I copied a bit of that from a different forum I'm on, but as it sits right now I've got the york 210, the brackets for it, a coyote gear fuel cell, and the LSOH steering kit sitting in boxes waiting to be installed. Right now the truck is about an hour and a half away, so it's a bit difficult to work on it right now. I figure around january I'll bring the truck back home and get to work on it. A bodydrop may be in order yet to.. First I need to focus on the box though as right now I HATE how it looks back there, it's fawk ugly.
Project: Evasive Motivation
10
Well, I figured it was time to get a build thread going for my truck. Theres points that I don't have many photos from, but bare with me. It'll probably be a little long winded at times to, but oh well.
First, a little back tracking on how I got into minitrucks.
It all started when I aquired a 1989 Chevy stepside. It was a regular cab, and it was a decent looking truck for the price I paid. I initially purchased it as I had seen a couple photos of lowered full sizes around the internet and I liked how it looked. So, soon after purchasing it and paying it off to the bank of dad, I started saving for the lowering kit. I wanted to basically go as low as I could, whie keeping in mind that I had to have it driveable for the winter time.
The lowering kit I purchased was a belltech 5/7 kit. Although it should have been easy enough to install, having no prior mechanical know-how it took me and a buddy about a solid week to get the front end lowered. I know it sounds pathetic, but it was a learning curve nonetheless. I never had the chance to get around to installing the rear drop, as a week later I was t-boned by some lady doing a u-turn in the middle of a street. Apparently she didnt know what shoulder checking was. She hit me right where the box meets the cab, and as a result the truck was totalled. This was one week after I finally received my rims and put them on the truck, after fighting with UPS for three solid months. What a piss off that was.
I've got no photos of the accident, but heres a shot of the truck post-lowering and pre-rims. Sorry if its a little large. I've somehow misplaced the photos I took of it at the salvage yard which was the only photos I had with the rims on. I attempted to buy it back months later when it was up for auction, but I was beat out by $100.
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EDIT: Found the photo in my photobucket account after all!
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Anyways, after the accident I knew what I was after in terms of a vehicle. After reading MT magazine, I had seen many S10's that were bagged and on the ground, some of which used bolt on kits. Bolt on sounded great to me, since I lack the art of welding.
After months of searching for the right one, I finally bought my truck in october of 2010. or maybe it was 2009. whatever. After paying off the bank of dad yet again, six months later I started to purchase the parts I needed for bagging my truck. It was a long ass process. Being a student, it took a while to get the cash I needed to get a proper setup for the truck. I worked two jobs while in school to afford the final peices. One mon-fri evenings, and the other all day sat & sun.
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Photo used in the trucks ad.
I ended up buying an LRD four-link through Brennan @ Raven Machine and the rest of the stuff I needed I bought from gauge magazine and SD. In the end, I don't even want to know how much cash is in this truck. I finally gathered the final parts and the fittings necessary, and began tearing apart my truck at the beginning of this year.
It was a little overwhelming at the start. I basically took anything and everything off of the frame from the rear cab wall and onward. I had it disassembled in about week which I did between class and whenever I had free time.
Meanwhile, I had also sent in my four link to Meunster Powder Coating to get rid of the raw metal look. They came out pretty decent for the money that I paid to have it done. Definitely recommend them.
After getting my parts back from powder coating, I assembled them in yet again, a weeks time. After that came the fun part. I needed the SD notch & bridge kit welded in, so it was time to load up the truck onto a uhaul trailer and ship it off to Brennan to get it in, as well as to get the pinion angle set. Unfortunately, it had snowed the night before so it made loading the truck a bitch and a half with the ice that had built up on the trailer. Nonetheless, we made it to MJ to Brennans shop.
The next weekend me and my dad made the same trip and picked up the truck from Raven Machine, who by the way, did amazing some amazing welding. Seriously, I'd recommend this guy to anyone!
