boxing in the frame

There's a product called weld thru primer you can buy in a rattle can. It's used where body panels are sandwiched together and then spot welded. It will burn off right at the weld but does hold up pretty good around the welded area. Might be an option. I'd still hose some paint over the top of the primer but it may make it more durable....

 

a sawzall will cut 1/8" easilly then finish off with a grinder if needed.

 

or a jigsaw

 

The Diggerjeep originally had a trencher on the back, along with dual wheels etc, and a grader blade.

The frame was not boxed, but was reinforced with 1/4" plate on the wide side of the frame. It is bolted through with 5/8" bolts in several places as well as welded in others.

Someone back in the day when this was made thought that was sufficient for day in and day out abuse.

 

After some forty years of working and building Jeeps and using their terrible frames. I finally went to a 2x4 box-tubing frame for my CJ2A, and you do not know how much of a pleasure it is to work with a frame like this. Now that I have gone down this path, I think it is more work to cut and weld all those plates and then weld them on a stock frame and still not have what a tube frame gives you. Again, just my own view on things!

 

+1

 

I strapped my old frame and it broke right through the strapping. So my opinion is that it's in-effective. I boxed my current frame (M38A1) with 1/8" x 4" flat stock. Full weld beads all the way. But you can't just lay on a bead from end to end. My boxing was stitch welded until all the welds met. Helps keep heat induced distortion to a minimum. I scribed and cut all my plating with a cut-off disc in an angle grinder. I used a hole saw to cut openings in the boxing to help prevent moisture build-up inside the frame. You might also use a weldable primer on the inside of the frame and plates before you weld them in. If you want to see some pics, try this link:

http://rides.webshots.com/album/572022597SUwGVN?start=0

By the way, while I haven't seen a lot of M38A1 frames, I have never seen one that was fully boxed from the factory. Although it's commonly stated that they are boxed. Also, when you get to the rear of the frame you are going to have to use multiple pieces of plate, butt welded together, to make them fit the curves of the frame. Make those butts so they are angled (not plumb). No vertical welds as they tend to be starting points for cracks.