[hi_im_sean]

i just noticed the projects section lol, it should be at the top of the page, not the bottom. i already have this in the v8 section, but this seems more appropriate, so ill be updating it here now.

i am keeping a photo journal on photo bucket that can be found here:
http://s222.photobucket.com/albums/dd184/hi_im_sean/s15 v8/

i pulled the motor/trans out about 3 years ago (2.8/700r4), was driving it around until then, lifted with 32x11.50s. built the motor about a 1.5 year ago and its been sitting on the stand, poor thing. the tranny is from someone who owed my dad a favor, just a rebuilt late model 700r4, i have a corvette servo for it and a tci lockup kit, nothing fancy there. pounded the firewall in when i yanked the motor(probably not enough), removed my horrible body lift from the days of being 17, and installed the larger fuel tank (20 gal?).

recently: i got the whole suspension from a 96, including front brakes, but no rear axle for $100, a prothane full kit, some por-15, chassis black and caliper paint, and all the prep chemicals. i needed stock spindles and shackles because it has 2" lift spindles and shackles id like to revert to stock, so i thought $100 was a steal, and i can take my time to paint the parts and not have the truck on jack stands. i have been working on the cluster, and wiring of the whole truck, im an electronics nut, so that part was fun for me. i cut up the evap housing for valve cover clearance. i had removed it a long time ago, maybe 2 years, i had the evap core on the front seat for all of that time, well, it got stolen recntly. went to reassemble, and it was gone! still waiting on my ebay replacement.

i dont want to hear it from you 305 stroker haters, but:
30 over stroked 305=335
vortec L31 heads in stock form, the 1.94 version cast# 12558062
94 truck block, kb hyperutectics, 9.3:1
full arp
comp 256h-12 w/ magnum roller tips 1.52:1
mallory unilite with mech and vacuum advance, it was free, was going to use hei
holley 4160
patriot shorties
blah blah blah, ask if you need to know more, nothing crazy just a nice little torqy stroker

old pic, but its fully dressed now, just need to install the oil filter adapter and shes ready to drop in

stroker clearancing

most of an s10 suspension

the rest, with a tranny

97 grand cherokee steering shaft, the colum end doesnt fit, i didnt read the jeep steering shaft thread well enough. i have a 92 cherokee shaft now as well i need to get a picture of it, its a direct replacement for the first gen s10/15. the joints and rubber damper are worn out to bad to use though, but the shaft material will work as a key to make that beautiful grand cherokee shaft work with first gen s10 colum, more on that when i attempt it.

naked control arms, proper use of sockets and extensions, and stuborn bushings

evap housing jtr valve cover clearance thingy, used rivets and some really good adhesive used in motorcyle case halves to seal it all up.

i think we all know what that is

everything unnecessary removed, and the rest labeled and separated, got a huge convoluted tubing kit, oh joy

decided to clean the cowl, i recommend you do this, the driver side wasnt draining, caught it in time, beside you find some neat stuff sometimes. i found some old bottle caps and a nice pen.

what a champ, orginal 2.8 and 700r4, seriously

teaser

street rod artic whites

exploding cluster

whats that diamond plate for?

made a template to see how it would all fit, once i decided it would all be symmetrical i came up with some mathematical assistance

cut out old gauge faces

thats what its for...

milling off the diamonds around the perimeter so the bezel sits flush, and clearnace for the column. the joys of owning a mill.

boring the holes

gauges mounted, i have the holes for the turn signals drilled now, and the turn signal lenses cut out, need to mount them and update pics

i may use the brake and brights lenses as well, may not

more to come....

 

[hi_im_sean]

what it used to look like. i didnt have a digi cam back then, so i am taking a pic of a pic.
went camping in nov up north, snowy. had 32x11.50-15's 2WD, was kind of pointless. 3" body lift, 3/2 spindle/shackle kit, heavily trimmed fenders and inner wells. the fenders will get replaced eventually along with the wells, need to get the dam thing running first.

how it looks 10 minutes ago

got my $48 ebay evap core

installed with the moded cover

check these connections, chances are they are nasty

removing as much wiring and lines as i can to por15 the frame

removed some of the suspension to check it out, it all looks reusable, i am going to replace the ball joints and just replace the boots on the rest

my core for a zq8 box

these came with my $100 suspension find. all 4 are in working condition, are they anything good?

this will be fun...

thats sarcasm by the way

removed the speedo cable, im using an electric sender, and an auto calibrating gauge. free to anyone who needs it, just paying shipping.

i plan on getting the cluster done today, hopefully ill gte some more pics of that

 

[hi_im_sean]

entered my combo in dyno2003 vs a stock vortec 305 that would have come in a half-ton., didnt quite reach the 1000hp mark

gauge cluster is done, im happy with it.

lamps lit, the brights indicator looks a little dim, but im fine with that as its the only one that would remain on for extended periods and i dont want it glaring at me.

