blazer rookie questions

[Walter White]

recently got a 72 that has mostly new sheet metal and pretty good condition.
with top on, driver door (donated from 70 pick up) gap is too close. with top off, the door rubs a little. i jacked cab frame a little and it seemed to open the gap. how difficult is replacing old body mounts?
truck was originally white/white but i would rather goto medium blue--is that a bad move? gotta paint jams anyway as PO painted entire. looks like primer but he assured me its paint. he did no prep so I'm sanding it all off.
anybody know what late model seats from big suv would bolt in nicely or should i reupholster.
will reply from phone to get picks in

[colgad]

Originally Posted by Walter White

recently got a 72 that has mostly new sheet metal and pretty good condition.
with top on, driver door (donated from 70 pick up) gap is too close. with top off, the door rubs a little. i jacked cab frame a little and it seemed to open the gap. how difficult is replacing old body mounts?
truck was originally white/white but i would rather goto medium blue--is that a bad move? gotta paint jams anyway as PO painted entire. looks like primer but he assured me its paint. he did no prep so I'm sanding it all off.
anybody know what late model seats from big suv would bolt in nicely or should i reupholster.
will reply from phone to get picks in

Do some searching on shimming Blazer body mounts. Not hard.
Tahoe seats from the early 2000's work well in front and third row seats from Tahoe's and Suburbans work well in back but not bolt in in back.

[tjsblazer]

Welcome to the forum and yes pictures are almost a Pre-requisite.
For Door fit. Yes the body can flex a lot. What is the condition of the torsion boxes behind the rockers. These help minimize body flex. If body mounts are worn they can easily be replaced. If factory some of the bolt heads may have a spot of weld on them. Shimming the mount at the A pillar and the next one behind the door helps set the Door gap and fit but if the mounts appear factory I would use the existing shims with new mounts as a starting point.
As far as paint that is your call. I personally don't have issue with changing the color. I mean it isn't a numbers matching Copo. I prefer a factory or at least period correct color. Really though it comes down to personal taste.
Seats are a personal choice also. I can't help you with newer model seats but I know others will chime in. Factory seats can certainly be re-upolstered and look great and obviously fit the best too.
Good luck and lets see some pics!!!!!

[Walter White]

I'm having trouble with the pictures. More are coming.

[Walter White]

Will take better pictures tomorrow.

[colgad]

Originally Posted by Walter White

recently got a 72 that has mostly new sheet metal and pretty good condition.
with top on, driver door (donated from 70 pick up) gap is too close. with top off, the door rubs a little. i jacked cab frame a little and it seemed to open the gap. how difficult is replacing old body mounts?
truck was originally white/white but i would rather goto medium blue--is that a bad move? gotta paint jams anyway as PO painted entire. looks like primer but he assured me its paint. he did no prep so I'm sanding it all off.
anybody know what late model seats from big suv would bolt in nicely or should i reupholster.
will reply from phone to get picks in

One advantage of late model seats when installed correctly are the shoulder harnesses.

[Walter White]

Originally Posted by colgad

Do some searching on shimming Blazer body mounts. Not hard.
Tahoe seats from the early 2000's work well in front and third row seats from Tahoe's and Suburbans work well in back but not bolt in in back.

will do--thanks

[71swb4x4]

Originally Posted by colgad

One advantage of late model seats when installed correctly are the shoulder harnesses.

Great photo, it looks so good that it looks staged.

Nice looking Blazer too, what a great project.

[Walter White]

Originally Posted by tjsblazer

Welcome to the forum and yes pictures are almost a Pre-requisite.
For Door fit. Yes the body can flex a lot. What is the condition of the torsion boxes behind the rockers. These help minimize body flex. If body mounts are worn they can easily be replaced. If factory some of the bolt heads may have a spot of weld on them. Shimming the mount at the A pillar ans the next one behind the door helps set the Door gap and fit but if the mounts appear factory I would use the existing shims with new mounts as a starting point.
As far as paint that is your call. I personally don't have issue with changing the color. I mean it isn't a numbers matching Copo. I prefer a factory or at least period correct color. Realky though it comes down to personal taste.
Seats are a personal choice also. I can't help you with newer model seats but I know others will chime in. Factory seats can certainly be re-upolstered and look great and obviously fit the best too.
Good luck and lets see some pics!!!!!

rocker boxes are new but home made by PO. Im not sure if he welded in some things that should have been bolt on. i will get good pics tommoro. thanks for the info. glad i found this site. can't wait to figure out how to do pics from phone.
I'm emailing them to myself and its tedious

[Walter White]

Originally Posted by colgad

One advantage of late model seats when installed correctly are the shoulder harnesses.

absolutely. the roll bar you see in pics is not complete yet. i got it out of a jeep and extended its width. they don't match up to fenders at all so I'm still fabbing on that. the biggest reason i want the roll bar is for 3 point seat belts (and interior led lights)

[notsolo]

Very tedious to get door alignment, best to do it with the top on. It may not be the same when its off. Passenger side on Mine drags on windshield frame when top is off.....To add photo's from your computer, scroll down from text msg box, Manage attachments.....click and add photo's...

