85KA17 - due south

[removeduser185]

Really enjoying your restoration - the engine looks really good. Don't like the photos of the snow, though. Reminds me, only four months to Christmas!

[gunner59]

Cheers Fred. We put the Christmas lights up especially as Christmas in summer out here just isn't the same as good old northern hemisphere ones. Plus it also means that there's nothing much to look forward to during the winter. In fact we so got into the spirit of things that we watched all the episodes of The Box of Delights on YouTube whilst the snow came down and the woodburner did its thing. All we had to do was close our eyes and we were back in Herefordshire

Very impressed with your work on 23HF14 by the way.

[gunner59]

Bit more progress, radiator and panels overhauled - missing shroud & cowl replaced, prop shafts overhauled - missing gaiters replaced and all re-painted. Tank filler caps re- painted. And rust treatment, repairing and etch priming of engine bulkhead completed

[gunner59]

Part 2

[gunner59]

Belated Happy New Year greetings from the Land of the Long White Cloud, although at present it might more accurately be described as the Land of the Big Brown Smoke thanks to the smoke fall out from the Australian bushfires.

Apologies for the absence of updates in the past 3 months, work (the curse of the drinking classes), other calls on my finances and ill health have all played their part in slooowing things down. But am back on the case, in rude health and about to have 16 days annual leave and I have plans - such plans - woo ha, ha etc !

But that said, looking back a 12 month, I had just finished taking everything off the old chassis in preparation for the new Richards one's arrival on 10 January and Gromit's major organs, limbs etc were distributed between three separate buildings and the spare room had become the spares room.

As at today, engine, gearbox, fuel tanks, bulkhead etc and rear wiring loom are all installed into the chassis together with new, correct springs and brake lines. Have just finished fitting the manifolds, starter, alternator and started wrestling with the bypass hose. The seat box frame has been repaired and repainted and all the fuel lines and electrics cleaned and checked, new cork gasket fitted to changeover tap etc. Radiator and front end already set for installing.
New glass fitted to drivers side of windscreen, so new seal to bulkhead to be fitted and then windscreen can be installed.

[prague1996]

Great progress gunner59 and HNY.

Can I offer some advice based on hard earned experience of restoring my own LWT. It's important to remember that the tub is the only major piece of bodywork that has no adjustment when bolted to the chassis. As the tub incorporates the b-posts if you want to get decent shut lines on the doors you need to work from the back to the front, as there is a decent amount of adjustment you can make to the bulkhead to get the a-posts to line up. I would fix the tub, mount the bulkhead but don't nip any of the fixings up, then hang the door bottoms with new plastic hinge bushes. Patience is the key, but with a couple of ratchet straps and some spacers it should be possible to get decent shut lines, once you're happy you can then nip everything up. I would also test fit the seatbox, transmission tunnel and bulkhead scuttle. I mounted the seatbox and transmission scuttle and found it almost impossible to fit the transmission tunnel without scratching the paintwork.

It's really starting to come together, keep up the great work. Shaun

[gunner59]

Thanks for that Shaun, ratchet straps have already been deployed to get the bulkhead on in the first instance and will no doubt have a further part to play

[gunner59]

Well, last Friday marked the 12 month anniversary of the arrival of the replacement chassis so am pleased to mark the occasion with these latest update pics

[gunner59]

Pictures to follow shortly but relieved to be able to report that the re-fitting of the rear tub went very smoothly, I have been able to successfully locate the seat belt stalk anchor brackets over the tapped holes provided by Richards with hardly any fettling of the floor being required. And, having got the 10 rear bolts in place I then took my life in my hands and tightened up the engine bulkhead bolts and tried the driver's side door for fit. Pleasantly surprised to find that it latched on the door pillar catch at the first attempt and only a small shim was required at the foot of the bulkhead pillar to bring all into alignment. But now for the passenger side!!!

One bit of annoyance though, the newly fitted driver side windscreen glass has "mysteriously" developed a 3 cm long crack. however it's well outside the critical area of vision and is well within limits in terms of length. But it's still ruddy annoying.

Oh and I have successfully uncrumpled the dog ears on both sides of the leading edge of the rear tub through the careful use of heat (assisted by a thin coat of oil) on 3 separate occasions and the appliance of small g-clamps and pieces of wood. Just need to re-paint them now.

Happy days

[gunner59]

Another successful weekend of fettling and furkling, both doors successfully fitted, latching etc with "relatively" little trouble (for a Land Rover). Radiator etc has finally made it from the sleepout to the garage and is balanced on the chassis ready for the ever popular battle of wills which is hose fitting. Front end bolt for rear tub to go in next together with the seat belt brackets etc in the tub itself and then I think the seat base had better be next complete with fuel change over tap and fuel lines and tank electrics. The spare room (currently referred to by some as the spares room) is starting to empty out as parts make their way to the garage and I can now walk from one end of the sleepout to the other without having step over/round larger components. That said I still managed to "find" the front bumper by stubbing my toe on it.