Once the truck got home, the wiring and plumbing began. This took a while, as it was tedious and not quite as enjoyable. Basically, I plumbed a FBSS system, and made a plexiglass plate to house the three air gauges in the stock heater control location, and moved the heater controls to the glove box. I also went with a 20 gal fuel cell that sits behind the diffy in the rear.
Eventually, the truck was on the road again, but the front end was way up in the air due to me not getting it bagged. So soon enough, the truck was back in the garage with the front end getting its share of air. It went a little quicker than the rear though, as I had already done all the neccessary plumbing and wiring, it was just a matter of cutting the spring pocket, installing the bags and changing out the control arms. It was soon installed, and I was laying close to the ground, but still being held up by the inner fenders.
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So yet again, it was back in the garage to have the inners removed. However, thats where the title of the thread comes into play. As of right now, I still need to remove the drivers side inner fender, and relocate everything that sits on it. The passenger side is done though. I've relocated the ECU to the cab, and replaced the coolant resevoir with a smaller bottle that rests on the radiator. For the battery, I made a crossbar to hold up the tray. Eventually it will be relocated to the rear of the truck.
And, somewhere along the way, the dash came out with a new dash waiting to be fitted for it.
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And waay back when, somewhere along the way I changed the front end, and installed the rear step shavers.
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Anyways, here it is as it sits right now.
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I'd have more photos for you guys, but my PB is being gay right now and not uploading photos for some odd reason. Anyways, heres the specs on the truck:
2003 s10 xtreme
4.3 V6
LRD bolt-on 4 link
airlift 2500#'s all around
2 viair 480C compressors
FBSS system with SMC valves
8 gal tank
SD lowers
speedway uppers
walboro fuel pump & a summit 20 gal fuel cell
I plan on doing some work on it over the winter as well, depending on the money situation. Currently I've got the SD EDC bracket kit on order, and a york 210 compressor is somewhere between here and california with my name on it. I still need to gather a few things for that though.
Also, I've got a deposit placed on a LSOH center link kit that fixes camber issues that bagged trucks have. That should be in by the end of next month.
As far as how low it goes, I'm currently held up by a few things
-the tranny & carrier bearing crossmembers
-tie rods
-fenders
The tranny and carrier bearing xmembers I need to address yet. The tie rod issue however will be fixed with the new center link I've got on order. And as far as the fenders, its a matter of getting wheels with a different backspacing. The skeletal structure of the fender is basically what I'm resting on right now with the stock xtreme wheels.
Also over the winter I hope to redo my entire box and below it. I'm looking into getting the lower bars needed to make the 4 link into a six link, thus moving from the 1:1 ratio that the bag on axle gives me to somewhere between a 1:1.5 to 1:2 ratio in terms of lift. I tried to get a solid answer from LRD as to the ratio in the rear but I never got one. Nonetheless, I need more lift. Also, I've been looking into the air lift e3 or whatever the hell it is as a valve manifold. It'll rid of the wiring and plumbing that I need to the interior of the vehicle and just clean up the air ride system overall. I'm also considering moving the fuel tank to the front of the bed, so that I don't have fuel lines going to the back and thus cleaning up the stuff going over top of the notch. And last but not least, I need to come up with some kind of design for a sheetmetal bed. The way it currently is is an eye sore to me and Im sure everyone else.
But yeah, thats how it currently sits. I've come a long way, but I still have got a looong way to go. Thanks for reading!
First, a little back tracking on how I got into minitrucks.
It all started when I aquired a 1989 Chevy stepside. It was a regular cab, and it was a decent looking truck for the price I paid. I initially purchased it as I had seen a couple photos of lowered full sizes around the internet and I liked how it looked. So, soon after purchasing it and paying it off to the bank of dad, I started saving for the lowering kit. I wanted to basically go as low as I could, whie keeping in mind that I had to have it driveable for the winter time.
