[XJSuperman]

Took a break for the Jeep show and then recovery lol. This past weekend I managed to motivate myself enough to cut a 12" section out of the frame. And then yesterday I picked up a length of angle iron I was going to weld in, but now Im having second thoughts. I may end up bending a piece of plate to fit better. Either way, the 3 layers of metal all sandwiched together is mostly gone, and will be welded to one solid chunk. Rust jacking and such just didn't treat this area well. Also the flat lip that extends out from the "framerail" under the jeep will be gone here.No need for it with a good piece of angle or plate there I don't think. Now is an excellent time to speak up if you think otherwise.

 

[Gluckmysock]

If you are putting stiffeners there, I would scab in a piece of 14 gauge steel or floor pan leftovers. You could weld it right to the stiffeners on the inside. Instead of trying to weld those thin pieces together.

 

[XJSuperman]

My concern are that this is from where the trans crossmember mounts all the way forward, a rather structurally important area. I don't want something thin there even with stiffeners since its on the inside, rather than outside (where the stiffener would go right over it completely. The stiffeners will only touch this area by about an inch.

 

[Gluckmysock]

Oh I see said the blind man as he picked up his hammer and saw!
Didn't realise this was to the inside. I was thinking it was at the bottom. But I do agree. You will need something sturdy in there.

 

[XJSuperman]

Oh I see said the blind man as he picked up his hammer and saw!
Didn't realise this was to the inside. I was thinking it was at the bottom. But I do agree. You will need something sturdy in there.

This is why I go back and reiterate and "argue" my thoughts after I ask, to make sure we are seeing and talking about the same thing! Thanks for putting up with my antics Gluck.

 

[Gluckmysock]

No problem bro. Thanks for putting up with me!

 

[XJSuperman]

Cut out some more metal tonight and talked to gluck for awhile. I've come to the conclusion I need to peel the layers of the unibody apart and fix it one piece at a time. I removed several inches of that weird brace inside the rail and got it out of my way. Tomorrow (today) I will cut and chisel out the innermost layer and prep to paint and rebuild.

 

[Gluckmysock]

It was a pleasure to chat. You don't seem to have as much rust as I did. I went to harbor freight and picked up a mini descaler. It made quick work of all the rust I had inside of my unibody. As I said on the phone, and for the benefit of the audience, welded the sliders first, that way I could coat the inside with rust sealer. Aka por 15. And not burn all the paint off. Your looking good! 👍

 

[XJSuperman]

Weekend progress update:
-chiseled out the top layer of the bottom of unibody rail.
-made a new piece and welded in the stud for the trans crossmember mount
-wirewheeled, brakleened, dried, and then sprayed the unibody with weld-thru primer
-welded in the new patch layer
-Ready to fit and weld in a piece of 1/8" angle iron to complete the frame patching

 

[XJSuperman]

Got my main patch fitted and welded in last night. Tonight I will weld the outside of the patch. Only got the inside last night. I was pretty happy with how it was welding, but a better look shows it looks like crap and may have been a little cold. Im using weld-thru primer from NAPA and I hate it. Its a spatter-making mess and it sucks. Bare steel welds much nicer. I will make the outside hotter, esp now that it has the welds on the inside to give me some meat to burn through. I'll take more pics tonight. Guess I just got the one of it tacked in place

 

[XJSuperman]

Got the outside mostly done. Trying to grind down the shitty welds is a pain, but I've made progress. Aside from some minor cleanup, I think I'm ready to strip the rest of the unibody and start prepping for the frame stiffeners.

 

[Gluckmysock]

Woot woot. You got this!

 

[XJSuperman]

Started cleaning up the unibody for stiffeners last night. Found some more damage in the rear. Need to hit it all with a flapdisc and weldthru primer still, But Im making progress.

 

[Gluckmysock]

That's the big draw back with under coating. It hides stuff like that

 

[XJSuperman]

Just like picking at a scab....

 

[Gluckmysock]

See what happens when you go looking for trouble! You find it.

 

[XJSuperman]

Its what I do best. I get paid to break things, and it happens to carryover to my life outside of work. Can't take a hammer and a cutting wheel to software, so I do it at home.

 

[Gluckmysock]

Ha ha
It's most excellent therapy!

 

[XJSuperman]

Patched up that area this weekend. Needs some touch-up. Then onto stiffeners I think.

 

[Gluckmysock]

Veddy veddy nice!