Progress on the RestoRod - The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network

71RestoRod · 06-22-2004, 03:30 AM

Lots of progress to catch up on. Got the frame stripped down and cleaned up. First I took the chassis to the frame shop to check the alignment. The Blazer used to sit a little cockeyed in the rear and I wanted to see if the frame was tweaked. Fortunately, the frame checked out great and I got a nice little color printout and peace of mind for the (cough) $80 setup fee. With that out of the way I stripped the chassis down.

The new front springs are military wrapped so I had to grind off the safety straps from the driver side front spring hanger. (I don’t think everyone has this, I heard somewhere that the straps were dealer installed as a safety recall??) I also ground the hanger rivets down just a tad for a little extra clearance at the wrapped end..

Having the frame apart made it really easy to move the engine crossmember forward for the 700R4 conversion. I flipped the crossmember upside down and bolted it in the stock holes on the frame. After scribing witness marks in the stock location, I measured and scribed marks for the new location, centered the crossmember in the frame, clamped it and drilled the new holes using the now upside down crossmember as the template. On the top side of the frame I had to clamp the two ends of the crossmember to the frame and then remove the center section to give clearance for the drill. As a note, I ended up filling the two forward holes on the top of the driver’s side frame rail. They were close but not quite right for where I needed to relocate the crossmember.

71RestoRod · 06-22-2004, 03:34 AM

I packed up the frame and as much stuff as I could dig up out of my parts boxes for powdercoating. (By the way, a ‘71 Blazer frame fits into a 17-foot U-Haul truck with about an inch to spare..) Dropped the frame and the rest of the stuff off at the sand blaster. The powdercoater picked up everything from the sandblaster for me, coated it, packed it up real nice and plastic wrapped the radiator support and all the small stuff to a pallet. When I got it all home it was like Christmas unwrapping all the (like) new parts! The powdercoating shop charged $300 to finish the frame and all the stuff you see in the photos and that included picking the stuff up for me. I thought it was a pretty good deal.

71RestoRod · 06-22-2004, 03:36 AM

Getting the chassis assembled. Having started this project almost six years ago, I’ve had a lot of time to collect a lot of new goodies here and there. Last summer, Steve Watson at ORD helped me design and order custom front springs from Alcan. They’re very soft, 9-leaf packs designed to give 3” to 4” lift in the front. I’m adapting a later model Blazer front sway bar to compensate for the soft ride. The rears are Tuff Country soft ride 4”. All of the shackle and spring eye bolts are the ORD greaseable. The steering box is a variable ratio unit that I had built by Tregg Wright at Durex. The front axle is a Dana 44, also off a later model blazer so it has the 297 u-joints. I drilled the front hubs and rotors for ½” wheel studs to match the beefier rear Dana 60. The rear axle is a matched width Dynatrac SF that I had built a couple years ago in a moment of utter weakness. It’s set up with 4:11, Powr-Loc, GM style calipers and 1350 u-joints. I really didn’t want a 14-bolt but I wasn’t keen on the 12-bolt either. I guess now you could say it’s a 5/8 ton truck??

71RestoRod · 06-22-2004, 03:50 AM

Last but not least, look what followed me home from the local GM Performance Parts dealer last week… ZZ383… w/ Edelbrock MPFI…

yyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesbc!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(My apologies, Steve Burt!!)

donkey69 · 06-22-2004, 05:19 AM

drool--Nice truck......nice work!!!

**Yukon Jack** · 06-22-2004, 10:16 AM

That's some great reading and great pics. Definitely helped put me in a better mood (I was in a bad mood cause I went by the body shop this morning)

I can't wait to hear how you like that engine. Ought to be awesome with the injection!

brad2 · 06-22-2004, 10:27 AM

Great post and awesome Blazer!

Alexis · 06-22-2004, 12:23 PM

wow man! after going through this post I'm definitly awake now. Keep up the progress!

one question, how did you get the blazer tub where it is now? Did you put it in place and then put in the support or did you slide it in some how?

71RestoRod · 06-23-2004, 02:29 AM

Thanks for the replys everyone.

Yukon,
Why the bad mood? Hopefully it was slow progress not new surprises…

Alexis,
Thanks. Glad I could help out! I used a cherry picker to ratchet one end of the tub up at a time. I lifted the front first and blocked between the frame and the tub with a couple of scrap landscape ties. Then I lifted the rear up pretty high and bolted one of the 2x8s temporarily in place, lifted the front all the way up and bolted the front 2x8 in place, then lifted the rear the rest of the way and fastened it up.

Thanks again.

**Yukon Jack** · 06-23-2004, 09:14 AM

I was in a bad mood cause I stopped by the body shop yesterday morning and basically nothing had happened since June 7. Easy way to turn a mood bad. Plus I found scratchs on my powdercoated gas tank on the flatbed. The body guy and I had a long talk - okay actually he was smart and didn't say much - we will see if this helps get the project moving. He's had it for more than 4 months now! So seeing your pics definitely was a pick me up for me - that Blazer is gonna be awesome!

swampbuck · 06-23-2004, 02:57 PM

very sweet job. I don't think Chevy did such a great job. Keep us posted with Pics.

orangeuavol · 06-23-2004, 08:17 PM

one word...............WOW!

