Help Removing the Bed on 59 Panel Truck

Presently, I'm restoring a 59 Chevy panel truck. I'm not quite sure how to remove the wooden floor. I have the body on a rotisserie and most of the bolts have been removed. The sheet of plywood is being held in place by a C-channels, one in front and one in back. The wheel wells are on top of the floor, so the only way to remove the floor is from the bottom.








The front C channel is in fairly good shape but the back needs to be replaced. At first glance, it appeared that the rear channel was held in place by a brace at either end, and these braces ware bolted in place. The factory assembly manual seemed to confirm this. However, after removing the bolts the braces are still firmly in place, I suspect they are welded in, or could it just be corrosion?






I'd like to avoid hacking up the bed so that I can use as a pattern for the new one. I'm wondering if the best way to remove the bed this is to cut the braces along the red line?




For the new bed, fabricate a new C-channel and weld supports onto the brace?
Any tips and suggestions are appreciated.

thanks

 

I'd be willing to bet the bed is "factory-sealed" in during assembly under the assumption that it would last the entire service life of the vehicle, not 54 years.

 

Remove a center board first. I know on a truck the outer two boards are the toughest - because body bolts go thru them too - and they support the weight of the bed.

Good info on bed wood dimensions here.

 

Unlike the pickups, there is no center board. The bed is two sheets of plywood oriented lengthwise.


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any ideas?

 

Following this with great interest, I need to change the floor in my -57 later on...

 

collins axe to bust the middle then figure it out from there it's not like you're saving the wood

 

Unlike the pickup, there is no bed box to disassemble. It's not just a matter of getting the wood out then reassembling the box with new wood.

It seems the order of assembly at the factory was not sheet metal then wood. It was sheet metal, then wood, then more sheet metal. Some of the sheet metal needs to taken out in order replace the wood.

Guess I should have used the word "replacing" instead of "removing" in the thread title...


Thanks, anyway for the replies fellas.

 

Has anyone done this?

 

pm sent

 

Spent some more time with the assembly manual this morning and realized my error. The pieces on the front and back are not C-channels. The bottom rail is an extension of the bed and the top is just a retaining strip. Since only the top rear strip needs replacement, it doesn't make sense to hack apart the supports. So, I sawed up the bed. Problem solved.

Can't see a logical way to replace the bed as original with two pieces. Guess that leaves the door wide open on how to do it.

I'll post a couple pics later.

 

check over on the stovebolt site . i think alvin replaced his not long ago

 

Stovebolt has a thread where a guy removed the front support, not the rear.