Howdy Grigg --- the front member and the brace that carries the rad are both in place but apparently the one under the engine got whacked out some time ago. The center (3rd from the front) crossmember is the one I have to relocate in order to accommodate the tranny & park brake.
I looked into fabbing a "C" channel that would fit over and bolt onto the frame for the crossmember to attach to pretty much as you described but frankly, drilling all those holes had me as concerned as welding. Hot buck rivets "fill" any hole they are in by compression and almost become part of the frame, but no matter how precisely you drill, bolts will always have some slop. Which I took to be a potentially bad thing, especially smack in the middle of the flexing moment. Plus...getting a drill into some of those spots is a monumental bear with the body on...and it ain't coming off.
On the other side, the story I got (from an old school rodder) was that the pre-war frames were designed to flex...a lot...and welding could lead to fracturing unless properly annealed with a lot of pre & post welding heating and slow cooling. Of course I have also talked to other builders who don't hesitate to weld all over them and even fully box them using mig welders(?).
Just trying to achieve some balance that won't jeopardize the remaining integrity of the frame.
