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My 1984 Chevrolet Suburban K20 4x4 3/4 ton CUCV clone #2 - AKA: M1007 or M1029

srodocker

Well-known member
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Location
Lacey, Washington
What portable air setup did you use? Also got my front and rear bumpers and a spare rim/tire. Any tips and tricks on doing the front and rear bumpers? The grill is broken in parts that I got not sure if its worth switching to the single headlight setup and finding another grill or just adding the brush guard and and bumper. thoughts?
 

K9Vic

Active member
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Location
Fort Worth, TX
What portable air setup did you use? Also got my front and rear bumpers and a spare rim/tire. Any tips and tricks on doing the front and rear bumpers? The grill is broken in parts that I got not sure if its worth switching to the single headlight setup and finding another grill or just adding the brush guard and and bumper. thoughts?
I thought I answered this, maybe it did not post or ??

You have to changed out the whole radiator support to go to single headlights, so you need all those parts. See post #40
No real tips, just see all my posts in the first few pages shows some good detail on the bumpers and spare tire carrier.

The air system was originally just a tank and a Harbor Freight compressor, not very good system. I have since upgraded to a VIAIR 10007 continuous duty system that has been a great product, gets used every time I am out.

VIAIR_Suburban_10.jpgVIAIR_Suburban_06.jpg

This is also a good time to post updates on the build. My 700R4 transmission went out because a line was leaking and did not know it, caused fluid to get too low and took out reverse. I had that rebuilt and all is good now. I also added the Off-Road Design engine cross over and that really helps to stabilize when driving. Along with Energy Suppression motor mounts, all new ball joints and tie rod ends it is rock solid. I also had to replace the valve cover gasket on the driver side as it was leaking really bad.

ORD-Crossbar_01.jpgORD-Crossbar_02.jpg - IMG_8632-sm.jpgIMG_8647-sm.jpg


I added a Retro Sound Model II radio and that is a plus as it has USB, Bluetooth, iPod and hands free phone. Really cool radio and finally got one for a good price as I mentioned this in an earlier post. With that I also added two 12v battery gauges as I have two charging system. Where I used to have my old radio I put a Uniden 880 CB radio.

Suburban_RetroSound-06.jpgSuburban_RetroSound-05.jpgSuburban_RetroSound-07.jpg


Added a Smittybilt canopy for those camping trips to shade my gear. The rear is also my sleeper and even put in a small A/C window unit that can be powered with the 1200/2400watt inverter I have. It is getting to be an exploration vehicle with all my upgrades. My antennas are flag poles as you can see. It is a good setup and plans are to add another radio rack on the driver side for a small 12v ARB type cooler and storage for more camping gear.


SAM_4608-sm2.jpgIMG_1630-sm.jpgIMG_1065-sm.jpgIMG_1059-sm2.jpg


There is also the H1 wheels with 35" tires. I am planning to get the power coated black as the gray allow looks out of place. The Side-by-Side is a Arctic Cat Wildcat 1000 and is my weekend toy I take with me camping.

IMG_0822-sm2.jpgTow-Rig-Suburban.jpg

Still have never painted the inside doors and jam black, just not a priority. That will happen one of these days, but been spending my time making it into my exploration camping vehicle. Hard to believe it started out as this red Suburban over two years ago.

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Skinny

Well-known member
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83
Location
Portsmouth, NH
So after drooling over this build long enough, I decided to gut my ambulance for parts and go out and buy a Suburban. Mine even came with a wicked cool cowboy hat :)

Looks like you have some friendly competition, let the Dante's Peak military clone truck build begin...muhahahahahaha!!!

12961639_576174269226591_5665648887265125034_n.jpgphoto 2.jpgphoto 3.jpg
 

cucvrus

Well-known member
11,473
10,431
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Location
Jonestown Pennsylvania
Smart move. I have disassembled 6 of the M1010's and made pick ups out of them. Started the carnage back in 1995 when a few were only 9 and 10 years old. I can't imagine working on them at 30 years + old. To each is own. All the ones I had already had been plagued with electrical issues from day one. A friend and I took them apart and changed and fixed everything that they looked identical to M1008's. Good Move.
 

Skinny

Well-known member
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488
83
Location
Portsmouth, NH
Mine was pretty chewed up electrically but I straightened it out with a pair of 555JHO alternators. I decided that I would rather buy a mint Suburban for the same money it would cost to fix the metal work on the M1010 so it was a no brainer. Plus the Suburban is way more practical to drive.

Plus I can build a Dante's Peak clone!
kmplayer2013-01-0517-19-15-84.jpg
 

Recovry4x4

LLM/Member 785
Super Moderator
Steel Soldiers Supporter
34,012
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Location
GA Mountains
So after drooling over this build long enough, I decided to gut my ambulance for parts and go out and buy a Suburban. Mine even came with a wicked cool cowboy hat :)

Looks like you have some friendly competition, let the Dante's Peak military clone truck build begin...muhahahahahaha!!!

View attachment 621842View attachment 621843View attachment 621844
Yikes, judging by the level of disassembly, I'm guessing the burb is 2wd? Are you going to install the road oiler in it too? Since the discovery of the 555JHO alts in place of Duvac, I've been considering switching another truck to that charging system.
 

Skinny

Well-known member
2,130
488
83
Location
Portsmouth, NH
Yup, 2wd 2500 350 700r4 Burban.

The 2wd ones are typically much cleaner up in my parts as the 4wd ones die a rather terrible death due to rust. This one according to the oil change and PBA stickers came from Washington/Oregon area. It is pretty mint underneath, back tailpan area is puff. It also has what appears to be a factory option long range saddle tank in addition to the OEM rear tank.

I'm installing the 6.2/TH400/NP208 into the Burb since I have all the parts and want the diesel. I eventually want to do an NV4500/NP241 case. I will drill all the holes for the hangers up front and just do a shackle flip out back.

I mocked up the alts in the ambulance and made sure it worked. It is a great system. Although I noticed Gen 1 putting out 13.6 volts and Gen 2 putting out 14 volts. The alts I have do not have an adjustable regulator so we shall see if this works out. More than likely I will go with a 24v system on the Burb as the starter works fine and I already have a 12,000lb. winch in a cradle with a Nato cable.
 

Skinny

Well-known member
2,130
488
83
Location
Portsmouth, NH
Probably

I have no problem with that, way easier than rust repair. I wouldn't mind clocking up that tcase at the same time either.
 
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