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82' Cracked Frame Advice

AGJeeps

New member
City
Alpharetta
State
GA
Hello all! I am new to the forum and have found this to be a great site to learn about CJ8's. I am not new to Jeeps as I have previously owned a YJ, TJ and JK but am looking to purchase a CJ8 as a third vehicle for fun. I am not interested in taking it off-road, it would be more so a mall crawler and something to take out on nice days. That said i have found an 82' SL that appears to be in overall good condition except for the small crack I found in the frame above the driver side rear spring hanger. I am attaching a photo for reference. It does have a 6" lift with 35 inch tires on it. My question is 2 fold would this scare you away from buying it and what is the correct way to fix it. I would have a shop do the repair if I moved forward with purchasing it as I cannot weld. I appreciate any advice. Thanks
 

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certifiablejeep

Definitley Certifiable
Lifetime Member
City
Bedford
State
NH
Well, that "lift" is interesting to begin with... do you have pictures of the other side?
My guess is since they lowered the spring to where it is not supposed to be, it started to add more stress due to the leverage.
My guess also is that the other side either has cracked, or is about to.

cb
 

sdsupilot

CJ-8 Member
Member
City
OKC
State
OK
All of the above. The inner frame rail is thinner than the outer (at least it was on a 7 and 8 that I have worked on). I patched the from of a rusty 7 that ripped that spring mount out. Rust was the root cause the spring hanger cracked and ripped. That jeep was rebuilt this winter with a new/different frame. As long as the frame isn't rusty it could be patched, but I would be very cautious realistic about repair costs. Then, adjust vehicle price accordingly.
 

jammer1

Scrambler Junkie
Lifetime Member
City
Maple Hts.
State
Oh
You could have it welded but like the guys above said it will come back (probably much worse). The spring mounts must be one piece and the mount to the frame must be larger to spread the force out. The newer high lift kits for trucks usually include new arms and mounts that are much more beefy than the stock mounts. I hate to see what the shackle part of it looks like.
 

CJ7Pilot

18436572
BENEFACTOR
Gold Member
Lifetime Member
SOA Member
City
Yuba City
State
CA
Welcome! You've been offered some great advice, and I agree with all of it.

The sketchy lift would certainly cause me to look more closely at other "mods" done to this Jeep, and how they were executed. Un-doing and re-doing someone else's work can be more expensive and time consuming than just finding a basic Jeep and building it from scratch.

That frame repair is a big deal, and if you're not looking to get in to a major project, you might be better off passing on this one. :shrug:
 

AGJeeps

New member
City
Alpharetta
State
GA
Thank you all for the sounds advice. I was a little worried when I discovered the crack especially the location as it seemed like it might be a difficult place to repair given the hanger is right there. I don't have a picture of the inside rail but didn't notice it cracked at first glance. I think I will let this one go and look for another. The last thing I really want to get into is replacing a frame. Thanks again!
 

jammer1

Scrambler Junkie
Lifetime Member
City
Maple Hts.
State
Oh
If you had pics of the inside and outside of both mounts (also check front mounts), the repair may very well be a easy repair for a good welder. It just wouldn't hold up to the half **s lift that was put on it. Imagine you digging wet clay dirt in your back yard with a 2 foot shovel. Now imagine digging the same dirt with a 6 foot shovel. The leverage of the long handle takes less force to dig. You now have the 6 foot shovel. The jeep came with a 2 foot shovel. If your plans were to lower the jeep it would be less stress and a simpler repair (with a higher success rate). Depend what you want to do and the cost. I could imagine a good TDK frame would crack the way they did the lift.
 

jpnmaine

Well-known member
Member
City
East Wilton
State
ME
My 2 cents... The hanger will need to be replaced, or if the shop is good they can refind center of the welded up hole and re-establish the original mounting hole...or for that matter getting close and being accurate on both sides x2, and cutting off the extended overhang to restore oem. If the frame is solid 3/16" outside, 1/8" inside (i believe), they can die penetrate the crack to find the ends, drill and gouge out the crack and reweld. I am assuming the crack is probably on the inside as well and has propagated from a weld off the mount. Many options, very repairable. Talk with your shop to get a better idea of the work involved and have good pics.
 

83CJ-8

Trying to catch up
Gold Member
Silver Member
City
Lewes
State
DE
I appreciate any advice. Thanks
Does the crack go all the way through the frame or is the weld separating from the frame?

If it were me I would clean it up to bare metal and drill a small hole where the crack ends, grind the crack to a V and weld it. Then grind it smooth, weld a guest over it going past the spring mount 3" FWD & AFT. Maybe even drill a couple of plug welds in the quest to the frame. Then I would clean up and inspect the other side and weld the same size guest there. Typical farm fix.
 

Randyzzz

Blown Budget
BENEFACTOR
Gold Member
Lifetime Member
SOA Member
City
Redmond
State
OR
Agree with what has already been posted. That shackle hanger is half on with 2 rivets from the bottom of the frame and a weld where that crack is. I would guess there is more damage than just that crack judging from the dusty red appearance at the front bottom of that hanger. I’ll bet the bottom around the river is cracked out too. If you were to get a great deal on this Jeep, and the rest of it isn’t as poorly engineered as this part of the lift, then repairing that issue isn’t really that hard and will end up with a stronger than stock result. But by all means return it to the stock design and get all lift from the springs.
 

Mancunian

Lifetime Member
Lifetime Member
City
Bridgeport
State
WV
Looks like the OEM weld was incomplete at the aft end and it then cracked where the weld was?
Like others I would recommend removing the bodge.
 
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