1981 Stepside bed
 

I am replacing the wood bed in my 1981 C10 stepside. I've removed all the old wood, bed strips & supports. My issue is the bolts that are alongside the bed sides. They need to be replaced & they seem to be spot welded into the angle strip. I thought that they were a carriage bolt type with a flat head. I removed one bolt & it tore the steel out of the rail. I can't hammer them out. Is there a way to remove them?

Re: 1981 Stepside bed
 

Maybe grind the heads off then drill out

Re: 1981 Stepside bed
 

That's pretty much what I thought. I think I was hoping for some different miracle method to get them out.

Re: 1981 Stepside bed
 

On my Stepside I welded in cross bars then laid the wood over that. The bed floor is more resilient to weight.

I did ot because I Z'd the rear of my frame, but i wish I did it earlier before I did that mod.