Radio... and dials

Finally decided to put a Radio in... and what a job.

4 speakers in the rear two next to the rear doors and two by the back - well above the "water line". Cables run out and underneath (nearly 34mtrs!). Aerial fitted using an existing hole, radio in an under dash case.

Took a long time to get right. Previously I'd installed oil and temp gauges and added a volt meter too this time. Just need to wire up the lighter so I can charge the moby and run a sat nav.

The right handles!

I've sourced the right corners/handles/bumpers for a station wagon as I was missing one.

the wrong ones I bought as an interim solution:

the right ones (and the match the galvy chassis too)

they look so much better!

Kitchen

So, I've now made a kitchen in the Stage 1.

By removing the seats and using the frame I've made a removable kitchenette with water, double burner, sink and waste! (pictures from a Blackberry Bold...)

Rear axle oil seal

When I checked the brakes I found that on the OSR the shoes were contaminated with diff oil. This is very bad - the seals have gone allowing the grease to be "washed"away.

Stub axle looks fine, but those axle bolts were a pain to remove.

Parts now soaking in some cleaner while I wait for some parts to arrive.

Rear Shocks

Bit of tree lugging, tip running and some horrible Oxfordshire roads and both rear shocks have emptied their oil over the wheels and rear springs.

New ones on order... 

Found some snow

Lots of snow this week.

Went to the Ridgeway on Saturday and this is what it looked like!

Where's the snow?

Ropes ready and levels checked on the Stage 1. 

Wood cut and stored.

Bring on the Arctic snow.

Ditches!

Spend yesterday at WOSC clearing drainage ditches. 

Took the Stage 1 and it made light work of dragging tress out of the 8 ft ditch to be cut up.

Mats!

Mats cut and fitted - looks good.
Rather than buying pre made I've made my own from horse box mats. 1cm thick rubber non slip mats custom made for a Stage 1.

Adding the missing bits to a standard Series III mat

first fit

Exhaust

Middle box replaced, easy job! The V8 burble is back - nice.

Parts from LR series.

Door Locks

Easy fit last night of a lock on the rear door. Large parcel from LR
Series arrived and this was the smallest bit!

Wires...

Had a look at the Choke light - gave up. Took another look at the interior lighting. Gave up there too.

There's some oddities going on behind the dash and evidence of previous repairs as well as a relay that looks wrong. Need to study the wiring diagram.

Sound proofing

Measured up the Dynamat and it looks as if it will fit well over the rear arches. Will look at  it a bit more next week. The Thick rubber mat has not arrived yet.

Brakes, Diffs and Swivel joints.

Checked the brakes and adjusted them today. Found a slight weep on the OSR halfshaft so need to keep an eye on that (will look at the exploded diagram later). Will need to replace the shoes too when I sort it properly. 

Braking much improved too with less pedal travel. No problems found thankfully with the cylinders.

Checked the levels in both diffs as well and found that finger tight Fred had been involved with the front prop. One bold finger tight, one about to drop out! So those have been sorted too.

Checked OSF swivel joint and gave up on the other side when the plug refused to move. Will douse with WD40 a few times over the next week and then try again.

MOT on Saturday

I've spent the last three months fixing and tweaking the Landy.

The MOT is up on the 22nd of Jan so I'm putting it in for a test to see what else needs doing!

Hello

I've been thinking about setting this up for a while.

You are likely in future to find stuff about me and Land Rovers!

http://www.landroverv8.com