S10 Swap how to

[dsraven]

Iwould say you should keep that cross member if you can. it is likely there for frame strength and to keep the frame from twisting from the stress of the torsion bars. the torsion bar cross member is only connected to the bortom frame flange and it carries the weight of whatever the front suspension is carrying. that cross member is connected to the bottom and top frame flange. I would notch it like joedoh's pic shows rather than remove it. manufacturers don't spend money on stuff they could do without. if it really needs to go then build another one that does the same function and install it behind the torsion bar cross member maybe, then remove that one. that way that cross member will keep the frame from "springing" until the new one is in place.

[JayB22]

I think I’m going to give it a try to just notch the cross member and see how that works. I’ve got a few ideas on ways to fabricate some additional bracing if required.

I also wanted to give a huge thank you to everyone that’s contributed in this thread and the one that I started asking some questions about a 4x4 swap. Using the body mount ideas and input everyone’s given I was able to get my body mounts built and tacked into place. I set the body on and loosely bolted the fenders on and the fitment looks great. This thread has really helped me get a more clear direction on how to get started with this swap.

[dsraven]

looks great. you got lots done in a short time. next I would fit the hood just to make sure the rad support is at the correct height and everything it square. the hood is hard enough to fit on a stock truck let alone a frame swap.
post up a few more pics as you go

[Father&son56project]

I am currently working out little bugs in my S10 swap, and I believe I am down to one last thing. I'm running a stock '96 S10 wiring harness (thinned out to remove warning lights, seatbelt sensors, radio system, ABS, etc) and whenever I go past 50 mph I get a steady, low volume, high pitched "beep beep beep beep.....". As soon as I drop below 50 it goes away. I can't drive it and crawl under the dash to find the source at the same time, and I can't find any obvious source of the noise when I look under the dash. Does anyone know what the source of the phantom beep might be?

[joedoh]

its your aftermarket speedometer, most have a speed alarm option and it seems like yours is turned on. check the manual for how to turn it off!

[Father&son56project]

Yeah.......that was it.......

[joedoh]

been there!

[Father&son56project]

S10 swap economics

My build has reached the point where I have a safe, running driving truck that has passed a safety check and is licenced & on the road. I thought I'd detail what the S10 swap cost me to do as many people may be weighing their options, especially in cases where money is a major concern. I posted my build (Project Fargolet) on this forum because this is the single most detailed S10 swap site on the web and I received a ton of help from the great members here. This is just an FYI for anyone interested in the actual cost of doing this swap. Note that these are the costs that I incurred, and every case will be different. Also, I am in Canada where parts prices are easily double those in the States.

Here’s the breakdown (let’s assume we are starting with an old truck that we already have. I won’t include this in the price as every case is different and we need to compare apples with apples). I happened to start with a ‘47 Fargo but it really makes no difference what the truck is.

S10 Donour vehicle: $1500 Canadian (that’s $1168 US Dollars)

I paid a little more for a low mileage, rust free 1996 S10 and it was worth every penny.


Parts for donour S10 $605 Canadian ($471 USD)

This includes parts I needed to repair deficiencies or worn parts in the S10 (brakes, steering, suspension, exhaust, hoses, lines, cables, new fluids, gaskets)


Parts required to adapt the S10 to the Fargo body $1507 Canadian ($1173 USD)

This includes all the stuff that either can’t be used from the S10 donour, or has to be modified to make it work (engine mounts, radiator, wheel spacers, body mounts, steering shafts & DD U-joints, electric fan, trans cooler, wood, switches, drive shaft, electrical connectors, checker plate steel bed, etc.).


Consumables for the S10 swap portion of the build $400 Canadian ($311 USD)

This includes steel, welding gas/wire, cutoff wheels, paint, nuts & bolts, etc.


So the total cost of the S10 swap portion of my build was $4012 Canadian ($3124 USD)

For me, the economics worked out rather well. Here in Canada I’d be hard pressed to buy just a Mustang ll ifs for 4000 bucks. My $4012 got me:

-frame
-steering
-suspension
-complete braking system including booster, master cylinder and e-brake system
-cooling system
-steering column & connectors
-fuel injected engine with ECU
-overdrive transmission
-drive shaft
-gas tank and lines and filler tube
-wiring harness
-gauges (bit of a pain though!)
-exhaust system
-bench seat
-pedals
-bed floor
-tires


When I started on this project, I estimated a total build cost of about $8000 for absolutely everything (including the initial purchase of the Fargo and all bureaucratic fees). For anyone who is interested, I’ll continue on with what things really cost me.


