72 GMC 4x4 Build

[bhammer]

Hey all.. Here is my current baby. I picked her up and she had been taken care of pretty well, little rust, some upgrades. Nothing too fancy. Well, I lied. The previous owner put in a Olds 455 in the truck. Wasn't such a bad thing other than it was a hog. Well after 7 months of enjoying her I got a blowout on the highway going about 70 and she sucked into the jersey barrier in the center median and she was out of commission. Well I decided to use this as a good time to tear it apart and rebuild. Here are some pics as she currently is. I'll see if I can find some of the accident too. You can see the frame damage... Ouch

While I'm on this, does anyone know where I can find an original front crossmember. The one that is part motor mount. I am having a hell of a time locating one! Thanks and I'll keep ya posted on her progress...

Brian

[bhammer]

Here is a pic of the day she died.

[swamp rat]

Ouch! I'm in for the build!

All I can suggest is to go into the parts area and look for a guy's named teeitup, specialtyretail, give them a PM and i'm sure you'll come up with something. Otherwise just comb the board for anybody parting out a truck and ask them. Just remember you cant post your own wanted to buy thread unless your a supporting member.

[Mr Chevorlet]

Man, what a shame to happen to a nice truck. Good luck with it.

[CUSTOM/10]

Sorry to see what happened to the truck, but as long as your OK the truck can be rebuilt or replaced. I did re-use my front cross member. I had 2 extra
4x4 engine cross members but just sold the last one a couple months ago. They do come up for sale from time to time. Tee it up ( Randy ) would be a good place to try as others have said. You could also put a want to buy posting and see what happens.

You can use any engine cross member from a 4x4 from 67-72, they were all the same ! ( Truck or Blazer ) So look in the Blazer forum also !

Gary

[jaros44sr]

Sorry to see your truck all banged up....but, on a positive note, i think i have a cross member for you, with sb engine stands. PM me, if your interested, and ill post it up in the classifieds

[bhammer]

Well, I found a member with a good looking 4x4 shorted frame. Only bummer is he is in Connecticut and I am Las Vegas, NV. Anyone have any experience shipping parts/frames across country?? Is it going to cost me $2000 to ship it?? haha... Anyhow, she is coming along.

Gonna pull the cab and the bed this weekend and see what I can do with the old frame. Maybe it's worth fixing and trying to sell. Who knows.

Thanks for all the feedback guys! It's great knowing there are guys out there that genuinely want to help for the good of rebuilding these old trucks.

[Vintage Windmills]

I have a spare engine crossmember but shipping would probably be a fair amount...

In for the build

[bhammer]

As you can see from the pictures I got the cab off and can really see the extent of the damage from my accident. I've found a replacement frame from a member that I am picking up this weekend. Too bad this frame is so jacked because other than the front its really in decent shape. Well, as soon as I get the new frame its off to the media blaster and getting down to business rebuilding. I've heard that the frame I have can be repaired but an old hot rod guy told me once a vehicle has frame damage it will never ride the same again. Don't know how true that is, any thoughts?? I'll keep you posted on my progress.

Brian

[Ol Blue K20]

Sorry about your truck..I know your pain. Subscribed and watching

[swamp rat]

Bummer! glad your getting it back on the road tho!

[Zoomad75]

That frame is tweaked hard. By the looks how it buckled on the top of both rails and how much it shifted to the pass side, I wouldn't worry about trying to fix it. If you got a good other frame go with it.

I'm sure a good seasoned body tech with a frame bench could get it back into shape, but at what cost. The cost you end up paying somebody to square it up could be spent on sandblasting and painting the new frame.

[bhammer]

Allright, here's an update. I pick up a replacement shortbed 4x4 frame from a member. I was told it is a frame off a 70 Chevy. Anyone know if there is a big difference in the frames between 70 and 72? It appears just at a quick glance that there are some subtle differences. Anyone done this before? Am I about to open pandoras box and a money pit trying to make this frame work? Anyhow I am excited to get going on it and get her that much closer to being back on the road.

As for fixing it, I got a quote from a good body shop in town and they said I'm looking at 300-500 to fix. I was thinking of fixing, getting it all squared away and selling. Or maybe using it to build another truck later on down the road. Thanks for all the feedback guys, keeps me motivated for sure.

