=DIY frame repair=

Is the SaftCap working out? My Tacoma has warranty passed for frame recalls. Concerned about how it will impact resale value. Does it become a "Salvage Title" after you weld it on?

 

Too late - made her fit with a BFH (big fucking hammer)

Overall I'm happy - it's repaired and I have put about 4 thick soaking coats of Eastwood Internal Frame Coating inside the frame and 5-6 coatings on the outside of that section. I'm going to paint the outside with a top coat paint to hopefully seal it all in. I lost about 3-4lbs of just straight rusted steel that I blew/scraped/brushed/vacuumed out of the inside of the rail before I started cutting.

I am having a small section cut out of the passengerside to gain access to the inside of the frame in front of the cab mount then I'll have a plate of steel welded over it but otherwise I see no need to reweld it all up with the full plate at the moment.

Tips:
- fit check it and use a paint pen to mark off where you need to trim off the cap and where you're going to cut the frame apart
- Vacuum it all, get a small long brush to get further up and blow the frame out from the front boxed section
- Prep prep prep, the cleaner the metal the better the weld
- While you have the frame cut open spray some of the internal frame coating inside by hand so you can concentrate more on delaminating areas
- Safety Glasses and a respirator required for sure
- I did mine up on a 2 post lift so I had tranny jacks holding the front/rear of the truck while it was up in the air
- Move any wiring harnesses etc that are close to the frame cause it gets hot
- Weld in sections and let it cool between areas
- Remove skids and sliders but mark the holes on the frame on the cap because there aren't any in the metal cap that match the hole

See my comments above - as for how long it will last I am not sure - we will see. I have a feeling I'm the first person to do this on here that I know of....

 

Any tips for prepping the metal or getting up into the tighter areas between the frame and the cab? I'm stripping off a layer of por 15 type stuff and a lot of rust. Can't seem to get my angle grinder up where the cap meets the frame top. I'm considering cutting the cap down but I don't want to lose that much.

 

I didn't have any rust on those portions of the squared frame area. All my rust/rot was on the bottom portion of the frame. As such I cut the cap down about 1-1.5 inches down so that we could get to it with the mig. For grinding we used a combination of a flap pad (I think that's the name - or that's what I call it) for prepping the surface, a wire wheel on a air tool and ton of 2inch quick change sanding pads on a right angle air tool (see link below).

Per the instructions from safety cap you could technically cut all the way down to an inch above the corner of the cap and it still be structurally sound. I cut a 45 degree off the inside front section near the catalytic converter because I didn't want to have to remove the exhaust. Also if you don't need to whole section of the cap you can cut and use as needed. I removed the flap that is supposed to weld to the aft crossmember as it was too wide and didn't seem to be necessary for my repair.

INSMA 2" Quick Change Discs 30Pcs Sanding Discs 1Pcs 1/4'' Holder, Surface Conditioning Discs, for Die Grinder Surface Prep Strip Grind Polish Finish Burr Rust Paint Removal

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HZMUNMK/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8


EDIT: I also taped off the weld area after grinding it all down and painted the frame area that would be hidden under the cap with Eastwood Internal Frame Coating. I did the same with inside the cap, I ran a tape line 1/4" around the edge of the cap and sprayed the inside with the frame coating 3-4 layers. All in all went through 4 cans of that stuff on one side of the truck.

 

did you ever end of getting this fixed? How’d it turn out?!

 

I got mine done professionally and it looks great!

 

A couple frame repair specialist places do...you have to search for specialized rusted frame repair shops online.
Check out Safe T Cap in RI.

 

...Hope you did all the proper prep...

 

My post is from 2021 before SafeTCap had 2nd gen kits for sale.

 

Dropped truck off at local shop this morning for rust removal and Saf T Cap install this week. Really like this truck and hoping it’ll be around after I’m gone.

 

Cut out all the rotted metal, scaled down what I could inside and treated it with rust encapsulant. Then sealed it with 2-3 more cans of eastwood internal frame coating, then fluid filmed each side with 2-3 cans of fluid film and capped all the holes with the Toyota plug/cap kit. The truck only see's like 3k miles a year and no daily winters so it's good for now. I shoved a scope in there a month ago and saw no more rust just a f*ck ton of fluid film lol

 

Any updates on this diy style?

Anyone half decent with a mig attempt to weld these preformed caps on? mine is going in the front

 

There is a frame repair in the stickie threads at the top, if you didn’t see. Worth checking out and might answer some questions for you.

Edit: Grabbed the link for you: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/frame-restoration-did-it-myself.368199/