We know it can be hard to drag yourself into work everyday. We understand that not everyone 'wheels for a living (you have our deepest sympathy), and when your 4x4 is your daily driver you often run the risk of calling in sick so you can spend the day in the mud, rocks, or sand.
Matt Dodd knows this all too well. He and his '69 Chevy 1/2-ton fight the temptation to run the dunes seven days a week instead of showing up for work Monday through Friday.
A prerunner bumper and skidplate...
A prerunner bumper and skidplate built by MD Fabrications dominates the front of the K10 and shields the billet grille and KC HiLiTES from the trail. Dodd swapped in a 3.73-geared 10-bolt from a '78 Suburban up front for the later-model disc brake setup to whoa and go the 35-inch BFGs.
Dodd wasn't afraid to slalom the truck through some of the softest sand we could find, because that's what he built it for. Sandblasting power comes from a 350 fueled by a 650-cfm Holley on an Edelbrock intake. Mallory HEI ignition fires the spark plugs, and Doug's headers draw the gases out through a single 3-inch Flowmaster exhaust. Horsepower comes in at 300 more than your Craftsman air compressor. Inside the cab a Clarion CD player and original functional A/C work with a tilt wheel and a '93 Chevy bench seat for modern cruising comfort.
Protection out back comes...
Protection out back comes from a matching rear bumper and tire carrier combo that fills the void left by the tailgate that is now long gone. Throttle is the key in the sand and a 12-bolt rear axle with a limited slip spins the tires in the silt and sends rooster tails into the sky.
Twin transmission coolers are now mounted behind the grille to take the heat from a swapped-in TH350 adapted to work with the stock NP205. Rancho 6-inch springs are used with Fox shocks to keep the suspension firm enough to limit wheelhop, but soft enough to keep Dodd's one-year-old son asleep while strapped into his baby five-point harness.