Update time!
I sold the original motor and trans so the pressure was on to get this truck torn down. Thanks to the common advice here on the forums, I decided to pull the front clip to make this whole swap easier.
Definitely well worth the effort. For a guy that works at a snails pace, this really helped speed things up. It's amazing how accessible things become when the sheet metal is out of the way!
With the front clip removed and the trans disconnected from the t-case, I was able to yank the motor and trans in a couple hours last night.
The new owners picked up the motor and th350 this afternoon. The timing worked out pergect and I have a whole lot more room to work in my garage!
Time to clean up the frame and start prepping the motor and trans for install.