OP
OP
Deleted member 12951
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Wilson
FRF Addict
well you're lucky I didn't show up with my stick welder good luck
OP
OP
Deleted member 12951
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We got everything welded back. But now we are thinking, how can we make this better.
Asking honest feedback, we are thinking of adding a 6' piece of angle iron along the part that broke to help reinforce the whole front of the bed.
Will that make the bed too rigid or does it move and could this make things worse?
We are wondering if the top shock reinforcement brackets might of caused this issue as the bed in front is only resting on that small part of the bracket and not the frame. We plan on welding a larger plate on those to give the bed more surface to rest on.
@t_j , mentioned ya because I trust your feedback.
Asking honest feedback, we are thinking of adding a 6' piece of angle iron along the part that broke to help reinforce the whole front of the bed.
Will that make the bed too rigid or does it move and could this make things worse?
We are wondering if the top shock reinforcement brackets might of caused this issue as the bed in front is only resting on that small part of the bracket and not the frame. We plan on welding a larger plate on those to give the bed more surface to rest on.
@t_j , mentioned ya because I trust your feedback.
Last edited by a moderator:
t_j
FRF Addict
So there is a LOT of flex in the bed when your scooting down the trail at 80 miles an hour, If you make the bed much stiffer you'll risk ripping it apart at the seams I feel. It seems a better action would be to stiffen or re-enforce the frame/box so the frame flexes less. Maybe a bed cage like the one @ntm built for his rear end would be better suited to stop this than simply re-enforcing the box. I don't think you can put enough bracing in to counter the twisting unless you are coming up the insides of the bedsides and then running some cross braces through the bed.
ntm
Full Access Member
We got everything welded back. But now we are thinking, how can we make this better.
Asking honest feedback, we are thinking of adding a 6' piece of angle iron along the part that broke to help reinforce the whole front of the bed.
Will that make the bed too rigid or does it move and could this make things worse?
We are wondering if the top shock reinforcement brackets might of caused this issue as the bed in front is only resting on that small part of the bracket and not the frame. We plan on welding a larger plate on those to give the bed more surface to rest on.
@t_j , mentioned ya because I trust your feedback.
The way that failed, it looks like the front of the bed was loose.
I'm not sure what you are describing with the shock mounts being the contact point, but if the lateral "rib" was not in contact with the frame, that is likely the cause.
OP
OP
Deleted member 12951
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Bed was not loose. It only got loose after it broke and imagine that then it just got worse. My truck is parked about 45 minutes away at a friends where we are working on it. I plan on going there this weekend so will take pictures what I am talking about with the shock reinforcements.
ntm
Full Access Member
Hard to tell from the pics where the original point of failure was, that would be telling in terms of stress load. The video in your original post doesn't work.
I've had to weld channel across the front of the bed, and square tubing under the "rail" as well, but that was mostly because I had to cut out so much of the wheel well. There wasn't much structural integrity left, without reinforcement.
I've had to weld channel across the front of the bed, and square tubing under the "rail" as well, but that was mostly because I had to cut out so much of the wheel well. There wasn't much structural integrity left, without reinforcement.
Wilson
FRF Addict
I think a video would be better then just pictures do both and have a pretty girl pointing out the spots....
OP
OP
Deleted member 12951
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Looks like Tapatalk and uploading video with Vimeo is no longer a feature. I uploaded the video to youtube and updated my first post.
---------- Post added at 10:36 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:35 AM ----------
You know Jeff, if I knew any pretty girls, I would but I don't.
Prybar
Full Access Member
Rick, I would think that if you rebuild the broken parts well, with a little heavier gauge sheet metal, and extend the repairs laterally with plug welds to spread out the force you should be good for at least as long as it lasted the first time. I would think the rail mounted light bar probably helped tear things up since it is a bit of weight that is adding a bunch of side to side forces or possibly even oscillation to the bed sides up front.
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