'80 stepside swb retromod project

[ofnaman]

Well, we finally got around to starting our new project. This is my friends truck and I'm really excited about this project as I'm stepping out of my comfort zone as a GM dealership technician. I've built more than a few custom vehicles, but this will be the first frame off custom build I've been a part of. This truck is a '80 Sierra Grande with 70,000 original miles on it. It has spent it's life in Northern CA and Northern NV, and as we found out today that is really really cool. We only had to cut off one bolt, and that was because it had been removed in the past and someone put some really nasty loctite on it. Virtually no rust on this thing, and the PO's only did a few "stupid" modifications. The plan is to strip and paint the frame, rebuild all the suspension and add a 4/5" drop, install a 6.0 ls2/6l90e combo, maybe regear (no idea what the current gear ratio is) and install a locker in the 12 bolt rear. The body probably won't get a whole lot of attention just yet as he is unsure of the color he wants and the chassis/engine cost is really adding up quickly. Anyone know what the more common gear ratio's used in these 1/2 ton's were? Any other advice and tips will also be greatly appreciated.