Few questions - 83 c10 - drop ?, seat ?, etc

[pitchblack86]

alright, here is a strange update. decided to finish with the drivers bump stop. finally got it off. jacked up the pumpkin and took out the jack stand and put tire back on. looked at leaf, its back to normal. jacked back up, stayed like it should.

wtf?

took it out for a VERY slow ride, everything is fine. went a little faster(40) everything is fine. went 75 everything is fine, no shifting or clunking or loose feeling. went forward and reverse. drove over a rough ass road and hit pot holes, no banging or hitting or clunking. i know ubolts are slightly too big(new 3'' ones come tomorrow) but nothing was moving or shifting. even tried my luck and laid some nice rubber down lol. everything seems to be fine.

pulled out the front bumps(i know i'm an idiot) and JHILDE you were correct, they needed to be flipped and changed to the other fender. cut off the last 2 bumper bolts and drilled holes for the roll pan.

so looks like everything is going well right now. alignment tomorrow, hopefully swap the ubolts, reposition the exhaust(still rattles and rubs alittle), install the factory rubber bumps on the front, paint the new spindles(i was in a rush it was getting near 10pm and way past dark), and hopefully can score some free or cheap tires to throw on the truck. the GINORMOUS 30's rub very nicely lol.

new pics up as soon as i finish up a few things and get the pan on the back. hopefully the little bit of body work it needs is finished this week(plan on shaving all the moldings/filling the holes, pulling the pass mirror and filling, cutting and welding in new patches behind the rear wheels and sanding the roll pan). hopefully i can figure out what color to paint it and buy the paint and get it sprayed by the end of the month.

i'm pretty broke right now and trying to score a set of cheap rally rims(like i see a lot of members on here running) but havent had any luck on finding any. called 7 junkyards and they dont have any.

anyone got any they want to let go for cheap?

[pitchblack86]

a few questions for you guys.

what is a good backspace and tire size to run? prefer the truck rallys because they are cheap and i like the plain look of them.

anyone have a build thread or info on doing a auto to stick swap in these trucks? i'm looking to do either a 4speed swap or 5 speed swap. unsure of what trans i can use, what factory driveshaft(if any) will fit, and what crossmember.

anyone have a build or info on how to change your gear ratio and install a locker in a 10 bolt?

how hard is it to change the back cab window from a slider to a one piece?

anyone have a build thread on how to convert the front end over to a burb front end? i lost my favorites and the links i had saved, now after searching for an hour i cant find anything on the how to.

think thats it for now. soon as i get my hands on a 454 thats going in too. for me its all about money. spend around 700 for a decent 454 and have great power/torque or spend around 500 for a 350 and drop 2000 into it for the similar of a BB. of course mpg will be junk, but... was entertaining the idea of a 5.3 or 6.0 swap but is way out of my league and price is a big issue there.

on the hunt for truck rallys, decent tires, either a 3:42 or 3:73 posi rear(or all required to do mine), a good 350 or 454. definitely entertaining the idea of throwing 350 in there for the time being just to get a little more grunt out of the truck, the 305 is one of the worst sbc made(reliable like you wouldnt believe but a dog)

[pitchblack86]

was not able to contact sport truck direct today, just kept ringing. try again tomorrow.

the shock bushings are completely gone on the front shocks. so the shocks are loose. will the stock shock bushings fit into these new shocks?

i've put shocks in before, so i'm not an idiot there, but have never had bushings just crumble apart before. extremely unhappy with doetsch tech shocks. will try to exchange them or atleast get new bushings sent. ridiculous.

no alignment yet, no exhaust work done, and thats where it sits. appointment on thursday at friends shop 40 miles away. should be fine to drive there. after about 20 miles of driving, its really eating up the front tires, especially the pass one. no matter, theyre getting yanked off and 225/55 are going on the front for now, til i can pick up some truck rally's. still no luck on finding any.

