1973 K20 Build Thread

[TheWhiteElephant]

Next it was time to separate the hub from the rotors. They will not necessarily just come off, even though they are "supposed" to. They are held in by the studs. I removed the studs by first threading one of the lug nuts flush with the top of the stud, and then I "tapped" them out with a 4 lb sledge. They come off pretty easily. The night before you might want to soak them with some PB Blaster like this...



Here is where they are supposed to "just come off", but this is what I had to do...



I lightly tapped them loose with a flat blade punch. Disregard the bare toes.

[TheWhiteElephant]

Then I removed the spindle bearings. You are going to need a long punch or drift. I used my Gorilla pry bar and hammer. It fits in the spindle perfectly. I tapped out the bearings with a small hammer, being careful not to scratch the surfaces.

[TheWhiteElephant]

After I painted the exposed spindle surfaces, I installed the new bearings. I got mine from Superior Axle in a kit with the spindle seals...



I had to use a block of wood, a dead blow hammer, the old spindle bearing, and finally a socket to install the new bearings...






I also applied a light coat of bearing grease on the surface to help things a bit.

[TheWhiteElephant]

Then I painted the backing plates. I also had the spot welds on them re-welded prior to painting them because they had cracked.






Be sure to put the new washer in with the chamfered side facing inside...

[TheWhiteElephant]

Then I sprayed the hubs with high heat Rustoleum...




I didn't want to go out and have the studs pressed into the new rotors, so after tapping them in from underneath, I finished them off like this. I used several washers so that I wouldn't have to thread the lug nut too far. I also smeared some anti-seize between the hub and rotor.




I used a rented bearing/seal installer and installed the inner bearing cup into the hub. Here are the correct part numbers for the outer bearing, inner bearing, inner bearing race/cup, and inner bearing seal from top to bottom.

[TheWhiteElephant]

Then I packed the inner bearing with grease, installed it into the hub, and then pressed the inner bearing seal with a block of wood.



Then I attempted to slide the rotor and hub assemblies onto the spindles for the next 2 hours and cussed myself silly. They just wouldn't go in. I damaged both seals before I finally gave up in defeat.

The next day I went out and bought National seals instead of the "Made in Indonesia" Timkens. The Nationals are made in the USA. By no means am I blaming the seals, but it was actually a blessing in disguise because you can see the huge difference in quality. The side shown is the part that faces inside...




Here was the fix. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP!!! I polished the surfaces that the inner bearings ride on with 220 grit emery paper.



This made all the difference in the world. Unbelievable how the slightest bur can cause all sorts of headaches. The assemblies slid right in...

[TheWhiteElephant]

Then I sprayed the calipers with caliper paint before installing them and torquing them to the proper values...

[MTCK]

Great pics and write up! I love the stance now! How is the ride?

[67chevy1series]

nice build!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[bharrison1]

Great job thanks for the info!!

[TheWhiteElephant]

Originally Posted by MTCK

Great pics and write up! I love the stance now! How is the ride?

Thanks! I've always liked the look of the old Ford High Boys and wanted a similar look. I haven't driven it with the lift installed yet, but I'm not expecting a smooth ride.

I'll keep you posted.

[TheWhiteElephant]

Time to rebuild the original hubs. Replacement parts for these are scarce. I wanted to keep the originals. Originals were in good shape with the exception of the plastic dials and the missing gaskets. I got these new dials from Dennis Carpenter. I kinda like the fact that they are Ford models. I did not find any Spicer pieces anywhere. The red looks cool, though.



Found these NOS metal gaskets on ebay...



Disassembled everything, degreased, and cleaned everything up.




I sprayed the lockout bodies in semi gloss black...

[TheWhiteElephant]

Bought some rubber fiber paper and made some new gaskets. They go between the outer chrome piece and the lockout body. The metal ones go between the lockout body and the wheel hub assembly.



O-rings were in good shape.

[TheWhiteElephant]

Don't forget the snap ring...



Got some new bolts at the hardware store. They were identical to the OEM ones. I couldn't find identical dished washers, but that was probably a good thing since they are allegedly known for not keeping the bolts on. Instead I used these stainless lock washers identical in size to the originals.

[1985-GMC]

Lots of progress you have going on down there, everything looks great!

I read that someone one here used to make those dials out of aluminum but i don't think he does any more, those would of been cool to have.

[TheWhiteElephant]

Originally Posted by 1985-GMC

Lots of progress you have going on down there, everything looks great!

I read that someone one here used to make those dials out of aluminum but i don't think he does any more, those would of been cool to have.

Thanks, Tony. I read this, too. I looked all over the place and couldn't find these sources. One of the Bronco sites is making them for the internal hubs, though. All I did was buy an extra set of the plastic ones from Dennis Carpenter. I'm not going to wheel this thing so I "should" be okay.

[El Dorado Jim]

Originally Posted by TheWhiteElephant

Thanks, Tony. I read this, too. I looked all over the place and couldn't find these sources. One of the Bronco sites is making them for the internal hubs, though. All I did was buy an extra set of the plastic ones from Dennis Carpenter. I'm not going to wheel this thing so I "should" be okay.

there is a guy, "GMCGRIM" on this site that is making these out of aluminum, I bought a set from him, they great

[TheWhiteElephant]

Got a whole new set of original material brake lines and a combination valve from Inline Tube. I'm very impressed with the quality. They fit just right. I also got a new set of extended stainless steel kevlar coated brake lines from Offroad Design. I highly recommend these to anyone with a 4 or 6 inch lift. I'm in the middle of routing all the brake lines.

[TheWhiteElephant]

During all this time I also degreased, cleaned, and wire-wheeled the entire frame in my driveway. Not fun. Then I painted the frame with Eastwood's Rust Encapsulator and gave it a second coat with semi gloss Rustoleum. The front 1/2 of the frame was really nice but the rear 1/3 or so if it had very rough surface rust. No heavy scale, though. The bed crossmembers are shot, though.




Take note of the rear brake line. It had heavy, scaly surface rust and was about to go.

[thinair]

Good looking truck.

[TheWhiteElephant]

Originally Posted by thinair

Good looking truck.

Thanks!

[spudz]

I like how your building this truck to be used and not just pretty. BTW, I am in need of extended brake lines for my 4in lifted k5 blazer and those look like what I need!

[my4by2]

I just love this truck more & more!!!

[BIGBERTHA]

Nice freakin build man! I enjoy watching it! Keep em comin!!

[speedfreekk]

nice build, keep it up.