. I've been keeping my eyes open for any parts I can collect until I can focus more energy on it. I picked up a nice little 5.3 ls last night - torn apart and missing a couple pieces, but for $180 I couldn't pass it up. So for the time being, I've got a starting point for a power plant.

[chad64chevy]

you sound like me, I haven't done anything to mine in a while either! even thou I have a garage its not insulated and winter is pretty much here too! I moved in march of last yr. now the wife wants to move again to a lil bit bigger house, and it's put a hold on thing as well!!

[kerber63]

Wow, it’s only been 3 years since an update! I decided that it was time to start making some progress, so I lifted the body off the frame. I had some rebar laying around without a use, so I welded it up and put some casters on to make a body cart.

[kerber63]

With the body off, there was no excuse to not work on the frame. I cut every rivet off, removed all crossmembers, and stripped and acid washed everything. Then I painted every piece individually with por15 and reassembled.

[kerber63]

While I had the rear end out, I opened it up to see how much work it needed. I was pleasantly surprised to find the ring and pinion had clear paint marks on them. Shortly before the PO decided to stop driving the rig, they must have had a shop do a rebuild on it - open 3.73s in excellent shape. When I pulled the axles I found that repair bearings were being used. So I didn’t touch the gears, but installed a set of new axles from moser.

[kerber63]

Disc brakes on the rear were the next step. I got a conversion setup from captainfab and went to work. More por15 on the brackets, then installation was a breeze. I drilled the axle flanges for 1/2” studs while I was at it.

[kerber63]

That brings us up to current. I spent yesterday and today working on the passenger floor rust. PO was a whiz with fiberglass. Too bad they weren’t concerned with fixing anything or preventing future rust.

[kerber63]

Im getting my patch panels from truck and car shop. The footwell panel was a perfect fit. The inner rocker/floorboard was pretty close, but off enough to have to cut it. The rear floor pans have a flat step that the pickups don’t have, so I cut out the sloped area. I cut the remainder in half to properly align the panel between the front and rear cab supports.

[kerber63]

I’ll be replacing the rest of the floorboard as well with pieces of 18ga sheet metal. I get a good deal through my work, I can get enough flat sheet to do the entire floor for less than $10. We’ll see how it goes.