AJ's '72 Cruiser Crawler Build

[Wildstreak]

What kind of motor mount do you use with the original cross member? I was just going to get what ever came stock, is there other options?

[AJs72K5]

Originally Posted by Wildstreak

What kind of motor mount do you use with the original cross member? I was just going to get what ever came stock, is there other options?

As far as I know they were original small block motor mounts. There's a bunch of options for motor mounts and crossmembers. Off the top of my head: DIY4x, Offroad Design, CPP...

I'm going to take some measurements tomorrow, but I may have an idea that will fix this... stay tuned.

[AJs72K5]

Update 12/05/09: The motor mount crossmember plan. Did a lot of thinking the past couple of days on how to handle the headers not fitting with the DIY4x crossmember. I didn't want to cut the headers...if I ever needed a new set, I'd be looking at customizing them again. I wasn't crazy about going back to a factory crossmember either. So, like any good K5 owner with a build thread, I figured I'd fab my way out of it.

Headers on, you can see that I'm roughly 1 1/8" away from seating the crossmember to the mounts.


So, I trimmed the flange down 1". I'll have to redrill the top holes, but that's no biggie. Why didn't I seat the crossmember all the way? I'm going to have Kert fab up some new motor mount brackets that will raise the engine 9/16".


Still not there yet, but I already knew this. Next, I'm gonna push the frame boxes deeper into the frame by 1/4" and put a spacer in between the flange and the frame box. This is how I should end up clearance-wise. There's about 1/8" - 1/4" between the header and the frame box. The pic just has a scrap piece of 1/4" steel to represent the clearance of the new spacer.


I'm happy with how it turned out. So, I took another picture of the motor... with the real camera this time.

[Wildstreak]

its almost home! I can hear it run now

Maybe Diy4x(kurt is it?) should think about making a specific cross member for the big block conversion there seem to be alot of us out there and nothing seems to fit just right yet

[Thealien]

When I talked to him he said they thought about discontinuing the small block one

[AJs72K5]

UPDATE 12/13/09: We have pushrods!! The new pushrods came in this week. I got them all dropped into the motor. Last thing to do on the engine is set the rocker arms and bolt down the intake. I figured I'd also drop the oil pan and give it some fresh paint to match the block.

Comp Cams Magnum pushrods. They feel beefy.


Freshly painted oil pan...drying in the garage.


For those that wanted to see the full sweep of the headers on the engine. Here's both sides. Just another excuse for me to take pics of the engine.

[vtblazer]

You guys & your big blocks...

AJ, excellent job!

You've taken that K5 to a whole new level from what it was when you bought it, you my friend should be very proud.

[Chevyman63]

Lookin GOOD AJ.

[Burt4x4]

YYYYYYYYYEEEEEEEEEEEEHHHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!
Dude yer gonna LOVE that engine!!!
Straight up B.A. Baracus!
:burt:

PS ~ Hint = A Team ^^ hehehee

[AJs72K5]

Update 12/20/09: Crossmember 2.0. Made a call to Kert at DIY4x to fab up some parts to get make some more room on the engine crossmember for the headers. All of the measurements came out right and we are spot on to where I thought it would end up. You da man Kert! Still have a few things to do to the crossmember before I consider it complete:

1. Weld the spacer plate to the existing crossmember flange
2. Drill the new upper holes for the flange, spacer, and frame boxes
3. Spray some paint on it.


I started with some new motor mount brackets. They raise the engine up 9/16". To level set, here's the pan clearance using the original motor mounts.


Here's how it sits with the new mounts. Probably enough clearance for a deep sump pan later.


Here's the money shot. Spacer is cut to size here. Test fit with the headers and the crossmember fully bolted up to the motor mounts


Shot of the original frame box. Sticks out from the frame about 1/4"


Shot of the new frame box. It sits flush with the frame.


Everything bolted up in the frame. Yup, still fits.


If all goes as planned over the next couple of weeks, the engine may be in the truck by New Year.

[FRENCHBLUE72]

I have no idea how the hell I missed this build thread very nice work..

[BLUE THUNDER]

Lookin good AJ. I bet you can't wait to get it on the road again. Keep up the good work. Later.

