Bad framehead, ditch the pan or try to replace???

vwgtiman · Post by **vwgtiman** » Fri Feb 06, 2004 12:45 pm

Well, I knew the bottom plate was bad... I was going to get a new plate and weld it in but when I removed the beam last night there it was. Two invading dark armys of rust, there mission almost completed. Most of the bottom beam "grips" are gone. Should I buy a new framehead for 100 bucks and weld it on (this will be an alignment nightmare) or should I ditch the pan ( i just spent days and days wire wheeling it and cutting out the old floors.... ) Is a framehead replacement that hard? I think it will be easier then my heater channels.... I checked all the past posts on this subject but no real steps or tips jumped out at me. ANYONE IN PA GOT A IRS PAN FS????

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Sun Feb 08, 2004 11:18 am

bump? any ideas guys...

Air-Cooled Head · Post by **Air-Cooled Head** » Mon Feb 09, 2004 10:18 am

I would ditch it, despite the work you've already done.
The framehead being so important, bettter safe than sorry.
Besides, you only completed step a-b of pan resto, so you won't be losing too much.

Guest · Post by **Guest** » Mon Feb 09, 2004 8:42 pm

Two things

Whats Cheaper.....

Whats more work....

Either way the body is going to have to come off...

Stroker 40 horse · Post by **Stroker 40 horse** » Mon Feb 09, 2004 10:04 pm

You can use your current pan for an off-road Buggy project, (linkpin, tubular, A-Arm) so it won't be a total loss...

bt · Post by bt » Mon Feb 09, 2004 11:48 pm

Hey, got to www.runtrod.com,they have a article on how to replace the framehead

vwgtiman · Post by **vwgtiman** » Tue Feb 10, 2004 5:32 am

Thanks for the link... im undecided. I guess im going wait for a little bit and see what comes up. If I find a pan I may go that direction. If not... I may order a new head.

vwgtiman · Post by **vwgtiman** » Fri Feb 13, 2004 8:29 am

Well, I found a NOS frame head on Ebay for 49 bucks... So, im going to tackle it. Any comments or tips? Im thinking if I do the level thing I will be good. Run a level accross the rear and across the bolts in the frame head??? Then just square it up???

Rescue912 · Post by **Rescue912** » Fri Feb 13, 2004 10:59 am

Check out this resto. Somewhere along the line they replace the framehead with a home grown jig:

http://koti.mbnet.fi/~kaissu/resto1.htm

Pretty spiffy. Take lots of pictures for when I have to do the same thing sometime

Capn Skully · Post by **Capn Skully** » Fri Feb 13, 2004 12:05 pm

Cut the frame head off. Put the body back on, and bolt up the replacement frame head to the body. That will take care of the alignment issues. Weld the new frame head to the old chassis in several spots to assure alignment. Remove the body and complete the welding by adding some gussets and reenforcements.

I plan to convert my Super beetle chassis to a standard chassis this way.

I have a ball joint frame head I'll let you have for $50 +shipping. Send me a PM

Gary

vwgtiman · Post by **vwgtiman** » Sat Feb 14, 2004 4:40 pm

Thanks capn skully... But like I said, I just got a new one for 49. Bolting the body up sounds a lot like extra work to me. Besides, I dont trust bolt holes anymore.

MNAirHead · Post by **MNAirHead** » Mon Feb 16, 2004 3:39 pm

I'd trust Capn's used before a new pressing...

Tolerances on the EEU or South American stuff aren't close in most cases....

I'm qualified to tell you how to botch it -- don't test it with the body, don't bother to alighn it before finishing... I just started to weld the car --- it was quickly gone as it never drove straight again -- chewed tires and was all over the road..... I'm qualified to tell you how to do it wrong.

T.

vwgtiman · Post by **vwgtiman** » Tue Feb 17, 2004 6:21 am

The frame head I have is NOS. As for how to install it, Im not sure. I read the writeup on building a jig on the one site and I looked at the photos. I think im more concearned about weld quality then me getting it true. It is safe to say I will need to do a lot of measuring, and build some type of jig to keep it where I want it until it gets tacked in place. Here are some questions:
Where are the best places to take measurements from?
I heard talk of using long levels across the bolts in the frame head and the body mount spots on the rear of the IRS...
What about just bolting something to the car and basing a small jig off that location, like the website I viewed...?
Sorry, im sure everyone is sick of hearing about this by now...

MNAirHead · Post by **MNAirHead** » Tue Feb 17, 2004 7:32 am

Howdy.

There was a smart poster who suggested putting the body on to align everything... I'd be inclined to have it CLOSE... then do an alighnment with the body on... tack weld and brace the frame... then remove the body to finish up.

T.

vwgtiman · Post by **vwgtiman** » Tue Feb 17, 2004 8:06 am

Forgive my ignorance, but what will the body provide me? Dont I want to align the the head/beam with the rear driveline??? I may be looking at this all wrong...