Crusty Rusty Leaky Squeaky 67 Step

[Vic1947]

Thanks everyone for checking in and for all the support. I'm a couple of days away from getting the old eyeball shaved so I'm trying to get as much done as I can. The frame components are 100% ready to go to Sure Coat and my little brother will be here tomorrow with his pickup to take them down to Sedalia when he goes back. He's also going to look after my Dad while I'm down for a day or two with the eye thing.

Originally Posted by roOstersan

Hey Vic, I was curious why you chose to straight cut your frame instead of the Z cut method. I'm in the middle of a LWB to SWB conversion on my '72 c10 (until a torn ACL and Miniscus from an MC accident took me out for a while).

Everything Ive read said the Z cut was a stronger joint, when you add the frame reinforcements in that area of course.

Thanx again for doing such a great documentation of your build, this is me taking notes!

I'd agree that a Z or staggered cut is a bit stronger, Jeremy. That said, I was unsure of what I'd have to do to make the two halves fit together and be straight. Working off a concrete floor is a poor substitute for a steel flat table. I knew going in that the floor slopes to a drain in the middle, so I set up in the flattest part of the shop that was still accessible all around. I lost all the photos I took of the setup, but essentially, I leveled both halves front to back and side to side, picked my spots and cut the ends as square as possible. Had I used a Z cut, it would have added some complexity to the fitment. Not that I couldn't have made adjustments as needed, but there was so much going on in the X, Y, and Z directions already that I chose to simplify it and stick with straight cuts.

I'm hopeful that the top, bottom and side reinforcing plates will be all that's needed to prevent the frame from cracking at the weld joints. By beveling the joints and using the MIG instead of the TIG, I was able to get full weld penetration without excessive heat. These frames are like spring steel and high heat causes the metal to lose its temper, which is why the OEM's discourage welding on them in the first place. But lots of folks do it and if you use some basic techniques to get around the problems, the results should be very sturdy.

One other aspect of this is the powder coating. All the pieces will be coated individually and then assembled. Where the plates and x-members bolt together, the clear powder will bond together like glue. We've observed this on the slip joints on sprint car frames. If the powder is allowed to get in the annular area, it will literally weld the joint together.