Chevy C10 Short Bed - Bed Bobbing Basics
The use of a cutoff wheel made quick work of the rivets that held the crossmember in place. | 
Then, the suspension was removed to eliminate any unnecessary pressure on the framerails. This prevented torsional load that would cause distortion to the framerails. You definitely don't want that when you're about to cut your frame in half! | 
Freeing the crossmember required drilling out the centers of the retaining rivets. We opted not to slam them out, as the short-handled sledge hammer weighed more than 3 pounds, and the frame was already sitting level on jackstands. | 
If the cab is not removed, the rear body mount bolts will need to be removed, and the front bolts loosened, so the cab can be lifted high enough to slide the crossmember under the cab. In reality, we removed a bit more than 12 inches from the front section on the bed. We opted for 13-1/2 inches, just to be different. The bottom of the cab has a pocket for the crossmember, but our crossmember was going to slide forward a bit more than stock, so we trimmed the top of the crossmember for the additional 1-1/2 inches we needed to get the wheels centered in the wheelwells. | 
After jacking up the cab, the crossmember was slid under it, and set closer to its new mounting location. With the crossmember out of the way, the 12-inch section was removed from the framerails located behind the cab. | 
After 12 inches were removed from one side of the frame, a bit of support was needed. We used a cherry picker to bring the frame back to a stable position and the second 12-inch section was removed. | 
Once again, a thick piece of angle iron was attached to the top of the framerail, then a second clamp in the frames webbing secured the mating ends together. A couple measurements ensured the frame was square and equal. Next, both sides of the framerails were clamped together with a small gap in between the mating surfaces. With the frame squared and locked down with clamps, we welded the frame section together. The 12-inch section of removed frame was turned over and laid over the freshly welded frame sections. The channels were facing one another, and welded, which provided added strength over the welded frame. | 
When we went to fit the bed to the frame, it came to our attention that an additional 3 inches were needed to be cut from the frame horn end. Then, the bed fit like a glove. We had to be close, because the front bed mount fit perfectly and the bed to cab spacing was symmetrical and slightly less than stock. | 
Ok, so our hauler has a 113.5-inch wheelbase, somewhere in between a Blazer's 110-inch and the shortbed truck's 115-inch wheel base. But, it's unique and has an enhanced musclecar appeal. |
|
|