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Frame Prep question

wimps81096

CJ-8 Member
Member
City
white lake
State
MI
I am getting ready to begin Prepping the new/used frame for replacement on my '83.

What are your opinions on frame prep, paint, coatings??? What is the best stuff to use to put off the inevitable as long as I can?

I have heard I should drill holes to keep the frame from collecting water. Thoughts?

I appreciate any input. You all the guys in the know.
 

gr8dain

Old and Slow
BENEFACTOR
Gold Member
Lifetime Member
SOA Member
City
Ashburn
State
VA
I did mine a few years ago. I was going to use POR 15, but the frame I bought off of CL had already been blasted and then primered. Since I did not want to re-strip it, I went with eastwoods inner frame sealer. Multiple cans of it. And made a mess of my garage. Then I used a Rustoleum industrial black gloss paint. It has held up well, but there is a spot where brake fluid has been leaking and I need to re-apply. This was a couple of years ago that I did my swap. If I were to do it again, I would do the POR15 treatment.
 

jammer1

Scrambler Junkie
Lifetime Member
City
Maple Hts.
State
Oh
On mine I went overboard. I had them acid dipped. Then epoxy primer inside and out. Than Enamel paint inside and out. Most important is taking care of the inside. Rust rots them out from the inside out, not outside in. If you wire wheel or sand blast and don't do anything to seal the inside it's a waste of time. I sandblasted the 1st build of the cj7, 2 yrs later left the jeep with a engine builder for the winter. In spring when I came back to see the engine I found that he left the jeep sitting out in the field behind the shop. A year later you should have seen the rust creeping out the body holes. 2 Yrs later it looked a piece of swiss cheese. I then did the 2nd rebuild with a tdk frame. Cut up the old frame and the amount of rust and scale was incredible inside the frame. Took a hammer and minor hits would go through the frame. Do it right, this is one part you don't want to cut corners on.
 

AK-RWC

Legacy Registered User
Gold Member
City
south central
State
AK
The factory frame has plenty of holes, but they get plugged up with mud, sticks, rocks, goo, and scale over the years (especially the ones in the bottom that would drain). I remember seeing a picture where AMC had CJ-7 frames stacked up outside waiting to be brought in for paint and assembly, and there was already flash-rust starting, so these things literally came from the factory with rust.

As noted, the only way to do it right is to have the interior of the frame cleaned and coated.

As for me, rather than bother with anything produced by AMC, I went with a new TDK frame and had it galvanized. Since the inside of the frame won't see any rocks scraping across it, I figure this will save it from rusting inside. The outside I went overboard and did a full POR-15 coating: Marine Clean, Metal Ready, 3 coats of POR-15, and 2 coats of their Chassis Coat. This is as much just to protect the galvanization and make it look like a "normal" frame again as much as anything else.

I also cut up the front end of my old CJ-7 frame (the frame had all kinds of rust, cracks, and damage over the years that I finally gave up on repairing). For some reason, the torch kept giving me fits in the bottom half, which I didn't understand until the frame was cut and I discovered it half full of dirt. For an old frame that has seen offroad use, or salt, I'm not sure it's actually possible to get it completely down to metal on the inside so you can get a perfect coating. Perhaps a coating of Naval Jelly on the inside would help as well?
 
Last edited:

wimps81096

CJ-8 Member
Member
City
white lake
State
MI
Great input.


The full por 15 treatment seems to be the way to go. I had planned on that from the beginning but my neighbor swears by the Eastwood.... Multiple coats sounds like the way to go..

How does one go about cleaning and coating the interior of the frame? Obviously thru the factory holes but.... are there companies that do that or just a long attachment for reaching in and spraying in the product.

Is there a brand of epoxy primer you recommend?
 

Rosco1974

Scrambler Junkie
BENEFACTOR
Gold Member
Lifetime Member
City
Oklahoma City
State
OK
Someone posted a hose tip some time ago that would snake down the rail and blast the debris loose. Anyone know the thread to repost?
 

jammer1

Scrambler Junkie
Lifetime Member
City
Maple Hts.
State
Oh
Use a cheap sprayer (bug or weed sprayer). Cut the wand in half. Use fuel line (If I remember correct 5/16") around 3' long between wand pcs. Use hose clamps because pressure cab blow the hose off (pressure builds a little at the nozzle), ask how I know. Hell of a mess. Here's some pics. Do yourself a favor. Don't use por 15. Por 15 dries very hard and has a habit of loosing it's bond and can come off in sheets. Either use epoxy primer or eastwoods frame spray. You'll use a lot of the eastwoods and want to do it twice since it's thin and runs (which is what you want). Spray in and rotate the frame, let sit 2 or 3 minutes, rotate again, etc. Cover floor with plastic and if you want the frame to look good on the outside have what ever cleaner the chemical calls for on hand to wipe the outside of the frame. It will work it's way out any gaps (which is what you want). On the por 15, check this web site and search for por 15. These guys do paint jobs that we can only dream of and know all the ins and outs. https://www.autobody101.com/forums/viewforum.php?f=16
 

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jammer1

Scrambler Junkie
Lifetime Member
City
Maple Hts.
State
Oh
One frames is the cj8 project in one of my treads, other is the cj8 project I started about a month ago.
 

