straight six 4x4.

[74I63treenps4x4]

Hi to all, 
i was wondering if i was the only person with a 73-80 4x4 truck that came with a 250 i6. i have looked for weeks and couldnt find much on this particular set up. found a link on line that says there were not many made, but that all chevy k10s from 73-80 if were 4x4 with i6 came with np205 and 3 on the tree only. if there is anyone who has owned one of these, and used it for a trail/ daily driver what kind of reliability and durability can i expect?
iv had lots of exp with chevy inlines but never a 4x4 i6. and i havent takin it out ether cuz i just see myself getting embarrassed i.e. pulled out by 300cc 4wheeler or something.
any input would be great, thanks.   

[dvdswan]

the I6 is a strong engine, very capable, and torquey.  I wouldn't be ashamed to wheel it.  I would use it to show what a straight 6 in a FS can do. 

[zieg85]

My 72 K20 had a 250 in it.  I pulled my stock car on a heavy duty trailer with no issues at all.

[Engineer]

Not totally true about the three on the tree.

My wife's uncle has a 1979 K-10 swb.

I-6, SM465 (4 on the floor), NP205, GM 10-bolt front, GM 12-bolt rear.

Not sure but I believe it has 3.07s.

They pulled the I6 and dropped in a 400sb. Awesome truck until he let it rot away to nothing.

[ehjorten]

I have a '68 C10 with a 292 I6 and a SM465 transmission (it is currently under-construction to get a 6-spd O/D manual and independent rear).  I don't know the ratios of the 3-spd transmission, but that SM465 has a compound first gear and with the 4.10:1 rear gear and the 6.55:1 first gear that low ratio was 26.86:1!  No problem for torque with that long-stroke straight six and low gearing.  You won't win any races, but it will get up and move!

[Irish_Alley]

theres something about a straight six that says it can handle power. look at all the big rigs (diesels) they are a straight six not v8 or v6 but a straight six. look at cummins 5.9 another straight six. now im not saying you can make as much power as one of them but i think if big rigs use that design theres something good in it

[nlauffer]

Funny this came up, because I was just thinking about my grandfathers pickup today. It was a 76ish long ex 4wd with granny low 4 spd and inline 6.  He and I used to feed cattle together. He would put it in 4 low granny gear and step out to get in the bed and kick hay out as the truck crept along. That was the start of my square obsession.  Inline 6s bring a lot of torque with them. They won't be a monster mud truck or sand runner but they are a heck of a work horse.

[bake74]

     As all the post have suggested.  The I-6 is a work horse, not a high revving monster motor, so if you were climbing or trail riding you could show up some of those v8's.
     But if you plan on doing deep mudding that requires lots of wheel spin at high rpm you might want a good tow strap.

[74I63treenps4x4]

might wana tow strap!!! love it!! im just so on the fence with putting alot of money into it, ie tires, maby some lockers, and what have you. or just go buy a cheap truck that i can really mess up and not have a problem with it. i have been looking into 33x9.5x15 for tires cuz i want to keep the stock wheels, have had thoughts of taking a turn and one of the front tires poping off the bead...... not a good day. has anyone had those tires on a 1/2 ton square body? or does everyone think that its too heavy for the narrow tall tires?
i have a 250 at the shop getting port polish and minimum bore with a warmed over 262? cam dont remember, im really interested to see the power gains of this mod on a 250. hoping to get at least 50hp out of it...... that being said i dont plan on doing any kind of top truck challenge trails with it but would like to drive up to Colorado with my buds and not get left behind....also it doesnt have power steering, is there some kind of dampener i can install to make it a little more trail friendly?
thanks for all the replies!