[StingrayLust]

So I knew my front crossmember was not in perfect shape. A trip to the sandblaster only reveals the ugly underneath 40 years of grime. So the question is, do I put my POR on it and put it back in as it will still function fine for another 5-10 years, or do I replace it now?

Personally, I think it's still fine to put back in for at least a couple years. My sandblast guy said he got a rough quote to fix it at a little over $100. I don't see the value in repairing it if I can buy a new one for about $200.

I know the radiator sits on top of it and front bumper brace attaches to it, so it's offering some structural support, but not several hundred pounds.

Stay or go?

 

[ZZ71s]

I replaced mine when I got the new rad. and support it had a rust hole where the rad leaked.
You might as well replace it now well your in there.

 

[rlphvac]

The early polls snow replace:devil:

 

[Slow & Leaky]

Our frames are pretty flimsy. Anything that bolts across is acting as a structural component to the car. If you're chasing rattles and fitment you can't afford to use that crossmember as-is.

Which leads to the larger question......Is the repro made out of thinner steel and ultimately no stronger than your rusty original.......

good luck

 

[6880 Mike]

What's the purpose of your poll? Whether you replace the crossmember, and when, it up to you.

I agree with you: it might not be completely dead yet, but it won't be too much longer.

:thumbsup:

 

[Rod75]

Replace it as needed, and move on. I hate to do things twice. :cheers:

 

[The Rat]

Since you have gone to great lenghts to replace and let us know all of the stuff that "bubba" has done to your car don't you think that putting the old ones back on might be something a "bubba" would do? Replace them while you can get at them without doing the work again down the road. My 2cents

 

[StingrayLust]

I found one for $160, going to go with new.

I was trying to be cheap as I've already bought new engine/front lamp harnesses when I wasn't expecting to. So the crossmember was another $200 down the rabbit hole.

Whoever beat me at the very last 10 seconds to the radiator shroud on eBay, here's to you. :nuts:

 

[Diehard69man]

I found one for $160, going to go with new.

I was trying to be cheap as I've already bought new engine/front lamp harnesses when I wasn't expecting to. So the crossmember was another $200 down the rabbit hole.

Whoever beat me at the very last 10 seconds to the radiator shroud on eBay, here's to you. :nuts:

Damn EBAY.. That same crap happened to me on Friday. 10 seconds and poof it was gone.. I think there must be a bidding bot for ebay the way people seem to pull the rug out.. My 2 Cents..:cheers:

 

[Show]

Ebay "Snipers" suck!:laughing:

Just when you think you have won,,,,,,BAM!!!:thud:

 

[jet1991]

I can see you`ve already made your choice but I just wanted to say one more thing. If the steel has rusted trough in one end, the rest of the steel will most likely be as thin as a razor blade. My Radiator frame looked pretty good with most of the original paint still intact, but after I sandblasted it, I found a lot of small holes. The damn thing had rusted from the inside and should have been replaced, but I just painted it and will replace it when I buy a new radiator.

 

[StingrayLust]

I came to the realization that it wasn't a good thing to put back on, that it would bug me knowing it's there. I've spent a lot of other $ on things I probably shouldn't have spent on until I had the basics working. This is a basic item that I didn't want to try to replace later.

For $160 + shipping from Paragon, I decided it was going to happen.

I agree, it rots from the inside. While I can't really see inside, there are smaller pinholes near the major holes, so you know the metal has to be thin. Plus the 2 metal plates had started to separate on that one end. This is probably the very worst of my rust rot, so I feel ok with spending the $ for this part, UPS says it should be here today.

I'm curious to know if others drill additional holes for water to leak out so it doesn't sit in those corners and rust? Those 2 holes on the bottom don't see positioned properly for water to easily exit. :huh:

 

[lsejlowe]

sounds like the right move to replace it :thumbsup:

 

[Metalkid]

I'm curious to know if others drill additional holes for water to leak out so it doesn't sit in those corners and rust? Those 2 holes on the bottom don't see positioned properly for water to easily exit. :huh:

Never thought about that, since mine is very intact, (and I live in a desert!:lookinup but I think I'll do some ''water drainage" testing before I put mine back in (out for frame gusseting and eventual front clip removal/repair), see where the water goes, and add additional holes if needed.:thumbsup:

 

[jet1991]

I've spent a lot of other $ on things I probably shouldn't have spent on until I had the basics working.



I'm curious to know if others drill additional holes for water to leak out so it doesn't sit in those corners and rust? Those 2 holes on the bottom don't see positioned properly for water to easily exit. :huh:

Been there done that. And we are far from the only ones.

Remeber the water will also have more places to enter if you drill drain holes. If you do make drain holes you could end up making a pressure zone or something that could make the water actually stay inside the crossmember. But I really don`t know enough about this to tell you not to do it.

Maybe this will drain the water faster\won`t get filled with water:
http://www.transdepot.net/TH350-Crossmember-Corvette-1968--1981-C3-_p_78.html

My crossmember was almost rust free and I didn`t even have to sandblast all of it. If your crossmember looks like that, you could find rust on other parts of your car where you really don`t want to find any rust. But all of these cars rust. badly. I`ve never seen a C3 without any rust at all. Just don`t do a bubbafix when you do fix it.

 

[StingrayLust]

I'll see what the angle of the support looks like and if drilling extra holes at the very far ends seems worth it.

jet1991, that's the tranny crossmember, what I'm replacing is the front radiator support crossmember. :smack

I think I had an extraordinary amount of rust on the spot as the radiator inlet had a leak and over time probably dripped a lot of water onto the support causing the leak. Also, the radiator pitcock is on the same side of the leaky inlet, another possible source of water. Maybe it would never have rusted if there wasn't the radiator leak. The other side of the support was in great shape.

 

[jet1991]

jet1991, that's the tranny crossmember, what I'm replacing is the front radiator support crossmember. :smack

Oh. My rubber bumper doesn`t have a removable front crossmember. I guess the front bumper (not the visible plastic part, but the steel under it) does the same job on my car. Didn`t even know earlier cars had a crossmember there.