Rust hole in frame, dangerous?

[joecool85]

I was getting ready to undercoat the truck and was banging rust off my frame with a 20oz hammer and found that I have a hole, it's about 1" long (see attached). The metal directly around it seems thin, but within an inch or two it goes back to pretty much normal. Behind this is where the "front gas tank" cross member mounts and that is rotted to hell. I can get a new cross member for $110, but I'm worried about the hole in the frame. If you traced a line straight up it would line up with the handle on the driver's side front door. Do you think this has substantially weakened my frame? Is it repairable? Dangerous to drive the truck?

 

[adsm08]

The hole I see is not dangerous yet, but it will become dangerous within a few years. It can be repaired, something best done by a body shop with a certified welder.

 

[Mark_88]

I just found some on my frame around the spring mount...not a big hole, but also found some on the rear mount area when I had my shackle replaced...

If you are planning on keeping the truck it should be repaired as soon as possible...I was wondering who would do this kind of work also and I know a welder in the area who can probably do it...but I remember someone posted a guideline to frame welding...it's on here somewhere, but I didn't search to find the thread...yet...

 

[jhammel85]

I agree w the above.
Not bad now but it'll get worse and I bet there's more that hasn't been uncovered yet. You should get that fixed my someone with a welder (who's very competent and knows what they're doing)

 

[snoranger]

I agree w the above.
Not bad now but it'll get worse and I bet there's more that hasn't been uncovered yet. You should get that fixed my someone with a welder (who's very competent and knows what they're doing)

⬆ This. If you just happened to find this spot... How many other spots haven't you found? Check the frame carefully, especially around any contact points (body mounts, crossmember attaching points, etc).

Don't just go to a buddy with a welder to fix it. Go to a professional... Someone who will do it right. Not Bob down the road with a 110 wire feed welder.

 

[alwaysFlOoReD]

.but I remember someone posted a guideline to frame welding...it's on here somewhere,

PDF file from ford body builders site;
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=9158&d=1358836447
I'm not a welder or knowledgeable about this stuff but felt it was worth saving for someone who can use it.

Richard

 

[Andy D]

I used what I had on hand to repair the mushy frame on the Rat. Steel cut from an oil tank and 3/8 bolts. Not only was it slow, it isn't very pretty. I chopped out the thinnest of the frame and backed up the rest with a piece I hammered out of a 7" x 32" piece of tank. I clamped it to a piece of channel bar and formed it with a mini maul . I ran the 4X 3 angle inside of the rail. The missing frame was behind the LF cab mount. I ran forward to where the front axle is mounted and used those bolts to hold the patch I drilled out rivets and put 3/8 hardware back. I was a ship fitter for awhile. Patching car frames is pretty much the same. Rivet, (bolts) Hammer the snot out of the 2 pieces. Rivet ( tack, I wish). I developed a process keeping the Grand Wags on the road. Not welding is less trouble because you dont have to fire proof stuff.
Other than that, there isn;t much to recommend bolts and rivets. I had to shift the gas line and the brakes and unplug the wiring harness. I had the transmission ,shafts and exhaust out. I had the Rat blocked up high enough so that I could sit comfortably under the tunnel. I used a car tent It was floored in plywood and I used carpet pieces to sit on. I willed myself to devote at least a half hour a day until I sorted out the Rat's various ailments. It took from New Years til April 15th.
The Bed will have to come off and the gas tank removed to deal with with more rot further aft. I saving that for later.

 

[Mark_88]

PDF file from ford body builders site;
http://www.therangerstation.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=9158&d=1358836447
I'm not a welder or knowledgeable about this stuff but felt it was worth saving for someone who can use it.

Richard

That's a good info document...looks like for stretching the frame mostly but patching would be about the same sort of work...

I tried searching for the one I was thinking about...it was one of those long convoluted threads that starts out simple and goes in fifteen different directions...something about an EGR delete to start with...or removing cats...I think it was CKNFKR that actually posted the link...and it was an old manual about fixing frames...

Will try again later if someone else doesn't find it first...

 

[RonD]

Iron exposed to oxygen "burns", that's just chemistry, water increases the rate it will burn, but burn it will with or without water.
So Rust is a combustion reaction same as fire, and it produces the same heat as a fire but it is spread out over time so you won't be cooking any marsh mellows over that frame

This is why cutting off the oxygen contact is best, you cover a fire to put it out(cut off the oxygen), so painted or coated iron has less contact with oxygen and.....less "burning".

Your hole in the frame is a "hot spot", and like a grass fire "hot spot" it needs to be cooled or it will "burn" faster, more surface area.
It was probably at a spot where the factory paint/coating wore out, and a place that was wet some of the time.

