Sandblasting a Flatbed

[Wildergarten]

So, I have a flatbed I want to use for my new build. I want to paint it. The challenge is that it needs to be prepped, cleaned, and painted from ALL directions. The cross channels have lips that turn in, so it needs to be prepped, cleaned, and painted from ALL directions SIMULTANEOUSLY. It's big. It's heavy. If I take it off the frame, I've either got to move it or move the new frame under it. If I stand it on something it's got to be tall enough I can get under it with the sandblaster. That's a LOT of cinder blocks (tippy... safety concern there). If I stand it on the headboard for a two-step operation, I still have to get it up in the air a bit, and then have to get it safely back onto the frame. It's big. It's heavy.

So it sits on the old frame until I get ideas. I keep thinking that doing it on the old frame is the way to go, but the up-and-down part with the engine-PTO drive gone is problematic. The truck body is gone. The hydraulics are inoperative but that state is somewhat reversible. Electric motor driving the hydraulics? That's a project.

I need ideas. I came here for ideas.

HELLLLLLP!!!

[PwrWgnDrvr]

Is it for show? Or work? If work, don't be so anal and just paint it in several steps. Its lasted decades as is and will get beat as soon as u work it the first time. If show, maybe stand it on end and tip it to one corner?
Or, forget the paint and get it hot dip galvanized!
https://www.pacificgalvanizing.com/

[Wildergarten]

Is it for show? Or work? If work, don't be so anal and just paint it in several steps. Its lasted decades as is and will get beat as soon as u work it the first time. If show, maybe stand it on end and tip it to one corner?
Or, forget the paint and get it hot dip galvanized!
https://www.pacificgalvanizing.com/

It's not about being anal as much as it is making it easy to make it last. I don't want to be moving it over and over, cleaning it each time, I don't want welding spatter embeded in the paint, sanding glossy spots to get adhesion, etc. The more I can do in one shot, the better, so that all I'm dealing with is touch-up. So this is about efficiency and durability more than finish.

I'm looking into how much torque the hydraulic pump would want if driven by hand. Perhaps I can put a crank handle on it and weld that to a u-joint to drive it?

[PwrWgnDrvr]

My 5 yard dump truck converted to a trailer uses a 5hp motor to run the pump. It easily dumps 5 tons, once with 7 tons of rock was a struggle. Motor has about a 2" sprocket driving about a 12" sprocket on the pump. Direct drive to the pump shaft might be difficult by hand.
Re the paint - leave it unpainted and it will still outlast either of us.
How about hanging it - from a big @#% tree?

[Wildergarten]

My 5 yard dump truck converted to a trailer uses a 5hp motor to run the pump. It easily dumps 5 tons, once with 7 tons of rock was a struggle. Motor has about a 2" sprocket driving about a 12" sprocket on the pump. Direct drive to the pump shaft might be difficult by hand.
Re the paint - leave it unpainted and it will still outlast either of us.
How about hanging it - from a big @#% tree?

You just prompted an idea! I just may have some chain sprockets lying around to drive this from a smaller electric motor, but they might be a bit big to clear the valve. After all, the bed is empty and has no decking. As to a tree, I do have a candidate oak with a 12" branch about 17 feet up I've been looking at, but that's a ways out on a limb for that much weight.

Edit: Went out there and looked at the tree. It's not so bad if I hang the bed more or less vertically from the middle, blast, flip, blast again, to repeat for painting. If I can get it blasted and primed in a day, and then painted with hardener in the paint, I'll be able to double coat it all, set it level, and put a finish coat on the outside edges, headboard, tail, etc. without much crap falling out of the tree at this time of year. This just might be doable. Time for a bit of pencil sketching!