Fix My Blazer Job

[chevyh20]

Hi everyone ,
it has been a while since i last posted. But now Snow was flying here in NH. And my 89 Blazer is not ready for the winter. It needs some TlC . To be honest sometimes i am a little embarrassed because there are so many nice trucks you all own. And mine is a product of the rust belt of New England that i use for plowing and Home depot runs. I was not sure where to post because i will be doing several jobs. but all blazer specific so i put it here. let me know if this is ok. Along the way i will chart my progress for anyone interested and ask for help, because a lot of what i do mechanically is a new experience for me. Ok, here is  a list of what i can think of right now of what i will be doing:

1) rear body mounts, near the tail pan. (I did the other body mounts last year.)
2) Frame needs repair in 2 spots. first, the holes are blown out by rust for the rear body mounts. second, where the receiver hitch was mounted to the frame has rust holes on each side probably covering a 3x6 area on each side of the frame.
3)Replace the 700r4 tranny currently in the truck. last spring i lost 3rd and overdrive. I bought a used 700r4 with 6000 miles on it to replace it. also i think i want to put a shift kit in the replacement tranny. I will definitely need advice on this.
4)change the rear end, shocks, and brakes.(i did the front last spring).
5) replace the rear main seal (leaking)
6) replace fuel lines and brake lines at the back of the truck. (they are so rusty).
7) apply some sort of rust inhibitor to the whole underside. (bar and chain oil?).

and that should do me for this season. lol!

[choptop]

Thats quite a list   Glad to see you back

[Donut]

Nice to see you back. 
I don't see your feet sticking through the floorboards, or a plywood wing on the roof, don't be embarrassed.  My truck doesn't have any before pics, not worth the pixels/film.  It's a 50/50 truck anyway.

FWIW Fluid Film held up better on my Ranger than bar and chain oil (and tranny fluid, used motor oil) I tried each one on a different section of the frame last fall.

[chevyh20]

Hey ,
thanks for the welcome backs. this is a great site. Thanks for the tip on the fluid film. i will go that route. how did you apply it donut? I actually was motivated today and went out and worked on it for a few hours. I took out the rear axle/driveshaft. i will procede to take out the gas tank next. This will give me room to work on fuel lines, body and especially frame repair. I guess i will take everything out, including tranny and transfer first. I am working in my driveway, so i need all the crawl under space i can get. While i was working today it occured that i will weld in a backing plate where the rust holes are in the frame caused by the receiver hitch then fill with seam sealer and bolt back on the receiver hitch. i also thought of welding on the receiver as frame repair, but i might want to remove it in the future , so maybe not. All thoughts welcomed.
Jeff

[Donut]

This might help a little more http://www.fluid-film.com/IIRC it wasn't cheap (10 or 12 bucks at local John Deere dealer for the aerosol can, you can buy it in bulk) and it's not permanent, though this spring when I was under the Ranger it was the only stuff that had any trace left.

IMO, you may be pushing it, starting it this late in the year.  My stuff is slowly being shuttled back into the shed,as I also live in NE and a "shadetree mechanic"

My opinions, on the hitch, if you don't see using it this winter, pull it (one less thing to collect salt/sand).  Frame, not seeing it, I would say plan on cutting out the rot and replacing it with good steel, It wouldn't take that much longer to fit a piece in than just band-aid it up.  Also, done right, you won't have to go back and "fix" the band-aid later.

Little things now could save you time down the road, like when you do the rest of your body mounts, clean and paint the areas around them.  Dropping your gas tank, How are the straps? Clean up the mounting bolts.  If you have to drop the tank again, you'll thank yourself.  Little things.