Parts required to fix up my Fargo $2507 Canadian ($1952 USD)

These costs have nothing to do with the S10 swap, and they include stuff like glass, seals, weatherstrip, seatbelts, lights, door latches, electric wiper conversion, interior, and all the required consumables)

Bureaucratic Red Tape $514 Canadian ($400 USD)

This includes safety inspection, appraisal, ministry of transportation fees.

Original Fargo purchase price incl tax $2280 Canadian ($1775 USD)

This brings me to a grand total of $9313 Canadian ($7252 USD). For this I have a 75 year old truck that’s safe, quiet, reliable, good on gas and handles nicely and can be maintained with cheap parts from any local supplier. I went over budget a bit, but I can’t complain about what I got for the price I paid. There is still some little stuff I could do, but for now I’m just going to cruise nights & shows and having a ton of fun. I hope this helps anyone who is weighing their options, and needs a better idea of how inexpensive an S10 swap can be.

[Lmuelly]

Does anyone know if Chris AKA Skymangs ever got his book published about these builds?

[jbon64]

if you get the chance , check out "faster with newborn and cotton" (a spin of faster with finnigan) S1 -E2. they did a s-15 chassis under a 50 something GMC. they went thru it quick and glossed over a bunch of stuff (i could tell in a back ground shot that they had to extend the frame) . still a pretty good watch.

[stackz]

Originally Posted by jbon64

if you get the chance , check out "faster with newborn and cotton" (a spin of faster with finnigan) S1 -E2. they did a s-15 chassis under a 50 something GMC. they went thru it quick and glossed over a bunch of stuff (i could tell in a back ground shot that they had to extend the frame) . still a pretty good watch.

is this on youtube? I searched for it and couldnt find it darn.

[stackz]

Originally Posted by skymangs

What you'll need:
-47-54 Chevy pickup with bed, fenders, hood, core support
-S10 chassis (117" w.b. long bed short cab) If you can, score the brake pedal, master/booster assembly and power steering box.
-Engine/trans combo of choice

This is enough to start your project, but there is a short laundry list of other parts that will make your swap a LOT easier!

does it matter the year? this popped up like 3 miles from me and I'm thinking of getting it to use as my chassis if its the correct one which I think it is:
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace...0-1073d683063c

my truck is a 59 though so not sure if this swap tutorial is still relevant to my truck or not?

[Team51]

Originally Posted by stackz

is this on youtube? I searched for it and couldnt find it darn.

I swapped my 53 onto a 96 s10 chassis. It's best to use a regular cab/long box frame that doesn't require cutting the rails. It was super easy and the frame width matched so that all I had to do was blast the factory rivets on cab mounts and drill for grade 8 bolts on the s10 frame.

[stackz]

Originally Posted by Team51

I swapped my 53 onto a 96 s10 chassis. It's best to use a regular cab/long box frame that doesn't require cutting the rails. It was super easy and the frame width matched so that all I had to do was blast the factory rivets on cab mounts and drill for grade 8 bolts on the s10 frame.

so you didnt have to build the boxes for the cab like on the 1st or 2nd page (cant remember which page shows them) of this thread?

[Team51]

Originally Posted by stackz

so you didnt have to build the boxes for the cab like on the 1st or 2nd page (cant remember which page shows them) of this thread?

Nope. Used stock ones off of the 53

[stackz]

Originally Posted by Team51

Nope. Used stock ones off of the 53

oh ok, so I guess the frame changed on the newer body style s10? if thats the case I guess I will wait and look around for one of those.

