Frame damage
 

At some point this truck had some front frame damage and and a plate poorly welded on to fix it. Has anyone come across this before and is it worth cutting out and properly welding in a new plate? Frame seems to be somewhat straight from what I can tell but it also caused slight damage to the front cross member right below the front most mounting bolt. Truck is getting a 6.0 ls swap so i need the front to be solid. I already have new control arms, springs, steering, etc. so I don't want to go to an aftermarket cross member. Biggest issue is the frame I believe I can properly fix both but looking for opinions. Thanks.

Re: Frame damage
 

I would take it to a frame shop and make sure it is close to correct as possible. You could also re-frame the truck with a straight frame. If you have the title to the old frame, makes it easy to re-title in Arizona. If you think it needs fixed, you might as well do it to your standards.

Was it eating tires?

Smitty

Re: Frame damage
 

I don't really want to re frame it with a different frame since i've already done my c-notch in the rear and mounted my tank and such. I drove it like 40 miles when I bought it and haven't driven it since but it was all over the road.. Everything was worn out in the steering/suspension so I can't say how it did on tires or handling since it all is original and beyond worn out. Is there a way to take some measurements to get a general idea if it's straight or close to it? Are there any known issues with trucks with power steering having frame issues up there? I've heard of that on other older vehicles but this is a little back from the p/s pump so i'm uncertain what caused it. Passenger side looks fine so I'm leaning away from an impact but that's just a guess.

I'll take it to a frame shop if I have to but i'd like to be a little more certain it truly is bent before that.

Re: Frame damage
 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sguZ-gRF9I&t=92s

This will show you how to line up the tires with string, if your front wheels are tracked wider than the rear, wrap the string around the front tires.

Re: Frame damage
 

I've owned a lot of these trucks and never seen any issues with the power steering ones. One thing I do know is if it was a manual steering truck and was changed over to power there is a difference because the camber/caster (can't remember which one at the moment) is different. Makes it very touchy at high speeds. There are frame measurements in the manuals you can reference.

Smitty

Re: Frame damage
 

What are your long term goals with the vehicle. An LS swap is time consuming and I would want it to track straight.

If you go that far, its worth it in the end for a possible frame swap.

Re: Frame damage
 

Thanks for the replies. I found the frame measurements online so i'll start there to get an idea how bad it is.

It may have had power steering added since the fender well was cut to clear the p/s pump and looks like crap.

Truck was originally leaf spring I converted to trailing arms, built the 12 bolt, have a 6.0/4l80e going in. Truck will definitely be at the track quite a bit so yes it needs to be solid and go straight.

Re: Frame damage
 

you can see the frame has had some damage look at the wrinkles in front of the motor mount should not look like that should be flat there

Re: Frame damage
 

Just check the wheels with the string method and that will tell the story. If you can get the wheels to line up, then the frame can't be that bad.
Also, that patch job doesn't look like it has any rust. Maybe it doesn't have pretty welds, but if there's nowhere water can get in, I might leave well enough alone.

Re: Frame damage
 

i just wanted to add something for you, if you havent already torn the front suspension out, check to see how your front sway bar fits. i say this because i had rebuilt the front suspension on my truck, and it still drove like crap. i thought it was because my truck came without a front sway bar. so i added one. one side bolted up fine. and the bar mounted to one lower control arm fine. then when i tried to connect it to the lower control arm on the other side, it would not reach it. i then began to try and figure out why it was not fitting up correctly, and i realized that the front front suspension cross member was damaged. it had been hit at sometime in the past. the frame appears to be okay but that cross member was bent. it like it was rolled and twisted under, toward the rear of the truck. so the engine had to come back out, the front cross member was replaced, the entire suspension rebuilt yet again, and now the sway bar fits like it should. i would not want to see you have to go through all that heart ache. so to make a short story long.... even if the frame measures out okay, use the sway bar to see if the crossmember is true. if there is more than a 1/4" or so of difference in the way the sway bar fits the controll arm on each side, correct it, before going further. you'll be glad you did.

Re: Frame damage
 

I got anxious and tore the front suspension all down right after I took the pic i posted so the string method is out the door. It is a solid weld just ugly, but I cant leave ugly alone unfortunately..

Beautimus- There was no front sway bar when I bought it, probably because it didn't fit..? I got the front cross member pressure washed and it looks to be fine other one little gash in it that I can weld up. Hard to say if it's 100% but taking some diagonal measurements it is square so i'm going to run with it.

Following frame measurements I got online the front is square within a 1/16". I took a few measurements at various locations and everything was spot on within a 1/16". I don't think a 1/16" will give me alignment issues that cant be worked out through the suspension. I'll post up a few more pics after I get the frame pressure washed and repaired.