blazer vs pickup axle differences

Hi guys,

Just found my left axle seal weeping some oil (pinion seal has been seeping since i replaced it in subfreezing temps 3 or so years ago)
and my g80 is starting to act somewhat funny, although this may be my imagination.
along with that, the dust shields are gone and the leading caliper placement of the blazers cause pretty fast pad wear.

So, brainstorming why i should or shouldnt replace it with a pickup axle.

internally they are the same as far as i know.

the things I believe are different

1. bumpstop pad location
2. caliper location

bumpstop pad location isn't a big deal, I can add whatever wherever later.
caliper location seems like it wouldn't be a big deal, but i don't understand why GM placed the calipers on opposing sides between the SUV/pickups.
in general, for offroad usage, leading caliper placement causes issues with rocks/crap not falling out as you drive.
I've noticed extremely fast rear pad wear most likely due to this.
I don't see anything on the blazer specifically (im only looking at a zr2) which requires the use of the caliper in front of the axle.

anyone have any insight as to why GM would bother changing it up?

It could be frame clearance. On the 2wd, at least, the frame gets wider above the rear axle and I remember reading on either BlazinLow or S10forum of others having issues with the rear mount calipers on Blazers. With the ZR2's wider axle I bet you have plenty of extra clearance even if the regular 4x4 don't.

It wouldn't surprise me if the G80 is going. From my experience they don't last under abuse. They're a good factory get around in the rain/snow locker, but won't take consistent beatings. I'm guessing most replacements you find will be in a similar if not worse condition than yours.

Does the Blazer ZR2 have the panhard? The S10 will and not sure if they had different locations if they both do.

If you have the Blazer down for the 5.3 swap wouldn't that be a good time to just rebuild the axle and put in a more stout locker? Or is the weeping too urgent?

oh i guess youre right, the non-ZR2s might have clearance issues.

Looks like i should be able to just find the rear mount caliper brackets from the junkyard and swap the locations.
this would be a perfect thing to do when i swap axle seals (not a big deal, it'll stay this way until it's warmer most likely, possibly until the 5.3 swap time)

nope, the zr2 blazers didn't get a panhard.

http://nastyz28.com/forum/threads/blazer-s10-rear-disc.94303/

a real locker won't happen mainly from a budget standpoint.

i can't find great info on it but i believe GM Technical Service Bulletin # 00-05-23-005B
is about premature rear brake wear on silverados, and the fix was mud flaps in front of the wheel
https://www.alldatadiy.com/techtips/Chevy/20040308c.html

This thread has some pictures of the flaps:

http://www.dieselplace.com/forum/76-speciality-forums/82-exterior/7673-gm-rear-inner-fender-liners-flaps.html