The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network







Register or Log In To remove these advertisements.

Go Back   The 1947 - Present Chevrolet & GMC Truck Message Board Network > 47 - Current classic GM Trucks > The 1973 - 1987 Chevrolet & GMC Squarebody Pickups Message Board > Squarebody Projects and Builds

Web 67-72chevytrucks.com


Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 01-05-2023, 07:10 PM   #1
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

My wife and I decided we wanted a new project to update a bit before we jumped back into the 1948 Suburban build. My auto passion had taken a hiatus the last few years and has returned with a vengeance.

We started our search looking at several possibilities, only to be disappointed by untruthful descriptions from sellers.

Then we saw this blue and white 2wd K5 on a Friday. The Blazer had spent its life in the San Antonio TX area, had one owner since 1977 and was very clean. The seller provided great pictures, video and honest information. By that Sunday night we had driven 10 hours one way to bring “Garth” home.
Attached Images
   
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2023, 07:16 PM   #2
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Garth was as rust free and in probably a bit better condition than described. Guessing the first owner had been involved in the aircraft industry or hobby in some way based on the patch on the hat, aviators and unopened pack of Camel cigs left in the center console. I’ve noticed some of the fasteners have been safety tied like aircraft.
Attached Images
 
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2023, 07:21 PM   #3
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Garth, named for the original owner, was loaded up and hauled back to our place in Illinois.
Attached Images
    
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2023, 07:22 PM   #4
mongocanfly
Post Whore

 
mongocanfly's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Alabama
Posts: 14,670
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Great looking blazer Doug..!!!
__________________
Mongo...aka Greg

RIP Dad
RIP Jesse

1981 C30 LQ9 NV4500..http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=753598
Mongos AD- LS3 TR6060...http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...34#post8522334
Columbus..the 1957 IH 4x4...http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...63#post8082563
2023 Chevy Z71..daily driver
mongocanfly is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-05-2023, 07:24 PM   #5
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

And 10 hours later on that Monday night we pulled into our shop. These trips were much easier to do 30 years ago!

And we will have more updates on the project soon. Our simple plan escalated just a bit.

Thanks for checking in!
Attached Images
 
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-06-2023, 01:29 AM   #6
Willowrun
Senior Member
 
Willowrun's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Posts: 1,029
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

'77's are cool and yours is very nice based on the pics. Following along as a fellow 2wd square K5 owner. Interested in seeing an under hood and interior shot before you start.
Willowrun is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-09-2023, 11:05 AM   #7
rodstored-72
chevy truck fan
 
rodstored-72's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2005
Location: Gilbert, arizona 85298
Posts: 2,008
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

ditto! will follow along as well!... nice looking blazer!
rodstored-72 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-09-2023, 02:23 PM   #8
Corts60
Just here to tinker
 
Corts60's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Holland, MI
Posts: 3,697
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

What a great start! Nice rig.
Corts60 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-09-2023, 02:34 PM   #9
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Quote:
Originally Posted by mongocanfly View Post
Great looking blazer Doug..!!!
Thanks Greg! We are flying pretty fast on this one…..we hope.

Quote:
Originally Posted by Willowrun View Post
'77's are cool and yours is very nice based on the pics. Following along as a fellow 2wd square K5 owner. Interested in seeing an under hood and interior shot before you start.
Thanks Willowrun! Glad you are following along. For some reason we missed getting interior shots and will be sharing what we do have. Oops!

Quote:
Originally Posted by rodstored-72 View Post
ditto! will follow along as well!... nice looking blazer!
Thanks rodstored! Welcome aboard!

Quote:
Originally Posted by Corts60 View Post
What a great start! Nice rig.
Thanks Corts60! Your Burb is awesome.
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-09-2023, 02:41 PM   #10
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

We’ve had a number of Suburbans over the years though never a Blazer and are pretty excited about Garth. We put him on the lift to take a good look and determine the scope of the project / timeline we wanted to work within.
Attached Images
     
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-09-2023, 02:59 PM   #11
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

The smart move would be to finish the 48 Burb project and for a lot of reasons my head and heart aren’t into that one right now.

