Fab work needed

[xaza]

I am looking to get frame stiffeners installed on my XJ. I want to be part of install, grinding, prepping and whatever I can. I eventually will be going with an exo cage. We have a new welder at my work who is willing to install it. Not sure he has any experience in frame stiffeners. He is a young guy but his welds look great. Is this something I can trust in his hands or are there things that need to be done in a particular way that would be better to let one of you guys do?

[Patrolman]

Since you really don't have a frame, but a unibody, it is a little different and more complex than it would be with a traditional box frame. I know a lot of unibody frame stiffeners are bolted on rather than welded. The stiffener obviously needs to be fabbed, which requires the welding part. Unsure of the XJ typical setup and if it bolts on. There is a lot of XJ wisdom here who may have more input.

[Robert B]

all i can say is make sure his welds are strong.......i know a guy in the springs that has perfect looking welds but they dont always penettrate enough to hold up.......wheras mine look like hell but never break....just a tip for thought but yes i agree with jeff unibody is much harder to work with......good luck with the exocage!

[tonkatoy]

you should talk to skiny fab. aka john the welder :2c:

[xaza]

I think these are the stiffeners I am going to use
http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com/catalog/XJRAIL.html

[Chris]

Yeah, there are members that can weld! Pretty welds mean nothing, penetration means everything. As Pete always said "ugly can be ground down"

[Java]

you should talk to skiny fab. aka john the welder :2c:

x2. I haven't used him personally, but at Yankee Hill I got to see his work on GlacierPaul's front bumper and his (John's) entire LJ... IMO both were great, really nice details.

[Rob]

you should talk to skiny fab. aka john the welder

X3 on John.

[Hypoid]

I think these are the stiffeners I am going to use
http://www.ruffstuffspecialties.com/catalog/XJRAIL.html
That is a nice product! If I were to buy a set, it would have the fold at the floor pan.

Being a good welder is a starting point. Problem is, many a good welder thinks that more linear inches is better. Best case scenario, they waste a lot of material. Worst case, they compromise an assembly by welding the wrong area, or using the wrong process. It sounds like John Q should have a handle on frame/unibody work. I've only seen pictures of his work here.

Sean (1freaky1) has autobody and welding experience, but, he has a regular job. Jon (popsgarage) has a lot of time under the hood as well. Again, the guy has a regular job. If they want to take this on, they know how to post. :)

:2c:

[Popsgarage]

I happen to know a kid who's done it on his, and he happens to go to Warren Tech for welding. And his welds are very good both in looks and actual penetration. I believe he posts on NAXJA. I'll get you his name over there. I just don't have the time. The RuffStuff stiffeners are the ones I'd use if I owned an X. He did his with 20 gauge, I believe.

[Cr33p3r]

Thank you Mike for mentioning Jon and I as for me currently I have no room in my garage to bring in a vehicle to work on. But I did read up on the stiffeners that RuffStuff sells and there are a few good points that they as a manufacturere has addressed with their part;

"They are certainly as well made as any of the rest but have some very definate improvements to boot! Where the others stop the Cap at the floor creating a very long stress riser on the very weak floorboards, ours continue 1" onto the floor itself spreading out the load further and increasing the lifespan of the body."

Also they are made out of 3/16" steel which is plenty strong enough. Biggest thing to look for besides pretty welds, is the process used when welding on body panels (which basically is what a unibody is made from, same or close to same material thickness even layers of same) When doing thin materials(sheet metal) you do not run a bead longer than 1" at most, I usually run 1/2" beads on 20-22gauge and 3/4"-1" beads on 16-18 gauge that insures not or fatiquing the metal properties. Something to look for when looking at welds is the blue rainbow as I call it, this is the heat trace (going outwards from the weld) that good or lacking penetration was achieved. It should be a minamum of 1/2" outwards of the weld on thinner metals and around 3/4" on medium thick metals like 3/16-1/4" plate. One problem a lot of people have when welding on body panel material is the rush the work and do not properly alternate the welds, this stresses the metal's molecular structure weakening it and causing premature failures.

Hope that helps you out some.