Brian

[bhammer]

Does anyone have a diagram or can tell me the dimensions on a stock 4x4 70 or 72 frame? Mine is bent up as you can see and I am going to get it bent back. I need to give the frame guy a dimension to bend it back to. I don't have a stock good frame to measure off of so I don't know what to tell him. Any help would be awesome... Thanks

Brian

[bhammer]

Update, So I picked up a 70 Chevy 4x4 Shortbed frame from a member. It was in decent shape but it needed a little work, here are some pics of it and of me dropping it off at the frame guy. I am a little lost on the exact frame dimensions but I found an old service manual on the forum and am going to go with those numbers, I am pretty sure I have the right dimensions. The frame guy seemed to think it was no big deal to straighten it out so hopefully I catch a little break on it price wise. My really beat up frame is going to get bent back in place as soon as this one is done and I am going to see what is the best one to use. Whatever one is left I will either sell or use for a second build of another future 4x4 shortbed as that frame (aside from the front end damage) is a very good frame, very straight and clean.

I'll post some more pics once I get it back from media blasting and powder coating, enjoy.

Brian

[CUSTOM/10]

Brian;

Once you get the 70 frame back from being straightened out put the frames side by side and look them over for any differences. There shouldn’t be much.
I believe the forward "rear spring mounts" are a bit different. Taller I believe on the 72. Either frame may or may not have a steering box reinforcement plate on the inside of the frame rail. And of course the vin number stamped in the frame. But from what I have heard some GMC frames didn't have any vin numbers on the frame.

Oh, either frame may or may not have a spring retainer on the driver’s side front spring. This consists of an angle plate bolted to the frame behind the spring and a plate welded across the front mount. these will keep the spring somewhat in place if it breaks !

I myself, if your original frame can be straightened correctly, would use it just to keep the frame & vin tag matching. Just my 2 cents !

Gary

[bhammer]

Yea, I would prefer to use the original one with my truck. I looked all over on the 70 frame for a stamp but didn't find anything in the normal spots, (near steering box and between cab mounts) but it is pretty caked with road grime so maybe when I get it blasted I will be able to find it. The original GMC frame has a stamp in it. They appear to be pretty much the same. Neither frame has a plate behind the steering box, I am going to put one in on both to give them some strength. y dad is trying to talk me into boxing the frame but I don't know if I want to put all that money and time into it. I'll know more once I get them both straight and side by side. Thanks for the feedback.

Brian

[dbash]

Originally Posted by bhammer

Yea, I would prefer to use the original one with my truck. I looked all over on the 70 frame for a stamp but didn't find anything in the normal spots, (near steering box and between cab mounts) but it is pretty caked with road grime so maybe when I get it blasted I will be able to find it. The original GMC frame has a stamp in it. They appear to be pretty much the same. Neither frame has a plate behind the steering box, I am going to put one in on both to give them some strength. y dad is trying to talk me into boxing the frame but I don't know if I want to put all that money and time into it. I'll know more once I get them both straight and side by side. Thanks for the feedback.

Brian

You seem to know your stuff, my 2 cents.... I would not box the frame until you are happy with how your motor and headers are positioned. Gets tight in these frames if you upgrade the motor.

Looking forward to your build.

[bhammer]

Allright, got my replacement frame back from the media blaster and she looks good. Definitely needs some TLC to get her back into good shape, a little cutting, grinding, etc. Once I got it blasted though I was looking for some identifying numbers on the frame so I can tell what I have. All I can find was the number in the picture on the side of the frame rail and theres a different number on the passenger side as well. Anyone know what this number means? There are no other numbers stamped into the frame anywhere else on the frame. Also can someone tell me what the bracket behind the front leaf, rear shackle on the drivers side is for? Never seen that. I think the frame is from a 70, or at least thats what I was told. Hoping someone can shed some light on this for me. Thanks in advance.....

[CUSTOM/10]

Tha bracket is to keep the spring from shifting backwards if the front spring or spring bolt breaks. There should also be a plate welded across the front spring mount to keep it from going forward.

Was this new frame from a GMC, I've heard that some of the GMC frames didn't have the vin numbers stamped in them.

If it has vin numbers, they would be on the top of the drivers side frame rail, near the steering box, and about were the drivers side door would be.

Gary

[72_K10_Vegas]

Ouch,
Right on the 215 I see.

Just joined the site recently and like the info out there. Mine is at the media blasters right now.
Watching your build now, look forward to the progress

[cmabolt]

good luck on your build!
Chris

[bhammer]

Well, I totally slacked on posting my build pics but the good news is I finally finished her. Here are the pics after I just got it back together. I have a couple small things left to do, emblems, paint the tailgate, and throw some hidden steps on and she is complete. Then it is on to the next.

Brian

[OldCreek]

[Ol Blue K20]

Very nice! I like it a lot.