There's no way to know if 38mm will be adequate until you try it.

That being said, a 38 mm gate is quite small and there's really no downside to running a larger gate besides cost.

 

Ok guys, I've been in touch with Rick @ Trick. I think I am going to send my downpipe back to him and run a 46mm gate.

In the meantime, I think I've decided to run a 100% stock longblock LM7 (with BTR springs) and then swap my LS2 shortblock out of my Vette with some 317's at some point in the future. I think that's a logical course of action that will get me acquainted with this turbo stuff... any thoughts on the stock LM7 with valve springs?

 

Should be just fine on the stock LM7. I was going to do the same thing but decided to get all the other upgrades out of the way first. Last thing I wanted to have happen was have the turbo on and something happen before I even got to finish.

 

Cool Project. Similar to my truck.

 

No Plans for boost as of now. If I ever did, it's be the supercharged route. I like the way your truck looked like with the z71 fender flares. I considered them with mine, but it would look goofy now that the new wheels and tires tuck.

I like how you hit the ethanol content gauge in the cluster. Any other pics of it?

 

Ya I still have em but lowered on stock wheels the wheels tuck an absurd amount and doesn't look good, it really needs a wider wheel with less offset. I have the flares tucked safely away in the rafters and if I ever put wheels in the truck I'll reinstall the flares.

 

Ok guys a small update. Got the Cal Tracs in last night. It's been hard to find an afternoon here or an evening there as the truck is my dd and has to run. The cal tracs weren't too bad but the fact that I have Belltech hangers made the job take a lot longer. I had to unstrap the tank and shove it to the side so I could access the hanger bolts. I used my press to push out the rubber insides of the leaf spring bushings, then my air hammer to slowly get the shell out. Not too bad but I would put it in the pita category for sure. One really cool thing about the Belltech hangers is that the cal trac bars are completely invisible. Adds to the sleeper effect I'm going for. And unlike the cal tracs I put on my 6.4 super duty or my brothers Colorado 5.3 swap, the ones for my Silverado came with urethane sleeves so they are 100% silent. I'm running 1 full turn of preload but I'll likely back it down to 1/2" turn for daily driving. I will say the truck rides noticeably better with the overload spring removed, and the cal tracs in place. I'm super stoked on that. Tomorrow I'm installing the Trutrac and Moser cover. Sometime this week I will rebuild the front suspension with new inners and outers, rough country sleeves, pitman arm, and idler arm as the steering is a bit loose for my liking and will for sure make itself more apparent with the turbo.

I also got my downpipe back from Trick as he modified it for a 46mm gate. I wanted to eliminate and possibility of boost creep.

I also carefully removed the Z71 stickers from the rear. You can still see the outline a little bit, I still need to clay that area.

Once the steering is freshened up I'll pull the heads and have them surfaced and a valve job done. I'll do the turbo at the same time, hoping to start that next weekend. Here is a pic of the cal tracs (honestly hard to take a pic of them since they're so hidden lol) and how the truck sits as of today:

 

Very nice. Mine supposed to arrive tuesday and I will also be removing the overload spring as I see no point for it and also less unsprung weight.

I am also unsure about removing the front bushing, but I'm going to see if it can be done with a ball joint press and some creativity.

 

Truck is lookin good. I love that color.


I have used a ball joint press a couple of times on leaf springs. Works fine.

 

Nice build. Love the truck. Wish i had gotten a 4x4.... Still might!