Do you have plans to build a body cart (dolly). Please share them with me, Thanks in advance, Bruce/CT [email protected]
No real answer to that question as the size and design depend on what body you plan to put on the cart and what you want to do with the body once it is on the cart. A late model body (50's/60's etc) will require a much wider cart than something from the 30's. Do you want to work on the body while it is one the cart? That will have an effect on how high the cart needs to be. What sort of surface will you be rolling the cart over? Big wheels roll easier if it is rough. Basically any tubing from about 1.25" square up will be sufficient for the lighter 30's bodies and if it is a big heavy car you may want to use 2". Square is usually the best choice as it does not need to be notched at the junctions and it provides a flat surface to mount the plates for the casters. Make it wide enough that the body is stable and size it so that the stronger parts of the underbody rest on the cart (sub rails, body mount pads etc). 31Vicky's idea is a good one depending on availability/cost of an extra frame to suit your body. If you plan to use the dolly for other projects in the future you may want to think about making it a little more universal. Roo
I made a 4 foot x 8 foot ladder style table with large casters on it. Nothing fancy just 1" box tubing with the legs all braced up. I think the legs were about 32 inches high if I recall correctly. Made some cross members go across it ladder style and then laid a 4 x 8 sheet of 16 ga. steel on it and tacked it in place. If I recall I got the casters from Harbor Freight. I put my 31 roadster body up on it on top of 4" x 4" x 6' lumber. Drilled thru the 4 x 4 and thru the table and bolted it down with carriage bolts. Moved that thing all over the place from one shop to another on a trailer to the body shop for paint. Put the body at a good working height too. Unfortunately I loaned it to a buddy once my body got back on the frame and it is some distance from me or I would get you a couple of pictures of it.
I'm about to undertake a similar project. Will gladly post photos as it evolves. I have a couple 2x10x12' fir boards that will make up the main structure left over from my greenhouse. I,m thinking wood will allow for easier adjustment while building it. Plus when I'm done I can just drag it out of the garage and set it on fire.
My body dollies are just heavy (1/8 wall) 1 1/2 tube welded up in a rectangle, they sit about 15" up on gusseted legs. I have several, some short for truck cabs, some long enough for 60's cars, about 4' wide. We'll weld different jigging on them for whatever body we have on it at the time. Being a shop they get re purposed, not a one time deal like a home builder. Instead of casters I mount a couple of dolly tires on one end, other end has a simple piece of pipe welded so a trailer dolly hooks on to move it around like a trailer. The advantage is once you park it you can work on it without it trying to roll around on you like casters. As you can tell by the pic when there isn't a body mounted they just tend to have stuff stacked on them.
Here is mine. I originally made it for my truck bed. When I got my Model A , I adapted it by using a part of a Model A frame. It's been setting outside for a spell . Bill
With any luck (and I get the firewall painted this weekend) someone can pick up this jewel of a dolly for cheap!
Mine is similar to above but 6'x4' and made with 2" thin walled RHS and 8" pneumatic [Load rated] tyres on casters. I used 2 x fixed casters and 2 x rotating casters so body can be steered over the lip of the shed onto grass from concrete and back again. It just bolts to 4 x body frame mounts and easily holds my 46 Oldsmobile sedanette without any issues. I have another low industrial trolley, currently on loan to a friend, that is similar to above but with solid wheels, 1/8" deck and vertical mounts welded to it to hold Model A bodies. A bit harder to move around when loaded on grass due to solid wheels.
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