I finally started- the project is underway!! (with photos)

[Ace]

Well, i finally got around to starting on the SWB SII i got as a project. After it stopping dead in its tracks months ago because i have been flat out i set a day aside this weekend and made a start. So, the gaurds, radiator, and roof are now off and i can see what i am dealing with. Next weekend the rext comes off, i have a new tub to go on, and a full length roof instead of the ute top.

So far i have found- the starter motor is missing, the front part of the chassis is cracked and needs welding, it appears to be straight though, and its only the front bit that extends out to the bumper bar.

The chassis will get a complete strip down and a new coat of paint, the diffs will be cleaned up and painted the same colour as the chassis. Some parabolic springs will be added and the steering need totally rebuilding, along with the brakes, swivel housings and diffs.

The engine has only done 29000 miles so i will be replacing all the accessories, ie alternator, starter motor, water pump, dizzy etc and doing the head gasket, etc, and will be leaving the engine alone provided all looks okay when the head comes off. The gearbox is knackered so it needs a rebuild or replacement.

For those of you who dont know the vehicle i am talking about her is a photo. More photos will come tomorrow, i am not even going to bother trying to upload photos from home using dialup when i can use the broadband connection at school tomorrow.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/Ebay_Landies_4.jpg

[Grizzly_Adams]

Good luck Ace :!:

I'll be starting the rebuild of my LWB Series II when I get back next year - until then it's sitting in the back yard of my Mum's place style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/sad.gif , the poor thing (the Series II - not my Mum! style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif )

As I aint never really done much mechanical work (I'm a computer junkie, I flunked manual-arts in school rather badly) it's gonna be a sharp learning curve but one I hope will get me confident enough with mechanics 8)

So I'll be paying close attention to how you go rebuilding your SII 8)

[Hellspawn]

Just don't lose the enthusiasm when things turn ugly. Just so you know there is no supply of shims for the gearbox or diffs thanks to Ford ownership. So very much make your own apart from the gear sets and bearings.

You going to paint the body ?............Didn't think so, only makes it look worse when the scratches and dents come. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif

[DEFENDERZOOK]

<span style="color:darkred">just keep at till its done.....
set aside one day a week or a few hours each day.....

this should keep stacey happy as she knows you will be home on weekends.....
a good excuse if you want to take on another project after this one..... :wink: </span>

[Ace]

Originally posted by Hellspawn
Just don't lose the enthusiasm when things turn ugly. Just so you know there is no supply of shims for the gearbox or diffs thanks to Ford ownership. So very much make your own apart from the gear sets and bearings.

You going to paint the body ?............Didn't think so, only makes it look worse when the scratches and dents come. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif

Yeah, i am going to paint it using Killrust, I did this with my brothers Kingswood in the last xmas hols and it turned out great, just white on the kingswood. I am not sure what colour to go with yet, but she is getting a full restoration, not so much worried about the scratched, but it will be easy to match the colour and rub back later on if it needs a tidy up. Matt

[Ace]

Here are some photos

Engine appears to be quite good, the starter motor is missing, and the alternator etc will need replacing, but other than that all is good, the motor has only done 29000miles.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0554.sized.jpg

The tub is pretty beaten, the side on the drivers side has the bottom section behind the wheel torn off, the back is badly cracked and the inside of it has been pretty well worked, i have a replacement tub for it, and will see about turning this one into a trailer maybe.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0549_001.sized.jpg


This is the rail running under the bell housing, it looks like someone has taken to it with a sledge hammer, so will need replacing.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0555.sized.jpg

The firewall is in pretty good condition, i will assess it fully when i pull it off next weekend but there doesnt appear to be much rot or anything, i suppose droughts have to be good for something. The front part of the chassis on the drivers side that extends forward from the front cross member to hold the bumber is cracked but doesnt appear to be bent, some tidying up and a steel reinforcement plate should see it fixed, i will get a close up of that later.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0558.sized.jpg

This is what point i got to on the weekend, i want to get the tub and firewall off this weekend so i can assess the chassis fully and begin stripping that ready for paint. More photos next weekend.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0561.sized.jpg

PS- believe it or not, i actually use that broom. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif

If anyone has advice or questions fire away. Matt

[Phoenix]

Looking good ace 8)

Wish I had the time to do that to my landy style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/sad.gif

[slaughts]

I to would love to be able to do thi to my old girl. What doe the motor look like, going to be much involved in fixing it up.

