Who here has been riding on frame patches for a few years?

Joseph

Joseph

TJ Enthusiast
Joined
Aug 20, 2018
Messages
392
Location
North Jersey
Hey everyone it’s been awhile. Jeep runs solid now but it’s still sitting on two more frame patches needing to be done, by the rear trailing arms. It’s getting decently bad the more I drive it, and the arch and spring perch is starting to catch up. I’ve already had the center sections done - one for 2.5 years now and another for a year. They seem to be holding up well. I had them professionally done at fab shop using their own patches.

I was wondering if anyone wheels a TJ with few frame patches and how they feel about it. And how long they’ve had it. The Jeep is still sitting stock but I’m at the point where I either wanna lift this, or cut my losses and take a trip down south to find a nice LJ. Trying to outweigh the pros and cons of spending the extra money on a clean rig, only to take it up north.

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My buddy wheels the crap out of a 2000 TJ with a frame that has been patched on both sides of the rear, near the control arm bracket where they all seem to rust/crack near the hole in the outer frame rail. He doesn't seem to mind, and its solid enough when you flex it hard it stays in one piece and still drives straight. Eventually you'll run out of good metal to weld into. I'd get an opinion from the fab shop you use before and go from there.
 
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Nothing wrong with frame patches. I can't imagine you'd run into any structural issues with patches. If you are going to continue to drive in the salt I wouldn't go get a nice LJ just to ruin it in a few years.
 
Frame swaps are a pain in the neck. Finding a frame irritating to say the least. And if you have no space, it is going to suck. Since the frame is already patched, I'd just huck some more patches on there. Ride it out for another few years and if you want to keep it then, swap it. Swapping frames just to drive in the salt again doesn't make a whole lot of sense.
 
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You can check carpart.com and search salvage yards nationally. Some will ship, but a frame would be spendy. I used to buy a lot of stuff from this site when I was flipping cars. Found its almost always easier to just call the yard that has the part and deal with them directly.
 
I wheel frequently. My frame has Safety Cap section on both mid sections. They have been on for about 4-5 yrs. I have zero concerns.

I’m retiring soon to a less rusty area of the country. I’ll build another Jeep if/when this frame bites the dust. I’ll source it from where I’m moving to.

Do you plan on staying up here in the NE? How bad is the new rust damage?
 
I had Auto Rust Technicians, the makers of Safe T Cap, install my caps about 2.5 years ago. Full length on both sides. They cut out all the rust, then sandblasted the entire undercarriage, installed the caps, and undercoated. Expensive, but my TJ looks amazing considering it's located in the heart of the rust belt. I have zero concerns about the integrity of the frame.
 
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I think a problem that some people have is they only replace what's broken at the time. When I bought my TJ, the driver's side lower control arm mount had fallen away from the frame. The guy I bought it from told me, "It's only $300 or so to have that frame section replaced." When I got it home and gave it a good look, I decided to cap both sides. I went from the lower control arm mounts on the driver's side and on the passenger side went from the front lower control arm mount to just in front of the lower control arm mount in the rear. You can't fully inspect it until you start cutting frame away either. The rear lower mount on the passenger side was the only one I felt was still 100%.
 
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bromel said:
I have zero concerns about the integrity of the frame.
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Same same. I’ve had mine done a couple years ago, and I’ve overlanded all over the country, done jeep badge trails, sand dunes, etc. Really have no concerns as the steel used is actually thicker and stronger than the previous frame rails. But that is only as good as the welding job, so have a good welder do the job and your good to go!
 
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I did my 2000 tj 3 years ago and have wondered the same thing.The frame was repaired and painted.I also did front floor pans.It is also in the rust belt.I have fluid filmed it,put in drain holes and have only driven it in the summer since.If I were to try and lift it I am sure rusty body bolts and other issues would crop up. I would either replace the frame or find a nice clean one if I were to lift it .Right now I don't really beat it ,just enjoy it stock.
 
Interesting to read everyone’s input from who’s had it done or know people had it done. I’m starting to get a nice four finger hole behind the driver rear trailing arm and I’m sure the passenger side is getting there. I’m not sure how far it is really spread though since I haven’t taken a good whack at it. My whole Jeep really just felt like a can of worms for two years. Needed to have a daily for work though so what could I have done besides keep fixing it?
 
Joseph said:
Interesting to read everyone’s input from who’s had it done or know people had it done. I’m starting to get a nice four finger hole behind the driver rear trailing arm and I’m sure the passenger side is getting there. I’m not sure how far it is really spread though since I haven’t taken a good whack at it. My whole Jeep really just felt like a can of worms for two years. Needed to have a daily for work though so what could I have done besides keep fixing it?
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Same issue as well behind the trailing arm. Took my Jeep in today for a quote to have someone else do the SYE/Drive shaft because I was too concerned about dropping the skid plate myself and finding rust issues I’m not experienced enough to handle. Had to have been 8-10 years since it was last dropped. It appears strong but there’s no guarantees once the rust monster sets in.
 
I did mine 2 years ago. At first it only looked like the center section on the drivers side was, I started poking around the rear control arm and went right through. I went with the Pocono Metal version since it was 10 gage steel. I also did both side center sections and both rear control arm mounting. I did it myself, I cleaned the frame inside before re-attaching the new piece on, and coated the ID with weld through primer. I also coated the inside of the new pieces before welding, then covered the outside afterwards. I have 4” lift and have been driving it without any issues.
 
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Taking advantage of 20% off labor at my local shop and dropped the Jeep off today. Said by the end of the week it’ll be done (doing both sides of the rear arms). I’ll get some pics up of the job when it’s done. So that’ll be:
Two center skid mounts
Both rear arms and area around
Both front lower control arms
Spring perch and track bar mount
 
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Hey Joseph glad to see you you decided to get your Jeep repaired; hope it won’t be too costly, and definitely keep us posted on the results. Go check out the ” Tj rust hall of fame” thread; it’ll make you feel better after viewing my debacle of a frame!
 
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Jeepskate98 said:
Hey Joseph glad to see you you decided to get your Jeep repaired; hope it won’t be too costly, and definitely keep us posted on the results. Go check out the ” Tj rust hall of fame” thread; it’ll make you feel better after viewing my debacle of a frame!
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I looked, and the user with the bad spring perches freaked me out. I don’t wanna deal with that but at least it doesn’t look as bad as the frame. I’ll be giving it a nice POR15 coat in the next few weeks. Save some cash for a lift too, pretty confident in the shops ability to weld a good patch in. Might not be pretty but sure holds up well and does the job. No signs of any issues on the ones already done.
Edited to add a photo of how she’s looking

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