Quote:
Originally Posted by ricott
Your truck looks great and good luck with the house project. In the earlier pictures (where you had it loaded with sand to get to your projected final stance), did you happen to measure from the ground to the Rockers? I like the stance, and am evaluating ideas for a 1955 stepside that I have. I too have a friend in the salvage business. He has a 2004 Envoy that had an interior fire that would be a great platform to begin. My wife has an Envoy Denali that rides like a caddie, so the more I think about it, the better your plan looks.
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Ricott: Thanks. The only thing more fun than building a house is building this truck.
Let me start by saying that the credit for the plan goes to Dynacorn & Lingenfelter. It stopped me in my tracks immediately and headed me off into this direction.
The measurement that keeps showing up that looks right to my eye is the dimension from the front of the rocker panel (at the rear of the front fender) nearest to the ground and it is 9"+/-. The lip of the front fender is 27" off of the ground at the center of the wheel and the back one is 24-3/8" which will be meaningless to you since you have a stepside. Once I get the fenders and hood on today, I will give you some new dimensions for the front. Not in the mood to reload the back suspension this weekend with sand so those dimensions will have to wait.
Other things to remember if you head down the T.B./Envoy path is...
- The wheel offset is not old school looking. You don't get the deep dish look which took some getting used to for me.
- Although I have tentatively chosen not to do so, the frame is strechable by merely grinding a few welds and pulling the frames halves apart. I intend to shorten my bed and/or tighten cap between cab and frame to get the wheels located properly in the wheel openings.
- Based on my research and what I have seen at car auctions, GM did not make a ton of 5.3 powerer T.B.'s/Envoy's. Ideally, had I waited on a wrecked 5.3 powered frame, I would mostly into body work rather than figuring out what I am missing and trying to adapt the 5.3 stuff to the 6 cyl frame. Still having more fun than should be allowed.
- My attempt to keep all the stock suspension travel may make locating the radiator a challenge. Based on the last time I mocked up the body, the frame rails were very high into the area where the radiator belongs. I will take some photos today on what I will have to do to notch the frame to get the radiator under the hood.
Assume you have a thread going...if not, get busy and get some photos up there so we all can enjoy.