C1 body dolly - another alternative

[Mark P.]

Here is an alternative C1 body dolly I built that others may want to consider for their body-off. It worked really well this past weekend when I pulled the body on my 1960.

I decided to do my own version because I wanted a dolly that was easy to build (2-3 hours), quite strong, would allow safe transport to the body shop and I could disassemble it easily (about 20 minutes) and store it under my house when I am not using it.

This dolly cost me about $125, excluding the casters. I was accidently sent 2 sets of casters when I got my 4-post lift so I used one of them for my dolly. These casters are total overkill but work well. It is real easy to push the body around.

The nose and tail supports are fully adjustable.

[Cathy S.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Very cool!

[Roger W.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Very nice. looks alot simpler to build than most of the other designs.

[Troy P.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Are all the support points that contact the underbody the same height from the ground?

[Mark P.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

They are all in the same plane, so yes. I wanted the ability to adjust the nose and rear support though so I could fine-tune the fit.

[Brooks G.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Mark, I definitely like your design much better than the one I built from Noland Adams plans. Your design looks simple yet it supports the whole body from front to rear as it should unlike the one I built that did not support the rear of the body. One other problem I had was that my casters did not have brakes. I hope yours do. I wish you all the best with your restoration. Brooks Glover (2141)

[Mark P.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Hello Brooks. My casters don't have brakes. The body shop I will be using told me that is no problem. They just tie a shop towel around the bottom between the wheel and the floor or put the dolly on jack stands.

[Gerald C.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Mark,

I'm going to be doing a 1967 roadster soon. Did you leave your radiator support on the car. I really couldn't see from the pictures.

Also, did you use the 4 X 4's for attachment points as I didn't see any holes.

Thanks,

Jerry

[Gerald C.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Mark,

I just printed your info and see why you didn't drill the holes yet.

Jerry

[Mark P.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Gerald -I left the radiator support on the body and it is supported by the nose support.

The two 4 X 4's are in the same position as the frame mounts and I plan to insert 2-4 front body bolts and the 2 rear body bolts before I transport it.

I have since drilled the holes for the 4 X 4's to attach them to the frame. I now see in your new posting that you have noticed in my instructions that I drilled the holes after placing the body to make sure it fits perfectly.


Good Luck,

Mark

[Troy P.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

In case we're having a contest to see who can build the cheapest body dolly I want to get my submission in.

As seen in the attached photos my dolly consists of 4 Harbor Freight furniture dollies (2 small and 2 regular size), 6 plastic file folder containers from Target, 12 half inch screws and some carpet scraps. Total cost was about $78.

[Mark P.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Troy - how did your dolly work ? I have broke a couple of the Harbor Freight furniture dollys when the weight wasn't evenly distributed. Any issues like that ?

Mark

[Troy P.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

Its currently in use on a '54 body and is working just fine. No worries or issues with the furniture dollies.

I'm an engineer but didn't do any load calcs. Just from experience "eyeballing" I was able to conclude that 6 plastic bins would be plenty to hold the weight. My only concern has been the possibility of plastic creep - where the plastic could take a set over time and give some. Some plastics do this more than others. Some may not. Best to stick with bins that are pretty stiff.

In addition to the low cost there are other advantages of my set up:
1. total of 15 minutes set up time
2. when done 2 screws holding the bins in place on the dolies can be removed quickly and the parts can all be returned to their original purposes - moving and storing stuff
3. when not in use and disassembled the parts take up very little storage space - bins stack inside of each other and furniture dollies can be stacked too
4. since the four load carrying points/dollies are not connected they can be repositioned under the car to provide access to every square inch of underbody for cleaning and repairs while still supported by the dolly system
5.load distributed on 16 wheels allows for easy movement

[Mike G.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

much nicer than the two 55 gallon drums i used on mine and i bet it alot easier to move.

[Mike G.]

Re: C1 body dolly - another alternative

since then i bought a used corvette dolly on ebay for $200 that was local.