Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Looking good, how much of a lift will this have ?

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Thanks! that was the common until a board member found a way to put 88-98 chevy lift spindles on. It requires 1967-87 3/4 ton lower control arms, 88-98 upper and lower ball joints, 88-98 spindles, bearings, rotors, calipers etc...and if you plan to run a sway bar, the tie rods have to be moved to the top of the spindle but keep in mind what wheels you're running as this puts the tie rod really close to the lip.

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Ive read that by going to the late model 73-87 cross member and suspension you gain an inch. So if thats true, with that plus the 4" lift spindle itll be around 5" total. My bumper sits about 27" right now but doesn't have the weight of the cab or front end on it yet and is running smaller tires than i will end up with.

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Cool thanks....so you are running a 73-87 cross member and control arms I read in your last post? You think a 78 G20 van cross member would give the same results as the 73-87 truck cross member? Just about identical

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Cool build! I'm strictly a member of the drop spindle crowd and didn't even realize they made lift spindles like that. Looking forward to seeing how this thing turns out.

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Yes i swapped the whole cross member to a late model 73-87. I believe the van suspension should be the same. Only thing i can think of is the steering box is not the same but other than that i believe the front cross member is identical. Might wanna double check though. Do you have access to a van or what would be the reason not to use the truck cross member?

Gettin exciting. gonna be swapping the body over soon so i can actually see how tall it sits.

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

I stripped a 78' chevy van a couple years ago and have the entire front suspension, steering column, and steering box from it. Was gonna convert my 74' k5 blazer to 2wd but gonna lift it instead.

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Oh that makes sense. Ya i believe the suspension is all the same but sounds like if youre gonna lift it id stay 4x. way more capable. I wanted to go 4x4 but couldnt seem to locate a frame so the 2wd lift is goin down

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Sweet build cant wait to see the height once its on the new frame!

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Sweet build,will keep following this one

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

So somehow my photo bucket deleted most the pics in this thread so im gonna repost them to keep this build thread up to date and request an admin delete the past posts.

Been a slow progression. But still moving forward. Got some goodies from Summit Racing for the LS swap. Poly motor mounts, some poly grease for the suspension, the clams needed for the motor mounts and a Heli Coil kit
Attachment 1638907

Heli Coil installed in the head, worked out really well.
Attachment 1638908

Opening up the motor more, its greasy outside but seems pretty clean inside. Going to Replace the oil pickup O-Ring while im inside the motor. Dealer was closed so that will have to be this week sometime.
Attachment 1638909
Attachment 1638910

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

the electronic speedo is a lot of work, but you will not regret it!!

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Springs hung easily and the new bushings from DayStar are working out pretty well. Axle rolled into place. Using the stock axle saddles and u bolts for mock up. They are going to be replaced before its ever driven. Need the rear end in and body mounted and motor in so i know what size lift blocks i will need to match the front lift.
Attachment 1638916

Was excited to see how it sat, so we worked on gettin it on four wheels. An unexpected issue came up. By moving the Tie rod to the top of the spindle it now hits on the back of the stock 17's that i have. So i have a dilemma, either get different wheels or run a spacer.
Attachment 1638917
It started to pour rain again, so that was the end of the weekend.

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Little update. Got a lot done this weekend. Started out by completely resealing the 5.3 thats goin in. Cleaned up pretty well so hopefully no leaks.
Attachment 1638929
Worked on getting the motor mount plates modified so i can keep the AC in the factory position. Cut the plate and taped some new holes and moved the motor clam shell back. only concern here is it looks fairly tight for the AC wiring however the clam can be modified if needed but i dont think it will be an issue.
Attachment 1638930
We were finally able to roll the frame up to the front of the yard to work on it. MUCH better than walking back and forth. Still need to finish cleaning the center but that will be done soon.
Attachment 1638932

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Set the motor and attached the transmission so everything could be located together where it needed to be so we could finish mocking up the motor mounts
Attachment 1638933
We opted to move the hole motor mount back on the passenger side instead of adding a tab to it for the rubber mount to sit on. This requires us to add an small extension to the cross member but it will look much cleaner when done I think and it allows plenty of clearance for the AC compressor.
Attachment 1638934

