[DeTomaso] Rear A-Arm connection brackets

[Dan Courtney]

Goran,

Is that because you want some flex? Or because a crack on one weld could 
spread?

Dan
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <hemipanter at hemipanter.se>
To: "Dan Courtney" <dfcex at excaliburre.com>
Cc: <mikeldrew at aol.com>; <detomaso at realbig.com>
Sent: Saturday, February 13, 2010 2:35 PM
Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Rear A-Arm connection brackets


> Depending on how the steel bracing is applied it is sometimes better not
> to weld a plate all the way around.
> Goran
>
>> You are right, Mike, this is a very early model pushbutton, and we can 
>> see
>> three generations of welding, gusseting, etc.
>> The first two look like factory welds, including some mig welding. Most 
>> of
>> these welds were poorly done, with allot of contamination, volcanoes, 
>> etc.
>> The third generation was done by the company that put The Beast on a
>> rotisserie, during my initial re-building in 2000. They added some very
>> strong steel plating but only welded about 20% of the seam area.
>> Now we grinding off much of the original welding and running welds along
>> the entire length of the critical seams, and most of the seam area on the
>> rest.
>> The cracks we found were located on the rear upper control arm bracket,
>> facing towards the rear. Looks like first generation welds.
>> If I was more tech savvy I could post photos and links, but I'm still not
>> there.
>> We are going to finish this area with yellow paint, so it will be easier
>> to inspect for cracks.
>> If I don't get photos up I'll be happy to pull the wheels and show you at
>> Fernley.
>>
>> Dan
>> Dan Courtney
>> La Jolla, CA
>> (858) 551-5455
>>   ----- Original Message -----
>>   From: MikeLDrew at aol.com
>>   To: dfcex at pacbell.net ; detomaso at realbig.com
>>   Sent: Saturday, February 13, 2010 10:24 AM
>>   Subject: Re: [DeTomaso] Rear A-Arm connection brackets
>>
>>
>>   Dan wrote:
>>
>>
>>     > The Beast has been getting it's rear suspension-frame connections
>> cleaned
>>     > up & welds checked for cracks, and we found one on each side.
>>
>>
>>   >>>It's worth mentioning that you car is a pushbutton, which came from
>> the factory with a rather weak chassis.  Ford recalled all the early
>> cars to weld in gussets and braces all over the place (including
>> yours, unless it was originally a Euro market car, which was allowed
>> to fall apart!) to reinforce the suspension mounts etc.  The 1972 and
>> later cars had a completely revised chassis which addressed the
>> weakness issues.
>>
>>   Mike
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>
>