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88GMCtruck's 98 Silverado Towpig Build: "Black Fox"

You know, I was looking at your truck and thinking you needed a few more lights.... ;):p:D
Always need more lights... Just have to find the most factory looking way to add them

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Picked up a $160 ebay soft tonneau cover. The quality is actually pretty good for the price TBH, would totally recommend. It's the "Tyger" brand and has a 10-year warranty on the fabric even.
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The real drive behind this is to keep the pine needles from accumulating in the bed/under the bed mat. I hate having to pull those 1" thick horse mats out and clean under them. I also missed having a cover over the bed when hauling groceries/truck parts (like my 02 did) but with the camper taking something on and off is kinda annoying. This rolls up at the front of the bed and the rails stay, so it can be used with my camper no problem.
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This past weekend.... Welp, there is a first time for everything.
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Was driving home from helping install OEM 1-ton overloads on my friends K2500... Take off from a stopsign, loose all power, truck kicks and pops a few times and doesn't crank properly. I get it to the side of the road and try cranking, take a look at a few things (the easy stuff), make sure there are no codes but ultimately it's just not doing anything.

So I call AAA for the first time in my life to get a tow. This is approx 1AM. Had to wait 2 hours for a truck big enough to fit the dually.

Get home, check some more in depth things like fuel pressure... While cranking it I keep thinking it sounds like it's not timed properly... which is weird. It has a brand new MSD distributor and GM performance timing set...

I decide to pull the distributor cover... Welp, there is the problem.
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Both screws in the rotor backed out and once one of them bound up in the distributor it snapped the alignment pins off the rotor and that was all she wrote. New rotor and screws and I was back in business.

In other news, I've been super busy working on building a shed and some other home improvement stuff. I snapped this photo one night moving stuff around... I have a lot of cubic inches here....
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Both screws in the rotor backed out and once one of them bound up in the distributor it snapped the alignment pins off the rotor and that was all she wrote. New rotor and screws and I was back in business.
Sounds like someone forgot the loc-tite...
 
Send them an email with the pics. Tell them quality control needs to improve and see if they do anything to keep you as a future customer.
 
Sucks the misfortune, but after all you have been through that was a quick easy one.

Crazy to say this is one time that a more complex ignition system wouldn't have failed haha.
 
I've been super busy as spring & summer hit. It's the time of the year I camp, do home improvements and work on projects.

I started out the springtime with a quad trip.
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I did a bunch of yard work - sanded and stained my deck, put in a concrete paver path, worked on the lawn and built a 10x20 shed from 99% recycled lumber (including the plywood). It's fully powered and now full of truck parts...
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Polished up my wheels for the year, and gave the truck a much needed bath.
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The last big project before a few more trips was this old girl
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She was dismantled and boxed up.
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And then sent away for scrap.
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Since the parts storage shed is built and the suburban is parted out, I started ordering parts for the 88... Towards the end of summer I will likely start tearing into it.

Last weekend I made a much belated trip to the wrecking yard and found some really good stuff - Including a CR Lawrence power slider, a 91 tach cluster (which I will be selling) and a JL Audio Stealthbox center console.
 
Worth more parted out? Just worn out or what?
I bought it for $700 for parts. It had 285k on it. 454/4L80E. Interior was trashed, body was good. I needed a few body panels for my trucks, and will be using all the electronics and dash to convert my 88 to vortec/new interior.
 
i have my 96. it's not running and not sure why. have it listed for 1500.00 and i am open to offers. no one has called so planning on parting it out. seems like it's worth more in parts.
 
Been a bit since I've given any sort of update, so here you go!

I mentioned the CR Lawrence slider, well I got that installed.
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They had the install with the cable running over the pillar trim and screwed to it... I said screw that. I dis-assembled the cable and ran it through the pillar and only making a small notch in the plastic. Much cleaner IMO.
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To mount the motor, you have to ditch the OEM jack tray. Again, no thanks. I modified the position a bit and cut so the motor was mounted behind the tray. I actually have a few things that sit nicely in it, didn't want to loose that.
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It had an aftermarket switch as well. You know me, I didn't use it. Instead I grabbed the closest thing that matched - I used a GM switch that came in the GMT800 GM Accessory Power Rear Window upgrade kit. It's the same text and gray color as the GMT400 and is as close as I'm going to ever come to matching the stock switches...
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Related to the truck, I extended the tongue on my trailer so I could get rid of the hitch extension, as well as jackknife the trailer to be able to use the stairs without disconnecting.
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I also picked up this G2 Brute diff cover, extra capacity and lowered my diff temps about 45 degrees.
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During the install, it was close to the spare tire, so to test I flexed out the truck with the camper on it. The frames on these trucks are impressive IMO, very little body deflection even with the camper in the bed.
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I also recently was in the dunes, my favorite place on earth.
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After much deliberation though, I decided that it was time to move on to a new chapter. Introducing the new tow pig: 2016 Sierra Denali 3500HD.
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Just kidding ;)
 
I knew you couldn't do it, and I admit I didn't want you to. I really enjoy the updates to this thread as your mods are very tasteful.
 
Yeah, I bit that hook.

Truck looks nice.

Sand dunes are fun, but I kept needing to go faster and jump higher. Then a buddy went off one and it crippled him up. Figured that was enough for me. I will still go out there in the hummer, but its so slow I just do all the rescues.
 
Did a few more mods to the dually the last month or so.

Rag joint elimination. Makes the steering much more responsive, although I'm still due for balljoints.
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While at the junkyard, I happened across this set of heated leather buckets in a 99 suburban - and lucky me Devin happened to have a leather rear crewcab seat in storage and was willing to trade for my cloth seat. They are a solid 9/10, with the worst being the 3" tear in the driver's side bottom which is no concern since they are easily replaced for about $110.
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And in my craiglist browsing, I ran across another set of Weld Alumadual II's. They were located in Grant's Pass and I was lucky enough that @Skylark snagged them for me.
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Of interesting note, they are slightly different than mine. Mine are dated 1988, these are dated earlier - 3 are dated 1986, 1 dated 1985. The angle of the inner part of the wheel is less angled, and makes a different shape, and thus makes the holes look slightly different. I'm hoping to run them on the inner wheels and as a spare, to shave some weight so the difference is negligible. I also may coat them for winter wheels as well, or polish them up and sell them if neither of the other options work out.... Time will tell.
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Where you getting seat bottoms replaced/repaired? Is the foam also available? I can find it all day long for the Dodges that eat seat foam for breakfast, but, no so much for GM.
 
Very nice, looks like you have been busy. Time for some fall camping in the mountains.
Camping soon!

Where you getting seat bottoms replaced/repaired? Is the foam also available? I can find it all day long for the Dodges that eat seat foam for breakfast, but, no so much for GM.
Ebay. It is the leather/vinyl with 1/2" foam, but the main seat foam I haven't looked for as mine are in good shape. I haven't seen or not seen it, if that makes sense.
 
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