Disassembling the Bed

[GeorgeLeonard]

I bought a used bed from a guy in Vermont to use on my 1953. (Why anyone would go looking for a rust free bed in Vermont is a topic best saved for a later date) Predictably, its a little more rusty than Id hoped. So I figured my best course of action would be to take it apart to begin the de- rusting procedure.

So I started at the front, took the front panel off and then started on the crosspieces. Everything was going great- most of the bolts snapped right off so I didnt even need to unbolt them (a real time saver). But when I got to the end piece, I removed every nut and bolt I could find and the thing still would not come apart. Turns out it is welded along a couple of seams on each side. Im sure that some of you may have run into this so please tell me what I should do now? How do I break the welds without ruining the surrounding sheet metal? I tried breaking it apart by jamming a screwdriver in there but things got ugly real fast. There has to be a better way.