[Yukon Jack]

Nice to see the crossmember working for you now - keep after it!

[BLUE THUNDER]

When are you gonna fire it up?

[AJs72K5]

Still lots to do before I get to that point...

[AJs72K5]

UPDATE 01/01/10: Drivetrain relocation. What better way to ring in the new year than to spend the afternoon at the shop working on the truck? I couldn't think of a better one. Onto the good stuff. By drivetrain relocation I mean: getting the engine off the stand; getting the tranny off of the floor; and putting them where they're supposed to be.... in the truck!

First I had to reintroduce the engine and the tranny... they've been separated for quite some time and it was an arranged marriage after all.


Now to consummate the marriage...


To quote Mr. Happy Gilmore, "This is your home. Don't you wanna go to your home? GO TO YOUR HOME!!" It was a battle getting the engine in. The master cylinder and booster had to be removed, then I had to remove the motor mount brackets from the block to get it to clear the crossmember mounts. The fresh paint on the oil pan took a beating. It'll have to be repainted.


Finally settled in.


Driver side header fits well. No clearance issues.


The passenger side...not so good. The number 6 tube is hitting the shackle. The number 8 tube within a milllimeter or two of the firewall. Worst of all, the collector flange is not playing nice with the clocked up transfer case. This header is going to require a bunch of rework. Can't really tell in this pic, oh well.


The good news is that with the work I had done on the firewall, and even with raising up the engine 9/16", everything on the engine still clears and looks good. The distributor clearance is the only remaining question now...I was too tired to check.

All in all, it was a great way to start the year!

[AJs72K5]

Added a little bling to the front of the motor. It's a lousy cell phone pic, but you get the idea. I'll get a better pic up next weekend.

[Wildstreak]

are those march performance brackets? Either way me likey

[AJs72K5]

Originally Posted by Wildstreak

are those march performance brackets? Either way me likey

They are. I didn't have the fundage for the pulley set just yet, so I just got the brackets. I got the mid-mount ones cuz they sit nice and symetrical.

[AJs72K5]

Not much of an update, but some new hardware showed up today. It was my birthday present to me! In light of how much torque the motor is going to put out, I knew I needed to do something about the front axle. I came to the conclusion that since I don't have plans to ever run a tire larger than 35", that building up the 44 was the right path for me. After all it's got flat top knuckles, a Ruffstuff diff cover, and I'd already done a 3/4 ton conversion to it, and the hubs and brakes have been completely redone. So, with that said, I picked up a set of barely used Yukon chromo axles that already had Yukon Superjoints....it was a deal I couldn't pass up.

Unwrapped.


4340 Chromo with Superjoints

[lks dcvn]

Happy Birthday AJ [from 10 days ago] - always nice to see progress on your truck.

Do you have a schedule to be back up and running or are you just doing what you can when you have time?

[Yukon Jack]

Nothing wrong with keeping the Dana 44 especially with the things you have done to it and your intended use. Sounds like it will be plenty beefy.

[AJs72K5]

Originally Posted by lks dcvn

Happy Birthday AJ [from 10 days ago] - always nice to see progress on your truck.

Do you have a schedule to be back up and running or are you just doing what you can when you have time?

Thanks. I wish I had a timeline. But time has been the hardest commodity for me to come by lately. I'd like to say that I'm gonna have it ready to drive sometime this spring, but I don't know if I can make it happen. Stay tuned, we'll see...

[BLUE THUNDER]

Hope to see it running soon.

[AJs72K5]

UPDATE 2/28/10: Small steps... It seems like all I've been able to do is baby steps lately on the truck. Time has definately not been in a surplus lately. The annual bonus was good to me this year, so I added some more new parts, with plans for more to come as time permits.

Finished out the serpentine set from March. Serious bling.


Then plumbed in the new prop valve and ran new brake lines down to the front crossmember.


I figured while I was at it, I'd try out a different set of headers. These are Hedman 69130's. 2" primaries, with a 3" collector. They fit a whooooole lot better. The passenger side even clears the front driveshaft with the clocked up xfer case. I may try to coerce it for a bit more clearance, but I'm at least in a better starting point.