Frame rot 1956

JSRTUDOR

JSRTUDOR

Senior Member
So, I found the ever popular frame rot in the front crossmember of my 56 Ford Mainline. Does anyone make a replacement part either bolt on or weld in or am I going to have to fabricate something? Thanks again!
 
Goodell used to make them. They pop up on ebay time to time.


tee-bird products shows that they have them.
 
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What seems to cause the rot on the front cross-member, lack of proper drainage and/or an opening allowing trash to build-up?
 
The originals had that stamped steel guard welded to the front of it. I think that's the reason for trapping dirt and moisture. The replacements don't have that, so probably will never rot.

Sal
 
Getting hold of a new one; sounds like a business opportunity. Measure it, photo it from all angles. Save the info if you are not a welder.
 
scicala said:
The originals had that stamped steel guard welded to the front of it. I think that's the reason for trapping dirt and moisture. The replacements don't have that, so probably will never rot. Sal
Click to expand...

Actually, the "guard" kinda wraps around the top and a portion of the back and is spot welded to the main structure in a few places. The main purpose of that "guard" is that it incorporates the mounting tab for the front engine steady-rest in the back and it also has a series of guide tabs for the radiator bottom rubber pad at the top of the "guard".
So that "guard" serves four functions: A) the front "V" shaped surface is designed to deflect wind and rain at the middle of the crossmember, B) includes mounting provision for the front engine steady-rest, C) includes guide tabs to center the radiator bottom rubber pad. D) Provides for insertion of the bottom front suspension arm pins.
People who are getting new ones without that "guard" will have to scrap their front engine steady rest, unless they burn the one off the old crossmember, sandblast it and install it on the new crossmember, so they can keep their front engine steady-rest.
What causes the rust? Driving in the rain, especially behind other traffic causes rain water and puddles being thrown back onto the front crossmember, which enters small gaps along the sides and top. The water runs down inside the metal structure and causes the crossmember to rust from inside out. The factory did not provide any protection for the metal inside the closed structure. The frames were not painted until the frames were completely assembled. Same for the frame side rail channels welded together. That's all bare metal inside there, subject to the elements. AND, the crossmember is relatively thin stamped steel.
The factory crossmember has one small hole in the middle of the bottom of the crossmember for water drainage. It is in-adequate, but could be easily remedied with a drill.
If I were to get a new crossmember, I wouldn't accept it unless it was fabricated of minimum 1/8 inch thick steel plate, hot-dip-galvanized, dunked in marine-primer, then dunked in durable gloss black enamel. Only the weld edges at the ends would be masked off along the outer surface so you wouldn't need to remove paint for welding to the car frame. The bottom of the crossmember needs to slant downward toward the back like the original did so that the original "guard" could be installed on the new crossmember without modification. I have seen some non-factory repro's that do not duplicate this important drainage feature. If it didn't have at least three 1/4" diameter holes in the bottom for drainage, I would do that myself.
Even a thin, stamped metal crossmember would probably last two lifetimes if they were A) primered and painted on the inside and B) had adequate water and condensation drainage at the bottom.
The original crossmember on my '55 Fairlane has punched-out slots in the top plate, one on each side of the top of the guard which are wide enough to allow water straight down into the interior of the crossmember. After my frame was sandblasted and painted decades ago, I grabbed a glob of "Duxseal" and smashed globs into those slots to prevent water from entering the interior of the crossmember. Bad idea having those slots there. My '55 Courier has that same factory crossmember, but it does NOT have those slots
 

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The latest issue of Fomoco Times has an add from Goodell Fabrications stating that they have 54-56 replacement front crossmembers . Apparently , they are back in business . (918)636-7071
 
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