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

I got over the Air ride pretty quick so the truck has been sitting for a while tucked away in my backyard. Its time to move it so we can start swapping parts over. The motor has always ran pretty well and hasn't really left me stuck recently BUT from sitting the battery was toast, so i thought. Left it on the charger and it actually held a good charge. Win.
Attachment 1638937
Had to do a fuel pump before it could be pulled out. From sitting the seal must have gone bad and it was pouring gas everywhere and even though it is only about a 5 mile drive i didnt feel it was worth catching it on fire. 20 bucks to drive it 5 miles:lol:
Attachment 1638939
I insisted my brother be the one to drive it to his house since he helped me bag it and has never once driven it. So i felt like he had to since it was the last time it would cruise as a bagged vehicle.
Attachment 1638940

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

After pulling two separate Silverado tanks in the junkyard this weekend my brother and I came across a brand new Delphi Fuel pump that someone must have just installed before the truck was sent to the yard. The truck it came out of had a V6. . I thought that might be an issue but did some reading on some forums and found a bunch of guys that swap the 5.3 into S10's run the stock pumps for V6's all the time so i guess well see if that creates an issue. If so an aftermarket pump will fit this bucket nicely. Any experience or opinions here?
Attachment 1638944
Since we moved the motor mount back it caused the mount itself to hang off the cross member so we made an extension tab to add to the back of the crossmember.
Attachment 1638945
Finished cleaning the rest of the frame. Glad that is done! U can see the little ear on the cross member. i think it looks pretty good and now the motor mount has a solid piece to bolt to.
Attachment 1638946

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

You can see how far back the motor mount had to move to clear the AC. Well worth the work to keep the low mount compressor.Attachment 1638949

I also ordered an electric speedo conversion kit from LS1Nova on the forum so unfortunately i gotta say goodbye to my white gauges. but its for the better and will look more original so no big deal.Attachment 1638950

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Finally got to see the two frames next to each other. Gonna be fun to see how tall this thing will actually be once i get some 33's or maybe even 35's on it. Keep in mind the back is still stock height at the moment.Attachment 1638951

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Started the weekend by gettin the fuel tank out of the truck to go into the new frame. Had to come up with a way to make this pump fit into the tank. Also, found out that this pump works with a 5.3, 6.0, 8.1 etc so it should work just fine with my 5.3...While I worked on the tank opening my brother modified the sending unit/fuel pump to work with my original 0-90 ohm gauge.

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

I washed the tank out several times and let it hang upside down in the sun to dry.
Attachment 1638971
After thinking about it we decided it wasn't worth welding on in case something went wrong. So I made a mounting ring out of a piece of 6x6 square aluminum I picked up. With the mounting surface flattened out and the ring installed it should be good to go once i get a gasket for under the ring.
Attachment 1638972

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Once we decided on the mounting we started working on gettin the tank in the frame. Moved the stock cross member back to the rear of the frame and made some upper straps. We used ratcheting straps to hold the tank from the bottom in place so we could get a measurement for what size straps we need for the permanent install.
Attachment 1638977

Bumper brackets had to be modified slightly but we were able to keep the class V-5 hitch that came with the frame.
Attachment 1638978

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Now that the tank is figured out, next on the list is gonna be plumbing brakes. . Got a kit delivered on Sunday that should do most if not all of my lines.
Attachment 1638979

Also received my electric speedo conversion face template. More progress shortly.
Attachment 1638980

Thread should be up to date now. gonna see if a mod can delete all the double posts. annoying but oh well

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Im thinkin your right, it'll be worth it. Hoping it wont be too bad though haha have you done it? if so how many hours would you guess it took

Re: Complete build change. Lifted 2wd
 

Yes, I did it. It depends if you bought the plate to mount the speedometer, or if you build one. I built mine, and of actual work working just on the speedometer, I think I have about 12-15 hours, trying to make everything perfect (I'm a perfectionist). If you bought the bracket, it would cut down on probably about 3 hours not having to do a little bit of trial and error to make everything fit correctly, not to mention I think the plate would make for a better finished product.