Progress on My Unimog [Archive] - Australian Land Rover Owners

Iain_B

30th May 2010, 08:37 PM

It has been a while since I posted the progress - so here is an update of where it's at.

All the welding is more of less done - even though every time I say that I end up adding another few bits of bracing. This weekend was not exception - when I trial fitted the aluminium sheet - I decided it needed some more members to hold the sheeting a bit better. I'm sure it is more "just in case" than anything else, and adding another 6kg seemed worth it. I also fitted the door frame, and the frames for the two side access hatches - soon it will be the only way to get into the truck.

Cutting out the sheeting took no time at all - the plasma cutter made things easy. I've gotten into a system - so, it takes around 1 hour to get a sheet cut, prepared, cleaned and primed ready for gluing. The gluing part is quick - I have around 20 minutes from when I first start putting on the glue until it is too stiff for anything to move. The pneumatic glue gun helps a lot - it would be very difficult to squeeze out the amount of glue I use by hand in a short space of time.

The inside is starting to look more truck like - the holes in the sheeting are for the windows - so it should be fairly light inside. I've measure out the rear sheet - and will take it to the sheetmetal shop to get a 10 degree fold put in the bottom 65mm. The steel rear quarter panels will stay uncovered - once the sheeting is all glued on, I'll feather off the edges and then fill in the gap with body filler. The was no point covering the solid steel quarter panels with a soft aluminium sheet.

We also had a visitor today - Ron McGehee came over from the the USA and brought his U500 Unimog with him. He is touring around Australia for the next 6 months or so. All going well we might be joining him for a trip up to Cape York at the end of the year - providing I get my backside into gear.

The truck is huge - it is higher, longer wider and a lot heavier than mine - it weights in more than 12 tons, and is 3.9m high. Trish and I went for a short drive in it, it is great. It is a much more modern Unimog then mine - loads of gizmos - the gear change is air operated, the steering wheel and pedal can slide from one side of the truck to the other, and the cab is made from carbon fibre. The tyres are the 395/85-20's. Ron says he can't lift up the tyre it is laying flat it is so heavy. Ron's got a sneaky way of getting the spare tyres down - the whole frame lowers down to the ground hydraulically - all he has to to is wheel the tyre around. His truck is very well equipt, and every thing runs on diesel - he has a diesel generator, air-conditioner and even a diesel stove. He also has a mini reverse Osmosis plant on board - he can turn sea water into drinking water.

His is one of the first of the Global Expedition Vehicles made.

This is his website on his tour "down under"
Unimog U500Global Expedition VehicleMog Heaven - Down Under Australia

Ron says he will be re-building the truck when he gets back to the US, there are a few things he does not like and now with the experience he has living in it for a few months, he know what he wants to change.

The last one also gives as sense of scale - my Landrover hardly even comes up to the mirror!

Iain_B

6th June 2010, 09:16 PM

Just a few photos of a major Milestone - the aluminium cladding is complete - well almost, just one piece to do on the back, and it's done. I've made a template and I'll get all the folds done during the week.

Now to start on t e major mechanical work - first with fabricating a new exhaust, then to fit the air tanks and the brake booster. I've left the floor out until I get everything fitted on the chassis - this way I have easy access but can still make sure everything fits. Once the major elements are in place, I'll start on fitting up the new brake lines and air lines. It will take a while, but I'll get there in the end.

Off to the caravan and camping show next weekend - time to find all the gear to go inside - water filtration, heaters, fridges, dishwasher, generator etc.

By the way, for those of you who asked - it is 3.3m tall, 2.2m wide and 5.9m long - so not that much bigger than a D130 :).

spudboy

6th June 2010, 09:53 PM

You are a lucky lucky boy .... and I am very jealous!!!

Looking good.

Cheers
David

mike_ie

8th June 2010, 01:38 AM

Sad to say, but your thread has me already checking out eBay and the like for Unimog's, for my next project, sometime in the future... :D Good work, great thread :)

spudboy

8th June 2010, 07:56 AM

Yeah - me too. It's a boy thing....

Iain_B

8th June 2010, 08:23 PM

Over the next few years the Australian Army will start releasing their U1700 and U1750's - they have 1800 of them, so there should be plenty to go around. NZ has started releasing theirs, they sell around 5-10 per year and they go for around $30,000 NZD, so $40K should get you one over here.

I've been waiting for them to start releasing them for about 3 years now, but my one came up and I got it at a reasonable price although it is a lot more work than I expected to get it mechanically up to scratch.

I would expect the U1700's to go for around $50K each, as long as they don't flood the market, but many will be sold overseas, as they are in great demand in third world countries and I would expect a lot to end up in Africa in big job lots.

I have a U1250, which is the "light weight" Unimog, with a GVM of 7.5 ton and is only 2.2m wide and should have a payload of around 3 tons. (although mine has the heavy duty axles option so could be registered with 8.5 ton)The U1700's are similar in size to mine but are 2.4m wide and since the chassis and axles are heavier, the payload is 500kg less. The U1750/38 are rather heavy as they have a 3.85m wheelbase - around 5.5 ton empty but they have a 5 ton payload with a GVM of 10.5 tons. There are a few U1300/37 around, they have a 3.75m wheelbase and a GVM of around 8.5tons which gives them a payload of around 2.5 tons. However, there is no such thing as a "standard" Unimog - and I don't know the specs of the ADF ones so they may have very different rated capacities.

Celtoid

8th June 2010, 08:48 PM

I saw what I think were Unimog's turned into tourist buses at Cape Tribulation, many, many years ago...looked pretty awesome.

Has yours got the same engine and transmission as the ADF trucks......8fwd and 8back?

I've driven a few of these and they are fine once you're used to them but can be a bit of a b*tch when not,,lots of false neutrals, which sucks when you are in rough terrain,,,specially once they are old and worn. Judging by the type of work you are doing, I doubt it will be an issue for you. :)

Good luck.

Iain_B

8th June 2010, 09:44 PM

My transmission is a bit special - I have 8 speeds in the main box, a "low range" working gears, and a Claas overdrive gear splitter behind the engine giving 23% overdrive. So in theory I have 32 speeds forward, and 32 speed backwards.

In practise, getting from low to high range is a bit tricky - but it's not something you really need to do often - 1st gear is quite a low gear and 1st gear low range is 500m/hour at 2000rpm :eek: I will be able to match winch speeds with the working gears quite easily.

The 8 speed box is really 2x 4 speeds. Getting from 4-5 is a bit slow, as there is a pneumatic ram has to change over from one planetary gear set to the other to give you the upper 4 speeds. The normal 4 speed is quick and easy, however the overdrive is really quick - just a flick of the switch.

In sand I would be in 2nd or 3rd gear with the overdrive on, to drop down 23% would be a matter of pressing the clutch and the trigger on the gear lever. However - with the torque band of the big diesel and the 365/80-20 tyres which I can run at 0 psi due to the bead locks I should be able to get through fairly soft sand. I have a mate with a U1300 who had no trouble going up Big Red last year, and I have better tyres, more power and less weight.

Iain_B

16th June 2010, 08:41 PM

Might as well update the thread whilst the Blues are getting slaughtered:)

Fabricated up the exhaust system this weekend - 3" all the way and not many bends - it's a total length of 4.7m long as it has to go all the way out the back of the truck. I've put flanges all the way along to make it easier to get out. All I need now is to find a silencer of the right shape and size.

It should be a great improvement on the old one.

geckos

18th June 2010, 05:29 PM

Iain, I hate you cause I'm jealous. I want a Unimog now. You don want a hand do you, I would love to help, just for the experience...... Ha I wish.

Very interesting thread, always looking forward to it.

Geck

Iain_B

18th June 2010, 06:34 PM

All help would be appreciated - anyone know much about fitting hydraulic brake lines :)

If anyone wants to come over for a chat or just to see the truck, just contact me.

Iain_B

1st July 2010, 07:58 PM

Just a few more progress photos, this weekend saw the mail fuel tank getting fitted, and the start of construction of the rear storage pods. The photo shows the framework in place but because I ran out of welding wire - so I used all my clamps - 6 welding clamps, 6 quickgrip clamps , three g-clamps and 4 of those weird red handle type clamps - it goes to show, you can never have enough clamps :)

If anyone is interested in buying a very good Ex-army Unimog - drop me a pm and I'll put you in contact with the guy who owns three of these beauties.

Iain_B

19th July 2010, 09:37 PM

I learnt a bit about bearings this week.

I'm fitting new hub gears into the portal axles - the gears ( and Claas overdrive) will let me drive at 100kph at 2200rpm. When I stripped down the left hand portals, I checked the bearings and there was no scoring or wear marks at all, everything was really tight so I thought I could save money by just cleaning, putting in new seals and re-fitting the bearings. There are 4 large bearings and the total cost per corner would be around $400 from the overseas Unimog places.

Then I stripped down the right hand portals - and discovered that the bearings were badly pitted. One the inner lower bearing, it looked like someone had taken a grinder to the bearing. The open roller bearing was also worn - but suspect it was particles from the failure inner bearings that caused the problem. The outer bearings are a special open race roller bearing - OEM spares only, but the inner ones were normal bearings - FAG and SKF ones - those I thought I could get locally. On one website there was mention of a roller bearing superseding the ball bearing - so I thought I would try and find them.

I contacted the bearing places, read off the numbers and they found suitable matching ball bearings, but could not find the roller bearings - but the price was real good - way cheaper than the overseas bearings.

That made me suspicious, so with help from a friend that has a whole series of bearing handbooks, we looked up the relevant bearing and looked for the new roller bearings - that's when we discovered that there were "heavy duty" or "E " or "R" mark bearings. Checking the load ratings on those we found that these heavy duty bearings had about 30-50% more load capacity than the "standard" range.

A bit more checking and examination of photos of OEM bearing that had failed and I realised that what is supposed to be in the portals are all the heavy duty "E" or "R" class bearings. The ones that were in the front portal were all standard class bearing, and I suspected the ones in the left hand portals were also standard bearings.

I took them apart and found them all the others were the lower grade bearings. Judging by the messy silicone seal used all over the portals, it looks like some time in the past, the good mechanics at NSW Railcorp had re-done the portals, but saved a bit on money by only using OEM parts on the open race bearings (if they replaced them at all) and just used the off-the-shelf local bearings - but they didn't replace one of them. I don't think the 8.2 ton load, and the 150mm offset on the wheels needed to get the tyres right on the rail tracks helped either. I can understand why - local suppliers charge $1490 per corner for the bearings and seals - I've just paid $375 per corner to get them from the UK.

In one way I am quite lucky - I found out about it the easy way - a bit of extra labour and a few weeks of waiting is all it will cost me in the end. If the right hand bearings had not failed then I would have just re-assembled the portals and I could guarantee that the failure would have been at a very inconvenient place - like the middle of the Gobi desert.

Anyway, now I'm replacing all the bearings and seals, and with the new gears, the only thing that is left of the original axles are the housings.

Iain_B

5th September 2010, 05:14 PM

Just a quick update. All the portals are now assembles, and I've started on the brake lines and air line.