Rosco1974

Scrambler Junkie
BENEFACTOR
Gold Member
Lifetime Member
City
Oklahoma City
State
OK
Use a cheap sprayer (bug or weed sprayer).

That would work. What I remember seeing was more of a reduced sized bullet shaped hose end with holes all around for 1/2"...? Snake a line through the frame, hook it to a HP faucet and pull it back through.
 

jammer1

Scrambler Junkie
Lifetime Member
City
Maple Hts.
State
Oh
same idea, nozzle sprays about 360 deg. Ten dollar pump and hose. When done you just pitch. Would be a real pain in the *** to clean epoxy out of the pump.
 

jammer1

Scrambler Junkie
Lifetime Member
City
Maple Hts.
State
Oh
They both are for bed liner. The one shaped like a paint spray gun will only spray a fan pattern. The other may work, but you would need the hose and a fitting that would spray in around a 360 deg pattern. The gun used around 40 to 60 psi to spray bed liner. would need a good size compressor to up the pressure and have the cfm to push it out.
 

Kane

CJ-8 Member
City
Berlin
State
ct
I did 3 coats of POR15 along with 2 coats of the chassis black as they recommend on the outside. I used a quart for the inside of each frame rail. I set the frame at a 45 degree angle and poured the paint down the inside of the frame until it came out the other side, rotated the frame 90 degrees and did it again until I had all 4 interior sides coated.
 

wimps81096

CJ-8 Member
Member
City
white lake
State
MI
Pulled the frame out of storage and took it to a frame shop to have it checked out. Just to see if they're pro opinion was any more critical than mine. They set me up with a guy who "does all the jeep frames that come in". He claimed it was the "cleanest CJ frame anyone has ever brought in". Said it's a great frame to start the project. Not bad for a $200 purchase.

I figure I am money ahead on a good frame , so I have decided to strip it and have it galvinized. Then I will paint it. Should be a good place to start.
 

wimps81096

CJ-8 Member
Member
City
white lake
State
MI
Frame has been media blasted and is off to be galvanized. Garage has been cleared and prep for paint. I look forward to be building up instead of tearing down.
 

wimps81096

CJ-8 Member
Member
City
white lake
State
MI
The factory frame has plenty of holes, but they get plugged up with mud, sticks, rocks, goo, and scale over the years (especially the ones in the bottom that would drain). I remember seeing a picture where AMC had CJ-7 frames stacked up outside waiting to be brought in for paint and assembly, and there was already flash-rust starting, so these things literally came from the factory with rust.

As noted, the only way to do it right is to have the interior of the frame cleaned and coated.

As for me, rather than bother with anything produced by AMC, I went with a new TDK frame and had it galvanized. Since the inside of the frame won't see any rocks scraping across it, I figure this will save it from rusting inside. The outside I went overboard and did a full POR-15 coating: Marine Clean, Metal Ready, 3 coats of POR-15, and 2 coats of their Chassis Coat. This is as much just to protect the galvanization and make it look like a "normal" frame again as much as anything else.

I also cut up the front end of my old CJ-7 frame (the frame had all kinds of rust, cracks, and damage over the years that I finally gave up on repairing). For some reason, the torch kept giving me fits in the bottom half, which I didn't understand until the frame was cut and I discovered it half full of dirt. For an old frame that has seen offroad use, or salt, I'm not sure it's actually possible to get it completely down to metal on the inside so you can get a perfect coating. Perhaps a coating of Naval Jelly on the inside would help as well?


How long ago did you put the por-15 over the galv. How does it look now. was there any issue with it peeling?
 

AK-RWC

Legacy Registered User
Gold Member
City
south central
State
AK
I did the POR-15 coating on Christmas Day of 2007. With the top-coating, it still looks great. The only place it peeled was one small place where the right front brake line comes through the frame, and I had a leak at that joint that I discovered after driving it for maybe a month. A month of brake fluid, which is corrosive to paint, would also probably cause problems on paint too. When I discovered the problem area, I hosed it down with brake cleaner and it hasn't peeled any further. It's also hardly noticeable.

Feel free to look through my build thread and you'll see some relatively recent photos which show the frame here and there. I just power-washed the underside on Sunday after wheeling and there was nothing about the coating that gave me any concerns. As with all coatings, surface prep is key.
 
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