Review on Jeep Wrangler TJ 1997-2006 Rear Trail Arm And Center Skid Plate Frame Repair Kit by Sean Moran

Pros: smooth welding mild steel, notched for tub mounts in correct locations. Heavy gauge steel thicker and stronger than original frame. Very Solid repair, I have patched them before with plate steel, this costs more but is well worth the cost as the brackets are already in place for the swingarms. I highly recommend this repair kit but you will need some shop skills to install.Note: tools used were angle grinder with cutoff wheels and grinding disks, reciprocating saw (5 blades), harbor freight 120 amp flux core welder, 4 spills of wire and one tip. Small floor jack to raise frame rails to be square (the frame sagged about 1.5-2 inches when the bottom of the frame rails were removed), ratchet come-along to pull axle forward to align swing arm bolt holes. I used a couple bolts to secure the inside of the rear section above the rear axle, almost impossible to weld in there.Note: the repair sections were too narrow to slip over the frame. I placed the center section upside down on the driveway and hit the bottom to slightly flair the sides apart.Cons: no instructions so you have to work out the locations. There is a little "play” as to where the center and back sections should be welded together, alignment might not be perfect. The swing arm brackets are not angled enough To match the original bracket locations, I used a couple washers inside the upper bracket to take up the extra space (about 1/2”).For some reason, the skid plate holes were About 1” too narrow. I discovered this after the parts were installed. I had to notch the skid plate holes to reinstall.The included bolts are metric and too short to use with skid plate lowering blocks. Bought new bolts at hardware store.