1986 Short bed 2WD

[MalibuSSwagon]

Went down to my local spring shop today and picked up the new rear leaf springs. It was a pretty good hit to the wallet but I need them; I also got new u-bolt bent up and the eye bolts.



My new 3/4 ton springs:

[fxdxharley]

nice having the spring shop close by. Did they have to make the springs for you? i need some for my blazer. just havent given them a call yet. What did they set you back?

[MalibuSSwagon]

Just give them a ring, they had 4 of these springs in stock. I paid 530 out the door for the pair.

[MalibuSSwagon]

Done besides the exhaust.

[jpnh]

good progress/looks good-jeff

[MalibuSSwagon]

Started the interior project this week..



All surface rust on the drivers side pan. Gonna clean it all up and lay down fresh jute. Dyeing the carpet black and spraying bedliner on the kick panels to finish it off.

[MalibuSSwagon]

Front end done! All new Moog wear parts, Western Chassis 2.5" drop spindles and rear hanger kit.



Quite a difference from what I started with 5 years ago.



I did also finish the interior, came out pretty good for $25 invested. Lately I've been taking a page out of TX Firefighter's book and saving cash to buy things. In this case I got a windfall when I turned in a bunch of cores and cat convertors to the local recycler, ended up with way more cash than I was expecting.

[jpnh]

sweet/getting there-jeff

[MalibuSSwagon]

Teaser pic...



Going to need a new air dam

[bohmankid]

So are you still planning on putting the supercharger on? How's the tpi running? Truck looks great, you've definitely turned it around!

[MalibuSSwagon]

Originally Posted by jpnh

good progress/looks good-jeff

Thanks Jeff!

Originally Posted by bohmankid

So are you still planning on putting the supercharger on? How's the tpi running? Truck looks great, you've definitely turned it around!

TPI is great! Still starts right up, no issues if the truck sits for a few weeks. I am planning on installing the supercharger if I can design and fabricate a mount for it. That may not happen.

[MalibuSSwagon]

Headers coated, ready to be installed. And a cat.

[MalibuSSwagon]

The Road Warrior, back for more.

[Malo83]

Hats off to you Bro! great job, what's in the future for the Lady

[MalibuSSwagon]

Well nothing new to report. I let her sit outside all winter with a dead battery. Pulled the battery and charged up a spare one I had, put it in today and she lit off as soon as I hit the key! Gotta love EFI.

Took her for a ride to pickup some parts for my Olds, and man it's running great. 3/4ton springs make for a rough ride on these back country roads however.

Sitting nose to nose with my Olds Custom Cruiser

[MalibuSSwagon]

Time for a front end rebuild and other things that need attention.



Half of my drop kit is here too.

[Hankster]

Just read through your whole thread, I must say I dig the tpi and It looks way better now that you've lowered it!

[bigwheel15]

Quick question, id assume the grill you have currently is the correct one for your year, 85-87 with a few sections painted black; am I correct? I really like it.

[MalibuSSwagon]

Thanks everyone, it's amazing how the truck gathers stares and thumbs up from everyone with just the lowering job done.

Originally Posted by bigwheel15

Quick question, id assume the grill you have currently is the correct one for your year, 85-87 with a few sections painted black; am I correct? I really like it.

You are correct, it's a 85-87 Silverado grille, which have all the stainless trim pieces on them. I removed the trim, painted everything that wasn't stainless black, and re-assembled. Looks mean! Only thing I wished I had done was the dual headlights, but this looks good enough to rock until I find a clean core support to swap.

[MalibuSSwagon]

Still daily driving the C10.



Need to update/change some things that are bugging me. Haven't decided on Vortec 350 or making the jump to a 4.8/5.3 yet.

[jpnh]

[MalibuSSwagon]

Well truck fans, I am looking for some options on issues I have.

First of all, the steering is extremely sensitive and if I don't grip the wheel tightly with both hands, the truck wanders all over the place. I tried to address this by replacing the tie rods, pitman and idler arm, and getting an alignment but this did not improve by much. I did retain the cheap parts store lower balljoints I put in 3 years ago, but the boots fell apart not long after and now the balljoints are making alot of noise, specially clunking, after daily driving it through all the winter weather we've been getting the past month. So ordered up some Moog lower ball joints, going to install those and shake down / grease the front end. See what happens but I fear the alignment is off, the shop that did the alignment tried to blame the problem on my cheap A/T tires. May not be far from the truth.

Next, the engine is just bothering me. It's the original 305 that I swapped on TPI intake manifold on top. Also did new lifters and RV cam. Runs good. Smokes on startup, headers leak, there seems to be a vacuum leak of some sort, and EGR valve might be junk. Not surprising considering I did this swap with a $50 manifold off craigslist and whatever extra TPI junk I could scrounge up.

Option 1, tear down 305 to the block and redo heads, lap in the valves and put on new seals, check all mating surfaces on TPI intake, new gaskets, new EGR valve and solenoid or delete EGR. Put it all together and hope it solves my problem.

Option 2, replacement. Can't afford new on my budget (got a house, need to keep cash in savings) Considering used engines:
-Vortec 350
-Vortec 8100
-4.8L/5.3L

All choices have their pros and cons. I don't drive the truck all that much, put about 13k miles on it in 5 years, but I'm thinking I'd drive it more if it ran and drove better. So gas mileage factors in, however this isn't strictly a toy, I use it for towing cars and household chores, etc. So need something with power. I've used my Dad's 2k Z71 with the 5.3L for towing, it does quite well.

[cochino12]

truck is looking great!!

[Hankster]

I want to put a 8.1 LS in something soooo bad! Do it! Please!

[MalibuSSwagon]

It may become reality. I posted on Facebook about the 8100 as a goof. Then one of my buddies messages me and says his boss is wanting to get rid of a 2003 GMC 3500 with an 8100, 52k and loads of rust. Going to go cheap as it doesn't run due to a faulty crank sensor. Won't find out more for a few weeks as his shop is closed until Jan 7th.