stress fractures

[Icemanf4i]

is there a way to reenforce or fix stress fractures on the tail gate along the top corners where the window drops into the tail gate. I noticed a very small fracture starting on the left side of the gate and i want to fix it before it gets worse.

 

[jekbrown]

got a welder?

j

 

[Icemanf4i]

no i couldnt weld it if i had to but if that is what it take i will take it and have it done would a machine shop or a welding or body shop be the best ???

 

[Clod_King]

I would say body shop

 

[dyeager535]

My idea would be to reinforce that from the inside...welding in a piece of metal that spreads the load around.

I've got a tailgate in my backyard from an early 80's truck that has no cracks in it, I'm not sure exactly why MOST crack though...we know there is a lot of movement, but I think that it's got to do with the glass and it's fit in the shell. Truck gates don't crack.

 

[ntsqd]

I'd treat it like any other crack. Drill a small hole just beyond the end of the crack, V it out, weld it. Being its a body part then I'd carefully grind it smooth.

 

[koldsimer]

Or you could spend countless years searching for one of the 8 known to exist that have no cracks. There were 9 but I found one of them last year!

 

[Chaddy]

My idea would be to reinforce that from the inside...welding in a piece of metal that spreads the load around.

quote] That's what I did.