My new frame rails arrived this weekend, so it was finally time to start installing them. The first, and dirtiest, step in this install is to remove the old rubberized undercoating from the areas of the floor where welding will be required. This means taking an angle grinder with a wire wheel attachment under the car and slinging bits of goop everywhere. It's slow going , but when finished, the area should look something like this.
Notice the shiny bare metal on the lower section of the frame rail. This is where I will be welding the new section in.
And along the original rails where they meet the floor. Because my car is very rust free and I am adding these rails for additional strength rather than to fix rust, I will be leaving the original rails in place. I haven't decided whether I am going to leave factory undercoating on the original rails or strip it and apply POR-15, like I will be doing on my new rails. Using a weld-through primer on the sections to be welded, both methods should provide enough rust protection, especially considering I don't plan on driving this in weather or on salt.
Next it was time to mock up the new rails to see where they need to be trimmed or adjusted. These rails aren't exactly the same shape as the originals, and all of these cars are a little different, so a bit of massaging is often required to get them to fit perfectly. I may box in the section from the TC bucket to the new, wider rail.
As you can see here, there is a section of the original rail that bows downward, keeping the new rail from being flush with the floor in the front. A little coercion with a hammer should get it to fit perfectly flush. More on this tomorrow.
-W.W. SBSS
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