Cooling the "flame", phosphoric acid converts reddish-brown iron(III) oxide, Fe2O3 (rust) to black ferric phosphate, FePO4, that's the chemistry part.
Coke and most similar soft drinks have phosphoric acid in them, it adds a tangy taste, but it's in pretty low amounts, but this is why people use Coke on rusty chrome, the phosphoric acid.

"Naval" jelly, was/is used by the US Navy to treat rust spots on the iron ships, which is where it got it's name, it is phosphoric acid in a gel form so it will stick to surfaces that may not be lying flat.
Best method is to clean surfaces with wire brush then apply the phosphoric acid/gel with a paint brush, I usually brush it again after 5 minutes, just moving around gel that's there, then rise it off with water after 10 minutes, then wire brush again and repeat.
After final rinse I let it dry, then paint the area.
You should do this and also have that spot reenforced/welded.

Wear rubber gloves and glasses when using phosphoric acid, also have some baking soda handy to neutralize the acid, just in case.
Phosphoric acid will ruin paint so be careful.

Some people use phosphoric acid and say it doesn't work, well chemistry is chemistry, so either they are not dealing with rust or the method used was flawed.

 

[joecool85]

⬆ This. If you just happened to find this spot... How many other spots haven't you found? Check the frame carefully, especially around any contact points (body mounts, crossmember attaching points, etc).

Don't just go to a buddy with a welder to fix it. Go to a professional... Someone who will do it right. Not Bob down the road with a 110 wire feed welder.

I didn't really "just happen" to find this spot. I was going out of my way to look for rust, hammering (literally) the entire frame end to end every inch or two to see what was bad. This was the only hole I could fine other than a crossmember I'm replacing this weekend (thanks to rangerframefix.com).

 

[JayTee]

I wouldn't be spending any money fixing a frame with that sort of damage on a ford ranger. There are a billion of these trucks running around in reasonable shape, it's way cheaper just to go find another used one and go from there if you ask me.

 

[Andy D]

In MA, most Rangers are junked due to the owners freaking out about frame rot. The typical scenario usually involves a bad brake line , and the guy goes underneath to check it out and discovers that areas of the frame are missing.

 

[joecool85]

I wouldn't be spending any money fixing a frame with that sort of damage on a ford ranger. There are a billion of these trucks running around in reasonable shape, it's way cheaper just to go find another used one and go from there if you ask me.

Considering that the rest of the frame (and truck for that matter) are in good to great shape, I don't think so. Also, here in Maine this truck is as good as it gets rust wise. I'd need to get a 2006 or newer to be in much better shape and I can't afford that. Not sure where you are thinking it would be cheaper to just get another truck. A 2006+ Ranger 4x4, supercab, V6 5spd tow package, offroad package (if I can even find one) would cost me $10-12,000 around here. I could get the whole frame rebuilt from scratch for half that if it came down to it. And for between a few hundred and a grand I could get the whole thing repaired/reinforced front to back.

 

[Will]

It's not an isolated spot. The metal around the actual hole looks about the same as the part with the hole. A lot of metal has been lost in that area. I guess maybe "dangerous" could be a strong word but definitely strength is greatly compromised. Has to be. You can take a new frame and drill a lot of holes that size through it without losing strength. But you have a lot of rust there. I would patch that thing up and keep driving it, but I wouldn't loan it to an orphanage. I wouldn't spent a lot of money on it either.

 

[JayTee]

Considering that the rest of the frame (and truck for that matter) are in good to great shape, I don't think so. Also, here in Maine this truck is as good as it gets rust wise. I'd need to get a 2006 or newer to be in much better shape and I can't afford that. Not sure where you are thinking it would be cheaper to just get another truck. A 2006+ Ranger 4x4, supercab, V6 5spd tow package, offroad package (if I can even find one) would cost me $10-12,000 around here. I could get the whole frame rebuilt from scratch for half that if it came down to it. And for between a few hundred and a grand I could get the whole thing repaired/reinforced front to back.

If your crossmember is rotted to hell and there is a hole in the frame (on a 2000), let me tell you... the vehicle is well on it's way to the scrapyard. It doesn't matter how nice the rest of the vehicle looks or runs.

You can put new crossmembers in, new mounts... that stuff is reasonable. Holes in frames? Speaking from someone who just went over his frame and por15'd it... mine was not even remotely close to what you describe... and it's a 1994 and I live in the great white north!

You can buy a very good condition 4x4 out of California, Arizona, Texas etc and take it home with you. You'll be paying way less than what you are indicating. You don't need to buy as new as you are saying.

You can have a blown engine and rusty body parts. The essential part is the chassis, and if you intent to own this ranger you have long term, you are nuts. Sorry to break the bad news to you...

I had a Nissan Kingcab, same problem frame rot... from the inside of the channels. Nothing you could do about it. I sold it for scrap and moved on. Not worth the money to fix, or the anxiety.

It sucks, but there no logic to spending money to fix it beyond the safety factor to get you to the point you can buy a new vehicle.