[DiscoTDI]

Now is the time you might like to stock up on band aids :twisted:

[one_iota]

Very good Matt. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif

Watch out for the redbacks :wink:

[Bushie]

Might be quicker to learn to fly the broom style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif


Bushie

[Ace]

Originally posted by one_iota
Very good Matt. style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/biggrin.gif

Watch out for the redbacks :wink:

Lots of egg sacks but no live redbacks yet, or were you referring to Baz? style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif

Slaughts- once i get the rest of the body off i am going to pull the head off and have a look, i will replace all the gaskets, but due to the low milage if the cylinders and bores look ok i will leave them, will have to wait and see.

Its going to take a while to take shape once its in bits as cash is low at the moment, but i am planning to spray all the panels in the xmas hols and get everything ready for reassembly as i get the cash to buy new bits etc. Matt

[Hellspawn]

Ace

Easiest solution to the bent cross brace is flog the leading face straight then plate the underside. That was my method for a bent outrigger on HS, clean up well with the grinder and to look at you'd never know. :wink:

What's you plans for the half cab if you're going full length hard top ?

[abaddonxi]

Originally posted by Ace


This is the rail running under the bell housing, it looks like someone has taken to it with a sledge hammer, so will need replacing.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0555.sized.jpg



Is the propshaft bent? Looks like more than just a sledgehammer.

Cheers

Simon

[Slunnie]

I think they come from the factory like that. :oops:

[Ace]

It could be simon, i havent looked that close, the rear one is in the back and the front one is disconected from the diff so that might make it look bent.

Hellspawn- the roof of the cab is in a bad way but if you make me an offer you are welcome to the old roof. Matt

[ntguy]

A 4x4 is reborn,

Cant wait to see the video.

Hope youre adding AC,PS and electric windows. I mean ppl dont really drive with out these now days right???

[RoverOne]

Best of luck Matt. Looks like you will be trying Ron's rust converter recipe style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/laugh.gif

I have a best mate at Orange with quite a number of spare Series in his back yard and many good parts hanging from rafters etc. He may have some excess parts for sale & is a wealth of info on Series Landies.

Clive owns the New Adventure Centre at Lucknow, he sells camping gear as well ph: 6365 5448.

Quite a few photos were taken of his immaculate red Stage 1 V8 at the Expo, infact winning three previous years awards for best Stage 3. There are only 7 Stage 1's this colour in the world a special order from the one owner of the 7 vehicles, not sure of the story.

I am sure Clive will be at the Kanafari in a couple of weeks if your going, I will be there with the Rangie 8)

http://www.aulro.com/albums/LROC-Expo-2005/LROC_Expo_2005_014.sized.jpg

Cheers
Bryce

[Ace]

Hi Bryce, i have been admiring that stage 1 every time i pass it on my way to orange when i go. Now i know who owns it.

I will most probably be giving him a call, thanks.

At this stage it looks like i wont be able to make it to kahnafari, due to a lack of funding. :cry: But i hope to see you at the BBQ 2 weeks later, you are welcome to extend an invitation out to clive if you wish. Matt

[RoverOne]

Originally posted by Ace
Hi Bryce, i have been admiring that stage 1 every time i pass it on my way to orange when i go. Now i know who owns it.

I will most probably be giving him a call, thanks.

At this stage it looks like i wont be able to make it to kahnafari, due to a lack of funding. :cry: But i hope to see you at the BBQ 2 weeks later, you are welcome to extend an invitation out to clive if you wish. Matt

No worries Matt. It looks like we are moving to Orange the BBQ weekend & also the following weekend, I have already cancelled the club trip to Goulburn NP on 3/4 Dec, unless things change will let you know.

