Well, I finally got it disassembled.
I'm pretty handy with a wrench, but don't have a lift or a lot of the other tools one could benefit from when doing work like this. And, I'm working by myself. I was concerned about the force being on that torque tube, so I'm glad you all told me to support the frame. I had read to do that, but I thought if I placed a jack under the tube I would be okay. I maxed out the height on my floor jack, and the tires were off the floor, but I needed to go a little higher to get my stands under the frame. If I lowered my stands to the next notch, then the tires were back on the ground. But, they were barely on the ground...most of the weight was on the jackstands. I then placed my jack under the tube and put just a touch of pressure on it. Unbolted the u-joint and it slid apart with the slightest bit of nudging. I then raised my jack enough so the tube was high enough to slide everything out from the top. And, there was BARELY enough clearance between the tranny and the floorboard to get that ball housing out.
I have everything soaking now. Thanks for the help. I'm sure I'll be back with questions when I put it all back together.
