Quandary

[chiefmiller84]

Have a bit of a quandary. My 305 blew a head gasket back in May on my way to Georgia from Colorado. I assumed my transmission was good. I was waiting on a guy to pull his engine. Well while I’ve been waiting I’ve been doing little things here and there and kind of dragging my feet. Anyway I started cleaning the frame and front crossmembers of all the old fluids that leaked from front to back. After cleaning I noticed all these cracks in the frame. I put up the pictures on my ig page. They’re the latest posts @squareduplowlife. I had a mobile welder come out and weld them up, because I’m not a welder nor do I own one. After a lot of thinking and more inspections I’d feel better if I had a non cracked frame to start with. I found one from a friend for pretty cheap. So I’m going to start a frame up build. What should I do to this “new to me” frame to ensure it doesn’t crack like my original one? I don’t have the funds for porterbuilt or chopping block or really any of those type of bolt in front and rear ends. I don’t have the money to buy a new frame from roadstershop or gsi or anybody else. I’m active duty army with 6 kids and wife is a stay at home mom. You want to talk building on a budget, I’m your man. Lol I had thought about reaching out to companies and starting a 2020 SEMA build, but I don’t think I’d be a candidate since I can’t take off to make a lot of shows to show off people’s products.


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[VileZambonie]

That's a common stress point where cracks form. You can purchase a kit to brace the area. Not to bash, but those welds... Hope he didn't charge you for that.

Anyway, why not pull the heads and replace the head gaskets?

[chiefmiller84]

That's a common stress point where cracks form. You can purchase a kit to brace the area. Not to bash, but those welds... Hope he didn't charge you for that.

Anyway, why not pull the heads and replace the head gaskets?

Charged me $60. I drove 1000 miles with a possible blown head gasket. The back of my truck was covered in oil/coolant mixture. I don’t want to run into a warped head issue and it’s a 305, not the most desirable of engines to save.


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[AMSRocker]

In your photos there is a shot of a weld that is right beside the steering gear box.
This is a very dangerous spot to have a crack! However you are in luck!
There is a kit that you can get off of eBay to re-enforce this spot. Given that you have a crack there it's now a must for you IMHO.

 https://www.roughcountry.com/frame-support-brackets-5040.html?gclid=CjwKCAjwxOvsBRAjEiwAuY7L8kZrJCuC1MWuEIb079OMrc1qi11ITiTuDBC-KKaQlLKOnfkerWXPnBoCx2MQAvD_BwE

I know it says "4X4" but if you read the fine print to the far right is also says "C10/K10 Suburban"  I'd personally HIGHLY recommend that you get one of these kits and weld it into place.

I'm not a welder but many of my friends who are have told me many times that when you have a crack in steel you need to drill a hole and the end of the crack (in the middle of the steel) to stop the crack cold. Welding it might fix it but cracks have a nasty habit of getting past the ending point and past that new weld. Just beware...

I'd also grind down your welds and get some steel of the same thickness and plate over your cracks with a diamond shape plate. This will add extra strength to re-enforce your welds.


Hope this helps and best of luck!