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[84chevrolet]

Hey guys, years ago I had a 84 k20 and absolutely loved the truck, few years later I figured out I was in over my head and had to let it go. Well yesterday, and I mean literally yesterday I found what I thought to be the identical truck so I picked it up for $1500.

Looking over it I have a few questions hopefully someone can help me out with.

Truck I just purchased is a 84 k20 single cab, long bed.
I was told it's a 350, which as far as I know it is. Haven't had time to check block numbers yet.
It has a 4 speed, granny low which I believe is the sm465.
208 t case
10 bolt front end
And guy swapped in a dana 70 rear.
Front and rear should have matching 4.10s, but haven't verified.
Truck is literally almost free of rust, and mean doors, floor board, and rockers are all perfect.

Guy before me also did a 3 inch block lift all the way around, and I believe everything else is stock.

Questions:
What would be an appropriate size lift, without causing issues with the t case slip yoke and having to lengthen drive shafts? I dread the idea of blocks in the front.
Easy way to verify it is a 350 and not a 400?

And I have a funny feeling it may be a camper edition...how can I verify this?

Any other advice is appreciated.
Thanks in advance

 

[bucket]

Howdy!

If they said it's a 350, it's probably not a 400. Usually when they tell you an incorrect engine size, it's the other way around.

4 inch lift is a good safe limit. You may get away with more or less, depends on if your current rear shaft is correct for the D70 install. But generally, a 4 inch doesn't need lengthened shafts, dropped t-case, etc. But NO blocks in the front!

 

[PrairieDrifter]

Welcome!

I agree with bucket if they told you it was a 350 and it ended up not being a 350 it would most likely be a 305 not a 400. An easy way to tell if a motor is a 400 is to look at the harmonic balancer on the crankshaft, a 400 is the only chevy motor that has an "indent" "cut out" around the outside edge of it on the side closest to the block not the radiator.

As for a lift kit, 4 inch is the max you can go without "major" modification to the driveline. Get rid of the blocks! Not good, especially if they're 3 inch blocks!

 

[PrairieDrifter]

Make sure those gear ratios are the same in the axles before you go driving it all over the place!

 

[84chevrolet]

Managed to climb under the truck and verify a few things. Definitely a dana 70 rear, and I have had the truck in 4wd, so I'm sure they are matching, just haven't pulled the covers to make for 100% sure that they are matching and 4.10s.
I was afraid 4 inches would be the "safe" limit for the lift, was hoping for 6-8 inches, but don't wanna have crazy issues.
I also verified the way its "lifted" now. With a tape measure, 3 inch blocks on all 4 corners...I couldn't believe someone did that. Obviously I won't be driving it much til those are removed.
I am pretty confident that the engine is a 350.
4" lift is good for 35s, and 6 is good for 37s correct? Obviously width and back spacing will make differences, just as a rough idea. With absolutely no trimming of fenders.
Any recommendations on best bang for your buck lifts? Preferably including shocks.
And does anyone have any info on these rare camper specials? I noticed the truck seems to have a factory gooseneck in the bed.

 

[PrairieDrifter]

I always like to say rough country is a good option, but a good amount of people say that it rides a little harder than they would like, but its a decent price for the kit. You can check out ORD too. But I mean, you're lifting something by creating more arch in the leaf springs of course its not gonna ride great. People seem to like the EZ ride springs.

A lot of it depends on your rim but generally you can make 35's fit a 4 inch and 37's on a 6 inch. A 6 inch lift in my opinion is too much wear and tear on the drivetrain without doing modifications. Also a lot of people don't like body lifts for whatever reason, the only reason I don't like body lifts, is on squarebodies with saddle tanks on the side because once you lift the body, the tanks become exposed which is ugly as sin. But other than that I don't see any reason why a body lift is "bad"

I went 4 inch suspension and 3 inch body on my suburban, to get the decent driveline angles but still get enough lift. But of course you can go with 1 inch or 2 inch if you choose to go that route.

I don't have much knowledge of the camper specials, but I know that they came with camper special badges on the rear door pillars (certain years I'm sure) they came with a 400 and had like a 12,000lb towing capacity. Again don't quote me on any of this, you can look at the SPID labels and see what kind of options you have on there.

 

[84chevrolet]

That's a problem, this truck has had a rough life. I can't find any factory plates or stickers with any info, except for one sticker in the glove box and it only describes max payload and max dimensions for a slide in bed camper. I even matched then Vin on the sticker to the Vin on the dash. It is a match.

What size tires are you clearing on the 4 inch susp. And 3 inch body?

At the moment the truck has no real gas tanks, it has an auxiliary tank in the bed just to move it around. If I did a body lift I would mount the gas tanks high enough so the saddle bags are non existent to a quick glance.

What kind of "major" modifications are required when going 6+ inches of lift? Simple drive shaft lengthen? Or are we talking about turning axles to address u joint angles.

 

[PrairieDrifter]

That's a problem, this truck has had a rough life. I can't find any factory plates or stickers with any info, except for one sticker in the glove box and it only describes max payload and max dimensions for a slide in bed camper. I even matched then Vin on the sticker to the Vin on the dash. It is a match.

What size tires are you clearing on the 4 inch susp. And 3 inch body?

At the moment the truck has no real gas tanks, it has an auxiliary tank in the bed just to move it around. If I did a body lift I would mount the gas tanks high enough so the saddle bags are non existent to a quick glance.

What kind of "major" modifications are required when going 6+ inches of lift? Simple drive shaft lengthen? Or are we talking about turning axles to address u joint angles.

