Good morning

Finally finished removing the bed off of my 86 last night, only one snapped mounting bolt... not bad. The frame is looking a little rough. What gauge of metal should be used for this application (10 or 12 gauge?)

It it better to use L shaped metal or buy a sheet and just weld the top patch to the side patch? ie. two pieces (top and side) vs an L shape that is one piece at the corner
Hope that makes sense.

I have a friend that does frame welding, but would like to have everything ready to go, once he is back in town.

Thanks for any input.

cheers

 

, i used a piece of plate steel, the same thickness as the frame. then i used a piece of 2x2 1/2 by 1/4 inch angle iron under the frame rail. I welded the angle iron, 2in on the bottom, 2&1/2, inside the frame. I welded at the spring hanger first, then I started heating it & forming it to fit the frame rail.

 

I patched mine with 1/8" plate steel. I cut out all the bad and welded in new sections. I did a triple pass weld on all the seams. Its hard to see in this picture because of the rust encapsulator thats already on. Ill try and get you some pics of the bare patch. But here you go.

 

Im not sure how it looks now because I sold the truck shortly after I fixed the frame.