[chevyh20]

thanks for the reply donut.
yeah, i know i am starting a little late, but i work well under pressure , lol! Somehow in my imagination i see it going pretty quick. I might be fooling myself though. I do need the hitch , i have a few trailers i have to move around occasionally.
I definitely agree with you about taking care of details while i have this apart. I have new straps for the gas tank. and a lot of the hardware will be replaced and protected as much as possible from future rust. i will be working on it again the first half of next week. i want to put up some pics for you guys to get a better idea, but i cannot locate my camera right now. talk again soon,
jeff

[chevyh20]

hi guys ,
dropped the gas tank out this week. it wasn't exactly textbook as all the parts were so rusted and did not want to cooperate, but finally i was able to persuade it to come on out. it appears i will need a new sending unit, the steel tubes coming from it are very rusty . Is there anything else that is recommended to replace when replacing the sending unit?  by the way what is the purpose of 3 lines coming from the sending unit? i know the bigger is the fuel, medium return and small line is vapor? what is the reason for the return line and the vapor line?
Another question, my tank has some rust on it what is recommended to paint the tank with?

now with the tank out there is a good view of the frame repair i have to do. i will have to find a camera to post some pics as i want to get your ideas on how to proceed.

[Donut]

The textbook doesn't work well for rust removal 

I think you mentioned it's an '89.  Is it fuel injected?  In tank pump?
If it were carbed, I'd say the rubber lines on top of the tank, sender if it's really bad, sock inside tank if not with new sender, and clean out the tank the best you can.  Just dropping the tank will dislodge a bunch of crud/rust buildup inside.  How are the tank straps?

You can go hog wild and replace everything, or try to save as much as possible.  It's up to you.  Blazin recommended "chassis saver" for my plow, I don't see why it wouldn't work on your tank.  I would replace mounting bolts,  it would be that much easier to drop the tank later.  (or save the next owner from throwing a bunch of tools out of "rust frustration") or if you decide that the sender isn't that bad yet.

My redneck understanding  on your fuel lines.  Vapor, just that, lets your tank "breathe", I think you have a charcoal canister under the hood that it's running to.  My '73 just has a vent.  Return=return. A constantly running pump would "dead-head" and burn itself up,  the return lets it "flow" like it should.  ('73 is a mechanical pump, so the return is just capped off)

[03cobrakid]

If you use the chassis saver paint. (which i is also what i used on my truck) Be sure to where gloves!!! If it sticks to steel and light rust like it does to skin it will last forever 

[chevyh20]

Hey all,
thanks for the replys. i am going with a new sending unit for my tank . and fuel lines from the back half of the truck. what can i do to replace the stainless braided lines that connect to the sending unit? can't find anything specific for the job. I have chassis saver silver aluminum coming to paint my tank with.

Next i finally have some pictures of the damage to my blazer frame from rust. They are pretty ugly. i hope i can make a large improvement on the frame towards the tailpan. any ideas on how to tackle this will be greatly appreciated. you can see i have a "custom" tailpan that i installed last year. My plan is to replace the blown out area with new steel and weld a short piece of rigid tubing on the tailpan to accect the carrage bolts for the body mounts. what do you all think?

Next i have these holes on each side of the frame from rust forming between the frame and a trailer hitch.
also you cannot see the frame is deformed in this area from the awsome power of rust. i am planning on cutting patching and reinstalling the hitch. give me your ideas. I think the frame is intact enough that with repairs and cleaned up and protected it will be ok.

looking forward to you guys thoughts,
Jeff

[VileZambonie]

I would find a cheap frame and do a body swap personally, but if you're not going full resto at least jack the body off the frame and start cutting and welding.

[Irish_Alley]

I'm with vile i say find even a beat up blazer that the frame is in good condition and use that

[Chevalade]

I'll 3rd on the new frame. It would be way less work than trying to restore that one back to good shape, prolly cheaper too.

[chevyh20]

thanks for the suggestions on the frame. unfortunately , i do not have the time, money , work space to get a replacement frame. so i will repair mine with body still on. i have one side partially cut up now. i will post pics soon. it went easier than i expected. I have a homemade tailpan. So i will have to make a homemade body mount also. I will show pics as it takes shape.  does anyone know the stock hole size in the frame for the body mount as mine was blown out beyond recognition.
also, what can i do for the steel braided fuel lines coming from the gas tank as i have to replace my fuel lines on the back half of the truck. can i get some from chris?  thanks
Jeff

[Captkaos]

Call Inline Tube or Classic Tube for the lines that is where I got mine from.