Blknight helped out with a cab lifter and we got the cab upright - now that's what I call access to an engine - you can almost walk around the thing now. :)

I'll be running the new airlines, paint the underside properly, making new heat shields and maybe get the exhaust manifold etc coated with that ceramic paint to keep the heat out the cab.

spudboy

12th October 2010, 12:29 PM

Hey Iain - what progress in the last month?

Cheers
David

Homestar

12th October 2010, 03:26 PM

Looking good - just don't forget to take everything loose and heavy out when you are up and running with it. I worked in a large truck workshop for a while, and I saw what can happen when you jack up a cab over vehicle up when a frdge or something similar is left unsecured inside.:o Not pretty for the windscreen....

Keep the updates coming - it's a great project.

Cheers - Gav

Iain_B

25th October 2010, 08:56 PM

Not so much progress this month - I've been away out west an trying to catch up at work - I sometime wonder if it is worth taking time off:(

The hydraulic brakes are now fully functional - if I connect up air to the brake booster, then the brakes work. I've started on the air system - most of the time is taken in finding where to put the various things - especially since I'm re-designing the air system. The old one has a basic design flaw - it keeps the water and oil in the system. The past 25 years of service have resulted in most of the fittings have rust in them, the brake booster was fairly rusty internally, and the air tanks were full of rust. The net result is a system that is unreliable as one flake of rust can keep a valve open or result ing lost pressure.

I'm fitting a "wet tank" with an automatic bleed valve, and a filter/dryer so that the air going into the main air tanks is clean and dry. The air system will be powered by two air compressors, the cam driven compressor and an "endless air" supplementary compressor. I'm also replacing all the rusty fittings - but I first have to figure out the new system and where to put everything. Last weekend I made up a series of new brackets to support the airline all around the truck. All going well I will have put all the hardware in place soon, and I can start routing the air lines. I'm also putting quik-connects at each corner for the air lines to pump up the tyres, air tools etc. It's a slow process - but I want to get it right.

spudboy

25th October 2010, 09:12 PM

Nice bit of fabrication. You have become a gun welder with this project.

Can I ask a slightly off topic question, seeing that you have both a Land Rover and a Unimog, about what you think of the acceleration of the Unimog compared to a Land Rover. I test drove one on the weekend (a U2150) and I was quite taken aback at how slow it was. In general, the condition of the one I drove was poor, so perhaps the turbo was not working properly or something, but am interested to hear your thoughts on this.

Thanks
David

Edit: this is the other thread on my driving experience: http://www.aulro.com/afvb/parking-lot/115823-my-first-drive-unimog-unfortunately-i-underwhelmed.html
and this is a thread on the condition of the Mog: http://www.aulro.com/afvb/general-chat/115827-what-part-exellent-condition-includes-panel-rust-youd-put-your-finger-through.html

Iain_B

25th October 2010, 09:13 PM

Other progress involves sizing up a new turbo to make more boost a lower rpm, whilst giving a modest power increase.

The old turbo did not have a wastegate, and only came on boost around 2000rpm. The new one is a GT2860 - a "disco potato" - I've learnt a lot about turbo sizing over the past two weeks:

This is what I got from the suppliers:

Selecting turbocharger:
BSFC= .38
AFR= 22:1
Wa= airflow actual (lbs/min)
Hp= horsepower target (200)

Wa=200x22x(.38/60)
Wa= 27.86lbs/min (Bottom side of graph)

Pressure ratio:

MAPreq = [Wa x R x(460+Tm)]/Ve x (N/2) x Vd

WA= lbs/min
R= gas constant (639.6
Tm= intake manifold temp (130deg)
Ve= volumetric efficiency (.98%) I re-worked the calcs with 0.85 and it hardly makes a difference
N= engine speed (2600)
Vd= engine displacement (Ci= ltresx61=347.7)

=[27.86 x 639.6 x (460+130)]/ .98 x (2600/2) x 347.7
= 10513361/442969.8
=23.73psia (this is absolute pressure including ambient)pressure needed at intake manifold

= 23.73 + 2psi (intercooler drop) (Drop through the Charge cooler will be a lot less - around 0.5psi)
= 25.73
= 25.73/13.7=1.87:1 pressure ratio(13.7 is intake air pressure minus 1psi for air filter restriction) vertical side of graph

This works out to about 12 psi boost to get 200hp so if you reduce boost back a little you will still get 180hp easily and be above your 160hp and far more efficiently.

I checked all their calcs myself from the articles found at this site: Garrett Diesel Tech (http://www.turbobygarrett.com/turbobygarrett/tech_center/diesel_tech.html) everything lines up nicely and is well within the recommended area for the turbo.

The Garrett site has a few interesting articles about how to set-up your turbo - this one in particular says a whole lot about compressor sizing TurboByGarrett.com - Turbo Tech103 (http://www.turbobygarrett.com/turbobygarrett/tech_center/turbo_tech103.html)

Then there is some informative articles about turbo installation TurboByGarrett.com - Turbo System Optimization (http://www.turbobygarrett.com/turbobygarrett/tech_center/turbo_optimization.html)

The photos show the old turbo and the new physically smaller one, which due to modern design flow more than the old one.

If only I knew what I do now about turbo - I would not have gone with the MTQ kit.

Blknight.aus

25th October 2010, 09:26 PM

I'm also putting quik-connects at each corner for the air lines to pump up the tyres, air tools etc.

Please don't these are very good at developing leaks and costing you air pressure.

IF you really have to look at the ones with a screw down dust cap and fit an isolator valve between your brake system and your QD's.

Iain_B

25th October 2010, 09:34 PM

If it was a U2150, then it is a large truck but does have a 210hp engine. It should not be that slow. You need to remember that it is a truck - so to compare it to a Land Rover is not really a fairly comparison unless the Land Rover is a Series 1 or 2.

Unimogs are slow - mine will have a top speed of 110kph hopefully, and will probably take around 30+ seconds to get there if it makes it at all. I've made a lot of modifications to mine to make it more reliable, and hopefully more fun to drive - by that I mean not having to drop down to 40kph going up a hill on the highway, but I'll guess I'll find out when I get it on the road.

Nice bit of fabrication. You have become a gun welder with this project.

Can I ask a slightly off topic question, seeing that you have both a Land Rover and a Unimog, about what you think of the acceleration of the Unimog compared to a Land Rover. I test drove one on the weekend (a U2150) and I was quite taken aback at how slow it was. In general, the condition of the one I drove was poor, so perhaps the turbo was not working properly or something, but am interested to hear your thoughts on this.

Thanks
David

Edit: this is the other thread on my driving experience: http://www.aulro.com/afvb/parking-lot/115823-my-first-drive-unimog-unfortunately-i-underwhelmed.html
and this is a thread on the condition of the Mog: http://www.aulro.com/afvb/general-chat/115827-what-part-exellent-condition-includes-panel-rust-youd-put-your-finger-through.html

spudboy

25th October 2010, 09:44 PM

OK - thanks for that info. It would not surprise me if something was wrong with the one I drove. Guess I was expecting more from215HP.

Ben (From Canberra) is importing a little U1250 from the USA which should be arriving around Xmas, so I am going to run over there and take a look at it. It's a DoKA and I've attached a few photos (used to be owned by TRUKTOR in Montana, from the MB forum).

Iain_B

25th October 2010, 09:44 PM

Exactly the plan Dave - manual valve to shut off the air system. I'm also working on a system that will allow me to dial in an air pressure, connect the tyres up have it automatically adjust to the air pressure

Please don't these are very good at developing leaks and costing you air pressure.

IF you really have to look at the ones with a screw down dust cap and fit an isolator valve between your brake system and your QD's.

Blknight.aus

25th October 2010, 09:47 PM

thats the easy bit...

from your supply tank -shut off valve- pressure regulator as per any normal compressor- your QD's-airline...

unless you want to goto CTIF then you need to look at the axles under the current mog wrecker.

Iain_B

2nd November 2010, 10:36 PM

This weekend's work was re-fitting the air lines and it took a few goes to get the airlines from the engine compartment back to the air tanks. First time I forgot the route around the radiator and inner fender - luckily I had the photos from the strip down and when Dan brought his Unicat U1300/37 I took some more of how his airlines were routed.

This weekend I also painted the air tanks, and the various bits of metal that hold the rubber surrounds on the inner fenders, and various other bits an pieces. I'm mounting the air tanks on rubber mounts, to help isolate them from the frame flex.

My set of XM47's have also arrived - I'll use them for driving on the beach and some of the shorter trips, keeping the MPT's for longer distances. Since I have no space left on the ground floor - I had to roll them up the stairs - the whole 1/2 ton of them.

spudboy

3rd November 2010, 08:03 AM

That's a set of tyres! And probably cost a bomb as well.

I like that grey mog (the last photo). Is that Ben's?

Edit: Just re-read and you said it was Dan's... Is he someone travelling through from the USA?

Iain_B

3rd November 2010, 06:58 PM

No Dan, lives on the Gold Coast - his Mog was feature in teh 4WD action magazine a while ago and he is now building a U1750 DOKA for his collection.

The set of tyres cost me $2.5K - but would be cost around $1600-1800 each to replace. They are 425/75-20's and have a max speed rating of 55mph. The 365-80-20 MPT cost $1100 each - an people complain about the BFG KM prices :eek:

Iain_B

11th November 2010, 09:00 PM

Here are a few photos of the GT2860RS installation - it gets a bit close to the starter motor supply terminal - about 20mm - but I have trimmed a bit off the exhaust brake and will cut down the terminal to get around 50mm clearance. The manifold, adaptor, exhaust brake and dump pipe are in for ceramic coating - a three layer system that they claim will reduce heat output by 30-40%. I will wrap the dump pipe in Themotech tape where it runs close to the airlines. I also have new stainless heat shields should keep the air lines safe.Thermal edge

The bolts in the photos are all temporary - I've replace them all with studs. High tensile countersunk studs hole the turbo to the adaptors, and more HT studs hold the adaptor to the turbo, and the I increased the exhaust brake studs from 8mm to 10mm. I used studs as there was not enough space to use bolts.

The adaptor between the turbo and the exhaust brake took a while to fabricate - the flange is a weird oval shape, and that goes into the 70mm diameter exhaust brake. It also has to be at an angle so the exhaust brake clears the starter motor, but doesn't hit the cab ( I have not dropped the cab yet - so I hope it fits) . It took quite a bit of work to make it fit - and 1/2 a day of welding and grinding to smooth it out so that it will flow nicely. I added on substantial bits of weld as reinforcing to the adaptor - multiple runs on a high penetration setting. I think it will be strong enough to hold together under the heat and pressure when the exhaust brake is on.

Iain_B

22nd November 2010, 08:23 AM

Here is the latest installment of "Pimp my Mog" - I got all the shiny parts back from the coating place this week, and have assembled in all on the truck. The turbo, manifold, adapter, exhaust brake and the dump pipe all all coated with a three layer ceramic coating that should help keep the heat down a bit. The dump pipe will be wrapped with "Thermotec" tape - the ceramic coating will prevent the tape from damaging the pipe. The rest of the exhaust will just be painted with normal exhaust paint.

The main part of the work this week has been be still the air lines. I have also modified and fitted up all the gear linkages and most of the air lines for the over drive.

