Ok what I was hoping was going to be a simple front rail extension replacement has turned out to be more. After getting it all out of the way it looks like I need a piece in the front frame rail. After examining the area maybe 4" by 6-8" of the front rail is gone do you all think that a repair will be sufficient or am I going to have to pull the entire frame rail. Keep in mind also I am adding a torque box (not there on a 66') and a set of sub frame connectors as part of the total restoration. I was thinking a patch panel out of 14 ga. to replace the missing metal and perhaps some sort of stiffener welded inside to connect the frame rail and the extension.

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And some shots of the cut out floor.

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These pictures sure make the rust look worse lots of surface rust but I am cutting all the bad out trust me.

 

I have done allot of upgrades and repairs on past cars but I never took on a job like that. I give you guys credit!!

 

Now that you have it torn down that far, I think I would just replace the entire front rail with a new one. That way, you won't have any fitting issues whenever you go to weld in the torque boxes and sub frame connectors. Besides, what you have left for a front rail doesn't appear to be all that strong in the first place.

 

it depends how long you want to work on this. i just replaced my driver side frame rail and extension it seemed like it took forever. its a good idea to replace the frame rail but it is a whole lotta work. the suspension needs to come apart the sterring does too, then cuting out the old one is the hardest part because nothing will come out cleanly. after that you need to fit the new frame. youl also need to find un finished nuts to weld in, get them in the right place and weld everything completly.

 

Ok I spent most of today on this area trying to make an assesment. Everything appears to be very solid with the exception of the one area. I started cutting to get an idea of how far the damage really is and the damage doesn't extend much past what was in the above pictues (a lot of surface but not much real damage). The area that rusted is basically where the frame extension overlapped the frame rail. The outside is very solid and the rest of the inner piece as well. I also test fit the torque box/frame extension and had no issues with it. I was thinking a piece of angle iron or box steel (I can get a piece of 2"x3" to fit I think)welded into the frame rail and extended back into the extension past the normal overlap then with a patch for what is rusted the joint would actually be stronger and I wouldn't have to remove/replace the whole thing (I really, really don't want to have to do that) I know I have seen the rear frame rails done in a similar manner where the rear part was bad or gone and it was replaced with extensions with an overlap joint.

 

You are the one who can assess it best by being there and pinging with a hammer to see what damage has been done. What you are suggesting will work if you have enough good steel left to make the patch.