[pitchblack86]

finally got thru with STD, and here is what they said:

ok...couldnt tell much from the pics.but the ubolts that are spose to be with the kit are 5/8-18x3 1/4x8

the 3" ubolts are for mini trucks .. like S10 pickup

you did order this kit in june of 2009.

we sell ubolts...they

ALL MINI TRUCKS (#2061) 1/2-20 x 3 1/8 x 10

ALL 1/2 TON TRUCKS (#2062) 5/8-18 x 3 1/4 x8

ALL 1 TON TRUCKS (#2063) 5/8-18 x 3 3/4 x 9 1/4

HOPE THAT CAN HELP YOU OUT

he told me i have the correct ubolts for the truck...
front shock bushings are toast, have no idea why? wonder if my stock shocks bushings will work in there? well for now, its dropped and running stock shocks front and back. alignment tomorrow, finally, getting exhaust tweaked a bit, and looks like the tires are going to be put on.

one problem i've seen so far, the bumps are out front and back(how the hell do you get those rubber bumps back in the control arm?), so i know its not hitting there. when i push(jump my fat ass on the bed) nothing hits on the pass side, front or back. nothing on the drivers front, but something seems to be hitting on the rear. cannot figure out where or what it is. first thought it was the shackle hitting the bed brace, but nope, not hitting frame or axle. dont feel it or hear it when driving, but if i jump on it, i hear it.

more pics coming soon. after it gets a little more decent, looks like a redneck truck right now.

tomorrow is burnout day with old tires

[bigblock73]

On the u bolts...they are wrong. If you measure the flip kit mounts, they have a 3" diameter cut out...to cradle the axle tibes. The U-bolts have to be the same size.

They are wrong.

To get the bump stops back in the LCA, spray wd-40 or lithium grease on the rubber..it should slide in easier. I had to wrestle with one of mine after I knocked it out by accisent removing the coils spring.

[pitchblack86]

Originally Posted by bigblock73

On the u bolts...they are wrong. If you measure the flip kit mounts, they have a 3" diameter cut out...to cradle the axle tibes. The U-bolts have to be the same size.

They are wrong.

To get the bump stops back in the LCA, spray wd-40 or lithium grease on the rubber..it should slide in easier. I had to wrestle with one of mine after I knocked it out by accisent removing the coils spring.

i told the guy that my favorite forum () said that it needs to be a 3'' ubolt and he said thats crazy, thats only for s10's and the like. said the 3.5 ones i have are correct. personally, i havent seen any harm from the ones i have, but i do notice a slight gap as it doesnt fit snug against the tubes.....either way, yet another thing i get screwed on by them....bushings are crap and wrong ubolts. so hopefully tomorrow i can convince my brothers friend to change them at the shop(i hurt my hand today ) since he's doing my alignment for me tomorrow.

[glock35ipsc]

Originally Posted by pitchblack86

finally got thru with STD, and here is what they said:

he told me i have the correct ubolts for the truck...

I don't care what he thinks, they gave you the wrong bolts! They gave you 1/2" diameter bolts. According to them, they gave you mini truck bolts. The originals are 5/8" and should be replaced with 5/8". And go measure your axle tubes, they are 3".

Since you likely will not get anywhere with these clowns, head to your nearest drivetrain business and have them bend you up some 5/8" diameter, 3" ID u-bolts at the proper length. It won't cost much at all.

[pitchblack86]

had some ordered from the local napa, but when they came in, they were the wrong size also. so i'm just hoping that theres some at the shop when i get there tomorrow. just got to find a a good torque spec for them. want to make sure they are tightened evenly.

about STD, i was quite pleased with them. took only 4 days to get my parts here in NJ, but i was missing my coils, cnotch, and ubolts. coils went to wrong address, boxed was ripped and ubolts and cnotch were lost(how i have no idea, a cnotch is hugh). sent me new coils, got them 3 days later. waited 3 months to do the drop, wrong ubolts, shocks are falling apart, and not a single piece of instructions or receipt for my purchase. then talking on the phone today the guy made it seem like i was an idiot and didnt know what i was talking about....my personal recommendation...buy there spindles and coils and flip kit and cnotch. buy your own shocks from somewhere else, and buy your own hardware instead of theres. quite frustrated, and its only tiny dumb ****, but still. paid alot of money and they wont even do anything about the bushings or wrong ubolts. pretty pissed.

[glock35ipsc]

The torque spec is: as tight as you can get them. Even refers to having roughly the same amount of thread protruding past the nuts on all 4 studs, on each side.

[pitchblack86]

just want to say thanks for helping me out with this 'build'. hopefully it gets buttoned up tomorrow and can start getting ready for paint. looks like tomorrow we might get some snow, so hopefully it has to stay overnight at the shop and i can go in and cut and weld in my new patch panels for the bed and sand down the primer and paint on it lol