The diff lock are independently operated via two heavy duty solenoids mounted on the safety post. I have plumbed it so that when the 4wd/diff lock knob is turned to the diff lock position, the air is supplied to the solenoids. I can switch them on an off independently, and there are pressure switches on both lines to I will get a warning light when they are operating.

I have replaced all the fitting on the air system with the new push in connectors where ever possible. There are a few odd sizes on the Unimog that I could not find, so I replaced the old banjo and bolts with new ones. Basically everything on the air system is new, expect for a couple of banjos on the breather system, and they were still shiny and clean.

I have ordered the last of the tubing and fittings and soon will be able to charge up the system and see what leaks.

Anyway, not long before I start on the fuel system, and maybe get the engine running again by Christmas

spudboy

22nd November 2010, 08:27 AM

Exhaust bits and pieces look excellent. Getting the motor running will be a milestone.

Thanks for posting the update - always interested to see how it's going.

Cheers
David

miky

22nd November 2010, 10:21 AM

Yeh, thanks for the update. That is going to be an awesome unit.

So, David, are you still looking :)

.

spudboy

22nd November 2010, 04:50 PM

Yeah - sort of. Ben (in Canberra - Nashy on AULRO) in bringing in a mid 80's DoKA U1250 which looks very nice. 4 doors; Overdrive; New Tyres; etc.

Have also been re-evaluating how I can fit out my 130 so more fits in it. That's going to be the cheaper option by a long way, but am still interested in a Mog.

Iain_B

23rd November 2010, 12:01 AM

That's be the cheaper option by a long way, but am still interested in a Mog.

I think most options would be cheaper than a Mog - just the sheer size and number of systems on it make it not cheap - but then nothing else really compares to a Mog. The main thing to realise is that unless you buy a new $300K+ mog, then nearly all the ones available are either 20-25 years old, ( you can't import one younger than 1989) or were owned by mines or farmers who have absolutely rooted them - and still want $100K for it

My theory has been to basically do an overhaul job on nearly everything rubber, plastic or rusty, then there is less chance that something that is 25 years old will break and leave you stranded.

I doubt many people would take a 25 year old Land Rover and expect to drive it without doing a substantial amount of work. A mog is just a whole lot bigger, but once you get used to using the big spanners, it's not much different to any other car I've re-built.

I think I'm sure case of "shipwrights disease" - everything I look at I end up replacing, overhauling or as a minimum, repainting. Looking back, I could have been driving around now - after I finished painting the cab, I could have just re-assembled everything and got it running again then started the camper box - after all, everything was working when I bought it.

Capstan

23rd November 2010, 02:01 PM

How is this for a recently completed Unimog, just back from a trip across the Simpson.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2010/11/385.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2010/11/386.jpg

spudboy

23rd November 2010, 02:56 PM

So it's a Unimog, with a Kenworth Cab??? Never seen anything done like that before :eek:

Iain_B

23rd November 2010, 03:49 PM

I'd love to see what part of it is still a Unimog - wheel base looks huge. Love to see some under body photos and of the cab. I'm trying to imaging the height of the cab given where the engine sits and where the front wheels are is in relation to the engine - I suppose they could have moved the engine backwards.

JohnF

23rd November 2010, 03:51 PM

Friend of mine, previously our RFS bush fire brigade captain reckons the Unimog would make a great unstoppable fire truck

Capstan

23rd November 2010, 08:45 PM

100% Unimog underneath, chassis lengthened. Engine in original spot. A KW is 'Cab over engine' and it is a lot easier to hide a 180hp Benz motor than a 650hp Cat, in fact the normally huge engine cover between the seats has been reduced in size. Camper body is made from freezer van type composite honeycomb wall panel called 'Monopan', built without a frame so really light weight. The body is mounted on a centre spine to allow the chassis to flex underneath. Weighs only 7.5t dry, 9t with liquids/people/stuff. Can cruise at 105k but nicer at 80-90k where you get 19 litres per 100k.

Iain_B

24th November 2010, 12:55 AM

Thanks - any chance of some photos, I would love to see the engineering that's cone into that monster. Which Unimog was it based on - the wheels looks like six bolt so that would be a U1300/U1450 at the most.

100% Unimog underneath, chassis lengthened. Engine in original spot. A KW is 'Cab over engine' and it is a lot easier to hide a 180hp Benz motor than a 650hp Cat, in fact the normally huge engine cover between the seats has been reduced in size. Camper body is made from freezer van type composite honeycomb wall panel called 'Monopan', built without a frame so really light weight. The body is mounted on a centre spine to allow the chassis to flex underneath. Weighs only 7.5t dry, 9t with liquids/people/stuff. Can cruise at 105k but nicer at 80-90k where you get 19 litres per 100k.

Iain_B

24th November 2010, 12:56 AM

Friend of mine, previously our RFS bush fire brigade captain reckons the Unimog would make a great unstoppable fire truck

Most rural fire brigades in Europe use them - one of the main markets for Unimogs after the military.

JohnF

25th November 2010, 03:54 PM

Yes but not in our area where we could use something like that, John.

Iain_B

19th December 2010, 10:44 PM

Time for an update on the Mog progress. I have borrowed a cab tilter from a a forum member - I have it until early in January, so I need to get everything done that needs the cab tilted. I will also take a few measurements on the lifting cylinder at various extensions to see how long to make a single ram cylinder.

There is plenty of clearance for the turbo - I'll tilt the cab again and fit the heat shields and a bit more sound insulation. I will also fit up the accelerator pedal and the hand throttle linkages.

I also re-fitted the inner fenders - both refurbished with new home made rubber seals. I also fitted up the power steering reservoir and the steel lines. I have a new hose for the lower return line, but I need to get another two hoses for the upper return line, and the upper supply line. Then that should last for another 25 years.

It looks like there should be plenty of space for the inter cooler - there is 400mm of clear space between the turbo and the power steering reservoir, or if I put it up higher, I have around 700mm to the inlet manifold - I'm sure I can make something work there.

The air tanks also fit quite nicely - glad this time I managed to get all the measurement right. I have charged up the air system, and everything works. I also discovered a design error with the way I plumbed in the wet tank. When the tanks get to max pressure, the divertor valve opens and the compressor goes into free-wheel mode - which means that the wet tank would fully discharge out of the divertor valve - which is not a good idea as when the tanks get discharged, before the compressor would would be recharging the main tanks, it would have to first have to charge up the wet tank. I found this out the hard way - when I adjusted my shop compressor to go about 8.3 bar ( I have two of them rigged up in parallel to speed up the process) when the divertor valve opened - it shot the little silencer off the bottom of the valve, and discharged the entire contents of both 50lt compressor tanks, the wet and and the purge tanks - made on hell of a racket doing so. Anyway, at least I know the divertor valve works.

I have returned to fabricating the camper box again. First the battery box and the box for the diesel heater. I have fitted them both below the floor, and will have two hatches to access them. Another forum member will be making the composite floor - made from 2mm aluminium, 6mm fo foam and 4mm of ply, all vacuum bagged together to make a strong composite floor. I have to make a template out of plywood for each section of the floor - being a civil engineer, tolerances of a centimetre or so are normally pretty good, but here I need to get with a few millimetres. The panels will be quite complicated, as I have to fit around all the bracing and have the joints all hidden. The final wall on part of the floor will most likely be teak.

The main fabrication work this weekend was the two rear seats. It took a fair bit of fitting and engineering, but eventually I figured out how to make it all work. The back part of the seat still reclines using the original electric motors, and the lumbar support still works as well. The seat base is fixed to the frame, and that took a fair bit figuring out. It has to be fairly strong to be able to hold the seat belts.

The space behind the seat back is quite large - should be useful for storing some softer item that don't get used that often. The only way to access the storage will be to wind the seat back right forward. I'll test it out once I get everything sorted. I'll work on it over the next few evenings.

I finished the first seat, but ran out of steel for the second one. Since I've figured out the way to do it, the second one should take less time. Trish has tested the seat, and reckons it will work well - she could see out of the front window and the passenger side window quite easily, and the height was just right for her. I found that the angle in the first seat was a not right for me, I would get a sore neck, but the second seat works a lot better. Anyway, I would not be the one using those seats whilst driving - my seat is the one behind the steering wheel.

Iain_B

19th January 2011, 10:06 PM

Loads of progress over the past month. I decided to find out how much the truck weighs - it has always been one of those things that have been in the back of my mind - what if it is overweight - after all the effort to get the U1250 truck all fixed up, I would have to get something like a U1700 just to carry the extra weight. So I decided to hire a mobile weigh bridge.

The results were:

Truck - 4700kg

Parts to go:

Front Winch - 50kg
Sprung Mattress - 50kg
Windows and glass - 50kg
Floor - 75kg
Spare wheel - 100kg
Furniture & Lining - 100kg
Fridges - 50kg
Solar Panels - 40kg
Toilet - 35kg
Stove, Calorifier, water pump etc, 50kg
Roof Rack & Bull Bar - 100kg
Insulation - 100kg
Batteries & Chargers - 250kg

Other stuff:

Fuel - 400lt
Water - 300lt
Food etc - 500kg
People - 4 x 75 = 300kg

Total 7250kg.

That gives me only 250kg up my sleeve, which is not that much but should just be enough. The good new is that the diet has worked, and Mog is on track to come in under the 7.5 ton maximum limit.

I have to finished all the things that need the cab tilted to fit. First the heat shields on the cab itself - the new turbo has moved the exhaust brake a lot closer than the original turbo, but with the heat shield, the ceramic coating and some more insulation, I think that should be enough to keep the heat out.

The next thing to fit was the throttle linkages and the accelerator pedal. I still have to fabricate a few bracket to hold the plastic cover plate in place, but the accelerator and the hand throttle are all fitted.

The main work on the weekend before the flood was on the floor. This is the first stage of my new floor. First I have to cut out the templates for the various floor panels. This took quite a while to get right. I have to make sure I can fit the floor in around all the various bracing and brackets. The joins have to line up with the structure of the subframe. I have to weld in one more support on the joint directly in front of the bed, and then the floor is basically finished.

The next stage is to cut the aluminium to size using the templates as a guide. Then I will send the aluminium over to get the foam and plywood stuck to it and vacuum bagged together. Whilst that is happening, I need to paint the inside of the truck. Everything will be primed using an etch primer, then painted with two pack epoxy paint. Before I can start the painting, I have to finish the window frames. This will be made from aluminium box section, and then glued into position using the Sikaflex. I will also drill all the holes for the wire conduits as well, then spray the inside of the box sections with some cavity wax to keep the rust at bay from the inside as well.

The next thing to figure out is how the shower area is going to work. I have to make sure the floor will slope to ensure the water ends up in the tank. I also need a place for the stairs to fold up underneath. I've seen a lot of designs, and I think I know how it's going to work.

The floods in Brisbane meant that our office was closed. My wife and I went up to help, but got turned away by the centre saying they had too many people already, so I decided to make the most of the time off by progressing the Mog.

