So this is what it started out as. A 1979 Blazer chassis with a 350, TH350 and NP-203 transfer case. Then a 1986 K10 cab was added on along with its TH700R4 and NP-208. The front 10 bolt along with the rear 12 bolt were rebuilt using 4.56 gears. A Lincoln locker already came in the 12 bolt thanks to the previous owner. 39.5x15x15 TSL Swampers with the help of a tried and true Warn 8274 mounted on the front meant the truck was quite capable.

But soon the limitations of a clunky full-size cab set in, and Michael wanted something smaller that looked better too. So he found a 1984 S-10 for $150 the owner no longer wanted having blown up the 4 cyl. A few weekends of work and the S-10 cab was on the Blazer frame after making new cab mounts, radiator supports and tweaking the steering shaft.

The S-10 bed was now put on making it look like a truck again. Plenty of mud outings proved the truck was reliable and worth him keeping, so a paint job was now in the works. 2005 Cadillac Escalade metallic blue was used from Dupont's Nason line of acrylic lacquers keeping it as much GM as possible. But soon he desired more lift and someday larger tires. So after the paint went on, Superlift 12" lift springs went on up front replacing the 6ers it had from the start. Out back the same springs were used since they provided more height than a 8" rear lift spring.

Michael also wanted a divorced style transfer case like the "big boys" run to keep the front and rear driveshaft angles to a minimum. So a NP-200 was ordered from Chucks Trucks in our area (Orlando, FL). These cases are just like a 205 (physical size and strength) but came from old Dodge vehicles such as the Power Wagon and M-37 Military trucks. The NP-200 has 3 outputs; the one on top rear is for a fixed mounted drum parking brake which is normally cut off and thrown away. The one on the bottom goes to the rear driveshaft- thus lowering the rear and front angles dramatically.

The finished NP-200 transfer case cradle.

Now the truck looks pretty darn good. But it was never finished in this stage. All it would have needed was 3 new drive shafts and some other miscellaneous stuff reconnected. But Michael found a great deal on a 1988 Dodge Dana 60 front he couldn't pass up. The previous owner had plans to use it so he took it all apart to do a full rebuild and purchased many new parts including new bearings, seals, spindle and kingpin parts. He also bought new 35 spline stub shafts with Warn 35 spline lockouts. He had all the right parts but ran short on time so he let it all go for $800 and my brother snagged it. Now with all the excess lift he now has, you can only guess what the solution for that problem would be- bigger tires of course!

So with a Dodge Dana 60 front and a Ford Dana 60 rear, so much for keeping it all GM lol. The axle swap from half to one tons meant another set of rims. But Welds and the other big name wheel makers were way too expensive. So in keeping with the "mini monster" truck theme, the rims had to be steel and painted white. Therefore, Stockton Wheel was called upon to make (4) 16.5x14 round hole rims.

Now when I said "mini monster" truck, you didn't think I meant another truck with 44's did you!? Of course not. So he went with the biggest tire that is currently DOT approved. The 49" TSL Swamper IROK. The 49" tall tire along with the 6.17:1 gears in the Dana 60's should do quite well for trekking off road.

Here it is finished with the radiator in the bed. The silver pipe is the coolant line.

Here is the truck after completion of the hydrostatic steering system and addition of the front bumper.

Hydrostatic steering unit bolted in place of factory steering box.

The hoses were custom made by a local hydraulic shop. The factory power steering pump has plenty of volume and pressure to supply the system.

The cylinder has to be mounted as parallel to the tie rod as possible to keep from bending it or loosing travel/movement.

The hoses have a union in case the bottom hoses get damaged. That way only the lower damaged sections would need to be replaced instead of the full length.

Nice thick bead weld to keep everything sturdy (yes it's welded on the backside too). The hydrostatic system is very easy to steer now with less bump steer.