Class 3 Blazer back from the dead

[Sreidmx]

So I am the hired gun for Raffo, he hired me to bring that old class 3 gathering dust in his barn back to life.
I'm Steve I own Fortify Offroad and we build chevys.. mostly Coilover stuff but we made an exception here.. I like a challenge and figured he canastoga wagon to be a challenge

Somehow we got convinced that driving 7 hours was a good idea.. I guess he is a good salesman!

You guys get the short story because I have 3 different threads to update and you guys know Raffo pretty good.
Based on my estimates this has been sitting for 6-8 years? Raffo can chime in with specifics but we got a lot of work to do to make the mint.

I've started with pulling the glass and scrubbing all the owl poop off it.
Yanked all 20 (jk only 8) Bilstein shocks off and getting those ready to be replated and rebuilt by us.

Yea these bad boys need some help.. good thing we know enough people that are willing to help us out. I am really excited about how this is going to look.

 

[retroblazer]

I'm excited to finally be in position to run the Blazer again. I'm especially cranked to be able to do some suspension development. It was wasn't possible for me to test when I was living in Chicago. I owe much of the success in transforming a Crandon racer into desert racer to Ramsey El Wardani and Glen Straightiff. They did well to get me, a desert novice and a short course truck to finish the Baja1000 and the Mexican 1000.
I'm looking forward to the next chapter Blazer with Steve and Scott of Fortify Off Road. They are true fans of Chevy Square bodies, and their enthusiasm to race is contagious.

 

[scottm]

Awesome project! Who built it originally? It's a fact that old chevys are the coolest dez race vehicles..

 

[Sreidmx]

Thanks Scott!! And I totally agree that old chevys are the coolest.. I might be biased..

 

[retroblazer]

The Blazer suspension and cage was designed and built Geoff Dorr, then Herb finished the rest. Geoff won multiple Class 3 and Class 4 championships. I liken him as the Midwestern equivalent of Rod Hall. Geoff's son Mitch has taken over his Dad's winning legacy.

 

[Shannon]

The flying tomato !!! Back in action.. great to see


Sent from the RDC Mobile App. Get it for your IOS device today

 

[fabnahorse]

Awesome! Looking forward to this. Can't wait to see it back in action. Here's a couple shots from '07.

 

[Chris_Wilson]

Legalize coilovers on all 4 corners for everyone and make class 3 great again!
Nobody should have to race on leafs without factory level support.

 

[Dezertpilot]

I remember the Blazer breaking down in front of us in Mexico at the 2005 B1K? I was running back and forth getting him tools, I forgot where it was but it wasn't that far inland from the coast.

 

[retroblazer]

I remember the Blazer breaking down in front of us in Mexico at the 2005 B1K? I was running back and forth getting him tools, I forgot where it was but it wasn't that far inland from the coast.

Fortunately, I forget most of the exact details of what broke, where, and when. It protects my feeble mind from the pain of pissing away my entry fees and expenses. I am, however, grateful for all the help we get, so thanks.

 

[retroblazer]

Legalize coilovers on all 4 corners for everyone and make class 3 great again!
Nobody should have to race on leafs without factory level support.

Your wish, is my command. This will happen in 2017. Rust never sleeps, and I never stop. The Blazer is getting ready for transformation.

 

[BajaBronco13]

I have so many pics of the tomato blazer from 2006-2007. I need to post them up here Raffo.

Chris

 

[retroblazer]

I have so many pics of the tomato blazer from 2006-2007. I need to post them up here Raffo.

Chris

Get posting Chris - love to see some new pics.

 

[Sreidmx]

Removed some paint, removed millions of zip ties, and trailer lights. And rust and whatever else was living under the cage padding!

Shes getting bare!
And happy to announce Black Widow has signed on to help us with our exhaust duties! We're excited that we'll have one of the best sounding trucks out there!

 

[Blood Eagle]

I remember the Blazer breaking down in front of us in Mexico at the 2005 B1K? I was running back and forth getting him tools, I forgot where it was but it wasn't that far inland from the coast.

Same kind of deal with me and a couple friends. It was an MDR race back in 2006 or so. Broke the pitman arm right in front of us. We went over there and asked if they needed help. They had a spare pitman arm but the old one was sheared off and still on the splines of the steering box so we had to use a hi lift jack as a punch and a BFH to pop the broken piece off the splines. Put the spare on and sent them on their way. Was a pretty cool experience. Cool thread.

 

[retroblazer]

Same kind of deal with me and a couple friends. It was an MDR race back in 2006 or so. Broke the pitman arm right in front of us. We went over there and asked if they needed help. They had a spare pitman arm but the old one was sheared off and still on the splines of the steering box so we had to use a hi lift jack as a punch and a BFH to pop the broken piece off the splines. Put the spare on and sent them on their way. Was a pretty cool experience. Cool thread.

This one I remember. We were under or near high voltage lines and towers. We learned our lesson from this event, and started carrying a pitman arm puller.

 

[Sreidmx]

Made some more progress, damn wishing I had a big sand blaster right now.

Also good news!

We're now sponsored by Bilstein so we can get our shocks renovated! This is the icing on the cake!

 

[retroblazer]

I have been running exclusively on Bilstein's, for over forty years. The first pair went on the front of my Land Cruiser, my first race car in 1975, followed by two buggies, and for the last 18 years, my Blazer. I am looking forward to working with Bilstein on the continuing development of the Blazer. We are excited about getting the Blazer back to the desert, and rebuilding Class 3, in 2017.

 

[La Tijereta]

Look forward to seeing it down in Baja ... (along with Sal again)

@ Centerline Images

 

[Chris_Wilson]

I miss Sal