rust

[drewbbie]

so i pulld my carpet out and found a mess of water after cleaning that out i started to look more carefully and i found that i got 3 lil spots of rust that go all the way threw my ? is what is the best way to fix this just clean the rust up so its shiny and patch over top of it orr cut the rust out and patch it the rust is on the pasanger side right were the back seat is on that lil ledge i guess u could call it it is also near one of the "frame" rails so should i just patch over it or cut and patch over it

[muduck18]

there are many approaches to this problem in the xj...

http://www.naxja.org/forum/showthread.php?t=67934

most people will tell you to weld a patch in there and then coat the floor with hurculiner or somthing like it to keep it clean..
i tend to agree...

mine was just a little worse than yours... but it was rust none the less...

www.wetpaintfilms.com/heep2jeep/ (http://www.wetpaintfilms.com/heep2jeep/)

[drewbbie]

oooo ouch thats alot of work u did

yah my plan was to cut rust out patch it on both sides and then por 15 the hole thing what are any ones thoughts on that idea

[muduck18]

por 15 is good. but I would patch the hole and then clean the area really well, get rid of all the rust you can with a grinder. and then get a hurculiner kit and paint up. even if you plan on puting the carpet back in the hurculiner is really tough and will not rub off really easily.
but if you decide to go with the hurc, grind all your welds smooth, becuase other wise it will not attach right to the sharp surface.

if you decide to do por15 it will do. just not as rugged i don't think.

two cents never hurt no body

[fourwhldrv]

Yo, Muduck...

What gauge steel did you use when you replaced--what looks like--your entire floor? And how many hours did ya have to put into that?

I'm at the point where I have to do what you've done, or swap all my gear to a newer XJ.

Thanks,
DJ

And I too can thank the Jersey shore for the bulk of my rust issues.

[muduck18]

Yo, Muduck...

What gauge steel did you use when you replaced--what looks like--your entire floor? And how many hours did ya have to put into that?

I'm at the point where I have to do what you've done, or swap all my gear to a newer XJ.

Thanks,
DJ

And I too can thank the Jersey shore for the bulk of my rust issues.
I went for the super overkill on mine that is 16gage steel (yes that is a thick as the stock rear bumper) i think you could get away with 18 or 20gage. (look for somthing that is close to the same thickness... and reinforce the areas that are flimsey when you are done.
I worked ont that project for three months, every night and all weekend... but that was more than just the floor i put a lift and tires and started fabing bumpers too in that time frame all the while repairing the accident it was in...
the floor took me i would have to say 50 to 60hrs. ( 2-3 weeks about)
My recomendations would be this. Consider the rest of your jeep before you take on this project. with my jeep the only part that was rusty was the floor. The doors, jams, frame, and uni-body, roof and hood and fenders had no rust what-so-ever. (this guy got salt water in the carpet and never got it dried...)
If you have a solid jeep except the floor then go for it. it is worth the time in my book.
some pointers...
don't spare the grinder. Get all the old metal and rust out. cut and cut and cut. it's alot easier to weld to a little clean metal, than to a ton of rusty crap...
OWN A PLASMA CUTTER - I would not have been able to do it with out this... some of the cuts are in out back curve and then bend...
OWN A WELDER... dont even think about rivits. or i will drive to MD and hit you with a lead pipe (not really but i would not be happy to hear it :-P)
take your time to get it right this is a job you only want to do once.

last but not least PM me or email me, or whatever if you have any questions...

[fourwhldrv]

Thanks for the info.

I'm still looking for a nicer XJ that could be a candidate to swap my current gear over to, but I really love my old '90XJ; however, unless I find a swap candidate, I won't be cutting out these old floors until the Spring because soon I'll need my XJ as a daily driver.

My Mini Cooper is my current DD, and that'll be useless once we start getting snow or ice.

Got any recommendations on plasma cutters? I spent some time shopping for one last year but never bought one...was too busy to find the time to use it, so I passed on buying it.

I do like the idea of the heavier gauge steel...especially since this is a unibody application. Granted, anytime you cut and then weld on a unibody you create a potential stress point/weak point since the strength of the unibody is the ability to equally and quickly spread the stresses out, but I imagine that heavy gauge floor means the platform of the vehicle is stronger, and the bulk of the stresses will be coming up from the suspension and drivetrain.

Did you tie/attach this heavy floor plating down to the suspension points anywhere? Just curious.

Once I finalize my plans for this winter (either driving my '90 or getting a newer DD), I'll get in touch. Trust me, once I start cutting away at this thing I'm sure I'll have some more questions. I'm leaning towards buying another XJ for a DD (assuming I can manage the $$$) because I will then be less likely to rush any stage of the job on the '90 XJ.

Thanks again.

DJ

[four_shot]

as a suggestion.....Weld temporary braces in at strategic points. especially if you are removing large sections of metal. It would really suck to put a nice new floorpan in only to find out that the doors no longer line up or similar hijinx. When you're done, you cut/grind the braces back off and you are good to go

[muduck18]

as a suggestion.....Weld temporary braces in at strategic points. especially if you are removing large sections of metal. It would really suck to put a nice new floorpan in only to find out that the doors no longer line up or similar hijinx. When you're done, you cut/grind the braces back off and you are good to go
what ever you say cheech

lol

you can do that if you want. it's a waste of time.
and not neccessary...