Update on frame tears/cracks. So I purchased the patch kit and the brace because I'm and over kill kind of guy. Pulled fender well and steering box with relatedstuff in less than 45 min. Not a bad job. Found additional problems.
Some farm boy (not unlike myself)
tried fixing this before and made some ugly massive welds with out grinding, left chunks missing, installed oversize washers, cross threaded one of the bolts into the box and gobbed about 3/4" of weld between the frame and cross member where the rivet left and a gap remained in addition to other gobs.
I have a good exhaust man nearby, lots of manufacturing time under his belt and all the tools. I worked along side of him and it took us 7 hrs. from the point I had everything out of the way to on the road! This includes undoing the bad and removing the cross member for straightening and bolt install. Not for the faint of heart. We both originally thought it would be a 2-3hr ordeal. A lift is almost a must, especially if you toy is lowered, unless you have the nose off and a good back. A plasma cutter is a great tool tool. He charged me $350 for the job which killed me but I can't complain, $50 hr labor now days is pretty cheap.
It's better than new now. What I didn't figure in is that both patches and the brace need modified, such as bending, cutting, drilling, and forming. And this needs done in stages. Everything in the end has to be happy so your not stressing the steering box tab/ears that the bolts go through and it fits flush. Not an easy job to do correctly. Especially with the area being tweaked already by a steering box tearing away, let alone a farm boys poor attempt at a repair.
All said and done if your paying to have it done you will have a minimum of $200 in parts and figure $250-$400 in labor. Good thing to know when buying your next used truck. Cheers.