JayDubBlazer · 06-23-2004, 08:25 PM

you are hard core.. that is going to look sweet

71RestoRod · 06-24-2004, 12:52 PM

Yukon,

That's a major drag... no progress AND a new surprise to boot. IMO, that scratch should be good for a discount.

I dropped my stuff off at the painter early last November, pretty much ready to shoot color, and didn't get it back until May... but in my case I kept telling them to take their time. Apparently they heeded my advice....

red71cheyenne · 06-25-2004, 04:05 PM

Dammmm! That is awesome! Wish I had had the time to do the powdercoat. That is a beautiful frame and that radiator support is sweet!!! How bad was the sandblasting price? The powdercoating sounds really reasonable for what you come out with. Nice work and keep us up to date on progress. Hopefully I can get some pics posted of mine if I ever get to go home for more than a couple of weeks. Jeff.

FRENCHBLUE72 · 06-26-2004, 01:35 PM

That is gonna be a b!tchin ride when you get it done I need to get out and work on mine!!!!

71Blazer · 06-30-2004, 02:11 PM

I didn't even recognize some of those parts without rust and caked on grease.

The GM Performance Parts guy drives JEEP ???!

06-22-2004, 03:30 AM	#1
71RestoRod Registered User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Evergreen, CO Posts: 492	Progress on the RestoRod Lots of progress to catch up on. Got the frame stripped down and cleaned up. First I took the chassis to the frame shop to check the alignment. The Blazer used to sit a little cockeyed in the rear and I wanted to see if the frame was tweaked. Fortunately, the frame checked out great and I got a nice little color printout and peace of mind for the (cough) $80 setup fee. With that out of the way I stripped the chassis down. The new front springs are military wrapped so I had to grind off the safety straps from the driver side front spring hanger. (I don’t think everyone has this, I heard somewhere that the straps were dealer installed as a safety recall??) I also ground the hanger rivets down just a tad for a little extra clearance at the wrapped end.. Having the frame apart made it really easy to move the engine crossmember forward for the 700R4 conversion. I flipped the crossmember upside down and bolted it in the stock holes on the frame. After scribing witness marks in the stock location, I measured and scribed marks for the new location, centered the crossmember in the frame, clamped it and drilled the new holes using the now upside down crossmember as the template. On the top side of the frame I had to clamp the two ends of the crossmember to the frame and then remove the center section to give clearance for the drill. As a note, I ended up filling the two forward holes on the top of the driver’s side frame rail. They were close but not quite right for where I needed to relocate the crossmember. Attached Images Last edited by 71RestoRod; 06-22-2004 at 04:57 AM.

06-22-2004, 03:34 AM	#2
71RestoRod Registered User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Evergreen, CO Posts: 492	Powdercoating I packed up the frame and as much stuff as I could dig up out of my parts boxes for powdercoating. (By the way, a ‘71 Blazer frame fits into a 17-foot U-Haul truck with about an inch to spare..) Dropped the frame and the rest of the stuff off at the sand blaster. The powdercoater picked up everything from the sandblaster for me, coated it, packed it up real nice and plastic wrapped the radiator support and all the small stuff to a pallet. When I got it all home it was like Christmas unwrapping all the (like) new parts! The powdercoating shop charged $300 to finish the frame and all the stuff you see in the photos and that included picking the stuff up for me. I thought it was a pretty good deal. Attached Images

06-22-2004, 03:36 AM	#3
71RestoRod Registered User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Evergreen, CO Posts: 492	Chassis Getting the chassis assembled. Having started this project almost six years ago, I’ve had a lot of time to collect a lot of new goodies here and there. Last summer, Steve Watson at ORD helped me design and order custom front springs from Alcan. They’re very soft, 9-leaf packs designed to give 3” to 4” lift in the front. I’m adapting a later model Blazer front sway bar to compensate for the soft ride. The rears are Tuff Country soft ride 4”. All of the shackle and spring eye bolts are the ORD greaseable. The steering box is a variable ratio unit that I had built by Tregg Wright at Durex. The front axle is a Dana 44, also off a later model blazer so it has the 297 u-joints. I drilled the front hubs and rotors for ½” wheel studs to match the beefier rear Dana 60. The rear axle is a matched width Dynatrac SF that I had built a couple years ago in a moment of utter weakness. It’s set up with 4:11, Powr-Loc, GM style calipers and 1350 u-joints. I really didn’t want a 14-bolt but I wasn’t keen on the 12-bolt either. I guess now you could say it’s a 5/8 ton truck?? Attached Images

06-22-2004, 03:50 AM	#4
71RestoRod Registered User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Evergreen, CO Posts: 492	Last one... Last but not least, look what followed me home from the local GM Performance Parts dealer last week… ZZ383… w/ Edelbrock MPFI… yyyyyyyyyyyyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeesbc!!!!!!!!!!!!! (My apologies, Steve Burt!!) Attached Images

06-22-2004, 05:19 AM	#5
donkey69 JB-80 &quot;Twice as Good&quot; Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Central, MN Posts: 354	drool--Nice truck......nice work!!! __________________ HEY NOW!

