Teardown part 3 - tub removal

Now on to removing the tub.  With the plywood floor removed I can see the full extent of the damage to the tub.  The years have not been kind to this Jeep.  But hey it is a Jeep and is made to be repaired, broken, then repaired again.




After seeing the state of the floorboards I determined that I needed to weld in some support.  If I did not do this this body would fold when being removed and then need replacement or massive repair.  Most people would abandon this tub and order a replacement or find a junkyard donor.  Around here junkyards suck and no Jeep parts are on hand.  $4200 for a steel replacement tub is also not realistic for me.  I could spend $3000 for a fiberglass tub.  But if I wanted a fiberglass vehicle I would have bought a Corvette like my good friend Dan.  So some 1" steel tube was welded across the tub.




This arrangement of three bars worked.  They are tack welded on and will be easy to remove.  In the end you will never know they were on there.  My motor lift along with some hold down straps were used to lift the body from the tub.  Four guys could have also done the job but most of my friends around here avoid manual labor like I avoid tofu.  Oh well that is why man makes machines.




The engine lift made short work of lifting the tub off.  The lift was moved to the left and the remaining chassis was rolled out of the garage.




Once the chassis was out of the garage the tub was placed on the garage floor. 




Once tub was down I could tilt on its side by myself.  It is really not that heavy.  The tub was placed on two furniture dollies on its side.  Now it is a simple matter of moving it out of the way when needed.