First thing was to cut the aluminium for the floor. I made some straight edges from the spare plywood, then trimmed the plywood templates using a top bearing router bit to the exact size allowing for a 3mm gap for the Sikaflex between the panels. I then did the rough cut on the aluminium using the plasma cutter, then using my router and a edging bit, I trimmed the aluminium to an exact match to the plywood. The result was a nice smooth edge on the aluminium and straight cuts (for a change). The photos show the rear section under the bed and the front section under the seats.

I took the aluminium and plywood templates up to a friend who will turn the aluminium into a composite panel. All going well I will get them back next week and I can fit the floor.

I also built the aluminium window frames - made from 38x25mm aluminium they reinforce the aluminium around each of the windows - just in case.

Next was the storage hatches. First the left hand side, which will also include a fold out table. Then the rear hatch, which is the "boot" of the truck, and will hold a fold out kitchen and it will also have a few shelves, but we will sort all the storage out once we get through the first couple of trip, them we will know what we need and what we don't.

Next was to sheet the rear and the storage hatches with the aluminium. If you think you can use a manual glue gun when applying the Sikaflex, then you have forearms like Popeye. The forklift makes a great table for these sorts of things. Gluing aluminium with Sikaflex is a four stage process. First you have to sand the surface with a course grit sandpaper, then using the Sikaflex cleaner. That has be allowed to dry for a minimum of 10 minutes before applying the Sikaflex primer. Then you have to let that dry for 20 minutes, only then do you get to put the Sikaflex 252 glue on.

The photos show the framing and the finished product looks like - all the panels are on, and the infill panels either side of the rear hatch and above the hatch have been glued on.

I decided to to order in a oil and water line kit from Japan for the GT2860 turbo - I ordered it on Friday last week, and it arrived on Tuesday. I needed a few adaptors to fit the oil drain onto the oil pan, and the oil supply line from the block which I ordered from my local hose shop. . I've got some high temperature silicone hose for the water lines from Autobarn - my local car parts place after the specialist hydraulic hose and fitting place did not know where to get it. I will use that to connect the turbo cooling lines into the heater circuit. It must be Japanese efficiency that enables them to supply a high quality hose kit all the way from Japan for 1/3 of the price and in about the same amount of time it took for my local hose place to order in a few adaptors.

I also decided to get the door fabricated by my local sheet metal shop - the guys that have been doing all the cutting and folding of the aluminium for me. I didn't trust my ability to make the door flat enough, and the curved edges were fairly tricky to make. They did a great job, and it fits perfectly - which means I actually managed to measure something correctly for a change.The photo show the guys from Ryan's Sheet metal in Springwood that have helped me out so much. I hung the door using some heavy stainless steel hinges. I will have to slot the holes in the door, to make the final adjustment to align it so that the seals are all tight, but it works fairly well. When I get it all aligned properly, then I will add a third hinge in the middle.

The final bit of sheet metal work this week was the cladding of the side pods and the mudguards. The biggest Hella led lights fit perfectly in the corner - and the look great as well. I'm back to work tomorrow in a temporary building, so I will continue in the evenings and weekends again. The plan is this weekend to the access hatches frame work to the rear pods, and get all the rest of the cladding done on it at well. All going well, next weekend I will be fitting the floor, then it will be on to the interior fit out.

Iain_B

19th January 2011, 10:09 PM

More photos

Iain_B

19th January 2011, 10:11 PM

Even more photos

slug_burner

19th January 2011, 11:06 PM

It is all coming along and going together. You can really see what it will look like when finished.

I imagine you have a big trek planned?

Bundalene

20th January 2011, 05:26 AM

Excellent post, you must be burning the midnight oil.

I have done a little research on sound proofing and heat insullation and there are a lot of products out there to chose from.

I found a couple of Aussie made products from a company Thermotec suited our project needs. There is a bit more info lower on the page in the link below.

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/projects-tutorials/115591-bundalenes-puma-project-9.html

Thanks for sharing your project,

Erich

Iain_B

20th January 2011, 11:22 AM

Sure have - around Australia then a 2 year around the world trip - SE Asia, China - Russia - Mongolia - Europe - Africa - N & S America.

Iain_B

20th January 2011, 12:02 PM

Thank for the advice. Heat and cold are my main problems - heat in the cab and cold in the camper.

I have ceramic coated the exhaust and turbo, heat shields on the inside of the engine bay, then a second layer of foam/foil as well on all areas close to the turbo or exhaust. The whole of the cab has 6-12mm rubberised spray on product on the underside, then on the inside a layer of dynamat ( two layers on the fire wall),. I also have a moulded sound/heat insulation kit for the Unimog - consists of a 15mm soft foam and a 10mm heavy rubber - weighs over 100kg and will cut the noise and heat down in the cab

I have already bought my insulation for the camper box - did a lot of research and went with a polyester fibre bat 50mm thick. It is used in trains and buses, apart from having a good "R" factor, does not retain moisture - which is critical in a steel frame construction, has excellent sound absorption and was locally made as well. I am no as worried about heat insulation as I am about cold insulation - we will most likely be travelling in sub-zero temperatures. From my research there was a lot of "misleading info" on "R" factor - most manufacturers give and "R" factor per 1" or 10mm depending on the country of origin. I almost bought something that had a great "R" factor, but it only comes in 10mm thickness and 50mm of polyester bat beat the insulation property by far when the actual "R" factor for the specific thickness of material is taken into account.

The aluminium is insulated from the steel frame through the Sikaflex, then the composite inner lining will be insulated from the steel frame. This will limit the "thermal bridging" problem. I will also have a 5 or 8kw diesel heater which will keep the engine block and the camper warm - and electric blankets as well - all necessary for when it's -20 degrees.

I saw you section on the cavity wax. When I start running the wiring, I will be drilling through some of the box sections. I will pour in a few litres of cavity wax. I made the lower box section continuous all the way around, so the wax can flow where it needs to, and the main "hoops" as also continuous so I can get the cavity wax into them as well. I'm still thinking about the bracing member, where I drill a hole in each and add the cavity wax. Condensation inside tubular members is a problem in cold weather due to the heat / cold cycle they got through , which leads to rust from the inside.

Excellent post, you must be burning the midnight oil.

I have done a little research on sound proofing and heat insullation and there are a lot of products out there to chose from.

I found a couple of Aussie made products from a company Thermotec suited our project needs. There is a bit more info lower on the page in the link below.

http://www.aulro.com/afvb/projects-tutorials/115591-bundalenes-puma-project-9.html

Thanks for sharing your project,

Erich

spudboy

20th January 2011, 03:41 PM

Hi Iain - can I ask a bit more about your insulation please.

I did a search on "polyester fibre bat" and read a few articles, and it seems to be the one to get. What brand are you buying, and where did you get it from? I only want 1" thick wall insulation as that's what the framework on my canopy doors etc is.

Thanks
David

Iain_B

20th January 2011, 04:39 PM

Hi David, I will be using Higgins 50mm polyester batt - HBL3250. It is a combination thermal / acoustic batt. 32kg/m3 Polyester batt. - it is 50mm I'm not sure if they make it in 25mm thickness.

I also plan on a layer of the thin foil insulation in the roof - just because I have a roll lying around.

Iain_B

30th January 2011, 06:53 PM

This week I realised that in a short time, I will be where most people start building their campers, with some sort of a camper box. It has been almost a year since I started building the frame - whilst the last 5 months has more or less been fixing all the mechanical parts on the Mog itself.

The first photo two photos show the new "composting toilet" that arrived this week. First in the "stored" position, then in the "ready for use" position. You have to use your imagination to picture the cupboard around it, and a sliding platform that holds the toilet itself.

This weekend I called in a bit of help to clean off all the blue paint that is on the steel. It took the three of use most of Saturday to get the blue paint off the steel, some of it almost fell off the moment we pointed the power wire brushes at the paint, and other parts would just not come off at all - until we put a bit of thinners on it and then it melted off. After the cleaning came the painting, and there is a lot of area on the inside of the Mog. It took around 2 hours and 4 litres of primer to get the the inside painted with the grey etch primer. I had previously painted the area near the seat with some left over paint from the underside of the of the truck. That corner is done with both the grey etch primer, and then a coat of the epoxy primer which is much tougher than the etch primer, but to do the whole truck interior would be overkill, even for me. When the floor is in, I will paint the underside of the truck with the epoxy primer in addition to the etch primer.

In between waiting for the paint to dry, I decided to fit the aluminium skin to the left storage pod and plates to the bottom of the the battery and heater compartments. After that, back to the painting, and after another 2 hours and 4 litres of paint - the next few photos show what the rear looked like.

I have another litre of the white paint left, and I'll use that for putting another coat of paint on the various parts where the floor attaches. I'll have to buy a bit more paint this week to finish off the inside properly, but all going well, I should be in a position to glue the floor down next weekend. Talking about the floor, it should be ready by next weekend so like I said in the beginning, then I'll be in a position that most people start off from - with a completed camper box ready to start fitting out.

Iain_B

30th January 2011, 06:56 PM

A couple more photos

spudboy

30th January 2011, 09:42 PM

Every set of photos shows more progress. Any estimates as to how far away from finishing it you are?

The white inside makes it look a lot bigger for some reason (compared to the grey). Are you doing the whole of the inside white eventually?

Cheers
David

Edit: Ha - I recognise that bogger :)

Iain_B

30th January 2011, 10:10 PM

The plan if for a everything to be white, but with a teak floor and timber inserts on the cupboards/furniture.

Something like this:

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/01/66.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/01/67.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/01/68.jpg

AS far as a time frame is concerned - I'm now starting to think about a trip in August or September this year.

Every set of photos shows more progress. Any estimates as to how far away from finishing it you are?

The white inside makes it look a lot bigger for some reason (compared to the grey). Are you doing the whole of the inside white eventually?

Cheers
David

Edit: Ha - I recognise that bogger :)

pohm66

9th February 2011, 04:49 PM

Been reading this thread and remembered that before Christmas I took a couple of shots of a Unimog heading through Acacia Ridge here in Brisbane

I think it had Alsakan plates and looked sooooo out of place amongst suburbia.33217

Also another larger image at http://thumb7.webshots.net/t/82/182/9/24/25/2777924250106725807vSEmBE_th.jpg

Iain_B

9th February 2011, 06:10 PM

That is Charlie Aaron's U500 Unicat. He and his wife are travelling around Australia.

Iain_B

21st February 2011, 12:49 PM

After weeks of rain, the weather was too good to waste, so we have been spending some time on the beach. South Ballina is now our favourite beach, we can drive down to it in about 2 hour, drive right along and park up for the day. The isolation and distance from the everyone else makes it great - no people near us and only the occasional 4x4 passing along the beach.

The good weather didn't last long however, and it was raining again soon after. The next weekend was a spent re-organising the workshop - the hi-rail train gear has been sold at last. Now all we had to do was get all the pieces together and pack it all ready for shipping. We had to clean the workshop up enough to get the truck past the camper box, then move everything around, clean all the parts and pack them into a container. The photo shows the end result of all the work.

We also got the first part of the floor from Christopher Tuck (the fabricator) last weekend. The first thing to do was to sand down all the interior cross members where the floor is going to get glued on. Then to prime them all with the Sikaflex primer.

