10K possible with a 4.3 and NV3500?

[L29Sub]

Welding on, or otherwise attempting to brace a GM truck frame is always contraindicated.
The heat crystallizes the frame creating weak areas.
Bracing transfers 'loads' to areas not designed to handle such. Pickup frames commonly crack just behind the cab.
A Suburban is a much stronger hauler when compared to pickups due to the body length.
Mr Viking could keep his 1/2 ton, and swap in the frame from a similar 1 ton. Be easy, cheaper, and far more safe.
Frames are cheap and generally the last part left. Most get crushed. It would be a bolt-on conversion.
Just sayin'

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[VIKING_MECHANIC]

My question is since your putting all this money into it (rebuild motor and trans and upgrading everything), why not just buy a 3/4 or full ton truck....I'm sure you have your reasoning

I'm sure with the 4.10s it will pull it but I would make sure to plan your stops and add a trailer brake. I'm guessing you dont plan to pull 10k all the time and your just wondering if it will. Yes it will.

I'd honestly add disk brakes on the back, upgrade the front calipers, beef up the frame with a couple more cross members and supports, add helper bags (a must!), brake controller for the trailer. Depending on where you live, put money aside for overloaded tickets. And a trans cooler.

I would hate the feeling that everytime I tow heavy I question it, and when I stop I pucker up lol.

Well this just an idea at the moment and not going to act on it for a long time for obvious reasons. Got alot of ideas spinning in my head about how I want to approach this, so I got time to think about this.

I'll probably put 4.10s in it next summer. Right now it can handle what I want. Yes I do have brakes on my trailer and I have a brake controller. Just have to wire the controller harness on the K1500 and get the brakes on the trailer wired into the main harness.

The reason I'm having the trans rebuilt is because the synchronizes were gone and it had issues shifting. Rebuilding it was cheaper than finding a used or rebuilt different manual trans. Not to mention the adapter for the transfer case and engine, if necessary.

The engine, it had 236K on it so a rebuild probably may have not been necessary, but I chose to do it instead of taking the unknown risk with a used one. Also, a good opportunity on how to learn to rebuild one.

 

[VIKING_MECHANIC]

Welding on, or otherwise attempting to brace a GM truck frame is always contraindicated.
The heat crystallizes the frame creating weak areas.

Not necessarily, If you have the welder on the right setting and use a good technique, you can avoid that. If the piece in question is spot welded and allowed to cool then go back and fully weld that piece in.

Take a grain of salt with these frames, because EVERY frame is different because of the impurities in the steel. Even two identical 1/2 frames could be radically different, just depends on the steel its self. I'm assuming GM bought these frames from supplies, so they may not had much control over manufacture process.

This was just an idea I had in the future, which some of you took waaay to seriously. Some of you had good ideas, others not so much.

Obviously if I get to this point, I'd be making some changes to the truck. Whether I get a frame from a 2500/3500 or customize my own, won't know till that point...

 

[badco]

Ive pulled and hauled way more than my poor 1/2 tons ever should have. As far as frames my 1/2 ton and the 3/4 ton i had sitting here had same frames as far as height and thickness. I have 02 1500hd leafs under mine and they are direct fit and give me some lift. Now the 3500 trans i don't trust but they sure drive better and free up power. I put a 4500 in mine and lost some mpg and power but gained strength and a first gear i like.

 

[alpinecrick]

Ive pulled and hauled way more than my poor 1/2 tons ever should have. As far as frames my 1/2 ton and the 3/4 ton i had sitting here had same frames as far as height and thickness. I have 02 1500hd leafs under mine and they are direct fit and give me some lift. Now the 3500 trans i don't trust but they sure drive better and free up power. I put a 4500 in mine and lost some mpg and power but gained strength and a first gear i like.

The 1500's and LIGHT 2500's had the same frames, but the regular (HD) 2500's had a deeper frame.

 

[alpinecrick]

A Suburban is a much stronger hauler when compared to pickups due to the body length.Sent from my SM-G965U using Tapatalk

How so is the Suburban stronger than a pickup? Are you saying the frame is stronger? Or the body makes the frame stronger?

 

[Gibson]

There are three kinds of men. The one that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves.

Will Rogers

 

[Hipster]

How so is the Suburban stronger than a pickup? Are you saying the frame is stronger? Or the body makes the frame stronger?

Body over frame adds rigidity to the overall structure. Like building a roll cage the 3rd dimension(height) adds strength by triangulating and tying it all together along its length. Pickup with a cab and box is not tied together and less rigid. Most times you can see the frame twist and the cab mis-align with the bed just from jacking up one corner.

 

[Hipster]

There are three kinds of men. The one that learns by reading. The few who learn by observation. The rest of them have to pee on the electric fence for themselves.

Will Rogers

lol good one

 

[Hipster]

The 1500's and LIGHT 2500's had the same frames, but the regular (HD) 2500's had a deeper frame.

^^ This

Light 2500's, 3.5 in height frame, 7200GVWR
Hd 2500, 5 inch height frame, 8600GVWR