I'm not sure if you can tell if the truck was a camper special or not by the vin, but there is a vin decoder somewhere on this forum.

I'm hoping to clear 38.5 inch boggers, but I really don't want to trim my fenders so I think I'm just gonna run 37's just so I don't have to worry about anything. I feel like the 38's would be fine for on road driving but as soon as you start getting some good articulation I think they would rub.

There's always the option of the 40 gallon suburban tank that goes in between the frame rails behind the rear end, I think I would like to lift my tank up a little bit but I would have no problem running it at stock height.

Generally I think a driveshaft lengthening should be considered on a 6 inch lift and the front end definitely needs some pinion angle adjustment, and the rear could use some but not too much. Also you might be ok with a driveshaft that has a slip shaft in it.

 

[bucket]

Camper special was an equipment package that included several options together. And I think the specifics varied over the years. Things like a bed wire harness (came rolled and taped up under the truck), heavy duty springs, rear sway bar, HD battery or dual batteries, steeper gear ratio, etc. I do know that the package did not require a certain engine (like a 400, which wasn't around in the 80's anyway) and a lot of them had a 350.

Tire clearance with a 4 inch lift just depends on springs, rim dimensions, and intended usage. With soft springs, you can even rub 33's on an average 8 inch wide wheel. It takes some really hard use, but it can happen.

 

[donmateo]

Welcome!

 

[1973c10]

Welcome

 

[84chevrolet]

Supposedly the truck only has 3 inch blocks in all 4 corners, otherwise, suspension is "stock" But when I bought it, it was on a set of mickey Thompson Baja belted tires. Although I know they do not make these any more, they are 39-18-r16.5. And again supposedly they only rubbed at full turn, with body roll. I measured these tires sitting on the driveway and they measure to 37.5 inches tall. These tires are shot, but I would like to use these 16.5 rims. Without unmounting the tires I do not know how wide the rims are, I'm guessing at least 10 inches.

Truck will be used for trail riding and a little playing in the mud. No rocks or anything to extreme, however ideally I would like to have a good suspension articulation, all while filling the wheel wells with an appropriate sized tire. No trimming, like I said they have no rust.

Thanks guys

 

[84chevrolet]

I always like to say rough country is a good option, but a good amount of people say that it rides a little harder than they would like, but its a decent price for the kit. You can check out ORD too. But I mean, you're lifting something by creating more arch in the leaf springs of course its not gonna ride great. People seem to like the EZ ride springs.

A lot of it depends on your rim but generally you can make 35's fit a 4 inch and 37's on a 6 inch. A 6 inch lift in my opinion is too much wear and tear on the drivetrain without doing modifications. Also a lot of people don't like body lifts for whatever reason, the only reason I don't like body lifts, is on squarebodies with saddle tanks on the side because once you lift the body, the tanks become exposed which is ugly as sin. But other than that I don't see any reason why a body lift is "bad"

I went 4 inch suspension and 3 inch body on my suburban, to get the decent driveline angles but still get enough lift. But of course you can go with 1 inch or 2 inch if you choose to go that route.

I don't have much knowledge of the camper specials, but I know that they came with camper special badges on the rear door pillars (certain years I'm sure) they came with a 400 and had like a 12,000lb towing capacity. Again don't quote me on any of this, you can look at the SPID labels and see what kind of options you have on there.

In regards to your burb, now I'm curious about adding a body lift on top of the suspension as you did. Things to look out for or tips for my k20? Any issues with the 4 speed? Again, currently there are no gas tanks installed. Bed should be easy, I'm making custom bumpers front and rear. Cab I'm sure will have some wires to adjust. No fan shroud or A/C. Will trans shifter be an issue? I'm assuming adjustment on the t-case linkage. Brake line coils can be spread apart. Am I missing anything?

 

[PrairieDrifter]

In regards to your burb, now I'm curious about adding a body lift on top of the suspension as you did. Things to look out for or tips for my k20? Any issues with the 4 speed? Again, currently there are no gas tanks installed. Bed should be easy, I'm making custom bumpers front and rear. Cab I'm sure will have some wires to adjust. No fan shroud or A/C. Will trans shifter be an issue? I'm assuming adjustment on the t-case linkage. Brake line coils can be spread apart. Am I missing anything?

All I can say is hope your cab mount bolts come out somewhat decent but other than that, with a manual you may have to notch out the hole in the floor because the stick may hit against the floor after a body lift and that's the worst thing out of all of this. Yes you most likely have to adjust the transfer case lever. Just a few wires to move around, and the only other thing really is watch you're steering shaft when you lift up the body, its supposed to be able to extend far enough with a 3 inch body lift.

Get all the bolts loose almost all the way out, on the front end like the core support and cab mounts and jack up one side at a time and put in the blocks. If you have any question if you end up doing it you can let me know, I may be forgetting something minor

 

[84chevrolet]

Well I appreciate all the help, now I got something crazy to ask.

To cut a few corners and save some few bucks, I have a set of springs, w/ overload springs attatched from a 2nd Gen dodge 3/4 ton. I also have the Dodge factory 4 inch blocks. Assuming they fit width wise, they are 60 inches long.

The springs in the rear of my 84 k20 are 56 inches long.

Can I compress the Dodge springs to fit the chevy? And by doing so, wouldn't it give me 2 inches of lift, then the 4 inch blocks and there's my 6 inches for the rear?

I know this is a bit of a stretch, I'm just curious.