1986 TMC 102A3 - broken frame members

jraynor · July 01, 2018, 11:45:32 AM

Final 2, the major ones

Dave5Cs · July 01, 2018, 12:40:03 PM

Why your at it check the radius Rod that acts like a sway bar over the rear axle to make sure it is still hooked up and not broken or bent or missing the rubber bushing as well as your other radius rods back there. If you have a hitch check out how it is hooked up that it is not loose or attached to engine rails or pulling on frame. Check engine mounts that they are not cracked also. Just sayin.

chessie4905 · July 01, 2018, 01:06:27 PM

I wonder how much rust is on the inside of those tubes. The way the metal appears pulled around screw holes, it is either fairly thin metal or has rust thinning the metal.

jraynor · July 01, 2018, 01:31:27 PM

Dave, I believe all of that would be seen under the bus. From the inside there is a few pieces of metal preventing me from seeing anything near the axles

Dave5Cs · July 01, 2018, 01:46:30 PM

Yep under the bus in back after blocking it up and look up or over a pit

jraynor · July 01, 2018, 01:49:29 PM

That will be a later day for sure. My goal for the next week while I have it off is to have the new floor in and ready for layout design

peterbylt · July 01, 2018, 06:39:55 PM

The frame on my 89 96A3 was cracked in two of the same spots.

The steel in that area is surprisingly thin.

I just beveled it and welded on the driver?s side, on the curb side, I ended up cutting out the area and welding in a patch.

The steel was surprisingly difficult to weld, I ended up stitch welding it with many small welds.

Peter

jraynor · July 01, 2018, 06:59:29 PM

Peter,

That I agree with you on. My first weld wanted to eat right through the metal which was frustrating. For such a member to go fromone side to the other you would think that it would be solid as a rock. This bean for me also has rust on both sides at the wheel wells as well. It's a huge C-channel. What is more odd is that it sits just above the main frame where the rear wheels connect. I would imagine that they had a design change shortly after a few years of making this. So for the rust in the wheel wells, I think I'm going to apply a molded stainless cover that will cover everything from the under side as there's nothing to keep the water from coming in from the underside while inside the body. Anybody know of a good paste/sealant that is strong to cover over screw heads that would work well in the wheel well?

Astro · July 01, 2018, 08:18:46 PM

While my experience is in an MC5, I replaced all my wheel well "covers". In my bus, the front and back wheel well cover plates were aluminum riveted to stainless frame. Due to galvanic corrosion of disimilar metals, they corroded through but the stainless frame was in perfect condition, The corroded aluminum let in the road water which soaked up in floor boards leading to replacement of all the floor panels. What I did was to replace the aluminum sheet with stainless sheet riveted to the original stainless framing. I sealed it with a 3M marine epoxy (5000 I thought) anyway, rivet them, no screws. Use stainless, good flexable sealant and be done with it.

jraynor · July 02, 2018, 05:15:25 AM

Astro,

You were close. It's called 3M marine adhesive sealant 5200. Available at lost in a caulking gun tube. I'll add that to my list of places to go this morning once again

richard5933 · July 02, 2018, 05:22:08 AM

I've used Silaprene Adhesive Sealant before putting my stepvan back together. It seems to hold up well with the body panels I installed. Just throwing it in the mix in case another alternative is needed. I got it from Mill Supply.

luvrbus · July 02, 2018, 07:16:32 AM

You need to check the engine frame rails on your 102a real close that is a major problem area on a 102A,there is one on the MCI F/B page the guy is parting out because it was going to cost to much to repair

Dave5Cs · July 02, 2018, 07:40:54 AM

Quote from: Dave5Cs on July 01, 2018, 12:40:03 PM
Why your at it check the radius Rod that acts like a sway bar over the rear axle to make sure it is still hooked up and not broken or bent or missing the rubber bushing as well as your other radius rods back there. If you have a hitch check out how it is hooked up that it is not loose or attached to engine rails or pulling on frame. Check engine mounts that they are not cracked also. Just sayin.

From above

luvrbus · July 02, 2018, 08:37:13 AM

I read that Dave I just wanted to tell him again so he didn't just focus on the one area,lot of times people get real deep into a A only to find out it has some major problems that is what happen to guy on F/B

chessie4905 · July 03, 2018, 07:06:30 AM

I didn't think stainless steel would cause galvanic corrosion with aluminum. Probably from salt.