(King) Blackfoot build

[Kevin_Mc]

I've been doing bits to this on and off for a few weeks now, nothing major yet, but when i get a bit of free time i'm going to strip the chassis down, remove the paint, regrease and rebuild.

I've always loved the original Blackfoot shell but was never a fan of the look of the original chassis - what put me off is the rear shocks not being upright. After a bit of research about the Blackfoot family, I decided that a King Blackfoot chassis was the one for me as it is an evolution of the original but better performing and (to me anyway) better looking.

At the same time I came to this conclusion, a TC member posted up a For Sale ad for a King Blackfoot, and after a bit of humming and hawing, I bought it.

These pictures are from the For Sale ad -

Upon it's arrival to me I fell in love with it and was sorely tempted to just tidy it up and use as a runner. I tided it up by removing the decals and giving it a clean but every time i looked at an original Blackfoot, particularly the grille, i knew i had to sell the shell.

I sold the shell, and hope it's gone to a good home, and posted a Wanted ad for an original Blackfoot shell. I was contacted by KEV_THE_REV who let me know that there was a suitable shell on eBay that hadn't sold. It had actually dropped off my Watch List when it ended so I missed it. Anyway, i contacted the seller to see what it was like and what was included - it was in good used condition with no scratches or scuffs and came with a tailgate and sunroof. A price was agreed and it was shipped to me.

I decided that the original decals were not for me, they had seen better days but what i really dislike about them is that they cover up the Custom F-150 badge on the front wings - so they were carefully removed and the shell cleaned up. I felt bad removing them but once it was done i thought the body looked great.

Here it is next to my Super Clod that is having the paint stripped.

As my lunch break is over I will post more photos tonight.

[Kevin_Mc]

After stripping the shell down i turned my attention to the chassis and changing a few parts. I wanted all red eliminated from it so ordered some black oil shocks

and looked at making the Blackfoot 3 chrome wheels fit. However, the more i looked at the standard red wheels the more i thought they'd be perfect for it in chrome.

this is what i fancied -

but in the end i preferred these

From this -

to this -

This is as much as i have done to chassis, i bought a parts sprue with the front bumper (which was missing) but haven't fitted it yet as i don't have the right screws.

I also managed to track down an original, unused grille, rear bumper and roll bar from Australia (from a member on here) which arrived in a week.

And the final piece i needed to track down was the sprue with the original spotlights. I found these on eBay, made a cheeky offer and bought them.

again, none of these parts have been fitted as i'm still needing the screws, brackets, nuts and bolts to fit them all.

That's as far as i've gotten for now but i hope to do more to it soon as it's full of character and i can't wait to rally it round my back garden.

[Kevin_Mc]

I forgot to add that i bought an original windscreen and rear window. The shell came with a rear window but i now have a spare.

[Truck Norris]

Can't beat the stepside body! Those wheels are perfect too - very much like the Bruiser/Mountaineer and Juggernaut/TXT-1.

Look forward to seeing it complete!

[emory70]

x2 on the wheels. Sawblades are so dated.

[Kevin_Mc]

I got a spare hour this afternoon so stripped the chassis down into every individual component so that i can clean them and rebuild.

I've also put the silver painted chassis parts into the bucket of dot 4 to strip the paint. It should come off easil, as it did with the wheels.

I don't think i have all the correct bolts, nuts and screws for the chassis but i'll check the namual and see. I need to replace a few broken parts so i can order new ones at the same time.

Also, i have a set of Blackfoot body screws on there way to me so i can build that up into one peice.

[Kevin_Mc]

Another spare hour last night and, thanks to KEV THE REV, a full set of body screws / nuts / bolts had arrived in the post so i put all my new shiny bits on.

[zomboided]

The wheels are lovely...let's have a shot with the body in place!

[Kevin_Mc]

I'm desperate to get the body onto the chassis and fit the wheels but it's stripped down waiting for a rebuild.

Hopefully the next update will be a rebuilt chassis.

Talking of that, what's the best grease to use on the gears and what is best to use on things like bearings etc?

[Kevin_Mc]

Can anyone confirm that the rubber boots in the drive shafts are the same on the King Blackfoot as they are on the original?

Mine's are split and i have been offered originals as a replacement

[waterbok]

Same as frog if I rember correctly, KB doesnt have rubber boots

[Kevin_Mc]

I had a look at the manual and you're right, no rubbers.

That explains why the boots were so poorly fitting, i didn't see how they would work and when i removed them, one split. I'm glad i don't need to replace them now.

Cheers!