Winging a 1971 K5 Blazer L96 6L90 Swap

[HotRod4me]

Hi, everyone. Been watching this site for a long time putting my build together in my head. Picked up a tired Hugger Orange 1971 Blazer and a parts truck over the summer.

So here were go- I love the old patina paint on the truck so I think I'm going to leave the body and paint alone for now. The drive train is a different story. I plan on doing a 2" spring lift, new stock 33" tires and a L96 motor with a 6L90 transmission behind it.[ATTACH]Attachment 2162428[/ATTACH]

[72gmguy]

Sounds cool. I will be watching!

[68panelman]

Looking good

[HotRod4me]

This is going to go pretty fast for a while. I've been working on it for a little while and now just starting to post the progress to document the adventure and possible help others doing something similar along the way.

[HotRod4me]

Tear down started

[HotRod4me]

Motors out

[HotRod4me]

Anyone looking for a motor

[68panelman]

Cranking right along. I'd take that motor if you were closer. Keep up the good work!!!

[jaros44sr]

Looks great, nice work

Don't forget the poly mounts on.the motor, I've read where they don't play well, if you mix poly and rubber

Now would be a good time to add hydra boost, it will stop the big tires w/o.a problem, also, consider a 3 pice cross brace motor mount, if you ever have to drop your oil pan, you will be glad you did.
Now I want drill and and cross vent my front hubs, these forums are a slippery slope
Thanks for posting up, gives me hope and incentive thar someday I'll finish mine

[Kenz72K5]

Looks Good, will look in to see how your doing, My 72 K5 I purchased a year ago already had the LS1 and 6L90 but alot of things I still wanted to do such as Electric windows, door locks, 1 piece window etc. has a 6 inch lift that I would like to lower to 2-3 inch.....

[HotRod4me]

Thanks for checking out my build guys. I already purchased a Dirty Dingo motor mount for that exact reason and the rubber motor mounts. Now I'm second guessing those and considering the polyurethane ones. I'm at a good point to swap them out now, so thank you again for the tip. That is exactly why I love these forums and other builders input.

[HotRod4me]

Picture of the new drums and gas tank.

[HotRod4me]

Transfer case rebuilt, Advanced engineering adapter installed for the 6L90 and ready to go. Now I just need to figure out a shift linkage adapter.

[HotRod4me]

In tank fuel pump from Tanks Inc installed with Corvette pressure regulator and new shoes on stock rims. Love the look of these tires!!

[1rippen6]

How did you modify your tank for the fuel system? Thanks

[HotRod4me]

Thanks for checking out my build 1rippen6. The tank modification is explained further in the last post on the first page of this build thread. I used the stock tank and cut the hole for the sending unit with a large hole saw. After the hole was cut I welded in the retaining ring to make sure it was a solid mount. Please let me know if you have any further questions or need any measurements.

[1rippen6]

Originally Posted by HotRod4me

Thanks for checking out my build 1rippen6. The tank modification is explained further in the last post on the first page of this build thread. I used the stock tank and cut the hole for the sending unit with a large hole saw. After the hole was cut I welded in the retaining ring to make sure it was a solid mount. Please let me know if you have any further questions or need any measurements.

I'm good, I don't know how I missed it the first time, lol.

[HotRod4me]

Made a little more headway tonight. Got the front sway bar figured out and mounted. Since I did a 2" suspension lift, I had to reconfigure the way the sway bar mounted. I extended the bolt and used an 1-1/4" spacer. To mount it to the frame I ended up using a couple old transmission mount brackets I had laying around. The brackets gave me roughly 1" more clearance and helped me clear the brake lines. Almost looks factory.

[Tuff Gong]

Your truck is looking amazing. What size tires did you put on?

[HotRod4me]

Thanks for the encouragement. I ended up going with Firestone Destination LT33x12.50rx15 tires. I obviously haven't drove on them yet, but think they have a good aggressive look and with the tread pattern I wont have to much road noise while driving. I was on the fence between these and BF Goodrich. I see a lot of guys running the BF tires on their trucks, but have had good luck with Firestones in the past- plus they were roughly $200 cheaper for the set of four.

[HotRod4me]

Made very small steps forward today. Ended up getting some heat shield protective boots for the plugs. The wires sit pretty tight against the shorty headers.

Quick question for guys that have done builds in the past. Has anyone had the exhaust system built without having the body on the frame? Just worried about clearance issues if I have this done without the body on. All input is welcome.

Thanks,
Andy

[13jraven]

Take this with a grain of salt - A few years ago, I did an L96/4L80 with a 3.73 gear in a NASCAR inspired late 70s C10 with a Fitech set up.

Set the motor and trans without the cab on the frame and had no issues with the cab clearance. I know 2WD vs 4WD and 1st vs 2nd gen - hence the "take this with a grain of salt"

The issue I had is the L96 ran hot and was a thirsty ***** with the 80 pound injectors and the tune. I had to go back and do some heat displacer matting on the firewall and the inside of the cab.

My tuner buddy swears by the 6L90 - says they handle a ton of HP/TQ in their stock form. Way past what they are rated for.

[HotRod4me]

Thanks for the input 13JRAVEN. I think the clearance will be good and love the square body tribute truck.

Had a little stall on my build while waiting for my wiring harness and ECM to come back. I've been spending my time getting my wife's 1968 Chevelle SS motor freshened up and converting the front brakes to disc brakes. Hoping to get the exhaust built for the Blazer in the next couple weeks and then fit up the body. I'll keep you posted with hopefully good progress on both.