We were down to the wire. It was now just days before the start of the Ultimate Adventure, and the K5 Blazer's progress was still far behind schedule. What Fabworx Off Road had done so far was nothing short of a miracle. It wasn't exciting, it wasn't fun, it was painful. This was supposed to be a nice, easy collaboration of Fabworx and 4-Wheel & Off-Road's resources to craft a premudder that could drive nonstop across the country, wheel the hardest trails, climb the biggest sand dunes, and wallow in the biggest mudholes. But it turned out to be a thrashfest to make it be everything it needed to be without adding any of the extras. That meant no stereo for me on the drive out there (only 450 hp to listen to for hours on end), no speedometer (that's OK, I had a V1 radar detector), and no Specialty Top Co. top (now this one was going to hurt in the thunderstorms).
We had made some good progress since we left off in last month's issue. The engine was back from the engine shop and assembled, the four-link was finished, and the front axle was slung in place. We'd have a rolling chassis as soon as we assembled the Center Line bead locks and mounted the BFGs. All that was left was to build the entire rollcage, the '88-'98 Chevy front clip update, mount the rear coilovers, add all the Auto Meter gauges and the rest of the interior, hook up the radiator, and...oh yeah, make sure it all works before we race for Idaho. No problem!
We decided to finish the front...
We decided to finish the front end first. The engine had gone in already, and all that was left was to get on the front clip and mount the shocks. Light Racing had sent us some flared hole dies to try out, so we used some to add strength and rigidity to the new front radiator support mounts that we would have to weld to the frame. The flared hole dies are put on both sides of a drilled or punched hole, and via hydraulic pressure, crush the steel plate into what is commonly known as a dimple, thus the nickname "dimple dies."
We had to make new mounts...
We had to make new mounts because we were using a radiator support off an '88-'98 Chevy, as per our fiberglass update kit requirements. Though the original radiator support placement is close to what is required, it's not close enough. Bryan McCully and Forrest Moore constructed the new frame mounts from flared 1/4-inch plate sides and 3/8-inch plate tops.
Energy Suspension supplied...
Energy Suspension supplied us with a urethane bushing kit to replace all the worn-out rubber. We actually raised the body 111/42 inches when we put the new bushings in, since the rubber body mounts were completely gone and the body was resting on the frame.
Once we had the '88-'98 radiator...
Once we had the '88-'98 radiator support mounted, we test fit our Flex-a-Lite Flex-a-fit Crossflow radiator on the support. We had taken measurements of a radiator from an '88-'98 truck and we had ordered accordingly. We were not worried about mounting because of the ultra-versatile mounting ability of the reservoirs' fluted rails. So that we didn't have to mess with a mechanical fan drive, we ordered dual electric fans as well.
We test fit the Glassworks...
We test fit the Glassworks Unlimited front end to make sure everything lined up, and to get a spot for the new radiator support. The Glassworks front clip puts a prerunner '88-'98 front end on a '73-'87 Chevy/GMC...
...You'll have to drill holes...
...You'll have to drill holes in the fiberglass, but the fenders will mount to the body tub and the radiator support. We used Autofab hood-pin kits.