I also sanded down the aluminium side of the the floor, and masked off the parts which the glue is going onto, and painted the underside with the etch primer. After putting on large amounts of Sikaflex on the cross members, and then the 3mm rubber spacers, I manoeuvred the panels into place. It took a lot of clamps and 80kg of weight to hold down the floor to keep it level.

Whilst I was waiting for the rest of the floor panels to be made, I finally sorted out the hatch looking mechanisms. I bought all the locks for the the various hatches etc. After much thinking, trialling and finally installation, I finally got the locks working properly. The last thing I have to do is to weld on another attachment point onto the main disc to give it three points of locking. The outer part of the lock is stainless steel and fit flush on the outside. The rear hatch is basically the same as the side panels. Similarly I need to weld on the third locking point to make it really secure.

I also fitted the Land Rover door lock into the entrance door. That will make it fully ADR compliant as the door has to be the same as a car door. The Land Rover lock is designed to work off road, so it should last, and it being typical of all thing Land Rover, it's a fairly simple.

I fetched the last of the panels first thing on Saturday morning. And after a whole day of sanding, painting, priming and gluing, finally, the floor is in - no photographs as I had too much Sikaflex on my hands for most of the day to even think about picking up the camera. All the pieces in the floor are a very tight fit due to the various pieces of cross bracing etc.

In order to get the pieces in, I had to leave a 3-5mm gap between the panels in the middle - and even then it was very difficult to to get things to fit - it was like a jigsaw puzzle, and all the pieces had to stuck in a specific order - and once the Sikaflex has grabbed hold - it was almost impossible to move or lift up. Luckily I got it right, and everything fitted properly with no hammering but there were some worrying occasions when it looked like I would have to do some trimming just to clear a bracket or strut.

I'll sand down the Sikaflex in a few weeks time, when it is properly cured. The final floor that we walk on will be another layer of teak. The rest of the floor will get painted with a decent epoxy paint. The two hatches open to allow access to the battery compartment ( on the right) and the heater compartment on the left.

In less than a month, the camper box will head north for fitting out the interior. This means I have a fair amount of work to do before I can send it up. Christopher is already making the lining panels. The lining is another composite like the floor. It's made from 1.8mm plywood, 4mm of foam and and other 1.8mm of plywood, all epoxyied together on a vacuum back table. First thing is to make a mock up interior out of craftwood - to make sure everything works and more importantly that the things like the fridges and the toilet all fit and work.

Once the craftwood interior has been made, then I will send the whole lot up to Christopher who will made the real cupboards etc out of the plywood composite. I also have to get all the fittings, like the door hinges, the roller sliders and even things like the sink, the shower unit, even the stove. I need to have everything that is going to fit in the interior, so that I don't have to remake things.

Iain_B

21st February 2011, 12:51 PM

A few more photos

spudboy

21st February 2011, 01:52 PM

Jigsaw puzzle is very apt!

You can really see how it's going to look inside now.

What is the chassis-looking thing in the front of the picture with the tyres?

Iain_B

21st February 2011, 08:19 PM

That's the hi-rail gear - front and rear train suspension and the central rail clamp bracket.

Iain_B

21st February 2011, 10:15 PM

slug_burner

21st February 2011, 11:14 PM

This is a what the floor panels look like - Christopher will be able to give you more details, but let's just say it looks easy, but making sure it doesn't de-laminate is the difficult part requiring lots of prep and the right products.

Do you intend on bringing this vehicle back to Australia after your trip OS?

If so I suggest you rethink the use of ply/timber. AQIS will be concerned about timber coming back into the country. I know the ADF has issues with timber and foam that is not closed cell due to the potential to harbour bugs/disease in the timber or in dirt caught in the foam. Pulling vehicles, equipment and cointainers apart is a major issue.

I suggest that you speak with AQIS before you go any further if you intend on bringing the truck back to Aus. It may be that you just have to adopt a very disciplined maintenance of the timber and recoat it before you break the surface treatment.

Just a thought although I am sorry that I did not pick up on this earlier.

Iain_B

22nd February 2011, 08:55 PM

Thanks for the head up - it is one of the reasons why the floor is aluminium on the out side. I know of at least three people who have brought their Unimogs in from the USA - AQIS just fumigated the interior. Their floors were made from plywood.
I've thought about keeping the bugs and mud out a much as possible. I've tried to make sure that there are no places for mud etc to collect. All the members underneath or either are sealed or open enough to clean. I have used enough Sikaflex to seal off the floor on the underside, and that includes sealing the edges of each of the main cross members the so it should be fairly bug proof.

Iain_B

27th February 2011, 09:12 PM

This weekend I started on the mock up of the interior - photos are pretty self explanatory. There are sliding drawers under the seat, and another behind the seats accessible when the backrests are tilted forwards. The seats still have their electric motors for the back rest angle, lumbar support etc, and are very comfortable.

There are more drawers under the the bed (the futon mattress is temporary - we will have a sprung mattress). There will be another cupboard over the top of the bed - just need to figure out how deep to make it.

The tall full height cupboard houses the main electrical panel - hence all the conduiting going into it. The cupboard over hole through to the cab will house an air conditioner. The heater will be housed in the same cupboard as the toilet, but totally sealed off from the toilet compartment for obvious reasons. I was thinking of mounting a large bilge type fan that starts up automatically when the toilet is pulled out. There is a small fan built into the toilet, on the inlet to the toilet and a larger solar powered fan on the outlet of the vent tube. This week I'll make toilet slide out.

The cupboard on the door side will house the sink, with a tap that doubles as a hand shower. The compartment under that cupboard houses all the water gear - pumps, filters, houses, calorifier etc. The cupboard opposite the door will hold the fridges. The fridges slide out giving access to either the 35 litre freezer or the 55 litre fridge. We went with the chest type fridge and freezer as even with two it is more efficient than a similar size upright and we can have a decent size freezer - nothing like having an ice cream in the middle of the desert . The rest of the cupboard houses the diesel cooktop, plates, pots and pans etc. There will be appropriate venting etc for the fridges to put the heat outside.

That's for the inside cooking. There will be another kitchen at the back of the truck that houses the gas stove / barbeque etc. That's still in the too be constructed basket.

spudboy

27th February 2011, 09:18 PM

Looks excellent. I can't tell you how jealous I am of all the space you have available to you :p A 130 must be about 1/4 the canopy size of what you have to work with.

Thanks for the photos
David

Iain_B

27th February 2011, 09:26 PM

I tested out the bed today - even with the the futon mattress is was very comfortable :)

Iain_B

2nd May 2011, 05:24 PM

It has been quite a while since I updated the blog - I have been a bit distracted on the Unimog since getting this - my new Land Rover Defender 110. This is what it looked like the day before got my grubby paws on it....

35531

This it what it looks like now - just can't seem to leave things alone. We are going up to Cape York in July, and since the Mog was not going to be ready, I had to have something to drive - it's a long walk otherwise

35532

Anyway, back to the camper build.

Next up was the fridge slides - Anyway, about a month ago I started work on the fridge slides, and after much fabrication and engineering - this is what I ended up with this.

35533
There is a lot of detail in this slide, first the two runners have to be off-set, as the bolts have to be countersunk to allow the runners to pass - so I could not just bolt them back to back. The frame has to allow for the slight sag on the runner due to the weight of the fridge, and not hit the floor or the framing.

35534

The sliding parts have to fit a "standard fridge" - otherwise if we have to replace the fridge on day, we may have to remake things. The slide is now the standard size for a 40/50litre fridge. In the end it was a neat fit - I have primed it and will paint it when I paint the rest of the things that will need painting - no point mixing up 1/2 a litre of two pack paint just for this little thing.

35535

Next thing on the list was the water tanks

Iain_B

2nd May 2011, 05:29 PM

In order to fit the water tanks into the rear quarter panes, I made a mock up out of thin craft wood the exact size of the space available - only to discover that there was no way to actually get the tank in. That was the purpose of the mock up - I need to make sure I can get them in and out - I read on a few other truck builds where the builders installed the tank early on in the build, only to find out a few month later that once other things were installed, the tanks became permanent fixtures - on poor guy had to rip up half of his floor to replace a leaking tank a few years later. What should have been a 1/2 day job for him turned out into a month long re-build.

With a bit of cutting I managed to get a mock up that I was able to fit into the space without having to dismantle anything. That made the tank a bit smaller, but I made it slightly wide to compensate.

35536

I has Atlas Tanks build the plastic water tanks from my drawings - in the end I decided that 100 litres each would be enough and keep the rest as "boot space". The initial idea was to have a chamfer in the corner as per the mock up - but when they told me how they make the chamfer - first make the tank with a flat plate on the angle part, then cut the chamfer into it, then weld in a new piece of plastic - and that would cost an extra $250 per side - and would only gain 8 litres. I decided to just go with the flat rear plate. So now instead of 2 x 100 litres, I have 92 litre per side ( probably around 88 usable unless we part the truck downhill). We have another 20 litres in the hot water calorifier, and for the $500 can easily get another 100lt flat water tank in the boot if we need more water.

35537

I've made up all the brackets to hold the water tanks in place - there will be another on behind as well - I don't want 100kg of water tank moving around.

35538

I also decided to completely separate the rear boot area from the rest of the truck. I made up some brackets and a sheet of 3mm chequer plate to form a bulkhead. There will also be a solid lid to the boot, with inspection hatches to allow me to remove the water tank hold down straps, the senders etc etc. I'm still deciding whether to make it from aluminium or plywood. I will also run part of the heating system through into the rear boot compartment - probably just a few runs of copper tubing - to ensure the water tanks don't freeze up.

35539

Iain_B

2nd May 2011, 05:41 PM

Finally, this weekend I got back onto the door. I needed to move the lock from where I had originally wanted it ( about 1/4 of the way up from the bottom) , to the middle of the door. The was just no way the door seals would seal properly at the top of the door, when the lock was so close to the bottom.

35540

I cut the new position for the lock, and put the cut piece in the old hole. With a bit of magic and hot metal, the hole moved to the right position.

35541

Next came the cladding of the door. After rough cutting the aluminium with the plasma cutter, I then clamped it to the door frame, and using a bottom bearing bit on my router ( and some spray oil for lubrication) cut the aluminium to the exact size.

35542

This photos shows the result late last night of the nicely clad door - I went to the beach today, but we have a day off on Monday so I'll fit the rest of the lock so I can actually get in to the truck

35543

After two days of deliberation of where to put it, drawing circles all over the mog, just before I went home at around 10:00pm last night, I decided that the best place fit the water tank filler was next to the door. You can stand on the steps to reach it once the camper back is on the truck - it has to be a gravity feed to the tanks, so that means being higher up the than the top of the tanks - so that is always going to be above head height.

35544

Iain_B

2nd May 2011, 05:53 PM

I've started the "armour plating" - 3mm chequer plate is to strengthen the edges most likely to get hit by something - and to provide my double layer seal. Each horizontal seam/joint in the aluminium cladding on the truck will two layers aluminium - to create a double seal.

35548

I also put in all the supports of the lining and finished off the window frames. Then I cut the roof skylights in and made the frames for them.

35549

The skylights are the same brand as the windows - and are double glazed polycarbonate. For some strange reason, the skylight do not come with a sealing strip.
35553

Their website says this is because the Australian rules for gas appliances in caravans require them to be open - They are not supposed to leak, but I'm going to get some seals for them because I don't believe them.

