who really pushes there CUCV's?

[maritimer]

by push i mean how hard d oyou work it?
while i relize these are almost 25 year old trucks but i often find my self using mine like it was a tank instead of a blazer LOL. i have used my for pulling stumps, knocking trees down dragging dead vehicles around. and have been working it up to pull sleds with this summer *currently dragging a 4000lb sled gently as practice* while short of some minor bugs and break downs it still runs quite well. with the winch on the front it certainly comes in handy lol. so what about the rest of you are yours workers or cruisers?

 

[n1bnc]

I had a 72 Jimmy that i pushed pretty hard and it had a straight six w/4spd/205. It was an excellent drivetrain that I never had to worry about the 6 ripping up. Headers really woke up the 6 as well. Unfortunately, its age and rust was it's demise. The roof became a VERY important part of the body in terms of holding whats left together.

 

[GM72K10]

Use as a work truck. Have hauled 3500 lbs of material, no problem, pulled down trees, etc.The M1028a1's helpers and NP205 make it a true heavy duty rig. Plus, who else (at least around here) has one? Definitely an eye catcher too.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Mine's the "haul/tow" vehicle. Nothing strenuous so far but the trailer hitch is at the Rhino Lining place getting cleaned up right now and with any luck we'll be moving across several states in a few months. Got some plans for using it's "potential" soon.

 

[gt1009]

I drive mine every day, and whenever we need something moved/pulled it comes in handy too. Pull friends with lesser vehicles out of the ditch in the winter, and it's the official haul vehicle for my band.

 

[Tibby]

Mine is a daily driver. It lives an easy life. Pretty much small things here and there. When we get snow, I put 500-850 pounds of sand and cast iron weights in the bed. The biggest load I have had in it was a 2,000 lb. pallet of ceramic floor tiles. No problem. Smoothest ride I have ever gotten out of it.

 

[Elwenil]

It's important to note the huge difference in the CUCVs. What a 1 ton M1008 puts up with would probabaly destroy a 1/2 ton M1009 in short order.

 

[Meatchops]

With all due respect Elwenil, i believe the M1009 in a 3/4 ton. haha...

I had a special experience a few weeks ago with my M1009... went camping up around lake arrowhead, ca with the lady friend and my bro (who is pretty proud of his Tahoe). on the way out the cops had the road closed for about 12 hours to investigate a fatality vehicle accident. only one road out of course(i'll look into that before next time). everyone was stranded but me. i scouted it out on foot first, but i made my way to a foot trail and brawled on out... around the investigation site. i was very proud.... i've always driven cars before, and i might've puled it off in my old '90 camry, but never in such style!!! my brother made it home.... eventually.

 

[CCATLETT1984]

3/4 ton suspension when you only have 1/2ton axles doesnt help much at all

 

[maritimer]

well yesterday i loaded a ford bronco in the back of my m1009wel lactully the frame and running gear. it was laying on its side and used the almighty green beast and some chain to detach the body from the frame and then we rolled it up into the back * wit hthe top off and seat out* strapped her down and headed for home. no issues what soever perfect ride and exceleration. fuel consumption was normal , mind you i only had t odrive 20 minutes away. hopefully this weekend i can get the new leafs put into the packs this weekend and get some lift. dang i need a wrecker soon lol

 

[steelsoldiers]

I routinely pushed my 1009 to the limits on and off-road. Sometimes those limits were reached explosively!

I started out with set of beefy MT 31" for off-road fun. It climbed like a goat with the Gov-Loc in the rear.

Next, I went to a 2" SkyJacker lift and 33" Super Swamper. It really became a mud chunker after that. Unfortunately, the Gov-Loc became a Gov-Pop on one off road trip. I had to limp home because one of the spider gears grenaded. Pop, pop, pop around every corner.

In the course of some more HD off-roading I broke the front end in half, shoved the drive-shaft through the t-case, shattered the tranny/t-case adapter, made the frame bend like an accordion at the steering box, taco'd a tie-rod, blew out the rear drive-shaft several times, etc...