Cheers
Bryce

[Ace]

No worries Bryce, keep me posted. Matt

[Ace]

Ok, an update.

The rest of the body is off, the firewall took some getting off. The bolt securing it to the chassis on the drivers side had rusted into the hole its passed through, its still stuck in the chassis outrigger, no amount of wd40 or bashing is shifting it. (any suggestions, short of cutting the outrigger off and getting a replacement?) i did a bit of damage to the firewall getting it off, but its not bad, and wont be seen when it goes back on. This was all saturday.

Today, the exhaust, motor, transmission and T/C came out to reveal a pretty good chassis. The only problem being the crack i mentioned earlier. Once i strip it i will send it off for sand blasting, and go from there. There might be some other cracks that need patching up.

The motor looks good, has quite few oil leaks, but i was expecting that, apparently there is a problem with the gearbox so it will have to come appart for inspection and i will do the T/C at the same time. The steering set up needs totally rebuilding, the steering box has a 5mm thick layer of crusted oil and dirt protecting it. Photos to come tomorrow hopefully when i download them at school again. Matt

[Hellspawn]

Originally posted by Ace

The rest of the body is off, the firewall took some getting off. The bolt securing it to the chassis on the drivers side had rusted into the hole its passed through, its still stuck in the chassis outrigger, no amount of wd40 or bashing is shifting it. (any suggestions, short of cutting the outrigger off and getting a replacement?) i did a bit of damage to the firewall getting it off, but its not bad, and wont be seen when it goes back on. This was all saturday.
Matt

Have you tried heating it with an Oxy ? Has to be an oxyflame as LPG burner just doesn't make enough heat. Heat both ends of the bolt without heating much of the outrigger. Get the bolt up to "cherry" then drive it out with a 7£b hammer (back of a wood block splitter is okay).... just don't miss with the swing.... don't want to be known as "lightning" do you ? Only way I see you getting that bolt out. Fair performance the other way of cut and paste for the sake of a frozen bolt.


If the cab roof is that bad, thanks but might stick the hardtop back on I have.

[Ace]

Originally posted by Hellspawn+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hellspawn)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteBegin-Ace

The rest of the body is off, the firewall took some getting off. The bolt securing it to the chassis on the drivers side had rusted into the hole its passed through, its still stuck in the chassis outrigger, no amount of wd40 or bashing is shifting it. (any suggestions, short of cutting the outrigger off and getting a replacement?) i did a bit of damage to the firewall getting it off, but its not bad, and wont be seen when it goes back on. This was all saturday.
Matt

Have you tried heating it with an Oxy ? Has to be an oxyflame as LPG burner just doesn't make enough heat. Heat both ends of the bolt without heating much of the outrigger. Get the bolt up to "cherry" then drive it out with a 7£b hammer (back of a wood block splitter is okay).... just don't miss with the swing.... don't want to be known as "lightning" do you ? Only way I see you getting that bolt out. Fair performance the other way of cut and paste for the sake of a frozen bolt.


If the cab roof is that bad, thanks but might stick the hardtop back on I have.[/b][/quote]

Hi Hellspawn, you are welcome to take the cab if you want, i dont want or need it, so you can see if it is any good. The top is pretty well stuffed, you would need to fibreglass the whole thing and then sand it back to the original shape, as you said its probably not worth it.

I am being very careful because i dont know how well the outrigger is welded on, there appears to be a crack in part of the weld, when i was whacking it over the weekend, it appeared to be bending at the weld. I dont have an oxy yet but i will have to borrow one or something. Matt

[Ace]

Ok, some more photos.

Here is the crack in the front section of the chassis.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0567.sized.jpg

The tub removed.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0570.sized.jpg

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0572.sized.jpg

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0573.sized.jpg

The tub was easy to get off, i just went around undid the bolts and then lifted it off with the engine crane, very easy.

