I also have torsion bars to replace so I'll be interested in what you find works. I think they are supposed to just slide out.

I'm attaching the pages on this I scanned from my 99 service manual in case it is relevant. Unfortunately, it doesn't say much about how to get them out.

I know on Dodges, they have a tool that grasps around the torsion bar that then give you a spot where you can hit the tool with a hammer.

EDIT: I did remember asking this of another member recently. Here is the link to his reply to me: https://blazerforum.com/forum/builds...e2/#post755018

 

I appreciate this very much! I saw that small hole, i hammered a bit to no avail. However I may just need to continue trying. Something else that seems beneficial from the service manual is that if there is enough room(I'll look in the morning), I may just undo the links and tap the torsion bar cross member towards the rear.

I know the tool you're talking about! I saw it somewhere in my research! If I can't get them out, I may just order the tool and go that route. I'm truly looking forward to finishing this project and getting her on the new rubbers!

I've kept this right stock for so long, but after a ton of research and reading through builds here and in other places, it has definitely inspired me to do some upgrades and modifications to the ole girl.

Thanks again Christine!

 

Well to make a long story short.. I had to step down to the 31's... sadly. The body lift is on hold until I have a buddy fab up a new perch for one of the body mounts as its toast. She drives nice though! Had to do a minor bit of cutting on the fender for full turn. The new headlights and tail lights are in and look great! Still more to do but when isnt there. Im happy with how its coming along!

 

Your truck looks great. Nice work.

As someone who has run 32" tires on a Blazer and Sonoma with 3.73 gears, I'd recommend staying with 31's. I suspect you'll be happier.

I love the look of 32's, but the tall tires really make it accelerate slow, and on the highway in the hills or when towing it can really start to make it hunt gears. Where I live we often get 100Km+ winds, and with a strong headwind and climbing a hill it can't hold in 4th gear. My winter tires are 31" and they're much more drivable than the 32's I have on for summer.

If you want to go up to 32's eventually, I'd suggest you may want to also look at re-gearing to 4.10's or something similar.

 

This is a handy calculator to work out the effective gear ratio change when you go to larger tires.

https://tiresize.com/gear-ratio-calculator/

 

I'm a little late to the party, but as I recall when I replaced the bushings on the lca, all tension had to be off the lca in order to remove/install the torsion bars. I didn't need any special tool, just need to detach every thing from the lca. Keep a jack, floor jack is best, under the lca with tension on it until every thing is detached. Low it down nice and easy until it bottoms out. You will see that you can move the lca up and down easily by hand. You may need to use a penetrating oil of your choice on the key end and the lca end. Might even need to tap it a bit, but it will come out. Make sure to make marks on the tbar, key, and lca so you can put it back together the correct way.