Boxing the frame

I am sure you all had this discusion before but i was just outside looking over my frame and now am considering having it boxed in.
What are the benifits to boxing the frame?

if i box the frame is it better to Clean/paint the frame before boxing it in so that the inside of the frame will have a rust proof coat?

I heard that you get more flex out of a Non-boxed frame is that true?
I am putting in a Buick 350 and wondering about the strength and am leaning towards boxing it in. But if its best not to then i wont.



P.S.
I will be honest guys. I am going to pound all of your brain cells for answers to my questions.... This is a big project for me and everytime I think of someting I am going to ask!
so I appologise for that!

 

This was just discussed. Please try using the forum search.

In the meantime, I would definitely spend the time to clean the frame if your have the jeep torn down.

 

I am going to box my frame this winter. Yes it will take away some flex, but I would rather have the suspension do all the flexing. I am having to many problems with the extreme frame flex, mainly cracking body mounts, cracking areas of bondo and clutch linkage binding.

 

Dittos! Let the suspension do the flexing. I'm not sure who decided that all that flex was a good thing. Flex steel enough times and it breaks. The old Broncos had fully boxed frames and they are great trail rides. Also, when your frame flexes so does your body, how good is that?

 

What the other guys have stated.
Look at the new Jeeps, boxed, look at the aftermarket frames boxed.
Make the suspension work.

 

Just to play the devils advocate, when was the last time one of your springs broke from flexing!!

My .02, the Jeep was designed with the frame as an integral part of the suspension, box it completely and to get decent suspension movement and articulation be prepared to use wider more modern springs to do the samething that the factory Jeep did without them. Our factory springs do not flex no where near as well as modern springs and ride as nice, the main reason is the very narrow width so to offset that we have rivoted frames that are unboxed, if you want good articulation with a boxed frame you will pay for it by having to install modern wider springs on the vehicle, I'm not argueing the point just stating the facts!! Most of our Jeeps have so many frame cracks from all the crap we and PO have added along with welding and so on, my Jeep is a 71 model has been flexed up alot over the years with not the first crack in it but the PO did weld on the frame at all and did not add alot of crap to the frame or body, the jeep has essentially been used but not abused from its original intention, mine was also coated with some kind of undercoating years and years ago so I have very little if any rust on my frame or the few factory welds that are on it.

 

Mine too and it was a pain in the a$$ to get off. But it did leave the factory paint underneath it