2002 Duramax Solid Axle Adventure Build

NVWill

Member
Just be ready for it to get extremely dirty there, especially if you get into the desert silt beds. I hit some in eastern Nevada a few weeks ago and I washed the truck a few days ago (third time since the silt) and I was still getting silt out from under the spare tire area.

Jack
Well now I’m not sure about that location Jack ?.
I definitely want to keep it as safe and clean as I can.
 

NVWill

Member
Not much to update right now. I think I have good spot to mount the compressor up under the bed towards the front. Hoping to pull the trigger on my Arb’s soon so I can get this thing re- geared. Also planning on some rock sliders soon.
Went up in the hills a few weeks ago to cut out Christmas trees and play in the snow a bit.
 

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NVWill

Member
Been awhile since I’ve updated the build. I’ve been working a lot and the truck has been sitting. A few weeks ago we got an above average amount of snow here in northern Nevada. It took me two days to dig out so I could get the truck out of the garage.

That weekend I went up up in the hills with some family to do some snow wheeling and sledding with the kids. The snow was pretty deep and I managed to get stuck several times. My brother in law has TDR Pro Tundra on 35’s and we had to give each other a yank a few times. My other brother in law has a smashed up 4Runner crawler with a Chevy 4.3 and he didn’t have any problems at all.
 

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NVWill

Member
Once we got to a good sledding hill I decided to spin some donuts in 4 low to clear some snow. Bad ideal...... 4 low in 30-36” of snow spinning donuts and pop goes the front drive shaft. Thankfully I keep a spare in the truck. I was able to swap it in 15 minutes.

The problem is the np263hd transfer case uses a 1310 u joint. It’s not capable of running anything bigger because of how close the front output is to the electric shift module on the housing.

After talking with Trevor at WFO Concepts I decided a hybrid NP273 transfer case would be the best option. It will allow me to run a 1350 u joint up front and is a much more stout transfer case.

I called Transfer Case Express, they convert them to bolt up to the Allison and add the GM speed sensor in the tail housing. A week later I had it ?
I used a clocking ring to index the t case down and clear the abs module, even though I still had to massage the mounting bracket for clearance. This t case is way bigger than a 263xhd and I also had to extend the wiring harness about 8” for the speed sensor plug.
 

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NVWill

Member
I got the t case in with and was able to measure for drive shafts this week. Reno Driveline Service had them done in a day!

Since I lost my aftermarket t case brace with the stock setup I will be building a support bracket and an additional cross member to support the rear of the case and keep it from breaking the ass end of transmission off. I’ve seen it happen on these trucks and it’s not pretty.....

I ordered some poly bushings and material to build it and it should be here sometime this week.
 

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RyanPartridge

Active member
Been awhile since I’ve updated the build. I’ve been working a lot and the truck has been sitting. A few weeks ago we got an above average amount of snow here in northern Nevada. It took me two days to dig out so I could get the truck out of the garage.

That weekend I went up up in the hills with some family to do some snow wheeling and sledding with the kids. The snow was pretty deep and I managed to get stuck several times. My brother in law has TDR Pro Tundra on 35’s and we had to give each other a yank a few times. My other brother in law has a smashed up 4Runner crawler with a Chevy 4.3 and he didn’t have any problems at all.

Our Duramax got buried here in central AZ recently too.
Glad to hear you got the tcase and driveshaft sorted.

b382bd3e4b0d1259985558945d9ef052.jpg
 

Chopsmcnik

New member
Nice truck. I had and 01 2500 HD with the 6L that I upgraded to an 05 HD duramax. I’m getting ready to start building it up and am oscillatIng between the BDS coil over or the SAS from WFO or the kit that locrwin used. Great looking truck I really like that rear bumper and tire carrier too. I grew up in Washoe Valley and lived in Reno til about 5 years ago when we moved to OR. Love getting back to NV whenever we can. Great to see some awesome builds coming out of there. Keep up the good work.
 

NVWill

Member
Nice truck. I had and 01 2500 HD with the 6L that I upgraded to an 05 HD duramax. I’m getting ready to start building it up and am oscillatIng between the BDS coil over or the SAS from WFO or the kit that locrwin used. Great looking truck I really like that rear bumper and tire carrier too. I grew up in Washoe Valley and lived in Reno til about 5 years ago when we moved to OR. Love getting back to NV whenever we can. Great to see some awesome builds coming out of there. Keep up the good work.

The WFO kit is awesome. I have no complaints, it is however labor intensive to instal. I have looked at the BDS kit, and it seems pretty nice also. I know they have a good no questions asked warranty and the install seems pretty straight forward. It just depends how far down the rabbit hole you want to go..... Nice bolt on Coil over kit or Complete sas. I will say Kibbetech also makes a really nice coil over kit thats geared towards off road and has some extremely nice high end parts.
 

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