47-59 Help Please - 4x4 S10 swap questions

[JayB22]

Hi, I'm new to the forum and I'm hoping someone here can help clear the fog. It seems almost every idea I have turns into something very complicated or just doesn't seem to work. I've spent hours and hours searching google and these boards for answers and haven't found the answers I'm looking for so I'm hoping someone here can help point me in the right direction.

I recently bought a 49 Chev 3800 from a family friend that had some health issues and needed some money. I wasn't planning on taking on a project like this, but the opportunity was there and here I am.

Given the truck I have is 137" Wheelbase (9' bed) I have searched all over for a donor frame for the swap and haven't had any luck finding something that would work. I got a 4x4 S10 frame locally that was the only one I could find. It is a extended cab truck so it has the 122" WB. I am very hesitant to extend the frame 17" to match the truck for structural concerns so I've finally convinced myself to cut the bed down to fit. I'll end up with approx 7'7" of bed space still which I don't mind as it also saves me chopping up the frame. I do realize how rare the 9' bed trucks are and hopefully I wont get roasted too bad for cutting it down.

For my drivetrain I was really hoping to use the 4x4 as I live in Alberta Canada and thought it could be handy. The farther I dive into this rabbit hole the more I'm realizing that just isn't a good idea. Not only is the Transmission just the T5, but having the transfer case in it really seems to make fitment a giant issue. I have sourced a really good deal on a low mile, 5.3LS out of a 2016 truck that was in a accident. The more I think on it the more I'd like to make this work. Given it's light weight and HP abilities I think it could really make this truck fun to drive. Now here is my concerns.

The 4x4 width and ride height really seems like it would give the truck a nice stance so I'm trying to exhaust all my options before scrapping this frame entirely.

I've seen how you can cutup the CV axles and use them as stub shafts to hold all the wheel bearings etc into place. I then could remove all of the 4x4 parts including the transmission and clean it up. If I were to do this, would this allow me enough space for the LS motor to drop in without having to mess with the oil pan etc? Is there any other concerns from doing this outside of worrying about the wheel bearings etc falling out? I don't want to force it to make this work if it is going to be a huge pain or if it will be unsafe. But I also live in the country and drive gravel everyday no matter what so I don't want this to be lowered down to the ground and the truck is as close to being rust free as these things seem to be so I wasn't planning on doing any body work and just leaving the patina how it is.

I got the frame with brake booster, pedals, steering column, drivetrain and everything for $300 and I'm really trying to make this somewhat a budget build, without taking too many short cuts.

Any advice or opinions would be greatly appreciated. I don't get offended easily and am open to learn from those who have been here before.

Thanks for your time.