So, with the years clicking by quickly we decided to take this one down to the frame and use reasonably nice parts to build Garth back with.

Our aggressive timeline goal is to make the C10 Nationals in Nashville for 2023. We went last year in the 72 Burb and had an awesome time. Anyway going to be a challenge to make that we know. Will try our best.

First step was to organize the shop and storage shelves.

We did a little test on cleaning the hood. And Garth came with a replacement fender for the one that is bent, likely from a tire and wheel coming off when driving.

Here is the only interior picture we have right now.
Attached Images
     
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-10-2023, 12:54 AM   #12
lower50's
Registered User
 
lower50's's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 3,254
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

That's a really nice Blazer!! I miss our '87 Jimmy we had.
__________________
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=648459
https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...d.php?t=769441
1951 MG TD
1967 Jeep CJ5 1.9L TDI 33X13.5X15 Mud Grapplers.
1952 GMC 9700 p/u 7.3L diesel on air, dually
lower50's is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-10-2023, 12:07 PM   #13
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Quote:
Originally Posted by lower50's View Post
That's a really nice Blazer!! I miss our '87 Jimmy we had.
Thanks lower!

Once the shop was organized we started disassembly and of course bagging and tagging parts / bolts.

The control arms were coated in what appeared to be dirt, tar and concrete. Took a hammer and chisel to remove what ever is on them.
Attached Images
    
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-11-2023, 12:23 AM   #14
Willowrun
Senior Member
 
Willowrun's Avatar
 
Join Date: Mar 2013
Location: Ann Arbor, MI
Posts: 1,029
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Wow, clean underside and the replacement front fender in proper color and trim is crazy. That's what dreams are made of right there.

Has the suspension been planned yet?
Willowrun is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-12-2023, 07:10 PM   #15
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Quote:
Originally Posted by Willowrun View Post
Wow, clean underside and the replacement front fender in proper color and trim is crazy. That's what dreams are made of right there.

Has the suspension been planned yet?
Yeah, Garth has the right stuff to be a nice one.

The suspension has been planned out and we won’t be using the original control arms nor spindles.

We found a 6.0 and 6L90E on FB marketplace and headed down to Evansville, IN the same day to pick it up before someone else beat us there.
Attached Images
    
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-14-2023, 04:38 PM   #16
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

We cleaned up the engine, did a cam, valve spring and oil pan change, then painted the block black. The aluminum parts will be left in natural finish.

We had friends over for a shop day doing the engine updates and removing the body from the frame.
Attached Images
    
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-14-2023, 04:43 PM   #17
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

With the extra help lifting the body and placing it on the body cart went smoothly.
Attached Images
     
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-15-2023, 03:38 PM   #18
mongocanfly
Post Whore

 
mongocanfly's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Alabama
Posts: 14,670
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

those outdoor pictures dont look like Illinois in Jan..!!!!
yall moving pretty quick on this
__________________
Mongo...aka Greg

RIP Dad
RIP Jesse

1981 C30 LQ9 NV4500..http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=753598
Mongos AD- LS3 TR6060...http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...34#post8522334
Columbus..the 1957 IH 4x4...http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...63#post8082563
2023 Chevy Z71..daily driver
mongocanfly is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-16-2023, 04:23 PM   #19
lower50's
Registered User
 
lower50's's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2014
Location: Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
Posts: 3,254
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Nice work so far! having a tractor helps a lot, must say I'm jealous.
__________________
http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=648459
https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...d.php?t=769441
1951 MG TD
1967 Jeep CJ5 1.9L TDI 33X13.5X15 Mud Grapplers.
1952 GMC 9700 p/u 7.3L diesel on air, dually
lower50's is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-17-2023, 02:36 AM   #20
PowerdbyChevy79
Registered User
 
