How to switch from a DRW to a SRW in a 1981 K30 / 350 engine / 3 speed manual / 4x4

[Tonimus]

I ran my '84 without flares and just a single rear wheel. No issues. Didn't look too weird.

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[DoubleDingo]

........Didn't look too weird.

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It kinda does....

 

[TotalyHucked]

OP, it looks like you've got a pretty nice truck there. In all honesty, if you want a SRW truck, I'd just go buy a SRW truck. It's a ton of work to convert, it'll look goofy as hell if you simply remove a wheel. If you don't need the load capacity of a dually, either sell yours and buy a SRW or find someone to trade. You'd be much frustration ahead that way

 

[Ricko1966]

Or pick a wide enough rear wheel and tire and go phantom dually style.

 

[Grit dog]

Any recommendations wheel wise ? What should i get ? Do I still get the spacers for the back wheels ?

Among other things and as you’re just doing this for looks, realize the other truck you posted has a considerably narrower flatbed, made for srw narrower track width rear wheels.
There’s not a way to make it look like that truck without a new flatbed and new front hubs, etc.
Then worry about what kind of wheels and whether you want or need spacers.

 

[Tonimus]

It kinda does....

Should've seen it with busted fiberglass from one of the previous owners...

 

[85K304SPD]

Sell the dually and buy a single rear wheel 3/4 or 1 ton. Trying to modify the dually will just ruin it and you will have a worse situation when you get done, then it wont be worth selling to get a decent truck.

 

[Grit dog]

Sell the dually and buy a single rear wheel 3/4 or 1 ton. Trying to modify the dually will just ruin it and you will have a worse situation when you get done, then it wont be worth selling to get a decent truck.

While this may be a true statement wrt to the OP in particular since he has little to no understanding of what to do or even what truck he has (looks like a c&c) and likely not in the market to buy $1000s of parts and hours of labor, in general what you said has little merit IMO.
If anything converting a dually pickup, properly, to a srw would likely increase value as there is a much greater market for srw classic trucks.
Bottom line, more people will be interested in a clean srw 4x4 than a dually.

 

[PrairieDrifter]

While this may be a true statement wrt to the OP in particular since he has little to no understanding of what to do or even what truck he has (looks like a c&c) and likely not in the market to buy $1000s of parts and hours of labor, in general what you said has little merit IMO.
If anything converting a dually pickup, properly, to a srw would likely increase value as there is a much greater market for srw classic trucks.
Bottom line, more people will be interested in a clean srw 4x4 than a dually.

Don't think anyone would ever want a single wheel cab and chassis truck though lol. Other than for something custom which this "isnt".

If you know how to do it yourself, sure. Convert it. But if you gotta pay someone to build it, then you can afford to buy the truck you actually want.

 

[Grit dog]

Don't think anyone would ever want a single wheel cab and chassis truck though lol. Other than for something custom which this "isnt".

If you know how to do it yourself, sure. Convert it. But if you gotta pay someone to build it, then you can afford to buy the truck you actually want.

100% agreed. And a big part of the flavor of my response to this and similar questions is designed to help someone think about what they’re trying to accomplish without going upside down financially as happens with many “projects.”
I sound like a broken record maybe but I have to refer to the C10 I bought last year. Feller did ALOT of work to an already pretty clean old rig. And it ended up not being practical for him and he spent more ver double what I paid him for work done to the truck that honestly some of it was likely unnecessary. But moreso he paid to have everything done and was $15k deep in receipts plus whatever he paid for it during Covid for a $7500 truck. It was totally un enjoyable for him and quite costly.
Point being he would have been better off dropping $20k on a truck that he could have sold for at least 15 or more than $5k plus $15k in repairs and it still had original paint, interior and a rusty original exhaust.
Same with the blue truck. The improvements to it when I bought it were spread out over a few owners and no one before me lost their shirt on it. But I had instant equity after I painted it and redid the interior, plus some odds n ends (all diy) and saved many more hours and dollars than a truck that cost maybe $2-3k less and had a leaky old pooch of an engine and a clapped out trans and no lift kit and needed brakes.
Classic vehicles are emotional purchases and “wants” not needs for the vast majority. Save for the few that get actual daily driver value out of them. But unless you have way more $ than most folks on this forum (not judging, just saying…) then it makes sense to have a logical thought out approach to spending $ on something that is a hobby.
That said, the OPs truck in Quebec or wherever, I’d be makin bank with that sucker plowing snow all winter!!

 

[PrairieDrifter]

100% agreed. And a big part of the flavor of my response to this and similar questions is designed to help someone think about what they’re trying to accomplish without going upside down financially as happens with many “projects.”
I sound like a broken record maybe but I have to refer to the C10 I bought last year. Feller did ALOT of work to an already pretty clean old rig. And it ended up not being practical for him and he spent more ver double what I paid him for work done to the truck that honestly some of it was likely unnecessary. But moreso he paid to have everything done and was $15k deep in receipts plus whatever he paid for it during Covid for a $7500 truck. It was totally un enjoyable for him and quite costly.
Point being he would have been better off dropping $20k on a truck that he could have sold for at least 15 or more than $5k plus $15k in repairs and it still had original paint, interior and a rusty original exhaust.
Same with the blue truck. The improvements to it when I bought it were spread out over a few owners and no one before me lost their shirt on it. But I had instant equity after I painted it and redid the interior, plus some odds n ends (all diy) and saved many more hours and dollars than a truck that cost maybe $2-3k less and had a leaky old pooch of an engine and a clapped out trans and no lift kit and needed brakes.
Classic vehicles are emotional purchases and “wants” not needs for the vast majority. Save for the few that get actual daily driver value out of them. But unless you have way more $ than most folks on this forum (not judging, just saying…) then it makes sense to have a logical thought out approach to spending $ on something that is a hobby.
That said, the OPs truck in Quebec or wherever, I’d be makin bank with that sucker plowing snow all winter!!

Agreed. Especially to the people that get something then tear it completely apart to "rebuild" it then it just sits in pieces for years, when in reality it was usually a great truck to start with/driver, at least something you could fix while you drive it. I can talk **** because I was one of those people lol.

Then a good truck gets parted out or scrapped even. Sometimes they find the right home with a passionate car guy that will bring them back to their former glory and even better. But that's usually not how it happens.

All im saying is for this instance is the 1 ton stuff ain't cheap. Even just getting single wheel hubs for the front is at least $700 maybe slightly less used. Then a rear end to do it properly, I haven't seen a dually rear end for a good few years. If not, like with this truck like said above the bed would look dumb, then the wheel offsets just wouldn't look right. THEN the wheelbase would look super dorky as a single wheel.

I look at things differently than most because I daily squares, I'm more passionate than most, but everybody gets burnt out every now and then regardless. But for the average hobby guy, car restoration/resurrection is too much, properly done that is. Especially once a project is in pieces and they get stuck on a problem.