body removal

[scoutndmaggies76]

i know many of you have done frame up restorations and i want to remove the body to do some frame repairs, shock mounting, and clean, prime and paint the frame. my question being what is the best way to remove the body? all in one peice? seperate sections? should i tack weld supports inbetween the sides to help keep the body square? any help would be great ! [-o< please and thank you

 

[S_bolt19]

You are going to have to pull the front fenders & grill or you will damage them. Past that, you MUST brace the front end. The way to do this is to remove the doors and either weld or bolt a brace between the door pilars from front to back and also between the rear door pillars. If you try to lift the tub up without bracing it, you will tweak the body and it won't ever be correct unless you do a lot of metal replacement or body shimming. Once you brace the body, slide some 2x4s under the rear of the tub & the front of the tub and get 4 guys to lift it off. Be very careful of anything in front of the firewall, don't lift from there if you can avoid it. That part of the body is fairly "Fragile" compared to the rest of the tub. But most of all, just use simple common sense. It is pretty easy to lift the tub off with some buddys. They aren't that heavy.

 

[scoutndmaggies76]

thanks i wasnt sure if i should remove the front end or not. didnt think about between the door pillars either that could prove a weak spot. would it be wise to remove the cab or leave it on the body? thanks again.

 

[S_bolt19]

Take the top off. That adds about another 200-250 lbs.

 

[68rrflyer]

Take the top off. That adds about another 200-250 lbs.

I did mine this way: http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3195055/7 and as others have said, you need braces on the body prior to moving it! That front end is not designed to support much weight. I then subsequently mounted it on a rotisserie. I mounted it on the rear body mounts and the mounts by the front seats, not the front core support mounts. Body is back on the chassis and no alignment problems either. Check that out here: http://www.cardomain.com/ride/3195055/20 That's how it's done when you're a one man show and nobody around to help! /emoticons/[email protected] 2x" width="20" height="20" />

Cheers

Dave