Larry's 1978 K10
- Thread starter Larry
- Start date
Larry
Bigassgas Explorer
Thanks everybody!
It turned out great. I am very happy with it an anxious to start the modifications and trips. We won’t know how to act with a comfortable place to sleep in the back country.
In addition to the rear bumper rework that my buddy (ColoradoBill) and I have planned, I also have some really cool desert themed vinyl graphics being made for it. I was hoping to have large ones made to cover the entire sides of the camper but the driver’s side is pretty busy with all of the doors while the passenger’s side has a window. So, the graphic will be a tad bit smaller than I originally wanted but should still look pretty cool.
This is the decal that I am having made. ColoradoBill and I used these on a little cargo trailer he made a couple years ago. The decals going on the camper will be Silver instead of Green
It turned out great. I am very happy with it an anxious to start the modifications and trips. We won’t know how to act with a comfortable place to sleep in the back country.
In addition to the rear bumper rework that my buddy (ColoradoBill) and I have planned, I also have some really cool desert themed vinyl graphics being made for it. I was hoping to have large ones made to cover the entire sides of the camper but the driver’s side is pretty busy with all of the doors while the passenger’s side has a window. So, the graphic will be a tad bit smaller than I originally wanted but should still look pretty cool.
This is the decal that I am having made. ColoradoBill and I used these on a little cargo trailer he made a couple years ago. The decals going on the camper will be Silver instead of Green
Dave Kay
Adventurer
SURE AM enjoying this thread there Mr. Larry, and I's say you've got that truck looking like it's ready for a Chevy truck commercial--- like a rock!
If it were me, I'd be thinking about pimpin' that truck off to Hollywood (or wherever they film commercials) and work the vintage/longevity sales pitch... FYI; I'm not an agent, just an old GM truck admirer----------- heck--- I own three of em'!:elkgrin:
If it were me, I'd be thinking about pimpin' that truck off to Hollywood (or wherever they film commercials) and work the vintage/longevity sales pitch... FYI; I'm not an agent, just an old GM truck admirer----------- heck--- I own three of em'!:elkgrin:
Larry
Bigassgas Explorer
Coyote RV (Phoenix Campers) has a nice thread in the pop-up camper section. The cost of a high quality pop-up like a Phoenix, FWC or All Terrain are about the same. In my case, the Phoenix was about twice the cost of what the actual truck sold for new in 1978.
saveitforsunrise
Adventurer
you got me wanting to trade or sell my tahoe for a old pickup:drool:
hillbillyjake
Explorer
i was thinking the same thing.
Larry
Bigassgas Explorer
Cody,
If you are asking me this question…. YES! I am worried about the cab top hitting the bottom of the camper. In fact, this is one concern I expressed to the builder as I asked for the top to have 2” extra inches of clearance built in. Obviously that didn’t happen for some reason.
However, there is some hope. As it turns out the bed floors in these trucks are slopped to the front 3/4 of an inch. So, right now the camper is tilted to the front a bit. Once we build a spacer to level the camper (so the camper will be level with the top of the bed rail) it will also greatly increase the distance between the cab top and camper bottom. We’ll see! I am still betting it is going to hit eventually.
Like you said, these old trucks have tons of frame flex before such ridged frames became the industry standard in the last 10 years or so. You can see the cab top poking over the top of the topper in this picture. If I ever get into a position like this again I am really worried the cab and camper are going to get friendly with each other.
Here is another view of the frame flex.
Larry
Bigassgas Explorer
Jerry,
Hydraboost is a pretty straight forward swap on GM trucks. I don’t have the part numbers handy that I used but for our square body style rigs there are only two different hydraboosters part numbers. One for standard threads where the lines connect to the booster (1973-1982) and the later hydraboosters have metric threads (1983 to 1991). For your Suburban, I would just order a reman hydrobooster and hoses for a 1989 Suburban with JB7 brakes ((hydroboost)….6.2L diesel and most 7.4L engines used hydraboost) and you would be all set. A quick look at Napa Prolink shows a 1989 V3500 with JB7 is part number 527248, which is probably the one I have being I had to have one morphidite hose custom made being the booster end of the hose was metric while the steering gear end was standard thread. Even if I would had gone with a standard thread hydrabooster I would still have had to make a hose as the 1998 7.4L power steering pump I have mounted on the 8.1L is metric too. Either way, I had to have at least one hose custom made. Yours should be bolt for bolt and an easier swaperoo.