Posted by Keith in Washington [24.41.55.51] on Monday, September 01, 2014 at 20:04:31 :
In Reply to: cracks in cab corner posted by jerryinidaho [24.49.176.137] on Monday, September 01, 2014 at 18:35:00 :
Nothing you can really do except keep it well waxed for the short term. Are there cracks on both sides in the same place?
Long term you need to repaint that area after reenforcing that body seam. The door frame may be flexing at the point where the crack starts. Reinforcing the door frame may help prevent future cracks. I have cracks in the same area on my 51 PW. That is what happens when you have a steel body on a flexible frame.
I assume that that it is a spot welded seam and possibly a weld or two have broken. I would consider welding the seam shut from the outside of the cab along with some internal reinforcement. You might consider grinding the inside of the seam flat then putting a patch over the seam. I would not fully weld the patch on, but would either stitch weld it or spot weld it.
Wat ever you do you are going to mess up that beautiful paint job. I might consider leaving it for a while and keep an eye for any rust. I am sure that the truck is kept in a garage which will help a lot.
My WC53 Carryall was stressed fractured everywhere. The tailgate opening had cracks at every corner as did the doors and the windshield opening. The door posts were no longer connected to the floor pan. the dash was no longer connected to the body. The side seam was splitting open on both sides. It was really a mess. Thank goodness there was minimal rust and few dents. I spent a lot of time welding and reinforcing the fractured areas. So far I see only one minor crack that has appeared below the tailgate. Like the Power Wagon it is a semi rigid body on a flexible frame which means it will crack.
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