philofab

I picked this up last weekend. I figured it would be a nice home to a LSx swap.



Going to Vegas tomorrow or Sunday to look for an engine.

nos487

iTrader: (4)

Nice truck!

philofab

Looks like I'll be running a Gen III Vortec at this point. Either a 5.3 or 4.8 with a Turbo 400 behind it. I found the crank spacer I need at Herron Performance. The Turbo 400 is one a friend had laying around built for an RV. Should be about right after I install a reverse manual valve body and Art Carr/Winters gate shifter.

http://www.herronperformance.com/sto...&productId=239
http://www.kartek.com/Product/Shifters/Winters.html

I measured the rear frame rails for a modern fuel tank and they are a bit narrower than newer trucks (29" vs 32"). I may still try and squeeze a 90s Ford Bronco tank in there. 33 gallons of capacity would be nice. If not I'll build a tank that fits the dimensions of the rear frame or have a tank builder in Havasu do it.

My goal is to get it running and then start fixing/cleaning/modifying things. I'll probably do a bit to the motor once it runs and bugs are worked out.

philofab

Picked up some wheels in Vegas yesterday. No luck on a motor yet.



These will be converted into bead locks. The offset will allow me to keep the truck low on the big tires. They are factory on 02+ Dodge Ram 1500s. 17" Diameter, 5x5.5, and I got the set for $60.

philofab

Looks like the beams have the same casting numbers.... they are drum brake beams on the truck so someone swapped disk spindles/knuckles on them. I've got a factory 3.50LS 9" center here I may run or I might just recycle the 9" out of my Bronco on this truck. A late model 9" is wider so not sure on clearance.

Not entirely sure what I want for gearing. 3.50 might feel ok, 3.73 or 4.11 might be better. No OD or lockup and I don't want it screaming at 80mph.

philofab

Picked up some crappy old shocks off of CL for the front. 14x2.5s with a 350/450 rate. I've got to rebuild and clean them.

I kind of want this truck to be pretty so don't be surprised if it ends up with new Bilstein shocks before it's done.

nos487

iTrader: (4)

Is this truck going to be street truck mainly or full time off road?

philofab

Street. It's mostly something to make deliveries with and turn heads. I want it to be pretty so if it's ever in the dirt I will be very careful with it... unlike my other trucks.



Got some parts from Ruff Stuff Specialties today.

LS motor mounts and two shock mount buckets.

philofab

What is a good recipe for 5.3 power? I was thinking LS1 intake, cone filter, headers, 2.5>3.0 Two into one exhaust, tune/torque limiters removed on the ECM, and maybe a LS3 cam? Not sure if the cam is a good idea as I will be running a tight converter (low stall).

Looks like the truck will have a Turbo 400 with a RV style converter (at most 300rpm over stock), 3.50 gears, 35" tires. So a cam that starts making power at 2K is probably a bad idea.

ls68firebird

those are one of my all time favorite truck body styles. love those years- short bed 1/2 ton two wheel drive, and long bed 3/4 ton 4x4.

philofab

I started cleaning the bed out and was pleasantly surprised to it's condition. The inside is in very good shape, the tailgate even works well. I still need to pressure wash it out then start stripping the paint but I doubt I'll find any filler in there. I also started pulling the nasty interior out. All of it is glued with 3M spray adhesive so it's should be fun sanding / stripping all that off. I need to get the seat and the fuel tank out too. I'm worried about what I will find underneath the dash.

I also think I will build one piece side windows for this. I've never been a fan of vent windows and I've built 1pc stuff for 67-72 Chevy's before. I also installed a no-limit kit into a 49 Chevy pickup but it was just as much work as building my own. Has anyone done this on a 67-72 before? I'd like to keep the manual cranks but I'll go power if I have to.

philofab

Turbo 400 with fixed yoke and medium duty straight cut gears. Built with 0 miles on it.

Checkmate

iTrader: (2)

Looks pretty good, should make a good delivery truck.

philofab

Found this photo. I really like the stance of this truck. Hopefully my truck will sit about the same. I'll probably go with a Autofab drop hood though.

carado1984

IMO the swap to an LS1 intake would not be worth it however you could pick up an LS6 intake for cheap and swap in an ls6 or low 220 duration 114 spec cam. The combination would put you about 330-350rwhp conservatively and also retain low end torque and stock drivability even with your torque convertoer. Of course with any cam swap I would upgrade the rods, springs etc but many sponsors on this site offer packages that are budget friendly, especially if you're doing the install yourself.

While the ls6 cam can be picked up used for cheaper than an aftermarket, as long as you stick with a small cam it would be worth it as the power gains would be much better than the ls6 with the same drivability.

philofab

The LS6 intake seems to be averaging $500 used. Is it that much better than a LS1 that can be had for $100?

The truck accessories seem to be an issue too.

I might be better off paying a little more and just buying a 6.0 to start with money/power wise.

carado1984

I would say on a full exhaust/cam set up the ls1 intake would cost you about 10-15rwhp over the ls6 intake. Whether or not thats worth 400$ is up to you. The reason there are so many around is because they came on all ls1's 97-00 and anyone that swaps cams gets rid of the ls1 intake. In 01 however, ls1's started using ls6 intakes so there are some around. I believe you should be able to find one for around 350$ if you are patient.

I saw you mentioned going the 6.0 route. I believe you would be happier with this set up anyway. The lq4 can be had for cheap and will produce some great power. There are plenty examples here in the hybrid section of lq builds.

carado1984

Truck looks awesome by the way!

nos487

iTrader: (4)

You could just stick with truck intake and put factory covers or smooth the truck intake. The truck intake is supposed to make more torque. This is not my truck but I have the same covers. I can give you the part numbers if interested.
http://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/at...0&d=1330297495

Here is thread with smooth ones.
https://ls1tech.com/forums/conversio...k-intakes.html

Camaroking1996

What are the specs on that bronco in your avatar? Looks badass