The lowering kit I purchased was a belltech 5/7 kit. Although it should have been easy enough to install, having no prior mechanical know-how it took me and a buddy about a solid week to get the front end lowered. I know it sounds pathetic, but it was a learning curve nonetheless. I never had the chance to get around to installing the rear drop, as a week later I was t-boned by some lady doing a u-turn in the middle of a street. Apparently she didnt know what shoulder checking was. She hit me right where the box meets the cab, and as a result the truck was totalled. This was one week after I finally received my rims and put them on the truck, after fighting with UPS for three solid months. What a piss off that was.
I've got no photos of the accident, but heres a shot of the truck post-lowering and pre-rims. Sorry if its a little large. I've somehow misplaced the photos I took of it at the salvage yard which was the only photos I had with the rims on. I attempted to buy it back months later when it was up for auction, but I was beat out by $100.
EDIT: Found the photo in my photobucket account after all!
Anyways, after the accident I knew what I was after in terms of a vehicle. After reading MT magazine, I had seen many S10's that were bagged and on the ground, some of which used bolt on kits. Bolt on sounded great to me, since I lack the art of welding.
After months of searching for the right one, I finally bought my truck in october of 2010. or maybe it was 2009. whatever. After paying off the bank of dad yet again, six months later I started to purchase the parts I needed for bagging my truck. It was a long ass process. Being a student, it took a while to get the cash I needed to get a proper setup for the truck. I worked two jobs while in school to afford the final peices. One mon-fri evenings, and the other all day sat & sun.
Photo used in the trucks ad.
I ended up buying an LRD four-link through Brennan @ Raven Machine and the rest of the stuff I needed I bought from gauge magazine and SD. In the end, I don't even want to know how much cash is in this truck. I finally gathered the final parts and the fittings necessary, and began tearing apart my truck at the beginning of this year.
It was a little overwhelming at the start. I basically took anything and everything off of the frame from the rear cab wall and onward. I had it disassembled in about week which I did between class and whenever I had free time.
Meanwhile, I had also sent in my four link to Meunster Powder Coating to get rid of the raw metal look. They came out pretty decent for the money that I paid to have it done. Definitely recommend them.
After getting my parts back from powder coating, I assembled them in yet again, a weeks time. After that came the fun part. I needed the SD notch & bridge kit welded in, so it was time to load up the truck onto a uhaul trailer and ship it off to Brennan to get it in, as well as to get the pinion angle set. Unfortunately, it had snowed the night before so it made loading the truck a bitch and a half with the ice that had built up on the trailer. Nonetheless, we made it to MJ to Brennans shop.
The next weekend me and my dad made the same trip and picked up the truck from Raven Machine, who by the way, did amazing some amazing welding. Seriously, I'd recommend this guy to anyone!
Once the truck got home, the wiring and plumbing began. This took a while, as it was tedious and not quite as enjoyable. Basically, I plumbed a FBSS system, and made a plexiglass plate to house the three air gauges in the stock heater control location, and moved the heater controls to the glove box. I also went with a 20 gal fuel cell that sits behind the diffy in the rear.
Eventually, the truck was on the road again, but the front end was way up in the air due to me not getting it bagged. So soon enough, the truck was back in the garage with the front end getting its share of air. It went a little quicker than the rear though, as I had already done all the neccessary plumbing and wiring, it was just a matter of cutting the spring pocket, installing the bags and changing out the control arms. It was soon installed, and I was laying close to the ground, but still being held up by the inner fenders.
So yet again, it was back in the garage to have the inners removed. However, thats where the title of the thread comes into play. As of right now, I still need to remove the drivers side inner fender, and relocate everything that sits on it. The passenger side is done though. I've relocated the ECU to the cab, and replaced the coolant resevoir with a smaller bottle that rests on the radiator. For the battery, I made a crossbar to hold up the tray. Eventually it will be relocated to the rear of the truck.
And, somewhere along the way, the dash came out with a new dash waiting to be fitted for it.
And waay back when, somewhere along the way I changed the front end, and installed the rear step shavers.
Anyways, here it is as it sits right now.
