The transmission the way it mounts will easily sit by itself in the frame. I would pull the engine and the the transmission. In Tim's case where the truck is undergoing restoration, I would pull the engine, remove the cab if it was part of the restoration plan and then the transmission. The hydra-matic crossmembers are designed so that trans can be removed from the underside of the truck. My webshots albums show the way I put my driveline together. [IMG]http://thumb17.webshots.net/t/58/58/2/59/72/400725972XGoyud_th.jpg[/IMG] Another thought is to go to Keith Hardy's website where he has posted the 54 Chev Hydra-Matic service booklets one of which covers removal and installation of the transmission. http://chevy.tocmp.com/booklets/5431smindex.html Hope this helps, G.H.