70 C-20 4x4 Suburban Father/Son project

[1leglance]

Paint looks great...thin and can chip easy but it is a MAACO job so I don't have huge expectations. The gloss has a warranty so if it fades I will be right back in their shop.
I have more pics to post including some desert pinstripping that the paint held up to.

Best of all my wife is very happy with the rig and wants it finished so we can get more use out of it....we went from "why are you wanting to change engines"...to "when are you going to get it done so we can camp more".....that is priceless

 

[edlaffoon]

Ha thats awesome. My wife is coming along slowly. Considering she barely batted an eye at spending twice what I paid for the whole truck on the new drive train I guess I'm doing ok.

The reason I ask about the paint is because my clear is just flaking off, the paint looks fine but you can peel the clear off in cookie sheet sized chunks. It's like the truck got a bad sun burn.

So the bottom line is you would recommend them? I'm only considering it cause they are stupid cheap.

 

[toddz69]

How about some pics of your shocks and bumpstops!

Todd Z.

 

[Rot Box]

Great pics. Glad to hear the overdrive trans is working out good for ya.

 

[1leglance]

MAACO is a franchise setup I think as I could tell a large difference between the 2 shops near me...so make sure to stop in and talk with them.
For the money on a trail rig I think it is a good deal...but I have a carport and so I can't spray or I would just do my own paint for the giggles of it.

Todd I will try to get pics tomorrow or thurs of all the fancy new stuff along with posting the rest of the trip shots.

 

[1leglance]

Due to the extra time we had spent along the way we got into Bisbee a bit late in the afternoon/eve to really see or do much...unless we wanted to roll into camp about o'dark thirty.
So we made a call to head out to find camp and come back to walk the town/mining museum in the am. And here is the mountain top camp we found.

Happy wife, happy life....yeah she likes the rig much better now and soon we will be trying out the new sleep platform. No pics of that though.

Nick also has a great setup and his family always seems to enjoy the outdoors. However as his son grows Nick will have to get really creative for all 3 to sleep in the rig or get that kid hooked on hammocks/tents.

I am really loving my FrontRunner Table, it is light wgt enough to stow on my roof rack with ease yet strong enough to hold double my camp kitchen. We had a killer view while enjoying dinner. Even late into the night the overlook of Bisbee and Sierra Vista was nice.

 

[1leglance]

Morning rolled around too soon, I sleep really well camping and even with some overnight rain it was a good night. I will say the wet actually shows what Nick's rig looked like back in the day....maybe he should consider paint....hahahahahaha

Lest anyone think the rebuilt rig is too fancy for me to get out and enjoy....well I did get some decent desert pinstripping on this outing. The suspension really articulated well through some nice ruts (not shown here)

"Come'on Nick let's go"....yeah I was having a great time, and I am not even a morning person

Overlook of Bisbee.....looked nicer at night

The Mule Pass area we were in really is the local Mecca for strange homes...there were some crazy designs and self built projects out there.

I have no idea what the sombero hat party area or hobbit house behind it were all about but at least we got some good radio chatter out of seeing them.

Flip a boat over and call that a house design....I have no idea

 

[1leglance]

Sorry for the delay in finishing this trip report....life, oh how it gets in the way

So we were coming down the mountain Sunday morning heading into Bisbee, checking out the "I can design stranger house than you" development and I realized how lucky I am to have quality people to help me build my rig and then hit the trail with. Our families get along, our values run close enough to keep the campfire chatter entertaining and we can razz each other without anyone getting their panties in a twist
Oh and Nick has a pretty cool rig also

Mule Pass used the be the route into Bisbee and the poor mules had a serious grade to overcome bringing mine ore to the smelter. This structure was a bit left over from the old old.

And lest anyone think I went to all the trouble of making my burb pretty and then became scared of playing the dirt.....my first desert pinstripping.

We did some walking around Bisbee, very cool variety of architecture as the money flowed into town. And we found the one restaurant open on a Sunday morning. The Savory Spot is some good eating if you find yourself hungry.

Of course a couple of guys like Nick & I can't stroll through a little town without catching the scent of rigs for sale....this one had a pretty creative sign in the window...

Onward in our walking travels we came across something the town map called "Iron Man" which is odd considering he is copper and dedicated to those "virile" copper workers.....ummm virile, I guess playing in the dirty dark and then hitting the town on payday would make me virile also

I know I mentioned some cool architecture in town, one of the ones that really stuck me was the courthouse. This thing was full of some really need elements.

Walking through these doors would never become routine for me....these carry some nifty symbolism and sytle.

Lamppost that caught my eye when it caught the sunlight....

The "Merchants & Miners Bank" also had some neat details....if this building ever gets torn down I want this for my home mailbox
Oh and the antique store that currently resides in the bank still has the small vault on the other side of this, and 2 older vaults also.

 

[1leglance]

Alongside the giant hole in the ground that is the Queen mine pit there is the preserved rementant of one of the small towns that grew up with Bisbee, but didn't survive.
However the street is really cool to walk around and check out.

Of course this street was much cooler with a couple of vintage Suburbans parked there. The flash splash of rain we got was just enough to make us laugh but not enough to actually soak anyone.
Oh and see that very thin and stealthy lamppost behind my rig....well my only damage of the trip was catching my ham radio antenna on that thing as I was backing up to do a U-turn...dumb*ss me. 43 sq feet of glass in our rigs and I manage to find the one blindspot. Teach me not to use the mirrors and double check everything.

We dashed back to Phoenix, getting home later than we wanted but happy to have enjoyed a great shake down run of the new suspension, axles, tcase,trans, brakes, shfiter, sleep platform, fridge mount and whatever else I forgot
Nick is a tremendous resource and friend and none of this would have happened without his help. Huge thank to that fellow.

I know I still need to post some pics of the actually springs, shocks, hydraulic bumpstops....sometime soon as it gives me an excuse to get back into the dirt and flex the old girl.

 

[Higbean]

Looks like a fun trip with some great old iron! It's really great you're actually getting out and putting it to use.

 

[mkitchen]

Neat trip

I really love the Bisbee/Tombstone area. I have been through there on bicycle tours and motorcycle tours but have yet to get back with an offroad vehicle. There certainly is a lot to see in that area. Your burg is really coming along great.
Mikey

 

[98dango]

In Moab today saw your burbs little brother.

 

[1leglance]

I actually really like the quad headlight look of the GMC's over the Chevy grills....
Would be too cool to someday round out the collection of my granddad's 72 C-10 truck, my 70 Burb and then get a Blazer....not sure if I would want a lowered 2wd or nice 4wd

thanks for posting the pic

 

[chilliwak]

Thanks for posting pics of your trip and your fine:Wow1: rig 1Leglance! I really enjoy seeing the pics of the landscape that you travelled through. I am looking forward to seeing the pics of your truck showing the upgrades you did to her. Cheers, Chilli...

 

[matt s]

Lance I got mine back on the road. New trutrack in the rear and new seals in the t case. Let's hope it holds together this time!

When do you begin the swap?