70s/80s K10 Blazer or Suburban Axle Swap to '63 C20

[draciel882]

Hey everyone,

I need as much information and resources as you can muster.

I have my truck, a 1963 3/4 ton 2WD Chevy with a 292 and either a 3 or 4 speed. I want to make it a 4x4.



I have looked for a direct swap donor but I'm extremely low on cash so I'm looking for a cheaper route.

I may have a K10 Blazer and a Suburban at my disposal.

What I am wondering is, how hard would it be to swap the axles out of either of them and can I take the transmission and transfer case from either of them and bolt them up to my 292. I would like to have a manual transmission but that will have to come later.

I don't know what year either the Blazer or the 'Burb is but I have pictures that I will post. As far as I know, I don't think the axles will be a direct easy swap.

So if you guys have a link to a kit or a step by step of what to do to bolt the axles in and get them set up, that would be great. I would really like to be able to get this done by the summer. So the faster I get the information, the faster I can get started.

Also if you guys could tell me what gear ratios I can expect in either of the trucks, that would be cool too. I'm pretty sure the K10 on has a 305ci but the 'Burb has a 350ci.

Picture of the Suburban:


Picture of the Blazer:


Thanks a ton everyone. This will really help me out.

[billd5string]

Sounds like a cool project! The suburban is a 73-80. I suspect the blazer is an 81-87 but that's just a guess. For gearing, I would expect they're probably both 3.73 because I've had a 73 blazer, 88 suburban and an 86 Jimmy with a 305 (the others were both 350s) and all three had 3.73 gears. I'm sure other ratios were available though.

The rear axle won't just bolt up unless your 63 has leaf springs instead of the trailing arm suspension. I think there's an excellent thread on here somewhere where someone did a conversion on a 60's suburban.

Good luck!

[draciel882]

Thanks a lot for the post billd5string. If I posted a picture of my rear axle on my 63 would you be able to tell me which suspension I have? I know what leafs look like but I have no idea what a trailing arm suspension looks like.



This is a terrible picture but it's the best one I have of the rear axle.

[b.sharp]

You have a trailing arm suspension there. It is the box looking tubing running to the rear end from the crossmember under the rear of the cab.

[draciel882]

Thanks b.sharp. So I guess what I need to do is look at a leaf spring conversion. I will have to search the forums.

[Captainfab]

Welcome to the forum

You are going about this in the correct way, versus switching the frames as most want to do. Keep your original frame

This thread will show you what you need to know to convert your truck to a 4x4. Even though this is on a Suburban, they are basically the same as a pickup.

http://www.67-72chevytrucks.com/vboa...d.php?t=448681