1953 frame vs. 1954

[mach92bill]

I'm working on a 1954 1/2 ton presently on the stock frame. There is a 1953 frame available with a Mustang II front and lowered rear leafs available for not to bad a price. I have read that the frame kick on a '54 is lower than '53 which would cause the bed to be a little too high. Is there an easy way to work around this?

Also the bed angle strips appear to be welded to the bed sides on the '54. How would one remove them?

Thanks for all answers.