8hrs of hard labor to get these clean, still needs a little more. i wish i had a sand blaster.

mic-ing rotors for runout, theyre pretty dam straight

i discovered that i was missing my x-member, so i went to the junk yard to get a new one and ended up getting a bunch of goodies. some interior pieces that were broken, some ac vents that dont require a "shim" in the form of a biz card to stay pointed at you, vacuum canister,the smaller battery tray from a 4.3l blazer, rubber mounts for the radiator, and some small trim stuff
finally found one of these

jeep steering shafts

pressing the bushing in

this was interesting

por15

decided to use their caliper paint. it loosk good, but i wont use it again, its really hard to use with a brush, and it only come is a can. it goes on sooo thick and doesnt flow that well, so its hard to get a nice finish and not have runs, takes a few coats and a lot of labor, but it goes a long way. id say the little can will do 4-6 calipers
2nd coat, its drying right now, will need at least 1 more

 

[hi_im_sean]

im diggin the chassis coat.

3rd coat on the calipers dried and hardware reinstalled

finally made the plug wires, plugged up some holes in the block and intake, still need a water pump fitting, timing flag, air filter and water neck to top it off, need an extension for my oil press sender, it hits the manifold. i also need to find a good way to attach a return srping, the BTO TV kit blocks off the spring eye in the holley linkage. i test fitted the accessories but didnt leave em on for a pic, that engine stand is getting worked out, and it scares me, but it looked great!

BTO TV and throttle cable kit. made a bushing to adpat the ball stud fromt he lokar throttle cable kit to the gaping hole in the linkage. check out the adjustable
TV cam.

installed my vette servo, speedo gears and sender

 

[hi_im_sean]

the timing tab didnt fit

all better

wiring pic

i broke out the ruler and calipers and measured all my springs to figure out what i got. just posting this info in case someone else can use it.


86 extended cab 2.8 coils- equivelant to the moog 5662
http://www.moog-suspension-parts.com/proddetail.asp?prod=MOOG-5662
actual measurements were: 0.747" coil diamter, 7 coils, couldnt measure anything else, they are installed on the truck. 748lb/in spring with 1690lbs load capacity. must have only come one the ext cabs or blazer with a v6 from what i can tell. its the stiffest stock gbody spring gm used if im not mistaken.
96 standard cab 4.3 coils- equivelant to the moog 5664
http://www.moog-suspension-parts.com/proddetail.asp?prod=MOOG-5664
actual measurements were: 0.745" coil diamter, 7 coils, free height right at 13". 707lb/in spring with 1863 lbs load capacity, interesting that this srping holds more than the 5662
leafs- both leafs packs have 3 leafs plus an overload, they are both 2.5" wide and have a pad thickness of 1 5/8". it was hard to measure on the truck, so the ext cab pad thickness might be 1 1/2". either way according to the spring king, they are the same rate, the 1350lb versions.
1rst gen
http://thesuspensionking.com/catalog/tables/82-94s10_s15 _s10blazer_s15jimmy_rear.php
2nd gen
http://thesuspensionking.com/catalog/tables/95-05s10_s15 _s10blazer_s15jimmy_rear.php
the only differnce is that the 96 spring has 3/4" more arch and the ext cab spring's overload leaf is arched whereas the stnd cab overload leaf is flat. the arched overload comes into play sooner in the suspension stroke and would be harsher, thats how they support the extra weight of the extended cab, thanks for the harsh ride gm.

im still not sure which springs im going to use, but theres all the info. my goal is to make the truck sit level with my 2" drop spindles and one of those 2 coils along with one of those 2 leaf packs with the overlaod and maybe the 3rd leaf removed. any one have any input?

 

[hi_im_sean]

i got the speedway control arms, all that work to the stock ones for nothing. i read a lot of posts where people said they wernt symmetrical and that you couldnt use 2 right sides, despite people trying to tell them otherwise. i couldnt find a pic that showed that the ball joint mounting plate was welded in the center of the tubing, a few people said they welded the plate to the top or bottom of the tubing, making the rights and lefts different. heres some pics that i hope will end all that. got the zq8 bumbstops and proforged tall bjs as well.

mouting plate centered, tubing straight, symmetrical

crosshaft flanges centered, symmetrical

tall bj

ZQ8 bumpstops vs stock

some info about the control arms that i couldnt find, maybe someone can use in the future: the aluminum crosshafts ride directly on the steel tubing, they are circliped and put togther then wleded. you cannot remove the crosshaft. the shaft spins easily by hand and has no slop... yet some people said they look like shit and the welds suck. i think the welds are great quality, the paint is a little cheap and will flake off easily it seems. theyre $42 each, nuff said

 

[hi_im_sean]

heres a pic of the aforementioned key i made:

and what ive been doing lately with the rear suspension.
chevy flared the stock bushings, i had to get medieval on them with a grinder, chisel and bfh.

and of course, when does a leaf bolt actually come out without a fuss? i tried to be nice

goodbye 3rd leaf

so it turns out there are some slight differences between some leaf springs on the s10s, even if they are the same rate, size, etc. some of the later model springs have a 2" front spring eye. every s10 from 82 to 96 used 1.5" eyes front and rear. of course you learn these thing too late. energy is the only supplier for the 2" bushing and i have to spend $80 just to get 4 pieces of poly. i think not. made some adapters on the ol lathe.

making my own grease able bolts

i bought a cobalt bit for this project, well it gave out by the 9th out of 12 holes, i completely obliterated it, but it didnt snap. so i figured hell, i can finish the 2 and a half holes i have left with my HF tin coated drill bits. it snapped almost instanly, was a brand new bit. cobalt or better only with grade 8 bolts! thats a ruined bolt, i have 1 extra luckily.

disassembled leaf. going to try to have em all togethr and painted/bushed by the weekend

 

[tohoopty]

looking real good.keep it up

 

[PTXtreme]

incredible attention to detail!

