Want to buy: m1008 in Michigan

[athello]

I've been looking for a generic wheelin' / fishin' truck for a little while now, and had a lead on a SBC 350 equipped m1008, but I'm not sure it will be going through. I decided that a CUCV would suit my needs well. Something basic, yet strong, with huge axles and a locker, the kind of mods I would do anyway.

Trying to find them in the Midwest seems to be tough. I've heard bad things about that "Alpha" or something like that place in Wisconsin. I will of course be monitoring the classifieds, but I thought I would put out a general feeler here and see if anyone knew of an m1008 that was for sale in the Midwest. I'm in Michigan, so I'm used to driving to pick up stuff.

Price is dependant on what's available. I don't mind a little work, but I don't want a rolling chassis. I also don't need a $8k show truck.

Thanks for the help!

 

[Chevytruck]

Try GL

 

[athello]

I have a search saved, and I've been on there looking, but the problem is that I can't seem to find a base that is selling them any closer than a 12 hour drive or so....one way. I suppose I could ask someone to check one out for me and fly out, but I would much rather see it personally as it's going to be my truck.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

TC eh?

Howdy neighbor.

Not much up here and yes, steer clear of Alfa Heaven.

There are a few sellers East of the Mississippi but not as many as elsewhere. Lemme know if you have any questions or concerns as I'm a local (for now).

 

[athello]

TC eh?

Yup, took a job up here at the end of last summer. Someplace that we've always wanted to live (NM in general).

Howdy neighbor.

Thanks! I was hoping to hear from you. I've followed your m1008 buildup on this site as well as cardomain. Very similar to what I'd like to do. Got to get to those fishin' holes somehow!

Not much up here and yes, steer clear of Alfa Heaven.

I've heard that from a few people, sadly. It seems like California and Alabama get the majority of these things. I was hoping for something less than a 12 hour drive one way!

There are a few sellers East of the Mississippi but not as many as elsewhere. Lemme know if you have any questions or concerns as I'm a local (for now).

If I do end up with one, I will definitely let you know. I haven't seen yours driving around town yet, but hopefully I will soon. I saw an m1009 a few weeks ago up by Sam's Club.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Hope you have better luck up here than I have. I can't wait to leave. Job crap, personal life crap, economic crap, bah! Somebody buy my house.

My buildup isn't the normal one. Don't need lift and crossover just to fit big tires.

There's a few dealers in the PA and NJ area. We have a member on here and over at Colorado K5 - Full-Size GM 4x4 Restoration and Off Road Community in NJ who seems to ALWAYS have CUCV's. 84cucv1ton is his screen name here and 84CUCV over on CK5.
Just ask around. It's how I found my '89 K5 recently.

Really your best bet is to buy something elsewhere and drive it here. Anything local is either overpriced or rusty junk. I just bought my '89 K5 in Washington and even with having to fly out there and bring it back next month I still won't be into what a similar shape one here would cost me...if I could find one in this good of shape.

You'll probably see Big Ugly around sometime soon. My Tracker DD is getting sold today and I won't have the K5 for another month...so Big Ugly is doing DD duty until then. Hard to miss it for sure. If you see me stopped feel free to say hi. Always happy to talk trucks.
Funny part is a guy up the road from me has a CUCV pickup and his kid has/had a M1009. Haven't talked to them though as I don't know quite where they live.

 

[athello]

Hope you have better luck up here than I have. I can't wait to leave. Job crap, personal life crap, economic crap, bah! Somebody buy my house.

Sorry to hear that. My wife and I grew up in Detroit, so this was always a vacation spot we came to. Finally said, "we travel up there so much, why not live there?" Was lucky enough to find a job in this currently crappy economic state.....

My buildup isn't the normal one. Don't need lift and crossover just to fit big tires.

I agree completely. I actually think smaller lift + cutting makes the trucks look better. I dont like the look of a bunch of air between the tires and the body. I was actually thinking about taking the springs off of a 1990 or so longbed and putting them on the CUCV with a shakle flip. I've got a buddy near Detroit who is an excellent mechanic and we've been talking about the possibilities. Of course, I need a truck to start with first!

There's a few dealers in the PA and NJ area. We have a member on here and over at Colorado K5 - Full-Size GM 4x4 Restoration and Off Road Community in NJ who seems to ALWAYS have CUCV's. 84cucv1ton is his screen name here and 84CUCV over on CK5.
Just ask around. It's how I found my '89 K5 recently.

I'll do that, thanks!

Really your best bet is to buy something elsewhere and drive it here. Anything local is either overpriced or rusty junk. I just bought my '89 K5 in Washington and even with having to fly out there and bring it back next month I still won't be into what a similar shape one here would cost me...if I could find one in this good of shape.

That's what it's looking like. I've got a few leads currently, but I can't seem to get ahold of the sellers. You'd think money would talk, but these guys don't really seem to want to sell. My buddy bought a camaro a few years ago from PA, and it was a fun road trip. Living up here, I'm used to long trips, but I'd like to inspect it myself before I buy. I guess beggars can't be choosers, though!