35550

The roof hatch stands proud even when closed - about 100mm - so I had to have a re-think of the roof mounting system for the solar panels and roof racks as the solar panels are only 50mm thick- I will have to make something to allow branches to slide over the top of the hatch. It will be back to the drawing board as far as the roof layout is concerned.

35552

Anyway - that's what I have been doing the past month or so. Things progress slowly and within a few weeks, the back goes up to the Sunshine Coast to get the interior fitted out. I've built a "travelling frame" to hold it for the 100km trip on a flatbed up the coast. I've made a heavy frame to take the place of the legs and will weld it on before the trip.

Whilst it is gone, I will get back to working on the truck itself - and get it up and running for the first time in two years.

Iain_B

10th September 2011, 04:49 PM

Long time no progress report.

I have been progressing, on the Mog, just have not gotten around to posting anything.

I started on the roof rack last weekend. I'm making it out of 40mmNB Gr350 2.9mm wall thickness ( 48.3mm OD) I bought a JD2 Model 32 bender from OPW, after much discussion and bargaining I got it at the same price as shipping it in from the USA direct from JD2

First off was to make a template of the camper box - the roof rack will provide additional protection and incorporate some branch sliders to lift up trees over the top of the camper.

38939

Next was to use the template to design all the bends - search Pirate 4x4 for Bending 101. This is a great method for doing simple stuff.

38940

Then to bend the steel. As it turned out - this hoop required a 5.7m long length of steel, and that was too long work in the area where I secured the bender - there was a pole in the way. Cutting the steel in half, then re-weld it after bending was a whole lot easier than finding a spot that could handle the long lengths of steel - especially as it involved moving the truck which weighs a bit when you have to move it by hand.

The Model 32 bends this easily, but it is still quite a work out.

38941

I made up some mounting plates to the cab - 8mm steel supported by 2 x M10 bolts through the double skin section at the rear of the cab, and 2 x M10 rivnuts. On the top I'll fit three of each to provide further stability and support.

I'm doing this all by myself, and handling a 5.7m long hoop and getting the bends exactyl in the right place would be very difficult, so I decided to make up short tubes on the support plates, then measure the exact height of the hoop part by using spacers on the cab.

I bent up a short length of the tube at the appropriate angle and welded it onto the plate - then after getting the height of the hoop tube right, I welded it to the shorter tube. I used a piece of heavy angle and clamp to ensure a good alignment. I'm getting quite good at this metal glue gun lark :)

38942

Same for the other side, and this was the rack on Saturday night.

38943

to be continued.....

Iain_B

10th September 2011, 05:14 PM

The rear was the easy part. I looked at loads of Mog roof rack designs on the net - some seemed weak, other seemed like over kill. In the end I decide to copy the most respected Mog builders of the all - Hellgeth and Unicat and mount the front support to the top of the front wings.

Next was the front support tubes. I drew out the front profile of the truck in chalk on the ground, and after much measuring and bending, made up the first tube. Then there was the problem of how to hold onto it, I welded the back vertical tube on with the right notching, I could push it into the rear hoop and hook it onto the back cross member, whilst I measured up the angles etc. Doing everything by yourself means you have to get a bit "inventive" when it comes to supports. The wood blocks hold the front supports vertical, and the pipe is supported on the inside of the wing with more wood in order to get the angles and measurements right.

38944

I made up the other side, then cut them both to the right length.

38945

Next was the support plates, using more 8mm plate, I made up a sandwich plate to bolt onto the top of the front wings. Hellgeth and Unicat use this method on their Mogs. I'll look at adding inner bracing to the wing, but neither of the above manufacturers do so. I welded on some nuts on the inner plate to make it easier to install.

38946

With a bit more cutting and grinding, I got a good fit, then it was out with the metal glue gun again.

38947

This is what the two finished supports looked like.

38948

to be continued......

Iain_B

10th September 2011, 05:33 PM

Next was to properly connect the support to the rear hoop and add a cross beam to stiffen up the whole frame.

This took a whole lot of measuring, notching, cutting and grinding to get it to line up and a be parallel to each other, but eventually I got there.

38949

With a bit of craft wood to spread the load, I could sit on top of the roof of the Mog and do all the welding. I've just tacked it in place, but they are substantial tacks. I'll weld everything up properly once I've finished fitting all the members and taken it off the truck. I'll also paint it as well.

38950

Next was to figure out the supports for the roof lights. For those of you that don't like roof lights, then look away now, as this truck has "Mog" sized lights. I've got 9 Hella Rallye 4000's in my shed in various variants from pencil, driving and cornering, and 8 of them are going on the truck :twisted: four on the bullbar and four on the roof,

This is how I figured out the front cross beams, using a straight edge and the covers. Since they are so high up, they will be well set back behind the branch lifters, and have a grill over them as well.

38951

After much measuring and figuring, I transferred it all to the template, and worked out the bend angles , start and stop points etc.

38952

Then I had to bend a bit of steel. The reverse curves were really tricky, I messed the first one up but get the next one right

38953

to be continued.......

Iain_B

10th September 2011, 06:55 PM

This is is what the top cross beam ended up like.

38954

and this is what the bottom cross beam looks like clamped in place with the Hella covers hanging off the top.

38955

another angle of it.

38956

and yet another angle.

38957

The snorkel fits in nicely behind the bar work, but it will need a few extra bits of tubing to protect it properly.

38958

and that's it for tonight. In case you are wondering why the long winded thread, well that's because I'm updating this thread from the "Swag Motel" in Middlemount, nothing much else to do.

austastar

10th September 2011, 07:03 PM

Hi,
thanks so much for writing all that up, a brilliant read.
Absolute materials wizardry with all the skills employed to do such construction, especially at that scale.
It will be an awesome beast when completed, I'm sure you will thoroughly enjoy the fruits of your labours for many years.
cheers

Iain_B

10th September 2011, 07:56 PM

Thanks, I started off with a lot of ideas, and not much skill. I'm gaining confidence all the time. I decided that I'd give it a go, no matter what and that if I was not happy with the result I would just try again.

I also decided that if I'm going to do it myself, then I would have to get the proper tools. The bender is professional grade, and gives really professional results. I don't buy the top of the range gear, but getting the proper tools, even the cheaper versions makes a huge difference. The only thing I bought that was really top notch was the Mig welder. My Kempi Minarcmig 180 welder is a perfect piece of kit - all I really have to do to get a good weld is point it in the right direction, the electronic wizardry does the rest. I also practised a lot - welding up all the off cuts in various positions until I got the hang of when to "push" and when to "pull", how to fill gaps and getting proper penetration.

There are a few things I have not decided to do, one of then is the carpentry and cabinet making. I just don't have the patience of the skill to get a high level of finish.

cols110

11th September 2011, 04:46 PM

Iain, great build & report mate.

I have been following your build on a few different forums & it seems to be coming together nicely. Looking forward to seeing the finished product.

I am looking at doing something similar in the next couple of years. Probably a low back version with a raising roof or box similar to Nicks orange mog. Any idea where Nick has some more photos of his mog build up.

There are 4 1300L's for sale in Dubai at the moment but their price is still a little high, they are ex UAE Military Ambo's, 1988 with turbo's not sure if they are fast axles or not. Look to be in good condition mechanically with between 35 000-80 000kms. I am trying to find out if the military plans to put any more on the market by tender if so I will probably grab one. They also come with dual aircon in the cab & rear ambo box.

We plan to be in Dubai for quite some time & this will be for travelling whilst we're here, so it will need to be shipped a few times which is why I want a low back. All being well with the wheels removed I would hope to be able to fit it into a 20ft container without having to ship it ro-ro. A bit of stuffing around but cheaper & more secure.

Iain_B

11th September 2011, 07:03 PM

I've only seen the few on the Benzworld forum, I don't think he has finished it yet.

The ambulance should be fast axles - if they have a OM366A then it is more likely, as the rev limit on the engine is much less. Ambulances normally only have a top speed of 90kph, some are 110kph with the "super fast axles", but you can change the tyres on a standard U1300 from 12.5R20 to 14.5R20, and fit a Claas overdrive to get to about 110kph.

I looked very seriously at building a pop up camper, but they are hard to get right, and if you get it wrong, they leak a lot. If you have a pop top, then you have to be careful about how you load the roof, mine will have 5 solar panels and a roof rack for taking a canoe or surfboards.

I'm not to worried about shipping as RoRo is available to all the destinations I want to go to, and there is less chance of damage - you have to make sure the truck is securely tied down in the container, or the will be some serious panel damage with the way the move the around at the docks

Have you seen this Unicat - it has quite a party trick.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1307.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1308.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1309.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1310.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1311.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1312.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1313.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1314.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1315.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1316.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1317.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2011/10/1318.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/

austastar

11th September 2011, 07:53 PM

Hi,
now that is a party trick.
Hope he got my address correct on the container, can't wait for it to be delivered.
cheers

Iain_B

11th September 2011, 08:04 PM

As soon as you cheque for €800,000 clears it will be on the ship :)

cols110

12th September 2011, 12:58 AM

Yep fantastic concept mate but slightly out of my budget. :o

I am going to head over to the show in Germany at Bad Kissingen to have a good look around next year, I went a few years back with my LR head on but next time it will be looking at different ideas for trucks. I am not 100% certain it will be a Mog, but so far it by far the heighest candidate on the list.

Iain_B

24th September 2011, 07:55 PM

A quick update. First off the snorkel protector, I only used 26mm tubing as I don't plan on driving full speed into branches. It unbolts to allow me to remove the snorkel
39383

Next was the ladder so give me access to the roof. It was quite a tricky thing to fabricate, each step is made from bent tube so that the front of the ladder matches the profile of the cab, whilst the rear upright is vertical. The last rung was required to enable me to swap feet before climbing up on top. I will add a handle to the top of the rear crossbar to give me something to grab on when I'm climbing the last little bit.

39384

Next was to make the brackets to hold the spotlights. The first ones I made out of angle did not look right, so I cut the off and made them out of tube. The work well, and will hold the spotlights without deflecting.

I also decided to test out the crane again, this time using the MPT81, I'd already tried it with the massive XM47 tyres. The crane just makes it down to the ground, all in all I'm quite impressed with the Spitzlift crane, it works great, and is very light. I can easily carry it up the ladder. In reality, the crane will be stored in a tool box on the roof, along with a few other things - but nothing too heavy. The roof is rated for 500kg, and I'm not using the
actual roof to support the weight, but have transferred it lower down.

39385

I've basically finished the roof rack. The next stage is to fit the bracket to hold the tyre down to the roof rack. I will do that when the roof rack of off the truck.
39386

I will take it off tomorrow, and weld it all up, wire brush and grind welds where necessary, then paint it with an etch primer, then the grey hammer finish epoxy enamel. This is how I left it this evening - ready to lift off once I find 4 willing labourers

Once the roof rack is off, I will also fit all the various reinforcing plates. These are small triangular plates at all the various intersections, they spread the load out over a larger area, reducing stress concentrations that help prevent the welds from cracking. The guys that make the roll cages on use them, so I'll do the same. It may be overkill, but what's a little bit of extra time and less than 1kg of steel.