PowerdbyChevy79's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2013
Location: Houston,Tx
Posts: 790
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Clean Blazer.. great find!!!
__________________
1966 C10 "Mary"
1972 C10 Cheyenne "Betty" https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...d.php?t=847364
1979 C10 Silverado "The BIG TEN" https://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/...d.php?t=841339
C10 Club Texas -HMIC
PowerdbyChevy79 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-18-2023, 12:58 PM   #21
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Quote:
Originally Posted by mongocanfly View Post
those outdoor pictures dont look like Illinois in Jan..!!!!
yall moving pretty quick on this
We have had a decent run on temperatures aside from one cold snap this winter. Way better than the blizzard we had during the “Wire and Fire” event four years ago today, huh Greg?

Quote:
Originally Posted by lower50's View Post
Nice work so far! having a tractor helps a lot, must say I'm jealous.
Thank you! The tractor has been incredibly handy and has made some difficult tasks fairly easy. I need all the help I can get!

Quote:
Originally Posted by PowerdbyChevy79 View Post
Clean Blazer.. great find!!!
Thank you! We really are enjoying this build with this solid of a start.

Once we had the body off the frame we hauled it outside for a good heated power washing. Lots of Texas dirt, engine oil and what appeared to be tar or undercoating covered the frame and suspension.
Attached Images
     
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-18-2023, 01:18 PM   #22
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

We continued disassembly down to the frame and suspension crossmember.

Grandson helped us load components to run to neighbors farm to use their hot pressure washer to work on removing more gunk. He also helped remove some of the riveted on brackets and received a grandpa level class on how to do so.

The original frame wax is in good condition.

Then we dropped the frame off at the powder coaters and really didn’t like leaving it behind.
Attached Images
    
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-18-2023, 01:36 PM   #23
mongocanfly
Post Whore

 
mongocanfly's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2015
Location: Alabama
Posts: 14,670
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

G-kids sure have grown..!!!!!
I assume it's the same ones..
Attached Images
 
__________________
Mongo...aka Greg

RIP Dad
RIP Jesse

1981 C30 LQ9 NV4500..http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...d.php?t=753598
Mongos AD- LS3 TR6060...http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...34#post8522334
Columbus..the 1957 IH 4x4...http://67-72chevytrucks.com/vboard/s...63#post8082563
2023 Chevy Z71..daily driver
mongocanfly is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-20-2023, 12:32 PM   #24
evan
Registered User
 
evan's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: SK, Canada
Posts: 488
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Nice!
__________________
Evan B.
evan is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 01-22-2023, 05:09 PM   #25
Advanced Design
Senior Member
 
Advanced Design's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2012
Location: Oblong, Illinois
Posts: 7,028
Re: 2wd 1977 Blazer LS swap, mild drop….escalating

Quote:
Originally Posted by mongocanfly View Post
G-kids sure have grown..!!!!!
I assume it's the same ones..
Yep, same ones and they are really growing up. He is taller than me now.

Quote:
Originally Posted by evan View Post
Nice!
Thanks Evan!

After steam cleaning, the rear diff was better though needed wire wheeling which was done outside due to the continuing decent weather.

The pinion seal was leaking so I ordered one from local Napa store. The replacement was designed “thicker” and placed the seal deeper on the pinion flange. Had me a bit concerned though that part worked out ok. Throwing me off was this video about the pinion seals I had viewed….. https://youtu.be/eX-1MUTVnQ8

What didn’t work so well was when retightening the pinion, I went past the locations marks I made on the pinion gear snout, pinion flange and case. This crushed the sleeve more and increased the pre-load on the pinion gear bearings too much. Bad on me…..and the Milwaukee battery impact…wow did it move the nut quickly.
Attached Images
     
Advanced Design is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Bookmarks


Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump


All times are GMT -4. The time now is 02:31 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Copyright 1997-2022 67-72chevytrucks.com