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newbie frame swap

J

jwilson

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ogden usa
I'm currently restoring a 49 3/4 ton, and I'm very minimally inclined. I'll be honest, I don't understand a lot of the vocabulary used on this site--about half of it. Anyhow, my goal is to have a truck I can use on a daily basis, with 4wd and able to pull an enclosed trailer. My question is this: would I be okay to put it on a 3/4 ton 4wd pickup frame/chassis from say the mid 70s or 80s? If I can find a junker pickup with all the wiring in it, can I use all that stuff, put my cab on it, and be good to go? I have a 350 engine I"d like to use and a 700 R4 tranny out of an 89 suburban. Any tips? Thanks for the help. I've got the fenders, grill, and hood painted and stored away I'm ready to go buy a frame this weekend. The bed is all wood--there are no rear fenders. I can supply pics if necessary. Thanks,
 
Well just tring to help out here with what little info I have on this subject.

I know alot of ppl do the S10 swap on this truck and I know I have seen one or two swaped to a Full size.

However you are not going to be able to just pick up any frame and just drop it in place. Don't get me wrong that not what I think you are asking if you can do. I know there are alot of major modifications that need to be made to any frame you use.

I don't know how apt I would be to go out this weekend and buy a frame. I would wait untill someone else on this forum can give you some more information about this swap.

This is a Question to the rest of you. Would it be possible to get a 4wd truck as for mentioned and graft the front and rear Suspension to an existing frame?
 
Your points are well taken. They lead me to another series of questions. Could I swap out the front and rear ends on my 49 frame (as well as the steering column) and get essentially the same result as putting everything on a new chassis? I think this is basically the same question you posed by "longhorn". That would eliminate the need to fabricate new cab mounts. Please let me know what you think. Thanks.
 
Jwilson,

Here is a website regarding putting a 4WD S10 frame under an AD Suburban. Should be fairly similar for the truck.

http://www.commerce.usask.ca/staff/hipkin/burb/frameswap.html
 
I have a shop that does this kind of swap so here are a couple of things perhaps to consider. First would you want to pull a loaded inclosed trailer with an S-10? Second an S10 has a much narrower frame than your frame which would require very stiff suspension to prevent body roll. For serious trailer towing even a 1/2 ton doesn't really cut it, even though power can be whatever you want to make it the suspension and brakes are designed to bring home marshmallos from the corner grocery. To mount your sheetmetal to a later model frame, preferrably 3/4 ton with disc brakes would probably take a professional shop 100 hrs turnkey. This is not intended to discourage you but to give you some insight as to what it will involve and why a lot of these projects get abandoned. Whatever you think it might cost---multiply that by 2.5. Of course if you have the time and desire to dive off into it with the goal to be to LEARN then you'll know all the terms (plus many new cusswords) and not have to pay for a lot of your future work. Good luck
 
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