Well, I figured out how to get the tub off of DIYJ this past weekend. I was fighting with space, the Jeep sits in a pretty confined place, and I wanted to be able to lift the tub up, and roll the frame out from beneath it. I thought I’d use my engine hoist, but that proved to be problematic. I ended up with Ratchet straps, up to the floor joists above the garage. It’s working pretty well, you can see it here:
Ratcheting the tub upward is pretty straight forward, ratchet the straps up and the tub lifts. Lowering it is a little more difficult. You basically need to release the handle NOT THE CATCH, just the ratchet handle. Move it out the equivelant of a few clicks, then engage it again. Then apply just enough pressure to the ratchet to allow you to disengage the catch, holding the ratched handle up, you’ll be holding the weight of the jeep on that handle, so be careful. Then lower it one or two ratchets at a time. Not the best solution, but it does work, you just need to be really careful. If you lose your head and let go of the wrong catch, you could pinch a finger (or worse) or if you release the wrong end of the strap, the body comes crashing down. If you have other methods at you disposal, I recommend them, but this does work.