Here we go. I started my search for a K5 Blazer with a Four Wheel Camper almost exactly five years ago when I first came across them and wound up with the FWC Hawk I had in my Dodge Ram 2500. Since then I have remodeled three campers, one in a very substantial way(Tacoma Fleet). A year ago I nearly bought a non-running K5 with a camper that was in shambles, Im glad I waited. Ill spare the details since this build will be posted across multiple forums and lots of people have already seen my previous work. If you are interested Ill include links at the end of this post.
It has patina, it has a little rust, it has a crapload of character and without further adieu, we have my newly acquired (4/9/2020) 1978 Chevrolet K5 Blazer + Four Wheel Camper Blazer.
Cheyenne trim level, 4x4, 5.7 auto. Arizona truck its whole life. Picked it up last Thursday, drove it home from Tucson with no issues other than a little float in the steering. Cleaned it up and tested all the systems Friday (everything works!). Managed to kill the battery because I forgot to turn the camper lights off when I went to bed. Woke up Saturday morning, finagled my Tacoma out of the garage to jump the Blazer that was blocking it in and promptly drove straight to the Tonto National Forest for a quick "test run" with a good friend who takes great pictures and makes great videos. He's talking about moving to Austin and selfishly I want him to stay in AZ and document this build in a much better way than I ever could.
Technically it has had "two owners" but in reality it is a one owner vehicle. It came with a plethora of paperwork including the original order card for the Blazer, the original order sheets for the camper and lots of maintenance records of years past. As far as I can tell its completely original and stock, except for maybe the wheels. They at least seem to be period correct.
At the moment Im researching until my brain explodes every night. This is really helping quarantine but not my pocket book. I unloaded the second of my two motorcycles today in anticipation of this truck taking up all my free time and disposable income. My plan last year was to go crazy with a modern camper renovation, LS swap, long leafs, 40s etc. but this one is so nice and so original I dont know if I can bring myself to do that, at least not to the camper... For now the plan is to fix up the interior of the cab for creature comforts on long drives. Make the stock drivetrain as bullet proof as possible for long drives and start building some axles outside of the truck while I learn the ins and outs of the K5 platform. I camp 25+ nights a year and plan to do even more in this rig.
Thanks for reading.
Aforementioned build threads
2008 Dodge Ram 2500 + FWC Hawk build thread
https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...lar-cab-long-bed-documentation-thread.146703/
2018 Toyota Tacoma + FWC Fleet build thread
https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...fleet-shortening-documentation-thread.199234/
It has patina, it has a little rust, it has a crapload of character and without further adieu, we have my newly acquired (4/9/2020) 1978 Chevrolet K5 Blazer + Four Wheel Camper Blazer.
Cheyenne trim level, 4x4, 5.7 auto. Arizona truck its whole life. Picked it up last Thursday, drove it home from Tucson with no issues other than a little float in the steering. Cleaned it up and tested all the systems Friday (everything works!). Managed to kill the battery because I forgot to turn the camper lights off when I went to bed. Woke up Saturday morning, finagled my Tacoma out of the garage to jump the Blazer that was blocking it in and promptly drove straight to the Tonto National Forest for a quick "test run" with a good friend who takes great pictures and makes great videos. He's talking about moving to Austin and selfishly I want him to stay in AZ and document this build in a much better way than I ever could.
Technically it has had "two owners" but in reality it is a one owner vehicle. It came with a plethora of paperwork including the original order card for the Blazer, the original order sheets for the camper and lots of maintenance records of years past. As far as I can tell its completely original and stock, except for maybe the wheels. They at least seem to be period correct.
At the moment Im researching until my brain explodes every night. This is really helping quarantine but not my pocket book. I unloaded the second of my two motorcycles today in anticipation of this truck taking up all my free time and disposable income. My plan last year was to go crazy with a modern camper renovation, LS swap, long leafs, 40s etc. but this one is so nice and so original I dont know if I can bring myself to do that, at least not to the camper... For now the plan is to fix up the interior of the cab for creature comforts on long drives. Make the stock drivetrain as bullet proof as possible for long drives and start building some axles outside of the truck while I learn the ins and outs of the K5 platform. I camp 25+ nights a year and plan to do even more in this rig.
Thanks for reading.
Aforementioned build threads
2008 Dodge Ram 2500 + FWC Hawk build thread
https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...lar-cab-long-bed-documentation-thread.146703/
2018 Toyota Tacoma + FWC Fleet build thread
https://www.expeditionportal.com/fo...fleet-shortening-documentation-thread.199234/
