frame head re and re ***updated***: now with pics!

[beetlemandan]

I was sad to see that the frame head on my Baja is completely screwed, and now need to replace it. has anyone done one? should I use the one with the chassis support or the one without?

[Jerome]

its not a bad job when the pan is out. Don't even know if you can do it otherwise... And replacing more should be a good thing on an older car right?

[josh]

No dissrespect but whats your skillset? Its a pretty involved repair to do right that should really be done bolted to a frame table......a degree or 2 off on any of the angles will screw your geometry and render your time and pan wasted. Dont get me wrong it has and can totally be done by a dude in his garage but unless the pan is really worth saving you may be better off finding a straight one to swap out???

[beetlemandan]

 the rust factor on my Baja is about zero. the pan is not quite straight from all the rock hits over the years,( think stoved in floors ), and the frame head has extensive cracking. I thought about patching it up, but I'm just welding up 46 years of work hardened sheetmetal. though I could go crazy with the gussets and actually get something worthwhile and reliable...

I should also ask, how is the quality of the replacement frame heads that cip sells? if its sketchy, I really don't want it.

as for my skillset josh, lets say I'm not nervous about this job. and I know what you mean about keeping it straight. I don't want to build something that turns left even with the steering wheel turned right.

[josh]

Ive seen one aftermarket framehead....looked pretty cheeze! If you were gonna do it get a german core for free rather than pay a couple hun for a repop....im sure someone has a pooched rusty pan donor they would scrap?
But if the rest of pan is ragdolled then id say start fresh, by the time you do all the work to yours it doesnt make sense for the cost of a new pan!

[beetlemandan]

I was thinking today that I might request my dads sage advice as he's been welding welding stuff ( think icebreakers and large ships, combined with excavator repair) for the last half century. he might have an answer.

maybe this problem will be the catalyst for a full tube frame Baja?

as for the core donor car, the vw wrecker is a brutal 400 meters from my driveway, that might be a route as well.

i'll post some pics in the next few days and hear what everybody has to offer.

[Jerome]

i do have a reasonable pan id like to get rid of.... you could even run it with the pan halves i think. Just would need one small patch.....

[purple turd]

Theres a vw wrecker in summerland?

[Bruce]

Inspect the donor frame head on the inside for rust.  Even though the steel of the frame head is quite thick, I've seen them rusted right through the bottom plate.

[beetlemandan]

as you can see, a few small cracks have developed from the years of off road use. do you think this is why the car handles funny?

in the second pic, you can see how the welds for the nuts have started to crack. and in the 1st and 3rd pic the crack runs the whole length of the top, all the welds have broken away from the tunnel near the master cylinder, and then has broken away from the pan all the way to the front along the 90 degree bend parallel to the master cylinder.

so has anyone dealt with this before?

[beetlemandan]

i do have a reasonable pan id like to get rid of.... you could even run it with the pan halves i think. Just would need one small patch.....

once again, i'll be in your neighborhood come july for the weekend. I get the feeling we'll be talking business.

[josh]

U call those small cracks?

I bet that monster opens and closes like a mouth bouncing down the road/trail! For an offroad car id tweak the geometry back into shape and notch those cracks out 'n weld them up. I got one of those little magnetic angle finders when setting my geometry. ....made it a breeze!

[beetlemandan]

U call those small cracks?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Understatement

[steveo_32]

roofing straps and lag bolts.......fine

[beetlemandan]

i was thinking soup cans and self drilling sheetmetal screws, but I guess you're right and I should over build it. a fella can't be too safe

[Jerome]

i do have a reasonable pan id like to get rid of.... you could even run it with the pan halves i think. Just would need one small patch.....

once again, i'll be in your neighborhood come july for the weekend. I get the feeling we'll be talking business.

Dude! Those are huge! I'd weld them up myself if it were mine. My pan ain't THAT nice... Oh, and I'll have some coronas in the cooler for you when you come around :-D

[beetlemandan]

I'm thinking more and more that my dads zen  like skills with a welder will be just the right medicine for my geriatric Baja. the pan on this thing really is solid ( rust wise). and I'm looking forward to our annual meetup, hopefully I don't get my annual head cold again that weekend too! I can even wow you with tales of spraying leaded deltron too!