I've used 26m of 40mm NB Gr350 pipe, 6.5m of 20mm NB and 4m of 40x40. In total, it weights in at around 100kg.

39387

cols110

3rd October 2011, 10:25 AM

http://www.me4x4.org/modules/PNphpBB2/files/unimog1_749.jpg

Here is a picture of one of the Mogs I mentioned, they have the OM352A engine in them. Mechanically they look pretty good, the only real problem is they seem to have spent quite some time sitting in the sun & all of the window rubbers, tyres etc are all quite badly deteriated.

Iain_B

3rd October 2011, 10:37 AM

Looks like a good buy, I would replace all the window and door seals, air lines, flexible brake lines etc - not a quick job but worth the effort. Tyres are expensive - best to get them from Europe.

cols110

3rd October 2011, 10:48 AM

That would be the plan mate, at the price this guy wants for these they will stay where they are but if he gets more realistic or I can get one direct from the UAE Military I'll probably grab one.

Iain_B

3rd October 2011, 04:19 PM

If they are like most military mogs, they don't have keys, just a push button - quite easy to grab one from direct from the military - but might be a bit risky getting out of the country with it :)

Iain_B

4th October 2011, 01:48 PM

This week I've been concentrating on the front bumper /bullbar. I started working on it, first bending up the top pipe. This is made from 60mm pipe with a 3mm wall thickness - it was very difficult to bend and by the time I had made it, I was stuffed. There are 6 bends in total, and I managed to get it symmetrical first time luckily, or would have had another hard workout. At this stage I decided that the Hella Rallye 4000 spotlight would make really good high beam lights. With that in mind, the front bumper would be about 25mm deeper than the originals, but that only needs to be deep around the lights, after that I could taper it up.

39774

The next part was to mount the 7.5 ton winch. The support plate for the winch sits on top of the chassis rails, that made the winch quite high. I made up the winch plate out of some 10mm plate. IT took quite a bit of cutting and fitting to get it right - my plasma cutter struggles a bit on 10mm steel, so I did most of the cutting with the 1mm cut off wheels on the angle grinder. I cut the support plates off the old bumper, and welded them onto the main plate - I was pretty happy with the weld - first time I have welded such thick plate together. I bevelled both sides of the plate, and was able to get good penetration right through.

39775

Whilst it fitted , and would be strong enough, If left it there until the next morning. In the morning I was still not happy with the winch taking up so much of the grill, and basically being exposed. So I took it all apart again.

After much deliberation I decided to cut off the front tow hitch ( that's the brown thing you can see sticking out from under the plate in the photo above). I could then lower the winch in between the chassis rails. That way I could hide the winch in the front bullbar, just like on the Defender and Discovery.

39776

I had run out of steel, so have to wait until next weekend to get the winch mount made up. I decided to make up the front bumper out of cardboard.

39778

And this is what it looked like. After much playing around I came up with a shape that looked good. The bumper continues past the front and provides extra protection to the front mudguards.

39777

Iain_B

4th October 2011, 01:50 PM

This is how I left it on Sunday night - this an "artist's impression" of what it will look like thanks to a quick photoshop exercise.

39779

During the week, I will get the local sheet metal shop to fold up the bumpers out of 5mm plate. I took them over this morning and they said it should not be a problem, but they may have to make it in a few parts. All going well, I should be able to start fitting the bumpers and all the support plates and gussets next weekend.

cols110

4th October 2011, 05:29 PM

Wow, that looks impressive.

I am guessing it will weigh a bit once complete and the winch is in place.

Iain_B

4th October 2011, 05:42 PM

It will, but that's all in the "budgeted weight allowance". It will weigh about the same as the massive channel that was on previously. The winch is quite heavy, especially with the wire rope - comes in at around 48kg or so.

cols110

4th October 2011, 06:00 PM

I have been thinking about winches & would like to see if it possible to mid mount one & run it fore or aft as required, it would be a bit more stuffing around using it but being able to recovery either direction would make it a bit more versatile. Did you explore this option early on before adding your rear body to see if it is doable.

Iain_B

4th October 2011, 06:45 PM

I did look at it, but there is not that much room in the middle of a U1250 - the only area would be around top of the transmission, and that would require the camper box to come off to access the winch and quite a lot of bracketry as the chassis dip down a lot in that area. If you run with the spare tyre in the standard place - that won't work. I have another winch at the rear - 7.5ton same as in the front, that gives me both options, in theory I could have worked a way for the cable from the rear winch to exit through to the front - there is a clear passage through the OEM camper box sub-frame just for this purpose, but that would require a fair bit of work to go around the engine - but it is possible. I decided to live with the 55kg penalty ( I could save about 15kg just by using some Dyneema rope instead.

isuzurover

4th October 2011, 07:06 PM

cols110

5th October 2011, 02:35 AM

Iain_B

10th October 2011, 09:23 AM

Quick update on the bull bar build. I got the steel bent up this week - but the one thing I really needed to continue - the winch support plate - they did not do. I was planning on welding the support out of flat bar, but decided to get the main part of the plate folded out of 10mm plate as it would be a lot stronger. Unfortunately they decided to send it to another engineering company as they were afraid of breaking their hydropress - that's after telling me that it would not be a problem. Anyway, I should get it this week and can continue the bullbar next weekend.

I spent most of Saturday making a cargo barrier for a friend - and only got a little bit done on the mog. During the week I made up a whole load of triangular brackest for the roof rack - and ground back some of the welds to made the fit. I'll weld them in next weekend as well. .

First up the folded bumper parts

39945

I had to make sure the bar allows enough space for the grill to be removed - whilst I happy enough to remove the bumper to tilt the cab - I don't want to do that just to remove the grill.

39949

The end of the bumper were exactly 90 degrees - but they looked wrong, so I had to cut open the ends, and bend them out a bit to make it look right - this leaves me with a bit of gap to fill, but I'm getting quite good at that. The bumper will protect the front edge of the mudguards.

My el-cheapo plasma cutter made short work of the 5mm plate from the bullbar, cutting out the headlight recess easily. Definitely a great investment. The Hella 4000's fit quite nicely, and I'll use a standard 7" H4 for the normal beams. I picked up a few headlight pod of a Jaguar XJ6 - decent steel pods.

39946

Then I cut out the other side

39947

This is how I left it this evening, all welded up and the gaps filled in. I welded two temporary bars on line up the two ends, and spaced them out properly, giving me enough clearance to the cab tilt supports.

39948

As I expect the cab moves relative to the chassis, hence to the bumper quite a bit, I wanted enough clearance to let it sway around - the tilt support will clear the bumper by 10mm on either side - so unless cab shifts a lot to the left or right when the chassis twists, I should be OK.

Next weekend I'll make up the brackets that support the bumper once the winch mounting plate arrives. I'll have to cut some access points to get spanner into the bolts that hold the winch support in place. Regarding the winch, is it worthwhile making an inspection hole in the top to check the winch cable - I'll be putting one in over the main wiring connections. My TJM bullbar on my Discovery has an inspection hole over the top of the winch, but the ARB one on the Defender doesn't. If I make it big enough - then I can us it to access the bolts on the inside of the chassis rail. I'm planning on using 3 bolts on each side - they are all M14 so would have a combined shear strength way over the capacity of the winch. I also need to weld on some recovery eyes to the winch support plate. I was thinking of getting some made from 16mm plate - one on each side.

klappers

13th October 2011, 09:03 PM

Truly awesome!

That is amazing

Iain_B

5th November 2011, 05:39 PM

I have not done as much work as I wanted the last few weeks - first off I have been away "Consulting the Community" at work - and I also got the flu - not pleasant at all. We also had a photo shoot for 4WD action magazine of the Discovery, which meant I had to spend some time cleaning and polishing it - the photo shoot was great fun, it took the whole day and by the end the Discovery was muddy again.

I have only 4 weeks left with my current job. After 3 3/4 year, I finally had enough of the politics and nonsense, so I resigned. - I decided to take some time off work to get the mog moved along. All going well I will have 3 months off, but I suspect that there will be other opportunities that come up as soon as I finish work that will mean I'll have to go back earlier than that, but time will tell - there is such a shortage of people in the business I'm in, I doubt I will be able to get away with 3 months off..

The lining panels have started to arrive.

40603

They are very light, made from two sheets of 1.8mm plywood and 6mm of foam, but the are very strong. They will be covered in 0.8mm of white Formica, so that will make them very tough and hard wearing. Once all the panels are here, I will mark all the areas for inspection openings and wiring openings and send them back for finishing. Next time I see them it will be to fit them in their final position.

40604

Back to the Bullbar fabrication:

The infill panel arrived, and I can finally weld the thing up. Lots of clamps etc, but the temporary braces worked well, and the section fits in perfectly. I have to fabricate the supports as well - all from 6mm plate. The bolts are all M16, and after I tacked the support in place I discovered that the rear bolts were too long to get out to the hole - so I have to cut a slot in the rear.

40605

Next was to cut the various slots for the winch cable, the handle for the clutch and a slot to see how the cable winds up on the drum. I also mounted the roller fairlead and the Hella 4000 main beam lights.

40606

I'm getting used to making cardboard templates - its a great way to see how things will look without too much effort. I tried a few different styles of support for the bar work, and this is what I think looks the best. I have to make the front supports deep enough so that the fairlead does not protrude past - one of the ADR requirements. Not sure how getting hit with a fairlead or a solid steel bumper would made a difference, but apparently it does.

40607

Now to turn cardboard into steel

Iain_B

5th November 2011, 05:50 PM

I made the first support out of 6mm plate, but as is usual I ran out of steel and had to get some more the next day. That's the main problem working mainly at night, if you run out of something, then it's either take time of work or wait until the weekend, luckily the steel supplier is just around the corner and opens at 7:00am, so I was able to get some the next day. I made them exactly the same by cutting the second one roughly, then tack welding the two plates together, and finishing off all the edges with a grinder. I tack welded these in place on late on Friday night, and also tacked the flat bars to brace the supports. I welded them on starting with the bottom at the back - that way I was able to bend them a lot by hand.

40608

I started again on Saturday morning, this time armed with a propane torch and a big hammer. After much heating hammering and tacking, I had the supports in place - I only had to cut one of the tacks off to realign the strips - must be getting better at this fabrication business.

40609

Next was to weld it all up - there is lots of welding, and as the plate is all 6mm, that means turning up the welder to the max. It generates a lot of radiant heat - there were time when I could see the smoke starting to come off the welding gloves before I feel the heat starting to come through the gloves - then I had to stop or risk melting my fingers.

This is what it looked like after much welding:

40610

The next stage was the lower bar - I didn't want the space between the bumper and the upper bar to be too big - else the pesky kangaroos might find a way to commit suicide by jumping into the radiator.

After even more welding, cutting and bending

40611

And this is how I left it this evening. The bar is pretty heavy - there is a fair amount of 5mm, 6mm plate and 60mm tube, I can lift it off by myself, but it is just too heavy and a difficult shape for me to lift it back on by myself - that's where my trusty forklift comes into play. I think it weighs around 60kg - but I'll borrow the scale tomorrow and weigh it.

