After owning the van for almost exactly one year, I have hastily put together a little build thread of my mildly modified Astro(lander). As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words, so I did a slideshow that somehow turned into an Ode to my Brother In Law. But what can I say, he sure made life easy for me during the process so far. Especially since the van doesn't fit in either one of my garages anymore.
Interior is still a work in (not much)progress, so not many pics yet. Same with front and rear bumpers. (I just spent my front bumper money on another mountain bike, couldn't help it)
Ya gotta start somewhere.
Like I have said before, I was jonesin' for the ultimate mountain bike kayak shuttle rig that could poach some camping off the FS roads and do some easy 4x4 trails, while providing shelter and good freeway ability. I wanted to build a Mini Me Sportsmobile. Then, before you know it, I discoverred overlanding. I blame Jerry Horn for that. 
(Thanks again, Jerry!)
The vehicle is a 2003 Chevy Astro Van AWD. '03 was the first year with 6 lug 16" wheels, and 4 wheel disc brakes, among other things. I believe the stock tires were a whopping 24" tall.
Mods include NP233c 4x4 2spd hi lo transfer case w/ elctronic shift out of a donor S-10 Blazer. 4-5" Overlandvans lift kit (body in front, leaf spring in rear), Rancho 9000s adjustable shocks w/ indash remote and on board compressor, 265/75 16 Kelly Pathfinder ATs, 4:10's w/ Eaton posi in rear, GTRV Pop Top w/ sleeper bunk loft, prewired for solar, and tons of Thule.
Selecting the appropriate tire was a big concern. I think more so than any of my previous 4x4s because of the soccer duty axles of the Astro. I wanted bigger, but not too big and heavy. I wanted to keep the rotation weight lite. The Kelly Springfield Pathfinder ATs are 30.5 inch, and have a strong and lightweight nylon sidewall, 15 pounds a peice lighter than a BFG AT. For the weight of the van, they should be plenty strong against rock cuts to the sidewall. I wanted the tire to excel in wet pavement traction, with a slant towards off road, and so far the traction has proven to be quite good. Of course in the Gumbo mud of the Owyhee area I was wishing I had MT's, but the van sees mostly highway and so far so good.
And I had to adios the stock Astro wheels and replace them with the Chevy 1/2 ton 5 spokers (CraigsList, $100 for 5). I'm not a fan of directional wheels, but still wanted to keep within the (Chevy) family.
There are no options for the front axle of an Astro (ha, imagine that!) as the S-10s are actually quite a bit narrower than the Astro(who would have thought?). A straight axle swap may be in the future. Grant says go coils.
After going to the larger tire the transmisson couldn't make up its mind what gear to cruise in on the freeway and it was noticeably more sluggish. After changing to 4:10's, the low end torque of the 4.3 ltr V6 is more than plentiful, and I can still cruise comfortably at 80mph on the open freeway when the need/chance arises...the nice police officer was quite impressed.
The interior is in a state of flux, with the ultimate goal being one similar to a basic Westy with an exterior shower that mounts to the openned rear hatch, blah blah blah. Luckily, Brian's Sportsmobile is only 3 streets away from my house so i can run over and check his interior before i do anything.
One thing I've learned from the NWOS Meet and Greets is that I need to hang out with Mike Oldani more often.
Speaking of NWOS, a quick story to illustrate my appreciation of the site and the people I've met here. I read The Samba.com for basic van research (its a VW site) and one post asked if any of the VW Syncro drivers ever got "the stink eye" from real 4x4s. I respectfully responded by saying that I actually only ever get "the stink eye" from VW Westy drivers, and thats after being accepted and encouraged from a Land Rover group!
Anyway, props to you all, and hope you enjoy the little slideshow.
Thanks,
Tom L.
http://s232.photobucket.com/albums/e...view=slideshow