My version of the s10 swap

[BlueJeep]

For a "bolt on" solution, they mostly bolted on. I did have to grind out the spring plates a little to fit my 9/16 U bolts, not a big deal. I also had to lop off the front 4" of the overload springs for the bars to clear. All in all, they are a good product so far. They do have a very solid feeling when taking off now, and I am able to apply more skinny pedal without fear of dropping driveshaft parts out on the ground. That should make it more fun!

[99 to Life]

congrats on the miles. I agree, just use name brand stuff where you can. thanks for sharing the cal track info. I used to hate the axle wrap my truck had. its now tore down and being 4 linked etc. but this seems like a good option for leaf applications.

[BlueJeep]

Originally Posted by 99 to Life

congrats on the miles. I agree, just use name brand stuff where you can. thanks for sharing the cal track info. I used to hate the axle wrap my truck had. its now tore down and being 4 linked etc. but this seems like a good option for leaf applications.

I did entertain the idea of 4 linking it, but it's really hard to tear back down a truck that's together (sound familiar?) and I didn't want to re-do everything back there. Besides, if I did that, then I think I'd need to do wider tires, then I'd be tubbing it, and, and, and......

I decided in the end to just put more miles on it and work on other projects!

I'm getting my fabrication fix still.....

[joedoh]

congrats on the miles!

just for fun I went through the build again, its full of cool mods and great tips!

[BlueJeep]

Originally Posted by joedoh

congrats on the miles!

just for fun I went through the build again, its full of cool mods and great tips!

Thanks! I keep rolling around in my head building another one, more Joedoh style, but seem to have other projects that keep distracting me. v1.0 of this one was fun, but the tranny didn't like shifting. You saw how that snowballed into what it is now....

[joedoh]

Originally Posted by BlueJeep

more Joedoh style

drop a hammer on your foot and play tug of war with some sandpaper stapled to the wall. dump a bag of dirt on your garage floor and sweep it up every few days, and flush a couple 20s down the toilet. you can keep driving your beautiful truck and still have the joedoh experience!

[Advanced Design]

Originally Posted by joedoh

drop a hammer on your foot and play tug of war with some sandpaper stapled to the wall. dump a bag of dirt on your garage floor and sweep it up every few days, and flush a couple 20s down the toilet. you can keep driving your beautiful truck and still have the joedoh experience!

Now that is funny!

Chris, the bars were a thoughtful modification to your truck. Good reasoning there. Now, to check for updates on the wagon....

[BlueJeep]

Leaving on the Power Tour this coming Friday. Three years ago when I had finished the truck I had the cruise control wired, but it didn't work. The steering column had come from a truck I didn't drive so I couldn't verify that cruise controls worked. The cruise module came from a different truck that I also didn't drive so also couldn't verify that worked either. I finally made time to dig into it, and thanks to help from the swap section of the forum I was able to diagnose and fix it. I ended up having 2 problems, the switch on the column didn't work and since I have LED taillights I didn't have enough resistance for it to work. I replaced the switch, and then wired the coil of a relay into my brake system and now the cruise works wonderfully!

16 hour drive to NC will be much more enjoyable now!

[Desert1957]

I love this build thread, but have you considered this "Scrub Line" you have created. I was always told never have your rim edge above your scrub line. If a tire blows out at high speed, you will be dragging suspension parts causing possible lack of control. If you think I'm wrong on this, PLEASE school me on what is correct.

[paintman]

What he said^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

[Dan in Pasadena]

Originally Posted by BlueJeep

...Now for the upgrade... After evaluating many options, and understanding that I want to spend my time working on my station wagon project, I decided to go with a "bolt on" solution and ordered up some CalTracs bars. They don't hang too low, but they do hang lower than the rim so if I blow a tire the bars will drag on the ground. I may have to swap out my springs for some 2" drop springs in the future and get rid of the blocks.

Blue Jeep answered your concern on page 26.

I JUST read this entire thread and man oh man, I am impressed. I WISH I had the skills to do this kind of work.

Curious, what kind of brushable epoxy are you using inside all those rocker repairs?

[Desert1957]

Originally Posted by Dan in Pasadena

Blue Jeep answered your concern on page 26.

I JUST read this entire thread and man oh man, I am impressed. I WISH I had the skills to do this kind of work.

Curious, what kind of brushable epoxy are you using inside all those rocker repairs?

Sorry I missed that post, just trying to keep everyone safe.

[BlueJeep]

Correct, I had a disclaimer earlier on. And, the reality of it is, the scrub line you drew is not likely to be accurate. For that to be the case, both rear tires would have to blow at the same time. A more realistic picture would be like this and would extend from the outside edge of the rim, to the contact patch of the tire on the opposite side. Either way, since it's on the rear it isn't likely to cause an out of control situation.

[BlueJeep]

One more power tour in the books! The addition of cruise control was delightful, and made the drive so much more comfortable since I could move my leg around and it wasn't stuck to the pedal. 3,659 miles for us, and that included a detour on the way home to Boy Scout camp in Wisconsin. It was definitely the coolest temps and most precipitation we've had on a Power Tour in the 5 years we've been doing the long haul. Over 21k miles on the truck now!

[BlueJeep]

It wasn't without issue though. On Friday morning, on the route in Indiana about a mile from the Ohio border we were in a low spot next to a grove of trees. A deer popped out of the trees in front of us and we got him. We had to do a field repair at the venue that day and wedge a rag behind the headlight bucket to get the new light to point at least somewhat forward instead of down (Thanks for the help Tim!). It doesn't photograph well, but the bottom of the headlight bucket is pushed back about 2", the top of the grill leans back, and the wheel well is puckered out. Hood escaped damage except for paint rubbing with the now tight gaps. Could have been worse, I was still able to drive it home.

[BlueJeep]

And here's the end of the trip, boy was tired of the sun and tripled up on the sunglasses. Also a pic from scout camp, with the period-correct looking tents that we stayed in.

[BlueJeep]

Originally Posted by Dan in Pasadena

Blue Jeep answered your concern on page 26.

I JUST read this entire thread and man oh man, I am impressed. I WISH I had the skills to do this kind of work.

Curious, what kind of brushable epoxy are you using inside all those rocker repairs?

Thanks! I just mix up the SPI epoxy primer in a cup, let it induce, and brush it on. Easy as that!

[oldman3]

That deer wreck brings back memories of mine, glad it wasn't any worse...Jim

[99 to Life]

very very cool, minus the deer. glad it wasn't worse and you guys are safe.

[joedoh]

congrats on the tour! sorry to hear about the deer though

[mongocanfly]

Congrats on the long haul....dang deer!!....what is it?...do yall have a bullseye on the driver side fender?.Jim and now you....
.now you'll have to get back on the wagon...