 

[hi_im_sean]

thanks guys!
been getting the leafs cleaned and back together all morning, made 3.5 degree angle blocks last night on the mill. pics in a few

 

[hi_im_sean]

machining of the angle blocks

roughing to size

flipped and then the angle is set

holes drilled and counter sunk

pressed the adapters in, they went in nice and tight, i went 0.030" oversize

my assembly rig, the clamps were to get some of the arch out of the spring so there wasnt a gap between it and the angle block.

painted, bushed, greased, done

 

[hi_im_sean]

double post

 

[84blaze]

Nice project thread! Keep it up.

 

[hi_im_sean]

im going to try and get it into the garage to work on it this weekend. anyone ever taken the bed off with an engine crane?
had to go get some of these so i could move my truck around.

i also cleaned up the firewall breakout right in front of the fuse panel, and decoded it. i made a pretty drawing for everyone, hopefully someone will get some use out of it. schematics as well. (this stuff applies to an 86ish s15 truck with a 2.8 and 700r4, if you have a blazer, a 4cylinder, or 88 and newer, a lot of colors and wiring changes, 2nd gen isnt even close)

the colors correspond to the actual wire color in my truck, a few were different from what the schematic shows.

further explanation of each wire
A1-TCC 12V. torque converter control. this is 12V lockup for the TC, it comes from your brake switch, and goes to the tranny.
A2- alternator indicator, brown wire from the alternator to the alternator indicator in the cluster
A3- wiper motor low speed
B1- TCC grnd. goes to the ECM and the ALDL (cruise component) to complete the circuit and put the TC into lockup
B2- 12V ignition switched, from ign. fuse to 510ohm resistor for alternator excitation, also goes to the contacts of the AC relay to power the compressor clutch, and to a random oil pressure switch on the v6 models
B3- wiper motor park switch
C1- +coil, coil power, large pink wire directly from the ignition switch
C2- ecm 12V, ignition switched 12V from ECM1 fuse, main ecm power
D1- Alt. fuse, the large red wire to the alternator with the fusable link, powers most of the interior of the truck
D2- oil pressure, comes from the oil pressure gauge, goes to one of the oil pressure senders
E1-fuel pump relay, this is just a signal wire to the ecm for the fuel pump and to serve as a junction block.
E2- water temp, comes from the water temp gauge, goes to a temp sender
F1-main 12V, large red. goes to the firewall mounted distribution post that the alternator connects to, supplies power to the fuse panel and most of the truck
F2- CEL, 2 wires connect here, a green/wht and a yellow. one goes to the "oil" relay, and the other to a water temp switch, either one will set off the check gauges lamp.
G1- ECM B, constant power to the ecm from the fuse panel
G3- wiper motor park switch, the other one
H1- starter crank, 12V from the ignition switch in crank position to the starter solenoid
H2- ecm crank, crank signal to the ecm
H3- wiper motor high speed
L4- brake pressure switch, comes from the brake lamp, goes to the pressure switch located on the top of the master cylinder
L5- head lights, forgot to see which were high and low beams
M5- head lights, other
N4- front park lights
N6- right front turn signal
O4- windshield washer motor
P5- horn
P6- left front turn signal
1-6 are missing from the schematic, as are a few of the above, i just labeled them for reference. the 1-6 connector harness goes to the rear of the truck
1- left rear turn signal
2- fuel gauge, fuel sender to the gauge
3- reverse lights
4- right rear turn signal
5- fuel pump 12V, internally connects to E1, so it really comes from the fuel pump relay contact
6- running and licence plate lamps
enjoy

 

[hi_im_sean]

removed my wheel spacers today, had em on there to help fit the 32x11.50s years ago. for sale, $100 for the 4, plus shipping
have 14 3" body lift blocks and 8 of the bolts as well if anyone is interested, $30

 

[GM]

Very cool build so far man. Everything is looking great.

 

[[email protected]]

Holy crap. I wish i had your garage. I really like the gauge setup

 

[hi_im_sean]

thanks guys

 

[SBBlazer]

Excellant progress, love the attention to detail. Do you have any info on the electronic speedo adaptor you're using on the trans?

 

[benster]

nice project and as everyone said, very good attention to details. from your title i'm guessing you're planning on making a race track truck. keep at it, my project is pretty similar to your except it doesn't look as good .

for your question about the adapter, autometer website has a super good explanation for it. it's pretty expensive too at about 130$, plus 250 more or less for the speedo.