HI from Afghanistan (My 72 Blazer)

[faribran]

Brandon, thank you for your service. I have a son in Saudi now, for a years tour. He has been in Afgan and Iraq. enjoy your classic when you get back home
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[ArmyMech71]

Originally Posted by faribran

Brandon, thank you for your service. I have a son in Saudi now, for a years tour. He has been in Afgan and Iraq. enjoy your classic when you get back home
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Thank you faribran, I hope your son stays safe and comes home soon.

[Chulisohombre]

Glad you're home soon to play with the new toy. The 4 inch lift is good for 35s. If you want 42s and no rubbing its going to need at least 10 inches of lift. It's hard to get that to work with the short wheelbase of a blazer. If you went more conservative on the tires you can get away with a lot less lift. Maybe 6-8 inch lift and 38-40 inch tires. The height of the lift needed to fit 42s will be real stiff and not really sure what terrain you will be running. If you plan on restore and drive with light offroad it won't matter so much. I've heard a lot of horror stories of bad vibes on lifts over 6-8 inches that will require cv driveshafts to compensate for the bad angles with big lifts. You can also trim the fenders a little to clearance the front end a little with less lift. Just a few things to think about. A lot depends on what you want to accomplish with the truck. If it were me I'd throw some used Craigslist 35-37 inch tires on and drive it around a bit to see what it is capable of and see how you like it at that size. Of course start by changing all fluids and checking everything over for safety and all that. Good luck and ill be watching.
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[ArmyMech71]

You have a good point Chulisohombre, i have been doing a lot of research for the past 4 months and decided to go a little smaller on the lift/tires. I already had some stuff shipped to the house but have been to busy to post any updates.

[ArmyMech71]

I bought Skyjacker springs and nitro shocks, a 6" spring in the front and a 2" in the rear, im gonna get the shackle flip from DIY4X to keep the ride as soft as possible.

[ArmyMech71]

I almost forgot, but the truck came with 36in swampers so im gonna put them on as soon as i get back to see how i like the size, but i was thinking about buying the 38in toyo mt's because they measure small. Do you think they would fit? Maby if i got some zero rates and a 1in body lift?

[Flick]

Must be something about Afghanistan lol, my wife/dad bought me my 70 K10 while I have been out here to. Stay safe brother, good looking rig!

[ArmyMech71]

[QUOTE=Flick;6292528]Must be something about Afghanistan lol, my wife/dad bought me my 70 K10 while I have been out here to. Stay safe brother, good looking rig![/QUOTE




Must be lol, Nice truck! btw, i plan on getting one just like it after this build. and same to you be careful over here, im on my last few days here and cant wait to get back!

[Flick]

As am I! Should be home in time for the holidays!

[Chulisohombre]

The 6 inch and 38 should be perfect. You will more than likely need to extend the driveshafts as my stock front one is about maxed out on a 5 inch lift. The rear I replaced after going to 3/4 ton axles. Anything over 35-36 you are on borrowed time with the stock 12 bolt. I blew up two and replaced the third with a one ton rear before it grenaded. That's on 35s and a heavy foot. Front I converted to 3/4 ton with everything from the knuckle out from a 78 k20. It gives you a bigger outer wheel bearing and if you get the axleshafts you will get a bigger ujoint as well. The 36 will fit with the 4 inch lift but may rub with high articulation. I cut the front lower fender on mine to stuff the tires a little better.
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[ArmyMech71]

Good to know, this will be my first truck i dont put a swamper on lol ,ive had a number of 73-87 trucks with 10in plus lifts, but this small wheelbase is new to me, i have already bought a d60/14 bolt out of a 86 k30, i plan on getting a cv driveshaft built for the rear but do you think i need one for the front? i heard that they are already a cv driveshaft from the factory?, if so i will just lengthen it.

[Chulisohombre]

Yeah that will be perfect then. Under 40 inch you won't have to worry about anything breaking if you got one tons already. Front cv will work. It will need lengthening over 5 inch lift. If you do the zero rates it will be worse. The zero rate being that most people move the axle forward one inch which needs a one inch longer driveshaft. The other issue may be the stock 1310 ujoint in the front shaft With the extra torque of bigger tires as well. It may be fine lengthened and with new solid spicer joints. They are stronger than stock cross drilled joints. Other than that are you going crossover steering as well? Lots of different options there too.
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[ArmyMech71]

Ya im going to order the crossover steer from ORD, also im gonna re-gear the Diff's to 513 gears.

[mcmlxix]

I think you already have a 2 or 3 inch body lift. If you look at the pic, you can see the bumper is lower then the grille... unless the previous owner messed with the bumper...

[ArmyMech71]

Originally Posted by mcmlxix

I think you already have a 2 or 3 inch body lift. If you look at the pic, you can see the bumper is lower then the grille... unless the previous owner messed with the bumper...

Yes you are correct, it has a 2in body lift on it now but im taking that off, the biggest body lift ill consider is a 1in from ORD.

[mcmlxix]

Yeah, I have the ORD 1" aluminum body lift pucks... I went with North West Fab for the crossover.. I have D60 front and AAM rear with rear disc brakes running 410 gears. Its overkill for my 35's but if I ever need it, I know it won't break...

[Chulisohombre]

The two inch body lift won't hurt anything. 3 inch is where a lot more problems happen. The two inch will make things easier to work on underneith. I'm a big dude and without it it's hard to get to upper bolts on the drivetrain. I'm going to put a two inch in when I go to 37s. 5.13 and 38-39s should work out well. Highway speeds are going to be a tad lower. But I don't drive much faster than 60 in my truck anyway.
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[ArmyMech71]

Thanks for all the good advice guys, i cant wait to get started on this thing.

[Chulisohombre]

Always love to see new builds. Get home safe and we ll be watching.
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[rambler]

looks like a great project.. make sure you thank the wife for it when you get back.. and spend more time with her then the project.. LOL