CK5 - The Full-Size GM Off Road Community

Maybe I've been spending too much time with the wrong people, but ???

Here's where my blazer is now

http://www.c4x4.com/tech/besttop/done11.jpg

After spending some time talking to Steve Sharp and climbing all over his rig. I've got some idea's in mind for where I want to go. I'll give you a pictoral coming of age of what I've decided.

This is Steve's rig not all that long ago when it still resembled a Blazer
http://www.extreme4wheelin.com/tech/frame_rebuild/P2260964_m.JPG

After this, he decided that he wanted more wheelbase and coils so it went to this...

http://www.extreme4wheelin.com/tech/blazer_stretch/P8094720_m.JPG
http://www.extreme4wheelin.com/images/poteau_2003/Pict7930_m.jpg

Now, as much as I like Steve's new rig, I still miss is looking like something. So that go me to thinking...

What I've got in mind I THINK is fairly simple. Get a pickup bed, either a long bed or short bed and graft it onto my blazer. What I'm thinking, is cut the bedsides and floor loose from my Blazer at the cab and graft in the pickup bed minus the bulkhead. While I'm cutting, I'll boatside the rig, bob the back and do a fuel cell. Similar to what Sharpe did with his, but with a backseat (got a kid on the way /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif )

Something like this
http://coloradok5.com/photos/data/510/32LONG.JPG

After spending some time under Steve's rig and seeing his coil setup, I think that's route I'm going to take with Rockwells. I'd love to go 60, but if I've got the money to buy a 60, then I've got money to get another something to drive and make it a trail only toy.

I want to keep the same square body blazer look, and for some of the stuff that's close, wheelbase ROCKS.


So, what am I looking at here, pipe dream? Is there an easier way? What about stretching the front wheel wells. I'm sure I'll need to move the front end forward several inches. My thought on that is to buy another set of front fenders and splice two sets together for a MUCH wider wheel well, but very little frontal area. Similar to this

http://coloradok5.com/photos/data/510/32LONG_and_OPEN.JPG

I know it sounds like I'm spending a helluva lot of time on the body, and believe me, I'm not all that scared to bash it, but I'd like to at least retain the spirit of the original blazer /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

So... Thoughts?

Wow... where to start...

Splicing in truck bed sides, and bobbing the back would not be bad. Mainly because the lines are straight and parallel for the most part. Only thing is you will loose the structural safety of the half cab. But, if you have a cage, this is not a huge issues.

On stretching the fronts. Piecing 2 fenders is not going to be easy due to the converging body lines. It's doable, but not straight forward. With that much work I would probably suggest skinning the front fenders and just moving the fender lip forward to remove most of the width of the dog leg. This also means the hood still fits right and so on. Then you can graft in a section of horizontal lip from another fender (or form it) and that is much easier since you avoid the slope and converging lines. While your at it, maybe switch to a vertical marker from and earlier fender so that you still have a side marker light.

Rocks vs. 60s and coils etc. is a whole different discussion and falls to personal goals and realities, so I’ll skip commenting on that due to lack of direction.

I would stretch the front out but just cut out the fenders forward more. Approach angle would be increased and it does make a difference. I like the rear idea.

I hoping to end up with something similer to Sharp's last version but with tapered ends.

Cage? yep it's going in QUICK. Got a little munchkin on the way and don't trust a factory hard top let along a soft top. That's more for my daily driving /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I figure that structural wise, it will be poo by itself. I'm thinking make the cage and body into one EXTREMELY solid unit and bolting that whole mess to a frame. Kinda like the safety pod so to speak /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

For the fronts... Let's see if I can put into words what mind movie looks like. To do the front to back widening, I'm looking at a set of cheap o salvage yard fenders, cut out part of the horizontal section. Cut the original fender in the vertical area a the front, move it forward, and plice in a sectin of the junk fender. All the cutting takes place below the body seam line. Helps to keep the factory rolled edge that I will prb. end up cutting off. As for keep the factory rolled edge, but raising it, that would prb. take me an extra 2 fenders per side just to get it like I would like it. The alternative would be to just cut and section it up with the additional horizontal room and not worry about how it convergeses at the bottom back, it's going to get lopped off via the boatside. For a side marker light, I'm thinking LED mounted up high on the sloped back part of the fender.

Axles, here's my direction. I don't want to break and for the price of one 60, I can have a set of rockwells. I like the idea of going 60. I've already got my rims. Already got a rearend. Parts are a plenty. The list goes on. But if I'm making a 90% offroad only rig and I want beef, then rockwells.

Coils vs. Leafs. To be honest, at this point it matters not. But with the extreme ways that I plan on moving the axles, I think I would be money and time ahead if I went coils. Mainly because I could achieve the axle location that I want, with the overhang (or lack of) that I demand and still have my rig big enough to haul folks.

It's a snowball affect, no question. It's almost like cutting your first piece of sheetmetal off. Once you cut it, you can't stop. I've even got my picture up on the Milwuakee tool's website as a testimonial to their Super Sawzall and how well it removes material... /forums/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Kyle, I think you would benifet from Wes' D60 more! /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

I have also been planning some mods to the body - wish I still had straight sheetmetal to start with. /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Actually, this is what I had in mind - besides the boatsiding. /forums/images/graemlins/thumb.gif

http://coloradok5.com/photos/data/500/42k5mods-med.jpg