The Stovebolt Site Forums The Shop Area General Truck Talk OK, so now the frame is bent on 66 stepside

This is a carryover from my post on "sagging front end". The cause has been found, feedback is asked for on my proposed solution. Please read -----

About 4 years ago I hit a deer (not a very large one, about 100-150 lb doe). But I hit this deer at about 55 mph. And while the 'X' brace behind the front grille took most of the impact, after looking at an old picture I took immediately after the accident, the sag is noticeable in this picture.

I measured from the ground up to the portion of the frame where the bumper mounts, and sure enough the side that sags sits about an inch and a quarter lower than the other side. Looking from the side underneath the truck surely enough the sagging side does droop lower.

It APPEARS that just the front part of the frame is bent downward - and the sag is evident on the passenger side because the front clip mounts on this portion of the frame. The effect of this bending of the frame extends to the front fender and has pushed the lower fender rearward to the point of impacting the opening and closing of the passenger side door. The passenger side front fender had bowed enough to accomodate the door opening. But I put a fresh unbent fender on yesterday and can't even get it to mount at the bottom rear, due to overlap with the door.

The good thing is that the rest of the frame (from about 4 inches from the front bumper on back) is nearly level all the way back. Just the front 3 or 4 inches of the passenger side (forward of the suspension) appears to be

My only question at this point is - Is this an easy fix at a collision shop? What should fixing something like this cost? Surely no more than $200-$250. This frame is probably 80-85% rust free - I'd hate to part with it because of something like this.

-ftyler

Oh, one more thing. If anyone's interested, I have pics of the truck post-accident. Thanks!!

Are the measurements on the diagonal the same?

I took on a light pole with a 63 at less than 25mph, and did about the same damage almost in the center of the grill. I was 3/8 out on the diagonal.

Larry

Having owned/managed a body shop recently, I can give you a wild guess. The shop labor rate in your area, and how busy the individual shop might be will have a big effect on the final cost.

Figure at least an hour of setup/measuring time, plus whatever straightening needs to be done. If all that is required is a simple up or down pull, without any paralellogram effect, I'd guess you're looking at a minimum of $200.00. The more complex the pull, the more you'll pay. Measuring the direction and amount of the damage before a pull is made is essential to getting a good job, because the force needed to do the straightening must be applied exactly opposite the damaging impact. Even a slight error in setting up the pull will do more damage, rather than correcting what's there already.
Jerry

ftyler, hitting a deer probably didn't do as much damage as you think.It for sure wouldn't damage the frame to the point of destroying it.Sounds like the end of the rail is down and has pushed the radiator support back causing the problem with the fender/door opening.I don't remember if the 66 bumper bolts directly to the frame rail end or if there is an L shaped bracket on top of the rail. It might even be simply bent brackets & radiator support, but the fender/door gap indicates the front being down. Labor rates in your area are about the same as mine. A shop will likley charge you 2 hours set up/measure and an additional 2 hours to straighten the rail end if it is just down & not swayed.It should be another 2 hours for a sway.I would say 4 to 6 hours max @ $40.00 per hour, BUT I can not say without seeing it.Any shop who tells you they can estimate damage without looking at it needs to be avoided. My opion is the same as Hotrod Lincoln, THIS IS A GUESS.

Do they still have frame shops that specialize in correcting frames or would this be too simple a job for them?

Thanks for the replies guys - and BIG CHEVY 3600, since I live close to some rural small towns big enough to have auto body & collision shops, I think it'll be rather easy to find someone who has the equipment to handle this job.

-ftyler

If ya were in Central Pa I could direct ya to the place to get it done ...here in my small town .I am sure that any reputable body shop in your area will have a frame Jig ..Heck ya hit a Rabbit with these new cars somethin bends and the shops that make a livin doin collision will be set up to pull a frame , well they may call em frames now but they are just stamped steel junk but they have to be able to straighten em out .

You say your frame is 80-85% rust free? I would say it needs to be 100% before you do any work to it. If your frame is not structurally sound no amount of bending will save it. Can you find another frame? If you look hard enough you should be able to find one close to you.

Houston54,

Well the "80-85% rust free" figure refers to the frame being void of ANY rust - not even the surface kind. That percentage of the frame looks as if the truck just rolled off the assembly line.

The other 15% has surface rust, mainly forward of the front wheels. It's a very solid frame.

Thanks,
-ftyler

I slammed into a concrete pole in a '72 Buick when I was a kid...going backwards. (Note: always check behind you before attempting a Rockford!) Bent the rear section of the frame rail up, kinked the tops of both quarters and pushed the back of the car forward a bit.
We pulled out what was left of the tail lights, removed the restyled bumper, and put a 6x6 block of wook into the trunk, running chains from it to the hitch on my dad's Dodge van. Blocked wheels on the Buick and pulled until the trunk floor was flat again, and most of the kinks came out of the quarters. Then I hammered the tail light area mostly flat again.
For the frame, we took my Craftsman floor jack, wrapped the chain around the portion that was bent up, and then down to the jack. We situated the jack so the pad was under the portion of the frame that was still straight. We then lifted the car with the jack, but the chain was holding the bent portion of it, having the effect of pully the bent portion back down in line with the rest of the frame.
Chain the truck down to the floor (if you can...concrete lag bolts in the garage floor?) or work up something like I just described, and jack the front of the frame back into place. If it truely is just the front portion of the frame rail, ahead of the cross member, you should be able to handle that at home, and it'll be really simple. Just throw the chain around the good portion of the frame, run it to the jack, and start lifting the bent part back up. You could also get a 6x6 and put it under the frame rail (front to back), chain the unbent portion of the frame to the 6x6, set a bottle jack one the 6x6, and jack up the bent portion. The bottle will try to lift the truck, but the truck is chained to the base of the bottle, so the portion of the frame the bottle's ram is contacting should push up.
-Brad

Brad,

Unfortunately you've given me some ideas that, when it's all said and done, I know I'm gonna regret!

Thanks!
-ftyler

Glad I could help!

You should drive it down to my swap meet in Braselton this Sunday. I'd like to meet you and Woogeroo. There's another guy who started coming with a red big block '65 (pretty sure it's a '65). Another guy from the HAMB website comes by with his '63. It'd be cool to have a bunch of First Gen C-10s in a row!

-Brad