06-22-2004, 10:16 AM	#6
Yukon Jack Post Whore Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Rose Hill, KS, USA Posts: 12,686	That's some great reading and great pics. Definitely helped put me in a better mood (I was in a bad mood cause I went by the body shop this morning) I can't wait to hear how you like that engine. Ought to be awesome with the injection! __________________ 1970 Blazer with a 400 sbc and 4" lift 1980 Pontiac Trans Am, 455 Oldsmobile 2012 Kawasaki Concours 14

06-22-2004, 10:27 AM	#7
brad2 Registered User Join Date: Feb 2001 Location: edmond, ok Posts: 1,056	Great post and awesome Blazer! __________________ 74 swb 71 2wd Jimmy 82 2wd Blazer

06-22-2004, 12:23 PM	#8
Alexis Member since 2000 Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Mountain View Ca / Mexico Posts: 7,874	wow man! after going through this post I'm definitly awake now. Keep up the progress! one question, how did you get the blazer tub where it is now? Did you put it in place and then put in the support or did you slide it in some how?

06-23-2004, 02:29 AM	#9
71RestoRod Registered User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Evergreen, CO Posts: 492	Thanks for the replys everyone. Yukon, Why the bad mood? Hopefully it was slow progress not new surprises… Alexis, Thanks. Glad I could help out! I used a cherry picker to ratchet one end of the tub up at a time. I lifted the front first and blocked between the frame and the tub with a couple of scrap landscape ties. Then I lifted the rear up pretty high and bolted one of the 2x8s temporarily in place, lifted the front all the way up and bolted the front 2x8 in place, then lifted the rear the rest of the way and fastened it up. Thanks again. Last edited by 71RestoRod; 06-23-2004 at 02:34 AM.

06-23-2004, 09:14 AM	#10
Yukon Jack Post Whore Join Date: Feb 2000 Location: Rose Hill, KS, USA Posts: 12,686	I was in a bad mood cause I stopped by the body shop yesterday morning and basically nothing had happened since June 7. Easy way to turn a mood bad. Plus I found scratchs on my powdercoated gas tank on the flatbed. The body guy and I had a long talk - okay actually he was smart and didn't say much - we will see if this helps get the project moving. He's had it for more than 4 months now! So seeing your pics definitely was a pick me up for me - that Blazer is gonna be awesome! __________________ 1970 Blazer with a 400 sbc and 4" lift 1980 Pontiac Trans Am, 455 Oldsmobile 2012 Kawasaki Concours 14

06-23-2004, 02:57 PM	#11
swampbuck Registered User Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: carleton,mi Posts: 45	very sweet job. I don't think Chevy did such a great job. Keep us posted with Pics.

06-23-2004, 08:17 PM	#12
orangeuavol GO VOLS! Join Date: May 2001 Location: Knoxville, TN Posts: 724	one word...............WOW! __________________ http://1972blazer.shutterfly.com/<= blazer build pics It's called golf because all the other four letter words were taken. It's easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

06-23-2004, 08:25 PM	#13
JayDubBlazer go cyclones Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Ames, IA Posts: 1,883	you are hard core.. that is going to look sweet __________________ Wes PROJECT OLE GREEN 1972 Blazer 4X4 350/700R4 2017 Silverado LT

06-24-2004, 12:52 PM	#14
71RestoRod Registered User Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Evergreen, CO Posts: 492	Yukon, That's a major drag... no progress AND a new surprise to boot. IMO, that scratch should be good for a discount. I dropped my stuff off at the painter early last November, pretty much ready to shoot color, and didn't get it back until May... but in my case I kept telling them to take their time. Apparently they heeded my advice.... Last edited by 71RestoRod; 06-25-2004 at 06:12 PM.

06-25-2004, 04:05 PM	#15
red71cheyenne Back in the sticks Join Date: Jan 2001 Location: Fordland, MO Posts: 3,188	Dammmm! That is awesome! Wish I had had the time to do the powdercoat. That is a beautiful frame and that radiator support is sweet!!! How bad was the sandblasting price? The powdercoating sounds really reasonable for what you come out with. Nice work and keep us up to date on progress. Hopefully I can get some pics posted of mine if I ever get to go home for more than a couple of weeks. Jeff. __________________ 1971 Cheyenne C-10 w/700R4 and Tuned Port Injection 1969 K5 Blazer w/Tuned Port 2010 2SS/RS Flaming Orange Camaro 2011 K1500 Suburban 2014 K1500 Pickup 2008 Nissan Altima? The wifes' hoopty



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06-26-2004, 01:35 PM	#16
FRENCHBLUE72 PROJECT 7DEUCE Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: GRANTS PASS OR Posts: 21,606	That is gonna be a b!tchin ride when you get it done I need to get out and work on mine!!!!

06-30-2004, 02:11 PM	#17
71Blazer Goodbye Darlin' Join Date: Nov 2001 Location: Coupeville, WA USA Posts: 330	I didn't even recognize some of those parts without rust and caked on grease. The GM Performance Parts guy drives JEEP ???! __________________ 1971 Blazer CST SOLD!

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