Squarebody Blazer/Jimmy. 73-75 or 76-87 better?

[MisterB]

I have a soft topper on my 79K5 and drive open most of the time. The good thing about the cab over the front seats is that the sun doesn't burn you to ashes when you ride a few hours on sunny summer day. The rear folding bench is really handy and if you need more room it can be easily removed. It's mounted with 2 bolts.
I would love to have a 73 K5 but they are way too expensive.

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Nice truck, and good point regarding the roof

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[nvrenuf]

So when you say full top conversion, are you saying the metal roof on a 76-87+ is cut to look like a '73- '75?

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Exactly, this is my '91 before and after -

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What you'd do is cut the roof off and weld on the windshield frame from a 73-75 donor Blazer, this way you have the factory channel above the windshield for the full top to attach to. It's not a super easy job, it can get expensive and there is more detail to it (capping the hole on the bedside, cutting the frame off the doors, *ideally* bracing the body, etc) but this would be a way of getting the best of everything Blazers offered.

 

[Snoots]

Mines a '73, full removable roof. I haven't had it off in GA because of the screwy weather but when I lived in So Cal and Vegas it was a blast to have it off!
Now I have a full soft top for it but other projects come first.

Get one. You won't regret it!

 

[Vbb199]

Pretty sure 68-91 k5 was all fiberglass top.

The 73-75 blazers are damn nesr impossible to find.
Ive been trying to find one for sometime.
I wanna get a bone stock k5.
The 76--91 half top trucks are cool.
Kinda looks like a pickup truck with no top.
I plan to convert mine to full top when I get the parts.


Technically the 88-91 is just a v1500 blazer.
I'm biased towards k5 and suburbans.

87-91 k5 will be fuel injection, and since it's as aerodynamic as a brick house, that fuel injection is nice.

Short wheelbase sucks butt for towing anything. It's really just a expedition and highway truck.

Idk what pricing in your area for one is anymore, but for me, they start at 5k.

They used to start at 1500 and had a lift, bigger tires And ran and drove. But that was 6 7 years ago.

If you plan on lifting it anything above 6", be prepared for a bunch of hassle with drivelines because of the short wheelbase.

I still love k5's, always will, I'll climb a mountain of pickups for a k5.

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[Vbb199]

There's also those terrible looking "blazers" from the gmt400 series that went on from like, 92-93 or something like that. It doesn't have a removable top. The Tahoe eventually replaced that.

 

[Vbb199]

Exactly, this is my '91 before and after -

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What you'd do is cut the roof off and weld on the windshield frame from a 73-75 donor Blazer, this way you have the factory channel above the windshield for the full top to attach to. It's not a super easy job, it can get expensive and there is more detail to it (capping the hole on the bedside, cutting the frame off the doors, *ideally* bracing the body, etc) but this would be a way of getting the best of everything Blazers offered.

Good to see someone else sporting a modded 91

 

[MisterB]

Exactly, this is my '91 before and after -

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What you'd do is cut the roof off and weld on the windshield frame from a 73-75 donor Blazer, this way you have the factory channel above the windshield for the full top to attach to. It's not a super easy job, it can get expensive and there is more detail to it (capping the hole on the bedside, cutting the frame off the doors, *ideally* bracing the body, etc) but this would be a way of getting the best of everything Blazers offered.

I like what you've done, but wouldn't finding the windshield frame off a 73-75 be even harder than finding an entire Blazer/Jimmy from 73-75?

After thinking about it, I think I like the idea of a 76-87 with a roof over the cab. If a 73-75 happens to turn up at the right price, I won't turn it down, but at the same time I probably won't hold out for one or pass up on a good 76-87 at the right price either.

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[MisterB]

I got behind this one the other day, and it really got me interested in one

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[Vbb199]

I like what you've done, but wouldn't finding the windshield frame off a 73-75 be even harder than finding an entire Blazer/Jimmy from 73-75?

After thinking about it, I think I like the idea of a 76-87 with a roof over the cab. If a 73-75 happens to turn up at the right price, I won't turn it down, but at the same time I probably won't hold out for one or pass up on a good 76-87 at the right price either.

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You'd be surprised.
There's often times a title-less 73-75 I come across, I try to harass the owner into letting me cut off the stuff I need to go full vert, but most of them want like.... 1,000 for the windshield frame, full top, and doors, not even including the supports under the body to keep it from sagging at the door.

 

[nvrenuf]

I like what you've done, but wouldn't finding the windshield frame off a 73-75 be even harder than finding an entire Blazer/Jimmy from 73-75?

The windshield frames are usually in better shape than the body but the conversion parts can be real expensive; probably $300-$500 for the windshield frame and doors and $1000 for a good top (or soft top). The alternative, if you want a full top, is to find a nice 73-75 that's not rotten to the core and those are getting very expensive.