You'll probably see Big Ugly around sometime soon. My Tracker DD is getting sold today and I won't have the K5 for another month...so Big Ugly is doing DD duty until then. Hard to miss it for sure. If you see me stopped feel free to say hi. Always happy to talk trucks.

Believe me, if I see Big Ugly coming down the road, I'll flip a U-turn, try not to get run over, and introduce myself!

Funny part is a guy up the road from me has a CUCV pickup and his kid has/had a M1009. Haven't talked to them though as I don't know quite where they live.

Maybe that's the Blazer I saw a few weeks ago. Seemed like a younger-ish kid driving it. Never fails, now that I'm interested in one, I see them more and more!

Thanks for the help.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

The M1009 I'm thinking of has been painted white. Actually, both the trucks are. That said I haven't seen the Blazer in a while. Seems like he drives them as often as I do mine (normally).

They come in waves locally. This winter there were all manner of K5's on Craigslist up here and now there's nothing decent. That's okay, my '89's better.

I put a post here and on CK5 and one of my buds on CK5 gave me a whole fracking list of stuff out by him in Seattle. Whalla, my K5.

Honestly, cutting and then relocating the front axle forward an inch or so clears most of the rubbing issues these things have with 36-38" NARROW tires. Go wide or with low backspace wheels and you're making it harder to do.

I'm originally from the GR area. Came up here for school only to learn how much of a mistake that was. Meanwhile my soon to be wife convinced me after our first beautiful summer we needed to buy a house. Now 5 years later she's gone, I'm here in a house I might not be able to sell, the economy is down, I'm making at least $2k less this year than last, and I JUST WANT TO LEAVE! BAH! You might see my name in the paper if you read the foreclosure section...

 

[Armada]

Hi athello. I'm in MI and have a nice M1008 I'll be selling after Memorial weekend. PM if interested.

 

[athello]

Armada,
Tried to PM, mailbox was full. Let me know when I can send email, or drop me the info using the email that is registered with the site.

Thanks!

 

[athello]

The m1009 I saw was still camo. Maybe it was just a Fudgie passing through.

Glad to hear you got a blazer you like. I'm not in a huge hurry, so if something comes along up here I'll grab it, if not, I'll just keep my eyes open for something a little farther away.

Originally, I was going to put 35's on it, but then I thought that 35's with a 14 bolt means the axle becomes a mud shovel, and not an axle anymore. So, I think I might go the 37-40" route. I don't want a monster truck, but something that I can go down almost any Michigan road and not worry about walking back out. I did my undergraduate work up at Michigan TEch in the UP, so I know that Michigan has some NASTY backroads! Anytime the trail leader says you need to be on 40's, locked rear, and a winch at minimum, you know you're in for a tough day!


Sorry to hear about your troubles. Hopefully this economy will turn around sooner rather than later......

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Someone's interested in my house so I hope to be out of here LONG before the economy turns around. Call me of low faith but with Jenny at the helm I haven't been terribly impressed so far.

Eh, there's a few CUCV's up here. Come to think of it I have seen a camo M1009 rolling around occasionally. A bit crusty with the red marker panels on the tailgate bottom?

Don't know him personally but Armada gets good reviews on this site and a friend bought a NICE M1009 from him a year or so ago. He was very pleased with his purchase.

The thing with these M1008's is you REALLY need taller tires to tame the gears. Even with my 38's I could use an OD gear. I don't drive it on the freeway though so it works for me.
The problem is finding tall and narrow tires. They're out there but they are mostly bias plies. 38x11 Boggers, 38x12.5 TSL bias plies, etc. There is a 39x13.5 IROK but you're guaranteed to have to lift and run wider tires along with the cutting. The lift springs bring in a whole 'nother set of problems too.
Continental makes some radial 20" military tires that are like 39-40's by 10-11" wide but boy, they're expensive and I'd have to get 20" wheels. Be big pimping then though.

 

[athello]

Someone's interested in my house so I hope to be out of here LONG before the economy turns around. Call me of low faith but with Jenny at the helm I haven't been terribly impressed so far.

Agreed. Lived in Lansing for the past 4 years, so I'm used to hearing talk about her. Hope it all works out for you in the end.

Eh, there's a few CUCV's up here. Come to think of it I have seen a camo M1009 rolling around occasionally. A bit crusty with the red marker panels on the tailgate bottom?

Hmm....could be the one. Don't directly remember the red marker panels, but then again I wasn't looking specifically. Don't think there are TOO many of them up here, tho....

Don't know him personally but Armada gets good reviews on this site and a friend bought a NICE M1009 from him a year or so ago. He was very pleased with his purchase.

Good to know. It's nice to hear a good review of a person. His thumbnail picture looks nice, hopefully he will clear some PM space so we can chat.

The thing with these M1008's is you REALLY need taller tires to tame the gears. Even with my 38's I could use an OD gear. I don't drive it on the freeway though so it works for me.

I don't plan on a lot of freeway driving, but as soon as I learned that they came stock with 4.56's, I was really excited. I planned on putting on bigger tires anyway, and the big gears just meant that I didn't need to install them.

