I was going to paint some rust converter on my frame today and I discovered this


Is it time to sell and find something else or do a body swap with a rust free fram? The body is in good shape. Its the SE model so it has the huge sunroof and leather seats.
I was hoping to find a rust free trooper with a blow engine or something for cheap and do a frame swap. I also will need something like a cheap honda or something to get me around while I'm doing the project.
Any suggestions would be apprciated.

Heck no.. since the rust hasn't caused any structural problem yet, why swap out the entire frame? I would cut out the bad patch, repair, and reinforce. This will be a whole lot easier, cheaper, and less time consuming than a frame swap for that little hole.

This happened to me right close to that same area and I didn't think twice about patching it back up good as new.


(and I even went on to sleeve the repair you see above for added security)

Here on the east coast, we'd have a shortage of vehicles if we replaced a frame everytime there was a little rust <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

-Rob

Since you've found one spot, now would be the time to break out the wirebrush and rust convertor and hit any spots that have exposed surface rust now.

I did that a couple weeks ago when I did my wheels on my '92.

I am just afraid that the whole frame is rotted on the inside. Now I really miss living in Alabama! Wisconsin kills cars.
Guess I'll take it to a metal shop to get it fixed.

Check the frame over carefully.Once its started at that point where its rotting , its usualy from the inside out.You don't want to se what the frame I am running now looks like <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/scared.gif" alt="" /> The guy that had it before me never sprayed it out after running it through mud , and it was caked on , and still is in some spots under there.Its so hard its like rock now.The frame is rotting from the inside , thats why I am doingmy frame swap , and while I am at it , thats when my 3.4 and body lift are going in.Might as well make everything as easy as possible.First thing I need to do though is get the engine tranny out of the other truck , and the body off , then I am going to prep the frame with rust stopper , just for longer life , then paint it.

I did a little search here and found that someone recommended this Por-15
Has anyone tried this stuff and how did it work. Looks like some pretty heavy duty stuff. I should probly wait till spring and do the whole frame really good. I've got school and work now so I don't have much time.

Por-15 is a very good product. No personal experiences, but from what ive read, heard, and seen, its excellent at what it does!

yea, I've used POR-15... definitely recommend it. The stuff is tough... more like an epoxy than a paint.

-Rob

I took a few pictures of my frame to show you what can happen to a frame that is not washed after off roading , and not protected with anything.Most of the back of the frame is toast , including at least one of the body mounts , which you can see here.










The next couple of pics are along the side of the frame , and one as you will see is the very front , that is also body mount structure behind the grill.











So , as you can see , once the frame starts rotting to this point , its toast.Usualy if there are holes in it of any kind , thats where you better check close for rot.It starts on the inside of the box frames , and can be quite far before its noticed as the outside of the frame usualy looks ok.Once its at this point , you either need to get rid of the truck , or do like me and do a complete frame swap.Luckily I have my frame from my other trooper , so I am taking the body off of it which the back of the truck rotted through the floor , prepping the frame very well , then its on to new fuel and brake lines , engine swap and body lift.All being done at the same time while the body is off to make it easier.

If you think your frame might be rotting instead of rusting , take a screwdriver and start poking the frame , with a fair amount of pressure , mostly in the back area under the bumper , along the body mounts in back , and the sides of the frame.If the screwdriver punches a hole , you have problems <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I'm gonna have to get some POR-15 soon seeing as though my rear body mount is looking pretty cruddy. My frame is holding up fairly well although it looks rusty. I'm gonna have to go through it with a hammer and hopefully no surprises along with sandblasting it. I have a question for Zillon, did you wire brush your frame or sandblast it and how long did it take you? I'm wondering if I'm better off being somewhat gentle and just using the wirebrush instead of blasting the crud out of it. I'm also gonna have to have either buy or have one of my friends fab up a front and rear bumper. After putting my 265's on the troop today, I figured I would remove the mudflaps and to my surprise as I was taking the left rear flap off, that side of the bumper also fell <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/angry.gif" alt="" /> Needless to say it's now hanging because I didn't have any screws around to screw into it. I also noticed that the rear body area near the rear door is looking pretty bad too. I'll try and set up a site and get some pics up, maybe someone on here could suggest a route that might save me some headaches <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" /> or help me realize that I just need to get rid of the Troop <img src="/forums/images/graemlins/frown.gif" alt="" />