1986 GMC S-15

Johnboyy

Active member
57 pages. I'll admit I didnt read every single post, but it's kept me going for a few weeks now dipping in for a few pages at a time.

Some thread, hope you and the family are doing well. Will the new truck build be getting it's own thread? throw up a link if it does.

It's a lovely truck and all, but my god the scenery steals the show. Some day I'm gonna have to get myself over to western canada, hire a truck camper and go expolore.
 

Andrew_S

Observer
^ Having spent 25 years in eastern Canada, I can confidently say that the countryside in British Columbia is stunning. We’ve only just begun to explore it.
The new truck will be getting a build thread in the new year. I've done a fair bit of work so far, but I will hold off until I really get going on it. I'm stalled out waiting for parts presently.


It's been a minute... Mostly because this thing has been more or less rock solid and I haven't had much "work" to post.
I had to pull the t-case a couple of months ago. The 38 year old input seal finally failed.
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It's hard to make it out but it split in 5 places. The end result was the transmission pushing fluid into the t-case and eventually out the breather. I put this off for like 3 months and occasionally drained the t-case and topped up the trans every 500 km - it's a very inefficient way to flush a transmission...
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4 hours to pull everything apart, 30 seconds to change the seal...
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The reason it took so long to take apart was because "Well I'm at it..." I may as well change the rear main, trans input seal, pan gasket & filter, trans dipstick tube & tv cable seals, valve cover gaskets, oil pan gasket etc, etc.
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And then I made the job extra fun by stripping out one of the trans/t-case adapter bolts...
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I've had a nagging oil weep/drip for a year+. Assumed it was the rear main, turns out it was the oil pan.
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This was not a fun job at all. All back together and it's oil leak-free, but I have developed a small weep at the t-case to adapter... I'll yank the t-case over the winter and reseal it, again.
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Some inspiration for the new build. Our fire department's new bush truck, single rear wheel conversion and 40s. Just needs a camper.
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Just in time for hunting season,
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This thing works great in the mud. Double locked and tires at 10psi it digs really nicely.
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The only thing I had to do to the camper was swap out the crap rocker switches for another set of, likely what I will soon call, different crap ones.
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Andrew_S

Observer
The wife made it happen one evening on this great looking Sow.
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I kept at it for another week,
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First snow arrived early Oct
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A couple of days later I connected with this smaller muley, which is making fantastic table fare.
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A friend of ours got a small buck as well, so we had a little meat-cutting party.
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A couple of days later, we topped off the year with this beautiful cinnamon bear.
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We didn't get out much in Nov for moose hunting but hit the road a few times.
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Nov 3rd I was starting to get stuck in some drifted areas, that's a strong indicator this winter is going to be a doozy.
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We saw lots of moose in the last 2 weeks but nothing legal for us to shoot. I stalked this cow/calf within 50 yards a few days ago.
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Slid off the road pretty good last week when I was solo. I was so thankful for that winch, what a useful piece of gear when you need it.
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This truck puts in a shift this time of year.
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Some more drift/winch action. Locked, aired down & rear tire chains on. Just couldn't stay on top and keep momentum.
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full on winter at elevation right now
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The last couple of days we were trying pretty hard and had a couple of great opportunities that didn't materialize. Couldn't beat this scenery though.
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and that's a wrap on '24 hunting season. Ice fishing is right around the corner with a cold snap hitting this week.
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Copperhead14

Observer
Great looking hunts. Glad to see your post, can’t wait to see the new build. The little one is getting bigger.

That brush truck looks like the one from First Attack Engineering in Northeast Indiana.
 

YetiX

Active member
Nice work on the deer and bears! Your scenery looks amazing! Logging onto EP and seeing a notification that you've made a new post is my favorite thing on this forum!
 

Andrew_S

Observer
Great looking hunts. Glad to see your post, can’t wait to see the new build. The little one is getting bigger.

That brush truck looks like the one from First Attack Engineering in Northeast Indiana.

The amount of money I've seen thrown into these bush trucks is unreal. It would fun to take one out and properly put it through it's paces.
Thanks, planning to post the new build in the full-size area shortly.
That should fill up your freezer! Nicely done! Great update. Can't wait to see what you do with the new truck.
Thanks, freezers were definitely full this winter. New build will get posted shortly.
Nice work on the deer and bears! Your scenery looks amazing! Logging onto EP and seeing a notification that you've made a new post is my favorite thing on this forum!
This is a beautiful part of the country. Even after a decade living out west, we still appreciate what we have available to us. The new build will get posted shortly.

The wife and I went out for a date night last Friday. This is a local spot very close to our place with a million-dollar view.
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Bacon & eggs over a fire the next am, and back home to enjoy the remainder of the weekend.
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This will likely be the last post in here for quite some time as I shift all of my efforts to the new truck.

New truck build thread: https://forum.expeditionportal.com/...e-cry-once-1-tons-40s-a-custom-camper.247824/

& a teaser of what I've been up to:
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trbon8r

Active member
What a cool little truck that S15 is.

I’ve always wanted one of the small Blazers or Jimmies from that era to solid axle swap. GM guy here.
 

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