I'd have more photos for you guys, but my PB is being gay right now and not uploading photos for some odd reason. Anyways, heres the specs on the truck:
2003 s10 xtreme
4.3 V6
LRD bolt-on 4 link
airlift 2500#'s all around
2 viair 480C compressors
FBSS system with SMC valves
8 gal tank
SD lowers
speedway uppers
walboro fuel pump & a summit 20 gal fuel cell
I plan on doing some work on it over the winter as well, depending on the money situation. Currently I've got the SD EDC bracket kit on order, and a york 210 compressor is somewhere between here and california with my name on it. I still need to gather a few things for that though.
Also, I've got a deposit placed on a LSOH center link kit that fixes camber issues that bagged trucks have. That should be in by the end of next month.
As far as how low it goes, I'm currently held up by a few things
-the tranny & carrier bearing crossmembers
-tie rods
-fenders
The tranny and carrier bearing xmembers I need to address yet. The tie rod issue however will be fixed with the new center link I've got on order. And as far as the fenders, its a matter of getting wheels with a different backspacing. The skeletal structure of the fender is basically what I'm resting on right now with the stock xtreme wheels.
Also over the winter I hope to redo my entire box and below it. I'm looking into getting the lower bars needed to make the 4 link into a six link, thus moving from the 1:1 ratio that the bag on axle gives me to somewhere between a 1:1.5 to 1:2 ratio in terms of lift. I tried to get a solid answer from LRD as to the ratio in the rear but I never got one. Nonetheless, I need more lift. Also, I've been looking into the air lift e3 or whatever the hell it is as a valve manifold. It'll rid of the wiring and plumbing that I need to the interior of the vehicle and just clean up the air ride system overall. I'm also considering moving the fuel tank to the front of the bed, so that I don't have fuel lines going to the back and thus cleaning up the stuff going over top of the notch. And last but not least, I need to come up with some kind of design for a sheetmetal bed. The way it currently is is an eye sore to me and Im sure everyone else.
But yeah, thats how it currently sits. I've come a long way, but I still have got a looong way to go. Thanks for reading!
1 - 20 of 193 Posts
5
oh, i imagine the difference will be night and day once i get crackin on the front end finally, its just one of those things thats been put off repeatedly because of other projects on the go and such.
anyways, its fcuking cold here, its -41 with the wind here.. thats uhh .. quick google search.. -41.8 farenheit. so, while the heaters are blazing in the garage to warm it up a bit before i head out for a few hours, i thought i'd get some photos!
this is how the rear end sits right now, fuel cell is coming out today, along with the fuel lines that go to it. making a new mount for a different fuel cell, went with a spun aluminum one from coyote gear. it'll be mounted in the box of the truck, but im pretty sure the platform it rests on will be standalone so that im able to take the box off whenever i need, without removing the fuel tank. i've also gotta reflare the lines before the rubber hose, i apparently didnt do good enough on the one and theres evidently been a small leak. that'll be cleaned up right away
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and heres two of the engine bay. just got the inner fender out, thus why the fuse box and the abs brakes are resting on the tire. im debating whether or not to remove the abs righ now, so im just leaving it like that until i make a decision. theres very little stress on the lines as is, so im not to concerned for the time being
as for the duck tape on the firewall, i removed the passenger side inner fender last fall along with the heat/ac stuff, and then it was promptly put into storage so i had no time to fill the holes properly, so i had to cover up the holes to prevent mice from getting in. it looks ghetto, i know. but it kept my interior clean, and that was my main concern.
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the second photo also reminds me that i need to pick up some thick wire to move the battery to the rear, and i need to pick up some external battery posts to put somewhere accessible in case i need to jump start it. just another thing to add to the list.
also, i've got this to install
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and finally, a photo of it at its first show..
