Cracked body flange repair?

[RocketHurricane]

My 400 Chief had a run in with a tree and now my right front corner is damaged at the upper/lower body seam. Both top and bottom flanges are broken away from the body right at the corner for 4-5 inches. Any suggestions how to make a strong repair that also looks ok? I have done a lot of ABS repairs (abs welding and abs goo with fiberglass) on this machine already, but all on the lower hull, mostly not visible and easy butt joint cracks. This one will be visible (if i used abs goo reinforced with glass cloth) and is right at the angle between the flange and the body so not much room to work.

Thanks for any tips.

Tom

[thebuggyman1]

I would suggest a body band for reinforcement, and abs goo it up on the inside.

http://www.6x6world.com/forums/content/265-angle-iron-bumper.html

[RocketHurricane]

Here is a photo of the damage. I plan on inserting a piece of thin sheet metal between the two flanges (so they don't get glued together) and using abs goo to repair the damage, with a little glass cloth to bridge from the flange to the body. I'll use some plywood scrap as a temporary clamp on the flanges so they stay flat in relation to the undamaged portions of the flange.

A metal body band is in future plans. In the meantime, I'll need to do something to replace the staples that where busted/removed in this area. Would you recommend pop rivets or something else?

[hydromike]

Wow, I was mentally picturing far worse damage; that's really not bad! It looks like you'll only have to remove a few staples at maximum. Are you running the stock rubber body seal over the seam? If you use a pop rivet, you'll want to make sure it's short enough that the rubber gasket slips over it again. I think you have a solid plan for repair. Honestly, if you goo it up and let it harden appropriately, and then put a body band on it in the future, you'll probably never have trouble with this area. One thing you can do is to bend up a plate for the bottom side of the body band, so it sandwhiches the plastic between the metal. It certainly won't be necessary, but if you want to go the extra step....

[RocketHurricane]

Yes, it still has the original rubber bumper, but it's a little worse for wear after this incident. The impact did pull the staples for about 18". I just noticed there is a new crack on the opposite rear corner also. The whole body must have been torqued to do this:



and here is what it did to my brand new axle (no, this isn't the ultra rare Attex with front wheel steering!):







As someones tag line says, "I should'a pulled the left lateral in Albuquerque!"

[philipatmaxfour]

As someones tag line says, "I should'a pulled the left lateral in Albuquerque!"[/QUOTE]

You're right by George I've seen that quote before! But I've never seen an axle bent more.

[RocketHurricane]

I finally repaired my damaged front corner. The goo and fiberglass seems to be pretty sturdy, but I still want to put a metal body band on.
Here is the repaired flange:


and with the rubber band popped back in place. Still need to replace some staples with rivets or something:


I also reinforced the crack in the opposite rear corner that my run-in with the tree caused. I will be painting the body eventually so the color of these repairs will not be an issue.:

[blown84gt]

Nice work!

Yep, get you some angle and make a band, one of the best mods I've made on my Max!

[LarryW]

Nice work!

[locolouie]

good job

[rodp]

That must have been some thump, was it a case of "Attex in top, brain in neutral" ?