Frame Off 72' Blazer Restoration

[atvpro]

Finishing up the rust repair on the seat mount.

[ChuckDriver]

Cool build!

[Chulisohombre]

That's a clean repair there. Can't tell it was touched. Except the fresh paint of course.

[1972CST]

What would be the pros and cons of boxing an original frame compared to using a cut down 3/4 ton frame?

I thought the 3/4 ton used 56" rear springs instead of 52"?

The weak frame seems to be a plague to these first gen K5's.

Awesome upgrades! Great informative build!

[txgp17]

Originally Posted by 1972CST

What would be the pros and cons of boxing an original frame compared to using a cut down 3/4 ton frame?

I pondered this also.

[atvpro]

Originally Posted by 1972CST

What would be the pros and cons of boxing an original frame compared to using a cut down 3/4 ton frame?

I thought the 3/4 ton used 56" rear springs instead of 52"?

The weak frame seems to be a plague to these first gen K5's.

Awesome upgrades! Great informative build!

The problem with boxing in makes it harder to keep things original and if you think about all the cross members, the brake cable, and mounting rods and etc. The really nice thing about the way I have done this is you can't tell it was done.

The only difference between the 3/4 ton conversion and the original frame is thickness and fishplate you can't even see which because of where the fishplate is located makes it even stronger exactly where it needs to be.

When this project is all finished I don't think anybody will be able to tell the difference unless I told them.

[atvpro]

These pictures show the process - start to finish - of repairing a rusted out area of the rear of the bed on the 72' K5 project.

[atvpro]

More rust repair. This is a little spot underneath the passenger front seat.

[gringoloco]

Good work here. Watching...

[juicer25]

Looks great! I'd love to come by and check out your operation sometime.

[lowrodderchev]

that's some great work on those patch jobs

[caseymp2001]

I trust everything ATVPRO does have seen his work first hand with me being there to help. This is the reason I trust ATVPRO to do my work while I am away overseas. While dropping off my Blazer he handed me the keys to the green and white crew cab told me to take it home. If you’re looking for a shop to do any kind of work I would take it to ATVPRO. I could have spent my hard earned money on a blazer already “restored” and hope I know what is hiding underneath. This way I know what I am getting and everything has been documented and is up to my standard. This has been a hassle free experience while being deployed to Afghanistan. If you have any other questions feel free and PM me so we can keep this build thread on track.

[atvpro]

Very important engine building tech tip:

For those of you that are restoring a motor you probably will be using your stock cast iron intake manifold. More times than not most guys have it boiled, sometime bead blasted, than just repaint, this is what you are missing.

[Chulisohombre]

That's a lot of gunk under there.

[gringoloco]

What do you use to re-attach the heat shield?

[JMac11]

Most of the time the pins are reuseable, I have threaded and loctited screws in too. Remove them by tapping a thin flat chisel under them and they ease right out.

[oldschool18]

very nice build you got going on there.

[caseymp2001]

Just a small update.

[Dean'smeanmachine]

cool build

[ChuckDriver]

Making any progress here?

[HARDCORECASH]

Also curious how this build is going.....

[atvpro]

Finally getting pieces out of the paint.

[IronCanine]

Originally Posted by atvpro

Finally getting pieces out of the paint.

Nice...the older pics don't seem to come up in your threads anymore...if I remember correctly, wasn't this a bronze truck originally? Love the blue and it looks great...the bronze Blazers are looking good to me lately, so that may have altered my recollection.

[Chulisohombre]

That's a pretty blue. Looks pretty close to the stock baby blue. I went slightly darker on mine with true blue.

[atvpro]

Originally Posted by IronCanine

Nice...the older pics don't seem to come up in your threads anymore...if I remember correctly, wasn't this a bronze truck originally? Love the blue and it looks great...the bronze Blazers are looking good to me lately, so that may have altered my recollection.

Yes it was originally bronze.