Questions regarding frame patches

[GeneralHatchet]

Hello,

I'm looking into purchasing a 98 Jeep Wrangler Sahara with 128,000 miles. From the pictures the guy sent me, the frame appears to be in good condition, except for one thing. He said he put a patch on it, I'm assuming due to a rust spot, but I'm not sure since I'm not even close to being an auto mechanic. It would be a rather long drive to go and buy the jeep, so I'd rather not go unless I'm serious about purchasing it. My questions are these:

1: Does a frame patch negatively effect either the durability, safety, or long term life of the frame?

2: Patches are applied to combat rust, right? The rest of the frame appears to be in good condition except for a little bit of surface rust around the patch, at least from the pictures.

Thanks in advance for any help!

Luke

[Crvett69]

if the frame has a rust hole its only time before it rusts out in another spot usually. also depends how good of a welding job was done on the patch. i would take the vehicle to a shop where its at and have them check the work and look for more rusty spots. alignment shop or body shop with a frame rack might be your best bet. once rust starts its hard to stop

[GeneralHatchet]

Thanks, but the guy managed to sell it before I could get there to ask if he'd let me take it to a mechanic. But thanks for the advice!