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Removing Truck Bed

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gbskunk

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I'm having some body work done to my 86 GMC 1/2 ton and need to remove the truck bed first. Other than the main bolts underneath which are pretty rusted and will likely need an air ratchet/impact wrench to remove, does anyone a have any tips for making the job easier :)

http://pg.photos.yahoo.com/ph/gbskunk2003/album?.dir=/3298&.src=ph&.tok=phQldpDBIfBdKSbB

Cheers
 
well i took my bed off my 86 chevy 1/2 ton.... i couldent got a air gun inbetween the frame...so i had to use a ratchet wrench...but the best thing to do is get 8 - 1/2 inch nuts put them on top of the bolt (in the bed on top) set the nut on top and take a welder and put the rod in the hole of the nut fill it up with weld then your buddy can hold a wrench on the nut while u turn the nut down below just order new bolt out of chevy duty it will be worth it....... and the day b4 u do it spay all the nuts down with wd40 Jeff
 
i removed my 85 bed i used a pair of vise grips on the longer ones to hold in place just make sure the vise grip is against the frame before you use aan impact on it or it will hurt. or i just cut them with torch and replaced all with new ones when i was done anyway. good luck
 
Hmmm, I guess I'll know what you're talking about once I get the bedliner off. Once I take care of the bolts how many friends do I need to help me remove the box (i.e. can two guys do it)?

Cheers
 
well i had four guys and it was still really heavy but i just got it painted so i didnt want to take a chance on droping it....& there is no way you can use vise grips its a carage bolts...unless they make an a socket for a carage bolt now :7 take er easy
 
Thanks for all the feedback guys. I'm planning on fixing up the bed next year so not too worried about scratches but hopefully won't be adding too many dents :-). I'm thinking if the bolts don't come off easily with my impact wrench then I will probably just grind down the carriage bolt heads with my angle grinder and punch them out that way. In any event, this weekend should be fun!

Cheers
 
Well I managed to remove my truck bed this past weekend and as suspected removing the bolts was the biggest challenge. Appreciate the great ideas but in the end I found that grinding down the carriage bolt heads, then punching the bolts right out was the easiest.

Now the plan is to remove the gas tank so that I can have my trucked towed to the guy who I've hired to weld in the rust replacement parts (which coincidentally I purchase from Chevy Duty a few weeks ago). To see some shots of my progress go to this link.

http://community.webshots.com/album/414064934nDRShf

If all goes according to plan, I should get the truck back in about a week but before I put the cab back on I want to clean up some of the rust from the frame and repaint. Any suggestions on what product(s) to use (keeping in mind this is going to be a daily driver and not a show truck)?

Cheers
 
FOR YOUR RUST, YOU WILL NOT FIND ANYTHING BETTER THAN A PRDUCT CALLED POR 15 WWW.POR15.COM. THIS STUFF IS AWESOME I USED IT ON A FEW CHEVY CARS I WORKED ON AND ALL I DID WAS WIRE BRUSHED IT AND APPLIED THIS STUFF DIRECTLY TO THE RUST AND HAVE NEVER HAD IT COME BACK AT ALL. YOU CAN MAIL ORDER IT BUT I GET MINE AT A PAINT STORE IN NORTH KANSAS CITY CALLED WHOLESALE PAINT YOU CAN CALL THEM AT 816-471-0808 ASK FOR NICK. ALSO THIS STUFF IS GURANTEED BY THE COMPANY YOUR RUST WILL NEVER COME BACK THIS STUFF IS AS STRONG IF NOT STRONGER THAN POWDER COAT, NO LIE.
 
Thanks Chevy454, after doing some research decided to go with your advise and just received my shipment of POR-15 yesterday.

Since I had to remove the gas tank in order to have the body work done, I'm wondering if it would be wise to replace the sending unit now? I was planning on replacing the O-ring gasket because I did notice a strong gas odor previously.

Check out the results of the body work done this past week.

http://cards.webshots.com/invite/pickup/106325542mSyd/album/414064934nDRShf

Cheers
 
Depending on the condition of the bolts. If extremely rusted and you don't have a hoist and torch, then the easiest way is to drill the carriage heads off the bolts while inside the bed being careful to not alter the square shoulder in the bed body. Then punch the bolts out from above. I used a cherry picker (engine hoist) to lift the bed and then drive out from under it. One man operation. Spike two 2x4's together the width to fit snuggly under the bed rails and then c-clamp to hold in place. Placing the center of gravity so that the bed lifts higher in the front to clear the tires to enable driving out from under it. Good luck
 
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