[leegreen]

S10 is on the verge of too narrow a track width for an AD truck and your TF is wider fenders. S10 is too narrow for this without extreme wheel spacers in front and a wider rear axle.

newer 1/2T full size is closer to track width you need, but TF is not that wide between the steps built into the cab and newer frames are wider, but they also drop down under cab. Tape measure is your friend

e-zchassisswaps.com makes a kit for squarebody frame

you will find quite a few swaps on this site if you search

depending on you current frame / cab condition front clipping it from a newer frame may be an option

None of this is as easy as it looks in pictures, you need the fab skills to pull it off or the bucks to farm it out. Market place is full of stalled frame swaps and restorations

[stackz]

Originally Posted by leegreen

S10 is on the verge of too narrow a track width for an AD truck and your TF is wider fenders. S10 is too narrow for this without extreme wheel spacers in front and a wider rear axle.

newer 1/2T full size is closer to track width you need, but TF is not that wide between the steps built into the cab and newer frames are wider, but they also drop down under cab. Tape measure is your friend

e-zchassisswaps.com makes a kit for squarebody frame

you will find quite a few swaps on this site if you search

depending on you current frame / cab condition front clipping it from a newer frame may be an option

None of this is as easy as it looks in pictures, you need the fab skills to pull it off or the bucks to farm it out. Market place is full of stalled frame swaps and restorations

thanks for the info. yeah, I've been on the fence whether to frame swap it or not. my original plan is to just cut in a prius electric column to the original column and convert to front discs and then figure out a rear axle for it. I guess I will just stick with that path. already have the prius column and a spare 59 column.

[leegreen]

Running and driving with upgraded rear gears and front brakes is cool, go for it!

[28TudorAZ]

Both ways have there advantage. I will say though mine drives really nice with the S10 setup. The original frame I would have started with needed a lot of work though.

[dsraven]

its a big job to do a frame swap, and not for the faint of heart, in that you gotta have space to put all the body parts plus have 2 frames laying around. one for reference of what went where and then the one that you will use. a cab lifting device is also good to have, I find that one which lifts the cab through the top of the door openings works well with an engine hoist. if you plan to use the stock frame and upgrade the steering and rear axle then i suggest you still remove the body, place the frame on stands and then do some checking to ensure it is square, not sagged and not cracked or has rivets coming loose. check for rusty spots, loose rivets, bent cross members, worn out suspension parts, rusty brake or fuel lines, etc etc. removing the body also gives the opportunity to replace body mounts. one common place for a bunch of rust to form is behind the front shock mount brackets. on frames I have worked on the frame was nearly rusted through behind those brackets once they were removed. after sandblasting it was prettyy thin.
here is what I like to do for frame checking
start with a frame drawing from the factory assembly manual for your particular model and use that as a reference.
once on stands and clean, start at one end and work forward putting a clearly visible mark on a piece of tape to show the center of each cross member, side to side
run a string line from fore to aft or, better yet use a laser, to see if all the marks line up. this will show if the frame has a sway in it from side to side
with the help of a friend do a corner to corner dimension check to see if the frame is out of square. it can be difficult to ensure the holder of the tape places the tape the same for each side, and sometimes you need to work alone so, in my case, I use a length of wire for this. wire doesn't stretch and is thin. I vice grip one end of the wire to the frame in place of the friend or use a factory drilled hole near the front that has a matching hole on each frame rail. i install a bolt and nut in the holes and use a loop in the wire to latch onto the bolt shaft near the nut
use a string line from fore to aft across the top of each frame rail, with a 2x4 spacer placed under the string at each end to space the string off the frame far enough to clear any high spots, like the bump over the rear axle. use blocks cut from the same 2x4 so they are the same size. then do some dimension checked along the length of the frame, from the string down to the frame on the flat areas, to ensure the frame isn't sagged or humped up in the middle or a rear rail isn't bent, etc compare to the assembly manual drawings
there are builds for te
he task force trucks using an envoy frame but it is a little wide and you won't be able to use the deep dish wheels. the raer axle could be narrowed or swapped with a narrower axle, but the front suspension you are kinda stuck with. an envoy does give you 4 wheel disc brakes, factory 4 link rear suspension, factory air ride out back or stock coils, strut style front suspension, rack and pinion steering, a fuel tank under the cab, etc. I am currently using one under my project but it is faaaar from a stock looking truck. there are guys on this forum who have used an envoy with a stock cab though, if you do a search.

[leegreen]

one of these self levelling 360 plus CL laser levels has some value for checking / straightening a frame
https://www.amazon.ca/dp/B0C2CLRL75
I have that one and am impressed with how bright it is