So my rust bucket, i mean truck I bought has/had a good amount of rust. enough to the point where i replaced a cross member that holds the gas tank up and is part of the frame from a junker. If i go underneath it and hit the frame with a claw hammer it rains down dust and debris like a hurricane.... ok, not that bad but pretty bad. bad enough that i don't wanna go under there without wearing eye protection. I've got most of the loose stuff out and all the important parts of the frame look and feel solid. HOWEVER, the rear of my frame is in bad shape. I'm talking (and keep in mind it's a shortbed) right behind the leaf spring bracket where it connects to the frame and the rear bumper. the frame is rusted to the point where the top and side portion of the frame just about completely rusted through. This is inbetween where the leaf spring bracket sits and the bolt holes for the bumper. Even the metal from the bumper back part of the frame looks in bad shape. The only thing holding things together here are the bottom rail of the frame. So if you picture the frame rail as "C", only the bottom portion of the C is still solid (or at least somewhat). My rear tank leaks so I plan to replace that which I'd have to do anyway to fix the frame. Also the rear bed bolts where it connects to the frame will probably rip right through the rusty frame rail when I try to take it out.

Question is, if I take out the spare tire, the rear tank, take off the bed and bumper I should have a clear shot at the frame. I don't weld and have no friends that do that type of serious welding so the yellow pages and craigslist are my friend. That said, would I need to supply a new piece of frame rail for them to fix it or would/should they already have steel they can put together to replace it? I would assume I could drill new holes in the replaced portion of the frame to mimic what's currently in there.

It's not a high priority fix right now but something I'd like to do sooner than later. It looks solid enough I could pull a simple 16 foot motorboat with what frame there is but i'd prefer the peace of mind knowing I have good solid connections from my truck to the boat trailer.

 

In my opinion, there comes a point where it no longer makes monetary sense to keep
something running, and that point usually involves the frame. I know a lot of guys here think
otherwise and it actually looks to be not so hard to work on once you remove the bed, but...
if it has deteriorated that badly in the back I can't imagine the rest of it is too far behind, and
this provides for the suspension & support for the entire truck. I've seen pix of trucks with
broken frames after having put a big load in the bed, for instance.

Just my opinion. To answer your question, I'd imagine it would depend on what the specific
guy who's doing the welding has to offer, but I wouldn't generally expect those guys to have
frame material just lying around (although they might).

 

I concur about frame rust thru = too much risk/effort to repair.
There is always the option of finding another frame to swap your drivetrain and body onto, if they are solid enough to make it worthwhile. Since the frame didn't change between 2wd and 4wd, you're not limited to finding an exact match in that regard.

 

What I've done in the past is just put a patch over where the frame is rusty and weld it in and put in the correct holes. The best way to prevent rust is to remove all loose debris, this loose stuff collects moisture and causes things to rust worse. I would take an air hose and blow everything off, then take a wire wheel to it and blow it off again, this should give you a better idea what you are working with. If you don't want to weld it, bolting a patch in would be another option. Drilling into a frame is not easy, but can be done. After you have your patch(s) done I would highly recommend painting everything with por-15. This will prevent more issues down the road with rust and makes it look all pretty.

 

ehhhh, the frame, except for those 2 points i reference above is in good enough shape that it has some years left. the rust spots are in a place where the frames only real purpose is the bumper and last 2 bolts to hold up the bed. not the end of the world type of a spot but obviously a cause for concern.

i'm not interested in going through all the work of transferring everything onto a new frame. that's just too much work.


i'll try to take a few pics tonight to show you guys what i'm referring to. hopefully it's repairable.

 

Repair is likely doable. But, the real issue is how solid is the rest of the frame, particularly where the suspension mounts, and where the replacement sections would be welded to. If the frame is weakened too much where the welds will be, the frame can rip apart rather easy. If it's too weak around the suspension mounts, or in between the front and rear suspension, it can easily buckle under even normal driving conditions.
Rust is a nasty thing, as it can do a lot more damage than the eye can see. Many times, this damage is done in areas that can't be easily seen, nor cleaned out. Stopping the rust, once it has gotten a foothold, is extremely difficult. Sandblasting and a through inspection is needed to verify overall integrity.

 

wow, thanks for the information but this is making me really really depressed. i've put at least $2,500 into a truck i've owned for a little over a month and have put maybe 2 hours of driving into so far. not to mention the countless hours working on it and thinking about working on it and what to work on when not working on it. ughhhhh, a real punch to the gut.

 

If the damage is limited to what you say, it's doable. Take a big hammer and beat the whole frame, don't tap on it, and see if anything else shows up. A good welding shop usually has material laying around to fix it or can get it fast enough.

 

Personally I'd pull anything good off the truck and scrap the rest. Not worth it. How is the body? That a lot of work/time/money there to make that nice again. If the frame is that bad aroudn the rear shackle area (which it sounds like, to me), if you can't do the work yourself you'd be better just getting another truck. '80-'96 trucks are cheap. I know you siad you don't want to swap all your parts to another frame, but if the rest of your truck is solid and in good condition it would be your cheapest option. Pick up a non-running or beater truck for a few hundred bucks and swap it all onto that frame. While it's at bare frame you can prep and paint the whole frame, then clean and replace parts as necessary when swapping over.

 

Sorry for the delay but here are some pics of the back part of my frame that I was referring to a couple days ago. The latest theory is that a PO used to pull a boat and when he launched he sunk the *** end in salt water.

Here's the driver's side shot from the outside. It's in better shape than the passenger side. You can see where rust has gone all the way through near the bumper connection. That's where the worst of it is on both sides:





Here's the passenger side. It's obviously in worse shape.




I found some welding experts, one of which is retired and not going to do the work but has done things like this before and going to give me an honest opinion. Hopefully with a good sanding down a plate can be welded on or I can find a donor truck and torch the frames off the ends of both trucks. That might be best because I think that cross bracket at the rear end for the frame is probably pretty beat up as well.

 

Ok, after seeing those pics, it looks repairable to me. Mostly from dirt/sand/salt getting around the bumper mounts, and not getting cleaned off good. Having the added reciever hitch also makes it a bit worse, as it's harder to wash the stuff off good. It's not as easy to direct the spray from a wash wand into the frame rails with that hitch in the way.

 

Don't feel daunted - if those photos show the full extent of the problem, it's all repairable.

Strip down as you mentioned in the opening post & if you can get the matching section of chassis from another F150, it will cut down on the labor cost of the job.

If there is any rusting under the rear spring mounts, don't be tempted to leave it - cut the rivets & remove the brackets so you can get a good repair..... it's not that much more of a job for a much better result.

Looking at your photos, if you do all the stripping/reassembly yourself, the labor for the cutting, prep & welding will probably only be 2-3 hours (using a section from another chassis) for someone to do for you.
The strip & reassemble part of the job is, by far,the biggest part.

Just be SURE that the rest of the chassis justifies the work.