The final version of my truck before I sold it was 2 new differentials with 3.73's, 35" MT's, a 1-ton rear driveshaft, and lots of other new parts.

Oh, did I mention it was also my daily driver for 10 years

If I had to do it all over again with the amount of off-roading I was doing, I definitely would have gone with a 1008. Heck, in 1994 I didn't know what a 1009 was much less a 1008

I am picking up my 1008 today. Woo-hoo!

 

[AJMBLAZER]

With all due respect Elwenil, i believe the M1009 in a 3/4 ton. haha...

3/4 ton suspension when you only have 1/2ton axles doesnt help much at all

It's not even a 3/5 ton. The military calls it a 5/8 ton and all the components are just the heaviest stuff GM put under it's half tons. Light duty 3/4 tons got heavier stuff than the M1009's.



I always laugh a bit when I see folks talk about putting heavier suspension under their half tons but not doing anything about their crappy 10 bolt axles.

 

[Recovry4x4]

For what it's worth, the rating was probably a requirement by the gov so that they could use the J code engine. 3/4T = heavy emissions at that time.

 

[Elwenil]

I don't know Keeny. It almost seems a continuation of the trend with the Dana 44 in the front of the M880 series when it was labled a 5/4 ton. Their predecessor, the M715, was a bit beefier with rock hard suspension and Dana70 rear and Dana 60 front. The M1008 and similar trucks are the only ones that have a heavy drivetrain really.

 

[Recovry4x4]

I agree Lanty, nothing 5/4 about the M880 and nothing 3/4 about the blazer. With that said, I still want a 6.2 powered M880. I'm prepared for the barrage of cursing I'm about to receive.

 

[AJMBLAZER]

The military's weight ratings are just an actual rating of the vehicle's capacities. Today's 1/2 ton trucks can pull and haul a lot more than a 1957 Chevy half ton could but it's tradition that keeps the modern version called a half ton. The military doesn't give a rat's patoot about that so they just called it what it was actually rated for.


The government never played the emissions game. The J-code was the more powerful engine so that's what they wanted.

The M715's Dana 60 and Dana 70 are on the weak side of those axles. 60's era axle technology is far behind even the Dana 60's of 1977...which is also why Dodge didn't put them under the front of the M880's...they weren't an option until after the military accepted the design.

 

[Bozor1000]

The reason why I opted for the M1008 was because it had the Dana 60 and Coporate 14 bolt. The 1/2 ton axles that come on a M1009 will grenande when you put any big tires under it.

 

[86-1ton]

my 1 ton crew cab is my daily driver... dana 60 front, 205 case, FF14 bolt rear on 35's... it's taken me all over paved roads, side trails, and mud that i have wanted to to go through... except when it got stuck chasing a suburban on 42's...

i haul around 2,000 pounds of scrap a week, sometimes more, sometimes less... i haven't had any problems... i do need build a trialer hitch, which i will end up making into a whole rear bumper... i've got sketches if anyone's really interested... and this winter i'll be using her to plow driveways, with my brother and sister-in-law and their dodge trucks...

what i do need though, are all new springs around, and lockers... my back springs broke in April while climbing a hill, and the fronts are just warped about 2 1/2" from 20 years of plow service... lockers are probably going to be done in a week or 2, with 'Hobart' lockers done by me at school...

like you can see in the last pic, i had to trim my front fenders to tuck the 35's, which if the springs were decent, i wouldn't've had to do...

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Don't weld the front if you want to be able to steer in 4x4.

 

[underdog]

M-1009
We use it as a service truck.
100 gallon fuel transfer tank where back seat was.
Big tool box at rear opposit spare tire. The tailgate makes a great workbench.
More tools and parts in rear floor board area.
Can jump 12 or 24 volt equipment.
Can get to wherever the equipment may be.
The M1009 is shorter than a shortbed pickup, which really helps mobility but can make trailer towing a thrill.
31x10.50-15 mud grip tires

I dream about a M-1031 but would probably miss the mobility of the M-1009