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July 20, 2024

Body Rotisserie

Like my two previous LBC retirement projects, this will be a "Frame Off" restoration.  (Shouldn't it really be "Body Off?)

First thing to do, at least on a roadster, is brace the door openings.  The doors actually fit pretty good before I started this exercise, and I wanted top preserve that.  The internal sill construction is pretty strong when in good shape, but I thought it was a worthwhile precaution anyway.




After disconnecting or removing everything I could think of that bridged the body and frame, and removing all the body fasteners, I thought I was ready.  I started by gently lifting one side with a floor jack.  I put 1/2" spacers under each mounting point until the body was a couple of inches above the frame.  I had to remove the fuel tank, since the filler neck was interfering with the lift.




All seemed well, so I proceeded to prepare for the body removal.  I'm using an engine hoist type crane as a sky hook, so I built a makeshift wood lifting frame to interface the single lift point to the body.  It essentially takes and cancels all of the horizontal forces so that the body only sees vertical lifting force.




And up she went...




Moved the chassis to its home for the next few months...




...and set the body on some temporary dollies to make it easier to move around.




As with my previous cars, I'll put the body on a rotisserie to simplify access.  My rotisserie has a platform that serves as a surrogate frame for the body to rest on.  While on the rotisserie, the body is firmly supported at most of the same points its used to.  This is the platform and the standards that it mounts to.  They used to be a nice uniform color.




The platform of course has to be adapted to provide mounting points for the body.  I made a crossmember to fit the mounting brackets in the cabin area.  I use wood spacers so that I can remove them one at a time to blast or paint under them.  The crossbar won't get welded to the platform until the body is in position.




Lifting onto the rotisserie...




After the body is positioned correctly and the main crossmember is welded to the platform, the other supports, adapted from previous supports, are fitted and welded in.  They have wooden spacers too.




All secure, and  she tilts.




However, the sills fouled the stretcher bar of the rotisserie, so the body would't rotate 360 degrees.  This was anticipated, and I just has to raise the adjustable standards by four inches.

The next problem was that the rotating assembly was very bottom heavy, so it was quite a chore to rotate it.  I had misjudged the center of gravity because I neglected to account for the weight of the platform.  Another adjustment, and all was good.  I want it to be slightly bottom heavy, but not too hard to turn.




The rotation is also a requirement for another reason.  My home manager allows me to work on my cars in the garage during the day, but neither of our daily drivers is permitted to spend the night outside.  It was in our wedding vows.  Space is tight, but tipped up sideways, there's room.




After all this preparation, it will be nice to finally do some metal work.

Comments to Ed at elhollin1@yahoo.com

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