Would you mig weld this?

[TYTILIDIE]

Found out my frame is cracked on the wife's Ty and I am pretty sure it is from the coil overs. The initial plan was to transfer the coil over set up to my TY which is still going to happen but I am thinking that when I strip my truck down for it, I will reinforce my frame to prepare for this problem. So my question I guess, would be, is there any reason why I can't fix and reinforce the frame of the other TY with some plate steel and a Mig welder? I did it once on my Vette after I jumped it off a 5' drop in to a field :lol: and it worked just fine. I did heat the areas up with a torch first just to get it good and hot but I just thought I would get some opinions.

 

[TYTILIDIE]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

Damn, forgot the pic

 

[Robert Lone]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

BIG mig yes...little mig no....

TIG root and stick cap would be best...JMHO...

EDIT: let me stress BIG mig...

 

[absintheisfun]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

If you mig, be sure to drill each end with a 1/4" bit (or smaller) before you mig so it will stop the crack from getting worse and give you a clean stop/start.

The bit size will depend on the width of the crack (hard to tell for sure by the pic.

 

[Robert Lone]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

If you mig, be sure to drill each end with a 1/4" bit (or smaller) before you mig so it will stop the crack from getting worse and give you a clean stop/start.

The bit size will depend on the width of the crack (hard to tell for sure by the pic.

Good advise...

A crack can't pass a hole...

 

[turboj91]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

A crack can't pass a hole...[/QUOTE]


Off topic. Ever check out a woman's anatomy.

On topic. Easy fix. Make sure you get good penetration (yes on topic). Can't tell by the pic, but is a slight "V" notch in order?

 

[warmpancakes]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

A crack can't pass a hole...

Off topic. Ever check out a woman's anatomy.

On topic. Easy fix. Make sure you get good penetration (yes on topic). Can't tell by the pic, but is a slight "V" notch in order?[/quote]




booo hiss:roll: Id weld it simple repair gonna nead to slean the heck out of it, a little 110 welder isnt gonna cut it though TIG would be idea and a good welder could make that invisible

 

[JSM]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

I doubt it is due to coilover in that area of the frame. Just my 2 cents.

220v mig as mentioned, or tig. CLEAN CLEAN CLEAN is key. Drilling holes at end, chamfering them are all good suggestions.

 

[MikeRenz]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

isn't this the truck that isn't going straight for you? bet thats not helping matters

 

[TY0618]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

I MIGed the rear shock mount on my Jimmy 2 years ago, lots of heat, and keep it clean, that was about 40K mi. ago, and its still fine.

 

[13Pelle]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

My general rule of thumb to my kids is...if you have to ask the question, then don't do it. That being said and out of the way....like many others have said, yes, I dont see why not. You just need to make sure like others have said that you clean it very good, prep it properly, the "bigger" the welder the better/easier, and IMO most importantly lots of heat. You might want to pre heat the section of frame before you attempt to weld it. When I have welded thicker metals I have had good sucess with preheating it with a O/A torch. Welding is all about heating metal enough to melt it so it can "fuse" together. Big metal objects dissipate heat better than small metal objects. More voltage and more current on the input side of the welder puts more heat into the joint. I would also use a TIG welder. Hope this helps some......JMHO's

 

[jpalmer]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

Mig it no problem, its only 1/8th. everyone else is right on with their suggestions. heating it up first is a real good idea too. i have fixed many a frame.

 

[TYTILIDIE]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

Pretty much what I was thinking. Like I said earlier, that's how I fixed my Vette frame and never had any issues. Heated it up real good with a torch. Didn't think about the drilling holes thing though. I know that's how you stop a crack in things like headers and cylinder heads but for some reason didn't think about doing it in this situation.

So Jeff, if not from the coil overs, what do you think caused this? That was my first thought. Should I even bother reinforcing my 92's frame?

Yeah Mike this truck drives plenty straight, it just tries to skip at high speeds through a big long turn. Obviously I didn't know the frame was cracked when I did that.

 

[JSM]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

If crack was shock mount area I would start to maybe wonder, but its mid frame near the a arm mounts, no extra stress due to coilovers in that area. Minimal extra at best.

Sometimes crack happens. LOL Not sure you will ever know why/how.

 

[Quickstop [UK]]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

My general rule of thumb to my kids is...if you have to ask the question, then don't do it.

So then they don't ask and do it anyway?

 

[13Pelle]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

So then they don't ask and do it anyway?

LOL...not quite. It is basically the same as "If you have to ask, then you probably can't afford it." J.P. Morgan I tell them, if you have to ask because you doubt that you can(are allowed) to do it, then chances are you can't or shouldn't. Don't misunderstand this for me telling my kids they cant do things, as far a from a success in life stand point. They know can do anything with their life if they have the drive and dedication. Most of the time peoples gut feelings or reactions are right and they just don't trust or listen to them. If there is any doubt in your mind, don't do it. If you dont trust your decision 100% then don't do it. Thats all.....I think I just confused myself. :squint:

 

[TYTILIDIE]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

Why are you being a dick? I can respect your view. One thing about the 92, is that I don't plan on driving it much as it already is turning out to be a PITA. I have always liked the idea of the coil overs and I think if the frame was reinforced properly, why not? As for our 92 TY, this is a truck I NEED to not have problems like this. One darn good reason to keep it as stock as possible. I am even thinking of taking the Belltech leaves off and going back to the stock springs.

 

[JSM]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

Dave you won't offend me, I like to debate ideas and my ideas very well could be off.

Although I agree with what you said 90%, every action has an opposite reaction. Just judging by the picture posted it appears the area of crack is near the pivot point of the a arm. The pivot point should see very similar forces in that area (torsion bar -vs coilover). The shock mount I agree would be changed, but from what I see that is not the issue.

The other thing that makes me think this was a fluke or an outside cause (wreck/pothole/bad metal) is 2wd frames which are not torsion but use a spring, share almost identical frame section in this area.

I have a Crazykaese's ty at my house now that has 60-80k miles on a coilover suspension with no signs of these issues also.

I do have engineering degree but that doesn't make me any smarter than anybody else. Dave no doubt has just as much, well i would say more on the job experience than I do.

If budget wasn't a concern it would be good to do some more extensive anaylsis.

More pics would help also.

 

[TYTILIDIE]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

I'll get some more pics when I get everything apart but I am not sure when that will be. I hear the torsion bar x-member is a PITA to get off so I guess I will lolly gag until I work up the nerve to do it. Maybe in a week or so because I need to get all this done before my new motor gets put in and it is done from the machine shop, just need to go get it. Now if some of my clients would pay me the thousands of dollars they owe me I could make that trip:roll:

 

[mattw]

Re: Would you mig weld this?

I totally agree with Dave. With my engine out, fenders off, hood off, etc if I stood on the front of the frame and jumped up and down I could see the tops of the shock towers move in towards each other a good amount. There is really nothing there to keep the frame from twisting. I did add a cross brace directly below the radiator and that helped a lot but my guess is that something will still eventually give up and break.

Once I have everything in place I plan on looking for more ways to reinforce the frame and/or add cross braces.

Those of you that remove any frame bracing are nuts. The frame is already very flimsy and weak. If anything you should be adding cross-sections and boxing the thing in..


-Matt