Problem with the frame on my 1947 chevy truck

[Zach B]

I was outside cleaning the inner fenders and frame of my truck where an armadillo dug under it and sank one of my tires. When you don't have an engine dirt gets everywhere. Unfortunately I sprayed the frame with the water hose and the the side of it broke out a little where a thin spot was. I was fortunate that it broke out under the first bracket for the running board and it's small. I know many people would see the frame like that and go out and find a new one. I am not unfamiliar with this kind of issue as with on another truck a shock was not bolted down tightly and the bolt caused some fracturing on the frame. That was fixed with a welder, sandblasted, and a can of primer. I figure I can do the same on this but I though I would get some insight on what some of you guys would do first. Remember many frame shops don't want the liability of repairs that extensive so many of us are left to our own devices.
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[crossfire84]

pics would help.

[torchlight]

I think my first concern would be that if it was rusted thin enough to break through the frame with some water from a hose in one spot, where else are you about to have trouble? That sounds like pretty significant deterioration on the frame.
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[Zach B]

Unfortunately I can't upload any pictures that would give you an idea of what is going on on the frame. I can only get to one side but on the inside of the rail is where the real damage is. It's pitted about an inch above the hole and the transmission crosmember is in the way. It will come out for this repair. The hole itself is only about a centimeter tall and an inch wide. Can be filled easily. I was just wondering what others do when there frame gets a small hole in it. I will plate this but I have already looked over the rest of the frame and the only other spot to worry about is behind the on the drivers side. It's got some pitting but I see frames with twice the pitting that this has. It will just be plated back there two no big deal. I know where to get the frame plating kit for it. Both areas are not that uncommon to rust out and most people find them when there is nothing they can do. I supose I got luckey and found the problem before it was irreparable. I will upload picks when I can of what I am dealing with.
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[OrrieG]

Good luck. If I blew a hole in steel frame over 1/8" thick with my water hose I would be under there with a screwdriver and hammer looking for the rest of the rust. My experience has been rust is like an ice berg, you only see 10 percent of what is there. On mine I found a lot of body pin holes that became quarters when I tried to weld them closed. Check the rest carefully.

[mr48chev]

I'm with Orrie on that one. I think that the first order of business is to wait until you can tear the truck completely apart and then examine or have someone who is knowledgeable look at the frame to see how bad it actually is. Good stock frames aren't all that expensive and as there are no serial or vin numbers on AD truck frames that I know of swapping them isn't an issue that way as it might be with a Ford of similar vintage

The bad thing is that if the frame is that bad right there it may also be bad in several other places .

[Zach B]

Ok thanks. I plan on removing the body of the truck from the frame so I can get to it. I need to remove the transmission crosmember so I can get in there and see exactly what I'm up against. I think what happened was the hood was not placed on properly (not even the right hood) so water, dirt, and leaves have gotten passed it and that was the spot that got missed on all of my checking. I have unfortunately been unable to keep the truck under a roof. Don't know that I blew out the hole compleatly with the hose so I do plan on checking but on a visual inspection it looks ok on the spots not mentioned. I don't know what some parts look like towards the grill because I have a bunch of parts in the way but I suspect I need to look at it. The big thing is finding the room to do all of this while there is a boat in the garage with an engine trying to break through the hull. I may have to pull the old tractor out and use the pole barn for protection from the elements. I'm going to have to talk to some people about it. In about two weeks I can have boat fixed so I just have to worry about right now.
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[Zach B]

Good news. I found out that it's the only spot in the frame that is thin. I can simply plate it and it will be fine. The only issue is getting the plate in where I need to because of the transmission crosmember. The other area I can fill.
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[mknittle]

If there is that much rust in one spot only I would be very surprised. The problem is the dust settles in places you can't see and after years of this dust accumulation there is more than one would think. Now add moisture and the Dust becomes mud and holds the moisture.
The outside of the frame can look like brand new on the outside but be as thin as a razor blade.
Plating it could cause a stiff spot causing weak spots at the ends If not done right.

[Zach B]

figured out how to post picks. the problem is that the transmission cross member may have to be removed because i cant just replace this frame with any AD frame. my parking brake layout and gas tank layout are to different.

[PurdueSD]

Thats pretty minor and shouldn't be too hard for an amateur welder to fix. Clean it up cut out bad spot, weld in new metal and fishplate the inside. The key to look for is this an isolated spot? Or is there severe pitting elsewhere?

[Zach B]

The other side has some pitting could not get a pic because the crosnember is in the way. I agree it should not be hard to fix but I was just making sure.
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[mr48chev]

You can drill the rivets out and take the crossmeber out. It isn't the easiest thing to do but it can be done. I'd still strip that frame down and go over it from end to end making sure that is the only major damage.

The right way to fix it would be to cut the rusted area out ( to good solid metal and weld a patch in the hole you made rather than scabbing a patch over it.

[Zach B]

Sounds like a good idea. The only other are for concern is just behind the cab. Not to concerned about it because I it can be fixed easier than this
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