Snowplow Brackets

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Here is todays "fix it" job..Snowplow brackets off of a 2003 F-450..How they broke them without hurting the truck frame is beyond me..Here is the brackets..One is just cracked..The other is in two pieces..Broken bracket..Here is the cracked one clamped together with much squeeze..Crack before the clamp..After the clamp squish treatment..Next post.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:As we continue..Cracked bracket welded..Opposite side..Now to get the broken one back where it belongs just tack it lightly in the middle in 2 places then at the top..Next is to take the other fixed piece and "mirror image" the snapped one as close as you can get it..The tacks will bend enough to get it lined up..Now just weld together both sides..Done piece..And thats all there is to it!I get all the fun jobs.....zap!I am not completely insane..Some parts are missing Professional Driver on a closed course....Do not attempt.Just because I'm a  dumbass don't mean that you can be too.So DON'T try any of this **** l do at home.
Reply:Zap: very instructive and nicely illustrated - as per your normal.(I guess the low tech jobs don't get the 'dime'?)Rick V
Reply:Originally Posted by Rick VZap: very instructive and nicely illustrated - as per your normal.(I guess the low tech jobs don't get the 'dime'?)Rick V
Reply:What process was used in this application?
Reply:Originally Posted by Valkyrie RiderWhat process was used in this application?
Reply:I hope the guy driving, spilt his coffee all over himself, and ate the steering wheel.Disclaimer; "I am just an a$$hole welder, don't take it personally ."
Reply:Originally Posted by TozziWeldingI hope the guy driving, spilt his coffee all over himself, and ate the steering wheel.
Reply:Very little damage to plow mounting frames is done by the really big hits.  Those tend to be major bends with little cracking involved.  The ones that are cracked out and show progressive tearing like the ones here are usually caused by long term stresses.  The most common cause of mounting frame failure is loose fasteners.  I just did a plow install where the truck frame was splitting along the bottom from a previous plow mount.  The one I was putting on needed some serious tweaking as it had started developing cracks at the stress point and finally took one serious hit that wound it sideways.  That one took some clamping to stout W section beam and welding and reinforcing the bad sections, then a little persuading with drift pins to get the bolts into everything.  Once they were all in and torqued it squared up and the plow fit as it should.
Reply:Nice tiggin'-Zap.On highly stressed assemblies, as Alan N. notes above, it pays the customer to have the fabricator study what happened and how it can be prevented, or at least made 'less' in the future.The last thing, I care to do, is just weld the cracks back together and call it 'gud-to-go'--unless the customer is highly insistent that they 'Don't Want ANYTHING--FANCY'.....IOW--they don't want to spend any money to address the underlying causes of breakage. If that's the case I either have them sign a 'Best Effort Repair' form.....or decline the job. I don't wish to see the same item, back in my shop, for unending band-aid jobs.IHMO--most aftermarket and a large portion of OEM items, are very poorly designed--as we all know!