Dropped into what? you want to pay for the claws and then hide them inside tile?

Either you want a freestanding tub or not. Freestanding tubs are not meant to be built into decks.

I don't want a freestanding tub. I want a cast iron drop in tub and it's easier to find a good used claw foot tub than it is to find a used drop in tub. So the question remains: can they be dropped in?

there must be a way to do build a deck around a clawfoot tub. I have seen it done in a house I stayed in. I would like to do this in my house.

As for me, I don't want t claw foot or otherwise freestanding tub - it's just what came with my 1928 house, and it would be a project-and-a-half to remove. I want to make it into a drop-in partly b/c I want to tile the floor (which is now vinyl), and I want a straight edge for the tiles to go up to (not to have to work around the claw feet or try to lift the tub to put the tiles under it).

I've seen them dropped through decks outdoors, so I don't see why not. I have a pair of them I'm wanting to build a deck for at our vacation rental cabin.