There are 14 bolts holding the tub to the frame.. From front to rear:

One on each side near the toe board gussets, they thread into the frame.

One on each side in the driver and passenger floor.

One under the fuel tank, and one inside the tool box.

One on each side holding the bed riser to the frame..you can see them through the rear wheel well just in front and inboard of the tire.

One on each side in the bed, these are supposed to be step bolts...like carriage bolts with a larger head.

Four bolts across the rear cross member and valance/brakelight panels. One on each side easily visible from the wheelwells, the other two are further inboard...

Good Luck!

athawk11 wrote on 04/23/13 at 16:13:55:


Thanks, Tim.  I did plan on doing all that! 

I notice you don't have pedals on that list.  I haven't looked that closely yet, but I don't think the pedals will fit through holes in the floor will they?  I figured something was going to have to be removed there...  Please correct me if I'm wrong!  (I don't want to do more work than necessary.)

-Paul

Some of us forgot the sneaky little foot feed from the bracket on the back of the engine block.  Which bracket ,by the way, can be put back on upside down 

1oldracer wrote on 04/23/13 at 18:13:20:


In the name of general knowledge, how can it be put on "backwards" and what happens when it is?

In found that it helped to take lots of photos before and during the tear down. I looked at these many times to see how it was before I got at it. Course it could still be wrong depending who got at it before you.

Well, it came off okay.  Here's the fast version:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r3mQZPb0GTg

When I wasn't sure about the oil pressure line, I was thinking it would be like the one on my tractor (of the same age as the Jeep)--a metal tube exposing the panel gauge to the oil pressure.  I wasn't thinking it was just a wire!  It had been disconnected with all the other ones earlier.

Here's the tub, sitting on the driveway:


About the only area on it that's not rusted badly is the dashboard and firewall.  Everything else is pretty rotten.  Since it's not original, I don't feel like tackling a repair on this--I'm leaning towards buying a new one.  Thoughts on that?

-Paul

It is rebuildable but you will only save about the top inch of most of the rear quarters, the cowl, the firewall, the toolbox, And part of the front floor. Your front 1/4's are a toss up whether to save the top portions or just replace entirely. All the hat channels are most likely bad.  Depending on how nice you want it the rear floor also may need replacement. I think this is a tub that someone may want to rebuild who can make their own patches, but to rebuild it with commercially available patch panels will cost a bunch. The removable floor panels are a nice feature of the M 38 tubs, if they are in good shape it will help your pocketbook as they are either impossible to find or expensive if you do.

Better used tubs are out there but may not be in your area.

Also if you choose to make it more of a utility type of restoration and don't care bout things like tool indents and the correct ribs on floor and wheelhouse panels, most is flat panels and bought by the 4x 8 sheet, , a lot cheaper.