Front Frame Damage

All of the frame had light surface rust. But the area around the step’s RH outrigger & the outrigger itself was a disaster. As mentioned on another page, varmints had taken up residence in that particular outrigger. I can only guess that they tried to chew their way through the main frame C-channel since the severe damage is so localized.

For the repair, I moved the wiring harness out of the cross member and mounted custom made ell brackets of ¼ inch steel plate on either side with Grade 8 fasteners. Sorry, no pictures of the repair. I would lie and say the camera broke but the truth is I made the brackets, and my welds, while strong, are not that pretty. The brackets were not welded in because of the fire hazard associated with me doing the welding.