Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

I think you'll like the magnaflows...that's what I had intended for my c30 LS swap truck..
Side story
.I had heard magnaflows on another LS truck and loved the sound....so i bought a set off ebay..couldn't understand the huge price differences...but I bought the cheaper ones...when I unboxed em i noticed something didnt look right...there was no MF stamped on the them...I went back and looked at the listing and then realized they said magflow....not magnaflow....I went ahead and used them anyway and they sound great...liked them so much I bought another set for my current build...but they changed their name to maxflow now...

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Looks like a winner, Ken!!!
Merry Christmas!

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Thank you sir.

I finally got a gasket for the differential cover last night. Ironically they aren't a common gasket to keep in stock any more. I installed the gasket to the cover and let it cure. I cleaned the edges this morning and touched up the paint.

I used the stock bolts for now. I plan to add stainless button heads to add some color. I'm ready to get this under the truck.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

I have had a couple of sets of the Borla XL and liked them. I had planned to use them again but the Magnaflow came available so I decided to try them out.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Thanks. Happy New year to you

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

For some reason whoever did the SWB conversion didnt reinstall the rear frame brace. I made a trip by my buddy Donny shop today. Hes one of my local friends that's a squarebody hoarder. Fortunately he doesn't keep everything he finds and I picked up the rear brace that I needed.

Tonight I mocked it up and drilled all the holes necessary to mount it. Tomorrow I'll tear it back down and strip it clean. Once it's been primed and painted I'll drop it back in place and square the rear of the frame.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Great vision and nice work buddy.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Tonight I worked on the crossmember again. I pulled it out and hammered the ends flat to ensure maximum contact with the frame once bolted in. I dressed all of the edges with a flapper disc then sanded it down to raw metal.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

After a thorough cleaning with brake cleaner I shot a couple of coats of primer on it. Once that cured, I scuffed the primer and laid on several coats of satin black.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Between coats of paint on the crossmember I worked on adding some finishing touches to the axle. The black factory bolts looked too bland. I went with my trademark upgrade and used stainless button heads and washers. I like the night of pop they polished fasteners add.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Very nice detail. Excellent work on the diff too. Looks great!

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Thanks. I still have to tweak the brake lines. I'll fine tune them once the axle is under the truck.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

I had to service an account this morning. When I got back home I installed the frame brace.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Looking good!:metal:

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

I spent the day getting the axle hung. Everything went as expected. although it was a bit precarious trying to hang it alone.

Once everything was aligned I tightened the U bolts down. From there I rerouted the brake hardline to meet the axle soft line.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

If anything is every going to be the exception to the rule, it will fall in my lap. I have no idea why my front clip conversion wasn't just a bolt on deal, but it was not.
I had run out of options, so my solution was to move the front body mounts. Of course this required removing the rivets. I moved the mounts forward one full inch and bolted them in place.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Jake is lookin great! I really like the looks of the rear end

It seems that there is always one thing that goes wrong whenever I work on my truck. Today's one thing was needing a different slip yoke for my 3 speed overdrive trans

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

With the body mounts repositioned, Chris and I were able to shift the core support forward an inch. With that done everything started falling in place. The fenders lined up with the bolt holes and the gaps looked manageable.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

We spent a little time making adjustments, but we knew moving the mounts forward was the answer to out fitment issues

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

I feel your pain. I tried to install my conversion U joints and ended up with epic failure. I have never had an issue installing them in the past, but this time was a disaster.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Good to see its continuing to move ahead despite a few headaches...that front clip thing is a head-scratcher for me as well. I was always under the assumption that it was a direct bolt on as well because those Square bodies are about the most swappable vehicles that were ever created.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

I decided I could fight it or fix it. It doesn't matter "why" at this point. I figured out the solution and resolved the problem.

....I hope

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

Kudos for figuring it out much quicker than I could have...experience & some really good fab skills are a valuable asset, for sure! :cool:

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

With the front clip conversion behind me I spent some time with the core support. I had bought and sold a few but this was my keeper. Besides a bit of surface rust its really solid.

I sanded the minor rust and scuffed the rest with Scotch Brite. After a thorough cleaning with brake cleaner I shot a couple coats of filler primer on.

Re: "Crewcab Jake" the 84 to 74 conversion
 

New Year's eve I spent time with the family. Today we had friends and family for lunch. After our guest left I got a little shop time in.

I pulled the core support filler panel to gain access to the top of the core support. This allowed me to sand and prep the channel that runs along the top. With that prepped I laid in a few coats of primer.