72 620 truck KA Build - Tank.

[Tank.]

The weather has turned here in the mountains of NC so it’s time to start on the 620. My Z build can be seen here. 
 

The goal is a 2001 frontier ka/5spd swap with ball joints, disc brakes, and 4 link in the rear with disc brakes. Otherwise going back to the original white and plan on sticking with the oem wheels. Just need to get those powdercoated black.

 

I’m amazed at how well the truck was preserved. Totally  disassembled and I broke 2 bolts, a fender bolt and a bumper mount bolt. No floor rust at all, everything very well maintained. It’s a 72 made in 5/72, PL620 040211.
 

I’m the second owner so to speak, technically 3rd I think but it was in the same family since purchased new in NC. It was in central NC so no road salt for 5 months out of the year and it shows. I was told it was painted gold (originally 904) by the selling dealer and has not been repainted...ever. 102k miles, I believe to be true, the truck is in great shape.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The tie rods did not want to give up to i ended up cutting the left one off of the pitman. Still need to get that end off. Otherwise a really simple disassembly. The front suspension is off already as well. I have a custom front control arm setup I will share once I have something to show. This is where I am after a couple of weekends. Hope to have a rolling chassis by the end of the year. 

[Trophy24]

Nice progress wow!

[carterb]

way to keep everything so clean!

[Tank.]

2 minutes ago, carterb said:

way to keep everything so clean!

Thanks! I’ve found that clean and organized keeps me from being overwhelmed on this type of project!

 

[carterb]

9 minutes ago, Tank. said:

Thanks! I’ve found that clean and organized keeps me from being overwhelmed on this type of project!

 

 

Good man.  My shop is such a mess right now I don't even want to go out there!  : )

[mrbigtanker]

45 minutes ago, Tank. said:

Thanks! I’ve found that clean and organized keeps me from being overwhelmed on this type of project!

 

Oh I see the OCD is strong with this one. Nice

[carterb]

6 hours ago, Tank. said:

 

 

Otherwise going back to the original white and plan on sticking with the oem wheels. Just need to get those powdercoated black.

 

 

 

Make sure to specify a UV resistant powdercoat - otherwise it will fade and fast. 

[Tank.]

11 minutes ago, carterb said:

 

Make sure to specify a UV resistant powdercoat - otherwise it will fade and fast. 

Good to know, thanks for that.

[mklotz70]

Nice!
I'll follow along just to see the new control arm setup. :)

[RustedRails]

Wow! Trucks in great shape! I’m in the NC mountains also and was tough finding these trucks in decent shape out here. Congrats on the great find! Looking forward to your progress., especially the suspension. Doing the same with our 77 king cab. 

[Tank.]

On 11/8/2020 at 12:51 AM, RustedRails said:

Wow! Trucks in great shape! I’m in the NC mountains also and was tough finding these trucks in decent shape out here. Congrats on the great find! Looking forward to your progress., especially the suspension. Doing the same with our 77 king cab. 

I agree, I found it about 2 years ago I guess, it’s just been sitting in the basement waiting until the Z was finished.

 

I have the left front tacked together so once I have a little more done, I’ll share some pictures of it along with part numbers and such.

[RustedRails]

@Tank. Thanks! Looking forward to it.

[Tank.]

FRONT SUSPENSION

 

Let me preface this by saying my goal was to build the cheapest adjustable upper control arm I could. With that, I know there are different/better ways, but I have a total of $140 in the upper control arms, that’s it.

 

I made my own plates to weld in the uppers to match the ball joints of the 720.

 

Part #s from Speedway Motors

 

upper A arm  91034410 $25 x2

mounting brackets 91645470  $15 x2

Bushed rod end 9008001-STR  $13 x4  or you can use a heim joint 5/8-18 RH 1750506

Jam nut 5/8-18 RH. 1750246 $1 x4

1/2-20 2.25 bolts

 

Optional poly bushings- 9.19105G. $14 x4

 

For the lower control arm I am using a 720 control arm with 18mm 2.5 x 120 bolts along with washers for spacers since the 620 bushings are good.

 

The spindles, hubs, and brakes are all from an 83 720.

