I am trying to break my bed down for sand blast. I have everything off except for the support that goes under the tailgate. Is this pc welded somewhere? It wiggles around but doesn't seem to want to come apart. I don't want to tear it up. Thanks Jeff
Bed Rebuilding Yes , the rear header is welded , this is very important if you ever plan to work the truck as it prevents the bed from spreading . Chevy Duty and other old truck supply houses , sell a very nice booklet called " How To Rebuild Your GM Truck bed " , chock full of details and info . Mar-K also sells a booklet , you cannot go wrong buying these two and reading _before_ you get 1/2 way through it . Once you've gotten all the new parts and wood , assemble the bed unpainted and find all the little boo-boos oin the wood or the new metal parts and fix them , then you can take it all apart and re-paint it .
Is it just a spot weld or what? I don't mind buying the book, but I need to get this thing apart and to my bodyman this weekend. Any more guidance would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Jeff
It's a bit more than a spot weld and therin lies the rub ~ some folks skip it and then later on the bed gives them trouble . It is best to do the body work , re-assemble to ensure correct fittment then disassemble for painting , re-assemble , weld the rear sill in place then have the painter spot paint the damaged it. I know this seems a lot of work but it's a 52 year old machine and it needs special treatment to get it right .
Again, I am still at the dissasembly stage, just haven't figured out exaclty how all it's welded together and thus where I need to grind to get it apart. I take a closer look at it tonight and maybe it will become obvious to me. Thanks
Hello Jeff, At the rear cross brace (sill) part number in classic parts boox 13-116, the ends are welded approximately one inch to the bed side rails, just grind them to remove weld. But as Nate stated remember to reweld for strength.