The problem is finding tall and narrow tires. They're out there but they are mostly bias plies. 38x11 Boggers, 38x12.5 TSL bias plies, etc. There is a 39x13.5 IROK but you're guaranteed to have to lift and run wider tires along with the cutting. The lift springs bring in a whole 'nother set of problems too.
Continental makes some radial 20" military tires that are like 39-40's by 10-11" wide but boy, they're expensive and I'd have to get 20" wheels. Be big pimping then though.

I like the look of the wider tires, but that brings in another set of problems, as you've said. One of my many ideas was to run a mild lift (such as Superlift springs) up front, and do a shackle flip + 1/2 ton long bed springs in the back with a shackle flip, or some variation of that. Would like to fit big meat without rubbing and without a huge lift up in the air. Therefore, I'm gonna become even more familiar with a sawzall!

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Use a cutting blade on an electric grinder. SOOOOO much nicer to use.

Skip Superstiff's stuff. Even their supposed "good ride" new stuff is pretty stiff. The hot setup is Tuff Country HD. Decent ride without sagging and holds up to the heavy curb weight of these fat pigs.
Frankly I'd just run an ORD shackle flip in the rear with the stock springs. The rear springs on this flex decently and the ride isn't bad. Being able to load a ton of crap in the rear is useful at times.

The problem with lift springs is if you go to too soft of a spring you get more uptravel and then fitting a bigger tire gets harder despite the taller springs.

Croatan Kid on here has a 4" TC HD front lift with the front axle moved forwards an inch or so, 4" ORD shackle flip in the rear, and similar tires as mine on 16x8's. Works nicely for him. You could probably get away with a 14" wide tire or so if you kept the height 38-40 but you'd definitely have to move the front axle forward to center it in the wheel well.
Cross over steering would be a must too.

The USMC recently went over to wider tires than my 11.00R16's on their LAV's. 325/85R16's but the problem is they aren't surplusing to many out right now.

 

[athello]

Hmmm.....I don't think I've ever heard someone say a 1 ton "flexed decently" before! haha! I know what you mean, though. I'll look into the TC springs. I've known a few people who've put the superlift on 1/2 ton trucks, but not anyone who's done the TC. I'm searching for that delicate mix between flex and being able to haul a ton of stuff in the back. Hauling won't be my main focus, but since I plan on keeping the truck a while, who knows what the future might bring.

4" on both sides sound pretty decent. I don't want balloon tires or anything, it would honestly be dictated more by what kind of tire I can find available. Since I plan on using it on sideroads and ORV trails, I don't need anything like a super sticky, wide, rock tire. I like the look of the 12.5 that came on there on the first cardomain page of yours. They rubbed stock, huh? But the 11's on there now are fine?

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Well, lemme put it this way "flex decently"*






*compared to an IFS truck, stiffly sprung modern trucks, and a lot of SWB rigs.
(People see 1 ton and figure it rides like a brick wagon and flexes like one too.)

You need to join Colorado K5 - Full-Size GM 4x4 Restoration and Off Road Community

73-87(91) Chevy fullsizes all day, all the time. THE best forum online for modifying these.

The HMMWV 36's were a nightmare. Rubbed the drag link because they were so wide on those narrow 6.5" rims. Shook and vibrated like a crack whore with withdrawls. The 37" HMMWV radials would have better road manors but they're still about the same width.
The 38x11's I have work well but I still have a longer steering stop on the d-side. My right hand turns aren't as tight as the left but you only notice when turning hard in a parking lot or what not. Daily driving is no problem.

My original plan was to stick with 36" or so tires. I was looking at the 36x12.5R16 TSL Radials. They're famous for actually being around 11-11.5" wide. Then I happened across my 11.00's.

 

[athello]

Yeah, up at school I had a buddy with an older 1 ton chevy, and I think calling it a brick s#!thouse was paying it a compliment. I've ridden two holers that had better manners.

At the time, I also had an 89 K5 that took some engine mods, but nothing really to the suspension. I LOVED that truck, which is why I'm looking to get back into something like it. But with beefier gear. I remember looking at Colorado K5, and I probably still have an account there, who knows?!

I was also looking at the TSL radials. I hear that they have fairly good road manners, and of course they are good off road as well. I'd like to know about the wear on those radials though....do they handle a lot of miles before needing to be replaced?

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Treat them right, rotate them every oil change, figure out and maintain the proper air pressure, and they should last a good long while. I knew a guy with a V10 Dodge Ram 2500 who got 30k out of each of two sets of them.

Then again I've known folks who got 10k out of a set but they abused them, usually had them under or over inflated, and rotation...what rotation?

 

[athello]

Check Home Page for a CUCV . They have a truck and a blazer in stock. They are located in Gobles , MI . About 15 miles west of Kalamazoo. Hope this helps. Have a great day.

Thank you! I wasn't aware of these guys, but I will check them out!

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Never heard of them myself.

I will warn you...be sure to ask where the trucks are from. I've gotten the distinct impression from a lot of local law enforcement and NG/Reserve members that I've spoken with about Big Ugly that the CUCV's here in Michigan were NOT taken care of. Rust is common.