Thanks for the advice from everyone on this one. It turned out that there were just four studs, one sticking right up in each corner of the frame, w/ a simple 1/2" nut on each. They came off easy and then there was a tensioner on each side for the cables.The screw holding each of those came off easy and then the cable slipped up past the rigid frame and, just like that, the whole seat frame, with all cables intact, was out of the cab! Removing the tank will be a piece of cake. It turns out that the cabcorner ding was easier to get out than I ever imagined. (I caused the damage myself, backing up my daily driver in haste and forgetting that the '49 had just been moved to a new spot on the side of the driveway. The chrome bumper cleared the 49's running board, but not the cab corner, pushing it straight in just under 2" deep at the apex of the curve and 6" wide. Ouch!) The metal is like new, no rust and solid as the day it was made in California. Unfortunately, the damage was below the bottom of the gas tank, so removing it wouldn't have helped. I persuaded the dent to come out w/ the rounded end of an old splitting maul handle, coaxing it out by pressing against the very solid riser under the gastank and behind the seat. That got the far edges out and then it was on to 12" piece of soft pine w/ a 22 oz framing hammer w/ knurled face to pound out the rest at an angle from where that pesky seat frame had been. The knurls were needed on a very humid day to make good contact w/ the end grain of the soft pine. It is about 97% done and could have been finished, but the last swing went wide w/ the sweat flowing freely and it left a knurled imprint on my left pointer finger's big knuckle. Another ouch, but completely satisfied w/ great progress made.