The firewall, well thats a different story, i did some damage, whilst smacking the bottom section with a hammer, its a little beaten, but wont affect the scheme of things.

http://www.aulro.com/albums/album183/100_0577.sized.jpg


I have the engine etc out now, so all is left to remove now are the diffs, the suspension and the fuel tank. I havent taken the photos of this yet i did this yesterday, and didnt take the camera to the shed. More next week. Matt

[Hellspawn]

Originally posted by Ace
I am being very careful because i dont know how well the outrigger is welded on, there appears to be a crack in part of the weld, when i was whacking it over the weekend, it appeared to be bending at the weld. I dont have an oxy yet but i will have to borrow one or something. Matt

G'Day Ace

None of the chassis is particularly strong. For the front chassis tear, I'd suggest a mig tack to hold it then plate over. Do both sides of the rail and both rails to match. Will make it that much stronger and less obvious.

One other thing I'll mention is if you're not going to be absolute in restoring to original, cut that gearbox support rail out and weld in a later model one. Later model ones unbolt off the chassis rails, so the gearbox comes out underneath rather having to pull the seatbox out as is the usual process.

[Ace]

Originally posted by Hellspawn+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hellspawn)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteBegin-Ace
I am being very careful because i dont know how well the outrigger is welded on, there appears to be a crack in part of the weld, when i was whacking it over the weekend, it appeared to be bending at the weld. I dont have an oxy yet but i will have to borrow one or something. Matt

G'Day Ace

None of the chassis is particularly strong. For the front chassis tear, I'd suggest a mig tack to hold it then plate over. Do both sides of the rail and both rails to match. Will make it that much stronger and less obvious.

One other thing I'll mention is if you're not going to be absolute in restoring to original, cut that gearbox support rail out and weld in a later model one. Later model ones unbolt off the chassis rails, so the gearbox comes out underneath rather having to pull the seatbox out as is the usual process.[/b][/quote]

I was planning on something like that, the one under rail under the bell housing has been bashed up that much it was actually touching the housing so it has to go. I might just cut it out as you say. So the series III one bolts in? Matt

[Hellspawn]

Originally posted by Ace

I was planning on something like that, the one under rail under the bell housing has been bashed up that much it was actually touching the housing so it has to go. I might just cut it out as you say. So the series III one bolts in? Matt

No the next rail back is the one I mean, where the gearbox mounts bolt. Someone probably has a photo of what I mean with the setup.

I'm not sure how late series three, mines '75 and it's welded. If that damn 'box of mine comes out again that's one "mod" I'm going to do as I'm fed up with pulling the seatbox out. :roll:

[Ace]

Originally posted by Hellspawn+--><div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Hellspawn)</div><div class='quotemain'><!--QuoteBegin-Ace

I was planning on something like that, the one under rail under the bell housing has been bashed up that much it was actually touching the housing so it has to go. I might just cut it out as you say. So the series III one bolts in? Matt

No the next rail back is the one I mean, where the gearbox mounts bolt. Someone probably has a photo of what I mean with the setup.

I'm not sure how late series three, mines '75 and it's welded. If that damn 'box of mine comes out again that's one "mod" I'm going to do as I'm fed up with pulling the seatbox out. :roll:[/b][/quote]

Well it looks like i have two to do then, because both are pretty knocked about. Matt

[Quiggers]

Good on you ACE, looks like you're nearly finished! When you're done I need to get the donk + box out of the X1/9.

What colour are you going to paint it?

Cheers, GQ

[DEFENDERZOOK]

<span style="color:blue">if your chassis is as good as aces.....it should fall out by christmas....</span> 8O

[VladTepes]

Originally posted by Quiggers
What colour are you going to paint it?

Cheers, GQ

Ahh now THERE is a question.

How about 'duck egg blue' (it was the sky camouflage colour of the mosquito aircraft in ww2)

[Quiggers]

Fair dinkum funny zook! Been around FIATs in a past life? However this little bugger is a worry as there's no rust.

Colour, top idea for the mozzie paint - and maybe a bit of contrasting camo. would work wonders for the underbelly here,

cheers, GQ