 

The angle of the upper ball joint to upper control arm turned out beautiful, pretty much neutral.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lower brackets with the plates I made

 

Coilovers being used

[mrbigtanker]

Wow I like what you did and very very nice shoes. lol I can't tell in pictures but do you have a area to mount your sway bar. And go 5 lg get rid of the 6 lug in my opinion. So many wheel options

[Tank.]

Nope! No room for the sway bar so i need to figure something else out. May possibly mount where the shock used to go, not sure because I would need to section the sway bar to do that. I am actually keeping the stock wheels, I dig the stock look. 

[mklotz70]

Very nice!!  I envy all your space!! 

[Tank.]

After talking with Mr. Klotz, I switched to hardbody spindles (still using the 720 hubs). This moves the rotor in just enough so the calipers will not interfere with the stock wheels. I also cut the tension rod mounts off of the original lower control arms and welded them to the bottom of the 720 lower control arms. They actually fit very nice between the ball joint bolts. The last item for the front is sorting out the sway bar.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And I had the frame blasted, best $400 I’ve spent!! Totally worth it. 

 

 

 

I sprayed it with picklex and por15 metal prep to nuetralize it. 

 

 

Then brushed on por15, followed by spraying summit racing chassis paint in the areas I couldn’t brush.

 

 

 

 

On to the rear. Prepping that for the triangulated 4 link kit now. 

[afracer]

Eastwood also has an internal frame coating that I like to use and recommend. Comes with long straws with a diffuser at the tip to feed it into holes and spray the whole thing. Also don't be mad when the por15 finish starts looking ugly in due time. I've switched to the Eastwood equivalent since then, its 10x more user friendly and forgiving and more uv resistant than POR.

[EDM620]

On 12/4/2020 at 8:36 PM, Tank. said:

And I had the frame blasted, best $400 I’ve spent!! Totally worth it. 

Oh so true! Well worth the small investment to work from a bare frame build.

On 11/16/2020 at 6:53 PM, Tank. said:

I am actually keeping the stock wheels, I dig the stock look.

If you're planning on running larger diameter wheels anyway, even late model trucks (Armada/Titan/etc.) use the same bolt pattern so you still have a huge selection of wheels to use. I went with 18" on my build, +4"

 

[Tank.]

9 hours ago, EDM620 said:

Oh so true! Well worth the small investment to work from a bare frame build.

If you're planning on running larger diameter wheels anyway, even late model trucks (Armada/Titan/etc.) use the same bolt pattern so you still have a huge selection of wheels to use. I went with 18" on my build, +4"

 

Right, I've seen some with late model wheels and they look good. I think down the road I'll have another set of wheels that are wider/bigger to use in the summer.

[Tank.]

I striped the donor truck of everything I needed and then some. I took things like the fuel filter bracket, all of the wiring (so I can retain the OBDII port), the entire fuel system minus the hard lines, brake booster, etc. I plan on adapting as much as I can to make it serviceable and easier. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The transmission mount was no where close, so I ended up blending the original with the frontier crossmember, worked out great. I’ll get better pictures once I pull it back out to paint.

 

 

 

 

Also, had to trim the right engine mount adapter. Not sure how it is on an S chassis, but the intake manifold has a brace that runs down the middle. So I just had to cut the middle out.

 

 

 

 

[EDM620]

If the donor was not a runner,  suggest you test the wiring harness for continuity before you install, much easier to make any repairs now.

The new front suspension looks great!

[Tank.]

On 12/23/2020 at 11:56 AM, EDM620 said:

If the donor was not a runner,  suggest you test the wiring harness for continuity before you install, much easier to make any repairs now.

The new front suspension looks great!

Thanks, I just finished rebuilding the hubs and assembled everything yesterday. I’ll post pictures later.

 

And the donor was a runner, I actually drove it around a bit before putting it in the basement. For the wiring, I’ll be going through all of it. As in taking it all out of the loom and rerouting for a cleaner look. I did this with the Z so it’s not too bad. I think I’ll start it prior to putting the cab back on actually. Like you said, it makes it easier to troubleshoot if there are issues. But next up is the rear suspension, that’s what I’ll be working on next week.

[mrbigtanker]

Im loving it tank. Im watching you closely.lol Merry Christmas man.

[Tank.]

19 hours ago, mrbigtanker said:

Im loving it tank. Im watching you closely.lol Merry Christmas man.

Thanks, Merry Christmas!!