[Walter White]

Couple pics of the driver door gaps with top off. I anticipate the top being off quite a bit in the future.

[colgad]

My 2 cents:
To me there has been other body work going on underneath the black paint. Some investigation is needed to really see what is going on.

The gaps are pretty tight maybe fender movement could improve the ability to move the door toward the front.

But I believe some damage on either the door or the quarters has happened and needs to be investigated before you spend a ton of time adjusting.

[tjsblazer]

Can you post some more pictures of the underside of cab showing the torsion boxes. Just by looking at the way the end cap is bolted on in the one pic. Something looks off ??

[1tuff71]

That area where the gap is so tight is also a known area for rust. did the PO fix it and close the gap with to much bondo ? Get out the magnet LOL

[Walter White]

Originally Posted by colgad

My 2 cents:
To me there has been other body work going on underneath the black paint. Some investigation is needed to really see what is going on.

The gaps are pretty tight maybe fender movement could improve the ability to move the door toward the front.

But I believe some damage on either the door or the quarters has happened and needs to be investigated before you spend a ton of time adjusting.

Yes, the lower panels on either side of wheels on both sides is replaced. I assume I could tap in the bends where they weld into lower door jam. It looks to be out a little.
One thing to note about my pics is that my goal is to make it a really sharp regular driver but not show quality at all.

[Walter White]

Thanks for the reply fellows-- what do y'all think about the plastic gas tank?

[Walter White]

Some of those panels are gonna need some work.
Should I soak those badges in laquor thinner

[Walter White]

Originally Posted by tjsblazer

Can you post some more pictures of the underside of cab showing the torsion boxes. Just by looking at the way the end cap is bolted on in the one pic. Something looks off ??

it's home made work by a non-blazer guy. PO was a mechanic. i just hope it's all solid work. looking at the pics shows me how much i need to spend a day under it with a soda blasted i suppose

[raggedjim]

WW, the p.o. obviously took some artistic license when he repaired some of these areas. That being said, it is a much better blazer than the first 2 I ever had, and I think if you remove the black paint(primer?) you'll have a better idea what you are working with. You may find you need to do more welding or panel replacement. I won't tell you what you should replace or how to do it, you have to decide what you can live with. Trust me, my red blazer has problems, I know what they are, and I really don't let them keep me from enjoying it.

Well, I will tell you one thing, first thing to do is get the stickers off of the replacement panels! They will hold water and start rust.

Good luck, Rg

[jaros44sr]

Originally Posted by raggedjim

WW, the p.o. obviously took some artistic license when he repaired some of these areas. That being said, it is a much better blazer than the first 2 I ever had, and I think if you remove the black paint(primer?) you'll have a better idea what you are working with. You may find you need to do more welding or panel replacement. I won't tell you what you should replace or how to do it, you have to decide what you can live with. Trust me, my red blazer has problems, I know what they are, and I really don't let them keep me from enjoying it.

Well, I will tell you one thing, first thing to do is get the stickers off of the replacement panels! They will hold water and start rust.

Good luck, Rg

I agree w/roger, first is to take off rocker, I see rust at the seam (rocker to floor pan). That should tell you the quality of the repair

it's just like peeling an onion, keep digging until you get to solid flesh, or in this case non-rusty metal
The emblems can wait, you'll have plenty of time

[Walter White]

Got my jeep seat belts mounted on my semi-home made roll bar this afternoon. Not real wild about how I extended roll bars back--hopefully it grows on me. Started a little sanding looking for bondo. Body mounts on order

[Walter White]

body mounts fixed the tight gap at top of door. adjusted striker(?) and it closes perfectly again. not sure if i can live with the panels that were installed wrong
between door and back tire. if i ever get a shiny paint on it, those bowed in panels will stand out right? i have all new woodgrain trim that i want to install after paint. bowed panels probably wouldn't work right?
what should i expect a body shop to charge to replace them?
pics coming in next post