Dean's '11 Crew Cab Budget Build

BigBoi said:
Besides the option of going to KINGs, the only real reason I got arms was because pressing the alignment bushings in the my stock arms WAS A PAIN IN THE DICK and I wasn’t doing that again. So I was getting new arms regardless.


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Those camber bushings are awful. when I put them in for the drop, I took it to a shop and they even complained about them. One of these days I hope to bump to coils instead of struts, but they just aren't in the cards at this moment in time. I'll be investing in a shell/topper/camper before I get the opportunity to attempt coilovers.
 
DeanH1290 said:
Those camber bushings are awful. when I put them in for the drop, I took it to a shop and they even complained about them. One of these days I hope to bump to coils instead of struts, but they just aren't in the cards at this moment in time. I'll be investing in a shell/topper/camper before I get the opportunity to attempt coilovers.
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When I took the truck apart this time, 3 out of the 4 bushings were absolute shit. Like falling apart and most of all the rubber was gone. I’m so fucking glad I’m done with that bullshit lol.

There’s a new GMC locally that’s leveled and he has a topper and it’s pretty fucking dope looking. I always mistake it for a suburban or something until I get right on it lol. Clean af.



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BigBoi said:
When I took the truck apart this time, 3 out of the 4 bushings were absolute shit. Like falling apart and most of all the rubber was gone. I’m so fucking glad I’m done with that bullshit lol.

There’s a new GMC locally that’s leveled and he has a topper and it’s pretty fucking dope looking. I always mistake it for a suburban or something until I get right on it lol. Clean af.

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The look is growing on me for sure. I'm getting one for functionality though. It will be nice to have the extra enclosed space at times, mainly if I have to take the dogs anywhere.
 
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Decided to go on a trail ride today with sawyer, thought it would be a fun father/son trip, especially with everything life is throwing at me at the moment. We had a good bit of fun (even though sawyer got bored at times) and the truck actually faired pretty well. There was a pretty good rainstorm that rolled through yesterday, so there was plenty of muddy clay and water crossings to deal with. Also got to visit a little cave not too far off of the trail, which ended up being sawyers favorite part of the trip. I didn’t get very many pics since it was my first time out and the trails ended up being a little more technical than I expected. Here’s the few pics I have along with the few battle wounds I picked up along the way.

Lined up and ready to go
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Cave visit
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Lunch break
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And the carnage.... Bottomed out a couple of places, tweaking the bumper and shoving the pass side step back. Driver side CV decided to give out along the first leg as well.
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Despite the bit of carnage, I felt like it was a successful trip. Short of fighting a long wheel base, the truck performed really well. With some of the body issues I’m having (rust and clear pops) and a fun trail trip, I’m thinking hard about moving that direction with any future mods.


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Ordered a bunch of parts yesterday for this turd to fix it back up some. I decided to go on and fix the bumper for now since it’ll be a good while before I get to hit the trails again. I’m hoping next time to find some wider/lighter trails that are a bit more full-size friendly. Ideally want to find some good places to do some over landing and camping. Here’s the laundry list of parts I have coming.

Bumper caps
Fog lights
CV axles
Console lid
Upper strut mounts
Strut insulators/boots
Bilstein 6112 front coil over kit
Bilstein 5160 resi rear shocks

Everything short of the fog lights and 6112 should be here Friday, hoping the rest shows up sometime next week. I plan on getting the bumper caps out to paint on Monday when I take the truck in to get the hood fixed (peeling/flaking under the louvers). I went on and got all the parts to assemble the 6112 without taking the old stuff apart since they don’t come assembled. I’ll make sure to take some comparison pics of the 6112 and the 5100 when I get them installed.


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Went on and got the 5160s installed this morning, already seem a bit smoother than the old 5100. They are a bit longer than the old ones, and the old ones were bottoming out at full droop. Anxious to see how these pair up with the 6112 once I get them.

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Got my hood and bumper caps back from paint yesterday and got it all back together. Still waiting on the 6112s, Summit is expecting to get them on 10/15, hopefully I’ll see them a few days later.

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