What's the proper welded frame repair method?

[RidingDirty]

Hey I'm about to start repairing my frame because there are severely rusted portions along the bottom and overall the bottom 2.5" height is pretty thin. The rusted areas are located under the front and rear doors. I will be cutting out the bottom portion of the frame which is severely rusted (marked in yellow in the photos). The top portion of the frame is all good steel, so the repairs should weld in nice. I will clean the remaining inside of the frame and paint over it with a weldable primer and top coat when everything is complete. I bought a 4x4 sheet of 11 gauge (1/8") and will cut out some repair plates. Here are some photos of the left frame rail to give you an idea of what's going on. But both frame rails have similar rust and will be repaired almost exactly the same. My only question is do I replace just the yellow marked portions with new steel? Or do I cut out the yellow marked portions and overlap the remaining frame full height with new steel? I'm going to weld on some rock sliders so I figure I should extend the new steel full height. But I found some photos online that show people only replacing the cut out portions (as shown in the last photo). So what is the correct method? Thanks.

 

[NachesPass4x4]

Have you seen safe T caps? Might give you some ideas. 4-Runner 1996-2002 3rd Gen Archives - autorust.com
I used them to fix up my buddy jeep. We cut out the rust and the caps overlap the frame all the way to the top. welded them in and used Eastwood internal frame coating.

 

[brillo_76]

I have welded patched and used all kinds of methods of dealing with frame rot in 3rd gen and Tocomas frames. 1/8 plate is fine it will work and your doing the correct think by cutting out the cancer metal. You need to get all the rot though and then coat the inside of the frame with rust inhibiting solutions so that you slow it down. You never stop it completely no matter what you do. You can however so it to the point that its almost stopped. My build thread can show you all the methods I have done. I mostly cut out the bottom and plated from the inside. Granted, 10 years later from some of the early patches.. Its best to cut out all the rot and get rid of all the oxidation you can with good metal. Then coat the inside and paint the outside. The paint is used as an indicator, Mostly it will start falling off or flaking if there is an issue. It will also flake if the metal wasn't clean enough and scuffed up when painted too. ( I found that out the hard way too).


I did safety T caps on a tocuma frame. They are pricey and you still have to clean up all the rot coat the inside and then weld them on. They used cold rolled steel and are very good product. I just did this a year or 2 ago so I wont be able to report how they work or hold up for many more years yet.

 

[RidingDirty]

Yeah I was trying to avoid paying for the Safe T caps because of the price. Buying a sheet of 11 gauge is much cheaper. But after calling around to some local mobile welders, nobody wants to re-box the frame with sheet metal. They would rather use the Safe T caps. So while I might save money in steel, I would spend much more money in fabrication time. Looks like I will be buying the Safe T caps to save on fabrication time and technically it will be easier. My main lesson learned here is that Time = Money and also I need to learn how to weld. Thanks everyone for the info.

 

[Spurg83]

First time poster and first time 4Runner owner. I recently bought an '05 Toyota 4Runner and in the process of fixing it up, I learned that it had two separate areas of rust on the frame, each in varying levels of severity, each causing it to fail PA inspection. The dealership gave me the option to replace the entire frame (not financially feasible) or to junk the car (already had a considerable amount of money into it, so not a preferred option either).

I started looking around for frame repair shops and found two in the Lehigh Valley. I reached out to Johnny (Frame Rust Repair Specialists | RustFix | Hellertown Pa) because of the reviews and the photos and videos of his work on his site. When I met him in person his demeanor and knowledge sealed the deal.

Through the entire process from estimate, to scheduling, to drop off and pick up he was incredible. The estimate was fair, drop off was seamless, the work was impeccable, photo and video updates were sent along the way, and the work was done when he said it would be along with the standard of quality I was expecting.

Ultimately, I'm beyond stoked to know that my 4Runner project is back on the road and safe to return to duty as our family adventure mobile.

 

[sugjavier]

First time poster and first time 4Runner owner. I recently bought an '05 Toyota 4Runner and in the process of fixing it up, I learned that it had two separate areas of rust on the frame, each in varying levels of severity, each causing it to fail PA inspection. The dealership gave me the option to replace the entire frame (not financially feasible) or to junk the car (already had a considerable amount of money into it, so not a preferred option either).

I started looking around for frame repair shops and found two in the Lehigh Valley. I reached out to Johnny (Frame Rust Repair Specialists | RustFix | Hellertown Pa) because of the reviews and the photos and videos of his work on his site. When I met him in person his demeanor and knowledge sealed the deal.

Through the entire process from estimate, to scheduling, to drop off and pick up he was incredible. The estimate was fair, drop off was seamless, the work was impeccable, photo and video updates were sent along the way, and the work was done when he said it would be along with the standard of quality I was expecting.

Ultimately, I'm beyond stoked to know that my 4Runner project is back on the road and safe to return to duty as our family adventure mobile.

How much did that cost you for that amount of rust repair?
And does he only do frames or does he work on like the body too? I see some rust by the driver door on mine but my frame still pretty good despite being in the rust belt. Been doing the por15 and fluid film treatment for years to keep it in good shape