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anyways, its fcuking cold here, its -41 with the wind here.. thats uhh .. quick google search.. -41.8 farenheit. so, while the heaters are blazing in the garage to warm it up a bit before i head out for a few hours, i thought i'd get some photos!
this is how the rear end sits right now, fuel cell is coming out today, along with the fuel lines that go to it. making a new mount for a different fuel cell, went with a spun aluminum one from coyote gear. it'll be mounted in the box of the truck, but im pretty sure the platform it rests on will be standalone so that im able to take the box off whenever i need, without removing the fuel tank. i've also gotta reflare the lines before the rubber hose, i apparently didnt do good enough on the one and theres evidently been a small leak. that'll be cleaned up right away
and heres two of the engine bay. just got the inner fender out, thus why the fuse box and the abs brakes are resting on the tire. im debating whether or not to remove the abs righ now, so im just leaving it like that until i make a decision. theres very little stress on the lines as is, so im not to concerned for the time being
as for the duck tape on the firewall, i removed the passenger side inner fender last fall along with the heat/ac stuff, and then it was promptly put into storage so i had no time to fill the holes properly, so i had to cover up the holes to prevent mice from getting in. it looks ghetto, i know. but it kept my interior clean, and that was my main concern.
the second photo also reminds me that i need to pick up some thick wire to move the battery to the rear, and i need to pick up some external battery posts to put somewhere accessible in case i need to jump start it. just another thing to add to the list.
also, i've got this to install
and finally, a photo of it at its first show..
aaand shes out. workin on gettin the fuse box disconnected right now, and i gotta run out and get some hardware to finish mounting the lrd canti bars as you can see in the pic..
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need to pick up some 1x1 as well so i can mount the air tank, and build or find a decent metal box to mount the v2 manifold in to protect it from the elements out here.
need to pick up some 1x1 as well so i can mount the air tank, and build or find a decent metal box to mount the v2 manifold in to protect it from the elements out here.
got the fuse block out, and after getting some hardware im workin on drillin out the holes at the back for the canti bars, two more to go.. got one side mounted then realized i forgot to put in the plate that goes between the bag and the frame..
also got all the old fittings off my tank, gotta go pick up a couple plugs, and then get that sorted out too. tomorrow morning ill be working on finishing up the other canti bar, gettin the bag on, and then ill be done with the link system. tomorrow afternoon, im going to begin tearing into the wiring harness to get all that ugly shit cleaned up and into the cab to make the engine bay look purdy.
only photo i remembered to take, just after the fuse box came out
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also got all the old fittings off my tank, gotta go pick up a couple plugs, and then get that sorted out too. tomorrow morning ill be working on finishing up the other canti bar, gettin the bag on, and then ill be done with the link system. tomorrow afternoon, im going to begin tearing into the wiring harness to get all that ugly shit cleaned up and into the cab to make the engine bay look purdy.
only photo i remembered to take, just after the fuse box came out
got a bit done today, didnt get as much done as i had hoped, but thats how it typically goes. tomorrow ill be spending the majority of my time either on the wiring or on the v2 system, havent decided yet
today i finished up the link system, and ive got it working on shop air as of right now.
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i also picked up some 1x1 to mount the tank, but i ran into a snag when i discovered the bottom bung hits the ground when the ruck is layed out. so ill have to make a spacer or something to prevent myself from destroying it. i also picked up an ammo can, i think im going to mount the airlift v2 system in thatand then just use a couple bulkhead fittings on it to get the air out, that way its away from the elements. still need to figure how im mounting it
lastly, i think i know where im going to mount my train horns, just need to drill out the holes and run the electrical and hose for it.
and thats about as far as i got on it today, now im off to work to finish the day off.
today i finished up the link system, and ive got it working on shop air as of right now.
i also picked up some 1x1 to mount the tank, but i ran into a snag when i discovered the bottom bung hits the ground when the ruck is layed out. so ill have to make a spacer or something to prevent myself from destroying it. i also picked up an ammo can, i think im going to mount the airlift v2 system in thatand then just use a couple bulkhead fittings on it to get the air out, that way its away from the elements. still need to figure how im mounting it
lastly, i think i know where im going to mount my train horns, just need to drill out the holes and run the electrical and hose for it.
and thats about as far as i got on it today, now im off to work to finish the day off.
1 - 20 of 193 Posts
