29 spot welds in less than 2 1/2 feet......
 

Bless GMC for the many spotwelds, esp on the compound curves of a upper trans hump cover. Tried my best with a spotweld cutter, but the metal was tougher than the blade. I had to drill each one first with a 1/8 titanium drill bit (standard steel wore out quick). Then I followed up with a stepdrill to 1/2", panel came off smoothly. The main floor hump is bolted on, I wonder why GM decided to spot weld that section vs. put in bolts? I putting it back with 4-5 cage nuts and some sealant.

The upper trans shield had to be removed in order to access the 4" x 4" inspection plate so I can get to the 32 torus cover bolts (think torque converter) that hold it directly to the flywheel. It also allows me to get to the 5 bolts that hold on the bellhousing.


Oh the JOY! I remember when I assembled the trans., I had a friend's kid start each one for me. One bit of good news is that the Torus cover dran plug just happened to be sitting right on top.

Getting there, one bolt at a time.