40612

slug_burner

5th November 2011, 06:47 PM

Nice work, love your updates.

Hoges

5th November 2011, 08:33 PM

Sometimes resigning is the only way to retain one's sense of integrity... bon chance!

May you enjoy devoting some quality time to your magnificent obsession! and keep up the pics!:D

Iain_B

21st November 2011, 12:59 PM

Finally got the roof rack on - I had to "press gang" some extra labour to get it back on top of the truck.

40973

I've also finished the roof lining of the cab - added some extra "top hat" sections, primed, painted and sound insulated. The dynamat copy worked just as well as the dynamat I've used on the bottom of the cab.

40974

Just to give everyone a sense of scale - I'm 180cm tall - unimogs are not small :)

40975

Finally, to prove I have a life, we spent the whole day at the beach on Saturday :D

40976

slug_burner

21st November 2011, 11:08 PM

................
Just to give everyone a sense of scale - I'm 180cm tall - unimogs are not small :)

Thats cheating that mog is on tippy toes

sheerluck

22nd November 2011, 06:57 AM

Just to give everyone a sense of scale - I'm 180cm tall - unimogs are not small :)

Yep. You may struggle getting that in the underground car park at the local Woolies.:eek:

Iain_B

22nd November 2011, 10:19 AM

I expect that the front will settle about 25mm when I fit the rest of the stuff on it, the rear will settle about 50mm. The front springs may be a bit to hard - given the amount of weight the rail gear used to be, but I'll wait until I get it up and running before making any changes.

Iain_B

14th December 2011, 09:34 PM

A quick update on progress. The major progress this week has been fitting the seats. These are full electric luxury Range Rover Vogue leather seats, and they need special bases to fit. I have consulted all the technical Standards Bulletin VSB5B which more or less tells you how you have to build your seat bases. I followed that, but made them out of 40x40mm instead of 25x25mm.

This what a pair of Range Rover seats look like in a Unimog

41524

I've also started working on the a/c system, in the realm of bigger is better, I've given up on the Land Rover under dash unit in the centre console, and have decided to fit 2 x 18,000btu units into the roof. Still a lot of work to sort it all out, but this is how the evaporator unit fits. The drains will run down through the "A" pillars, and the a/c piping on the back wall of the cab. I've got the compressor, and looking at condensers - probably going with two units off a JCB tractor - getting accurate figures for condenser rating has proven difficult. Two of the JCB parallel flow unit should just about match the evaporator.

41525

I've done a fair bit more work - but the server seem very slow this evening loading up photos - I'll add some more tomorrow.

Iain_B

4th January 2012, 06:44 PM

Just a quick update - the camper box is painted, and it looks great.

42247

Since that photo was taken, I've installed the windows and the solar panels on the roof. I'm now working on the water systems - lots of plumbing :)

Iain_B

27th January 2012, 10:07 AM

Another quick update on my truck.

With the back painted, it was clear that the finish on the camper was a lot better than the cab. So I decided to respray the cab as well.

42944

With everything now sprayed, and all the work done under the cab it was time to fit the camper box onto the truck. First I had to build something to jack it up the meter or so off the ground in order to fit the truck underneath.

42945

I had two high lift jacks on the front legs, and used the forklift on the rear.

Then after much pushing of the truck back and forward to line is all up, the camper box was attached to the chassis.

42946

It was then noticeable that the paint texture was better on the cab and doors than on the camper, so that whole truck is getting cut and polished. Now the finish is really good.

42947

easo

27th January 2012, 10:21 AM

Looking very good.

Easo

justdrinkbeer

27th January 2012, 10:39 AM

This is just ridiculously good!

I love this thread, I check for updates every morning!!

Iain_B

27th January 2012, 11:27 AM

Thanks for the encouragement, whilst not exactly nearing the home stretch, I can see the light at the end of the tunnel, still a long way to go unfortunately.

scarry

27th January 2012, 01:27 PM

Yer,we had a look over it couple of weeks ago,fantastic project,coming together well.

Don't mind the Puma either.......:D:D

matbor

29th January 2012, 07:51 PM

Nice work...

Got my unimog the other day, got it for under $300, came in 2000 pieces and only took 6 hrs to put back together...

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2012/02/1327.jpg

:wasntme::wasntme::wasntme:

Iain_B

5th February 2012, 09:04 PM

A bit more progress this week - the bonnet and grill is all fitted up - and whilstI still have a lot of work under the bonnet to do, I could not resist putting it all together. The grill and bonnet come off in about a minute, they will soon be tucked away upstairs until I finish fitting the intercooler, radiator and a/c system - but it felt good anyway.

43251

Real work was done on the rear storage boxes. As they are the points most likely to get dragged on rock ledges or the like, I made the bottom out of 5mm plate.

43248

I also fitted the big Hella LED combination tail lamps I got of flea-bay for about 1/4 of the price of normal little Duraleds. They fit the rear nicely, with just enough space left for the reflectors.

43247

The rear boxes are complete and I tested them by jacking up the back of the truck using the rear box. Just enough travel in the the jack to just get one tyre off the ground. they will be another hatch cover in the middle to give me access to the twin sub-frame tubes that run the full 3.6m length of the camper box - great for storing fishing rods, tent poles, brooms and shovels.

43249

I also fitted up the front windows, and the mirrors - they are electrically adjustable, and heated. So now my Mog has central locking, power windows, electric mirrors, power leather seats, A/C, power steering - basically all the luxury of a Defender :)

43250

Blknight.aus

5th February 2012, 09:16 PM

slug_burner

5th February 2012, 10:09 PM

Iain,

It looks great, really coming to the end game now.

easo

6th February 2012, 04:34 PM

Nice work...

Got my unimog the other day, got it for under $300, came in 2000 pieces and only took 6 hrs to put back together...

:wasntme::wasntme::wasntme:

Camper conversion??????

Iain_B

6th February 2012, 10:23 PM

I sometimes wish I had started something that simple - in fact my first Mog was a 1:32 scale model with a snowplow - but I made it into a camper with a balsa wood box - that where the bug first bit.

Next thing you know your will start your own 3 year odyssey.

Iain_B

16th February 2012, 08:56 AM

Been working on the dust seal between the cab and camper - first I had to work out how much flex.

Check out the flex in this Unimog - articulation between cab and camper scales off at around 400mm.

U1300 Articulation NWMF 2010 - YouTube (http://youtu.be/0OxmHJWuy3c)

33chinacars

16th February 2012, 12:26 PM

Just drive on smooth surfaces & its not a problem :):wasntme: Ha Ha

Pedro_The_Swift

16th February 2012, 02:32 PM

Its an interesting problem,,

slug_burner

17th February 2012, 12:50 AM

bellows?

Pedro_The_Swift

17th February 2012, 06:14 AM

How do they do high speed trains?
its the join at the two axis's thats the problem,,

Iain_B

17th February 2012, 07:01 AM

After much experimenting on a small scale, we are making a "sock" from 0.9mm vinyl - same stuff they make the soft sided trucks from. We have about 600mm of material between two steel frames, and the sock had extra material in the middle by being pleated in the corners. In the centre of the sock, there is another seam where the material if folded over to create a stiffer section. So that the thing does not just sag down - pretty difficult to explain in words, but when it's finished, I'll post some photos.

The main problem is that the axis of rotation of the cab is different to the camper. The cab is fixed at the front spring mounts, the camper at the rear, and the joint is about 60% of the way along. Most of the flex of the chassis.

In a bellows, the rotation is normally perpendicular to one of the sides - we have that type of movement as well - about 25-50mm, but a 400mm lateral rotation is the tricky part.

justdrinkbeer

17th February 2012, 03:42 PM

slug_burner

17th February 2012, 08:22 PM

A bit late now as it sounds like you have it sorted, but how about neoprene? That way it can stretch, like a wetsuit on a fat girl. Actually, if anyone knows where I can buy neoprene please let me know as I want to make a dust seal on the tailgate on my ute

A fat girl was selling her wet suit, that should do!

Wet suits are usually tailored so a dive shop should be able to put you onto a wet suit manufacturer.

Clark Rubber do this neoprene rubber (http://www.clarkrubber.com.au/neoprene-rubber.html) not sure that it is as per the wet suits.

Iain_B

17th February 2012, 09:26 PM

We looked a neoprene, stretch is around 10-15% - we have only 75mm between cab and camper - so getting 400mm lateral twist still required the sock style system.

The vinyl we are using has about 5% stretch, and is UV stable, my experience with wetsuits is that they deteriorate in the sun.

Iain_B

4th March 2012, 10:05 PM

I've been working on fitting the headlights in the bullbar - I'm using standard 7" H4 units as the "normal headlights, and Hella Rallye 4000's as the main beam.

44261

They two of them fit quite nicely together in the bullbar. I've welded on a strip of 25mm steel as a surround, and some extra bits to make it look better.

44262

I also made a bracket to hold the mudguard, and most importantly, to protect the brake booster/master cylinder if a tyre lets go. I bent up some 25mm heavy wall tubing, weled on some 5mm plate and then bolted it to the heavy frame on the camper subframe, I think this will be able to handle the tread flapping around, the heavy member on the subframe should take the worst of any impacts, the mudguard should just be directing the tyre down - put it this way, it is a lot heavier that what MB fitted on my truck - which was basically a plastic mudguard, and one the U1700 that the subframe came off, this was just a 1mm steel mudguard, with a light piece of bracing to keep it in place. I'm also fitting some thick rubber to direct stones etc away from the brake booster - just in case.

44263

The interior lining is getting closer to being finished, the two angled roof panels were fitted, and now it;s just the main ceiling panel and the two angled pieces on the rear quarters. The floor and the bench tops are currently being made, and the cabinet make will start on the overhead lockers.

44264

The sheetmetal shop made up the first of the storage drawers. The box fits underneath the seats, and will hold all of the food for extended periods. It gets two drawer runner each side - it will hold 90kg at full extension. The table on the front wall of the cabin stops the drawer from opening fully when the table is there. The partition inside lines up with where the drawer will be when open up to the table.

44265

slug_burner

5th March 2012, 09:22 PM

are those seats for passengers, riding in the load space living quarters?

It is looking great. Looks like you have already had a sleep in it:D

Iain_B

5th March 2012, 09:38 PM

Two rear seats for passengers, I'll need to get final certification from the engineer, but he has said it will be acceptable. Quite a few regulations to comply with to get to have passengers on the rear.

Bed works well :)

Dinty

6th March 2012, 02:19 PM

Can I take delivery of the Mog this weekend,:D mate that looks superb, cheers Dennis

Iain_B

7th June 2012, 09:00 PM

Time for a bit of an update.

The interior has progressed, here is the various benches before they get their Jarrah top - hopefully next week all the cabinets will be installed.

47662

The bullbar is complete - turned out rather nicely.

47661

I made some headlight covers as well.

47663

I've also started on the roof rack / solar panel protection.

47664

These are the main interior lights - they provide plenty of light.

47665

Iain_B

7th June 2012, 09:19 PM

The batteries are installed - this is the main battery box, two Optima 31A with 250A fuses fitted to the positive terminals. The thing on the back of the box with all the black wire is a 200A shunt for the battery monitor system. There is another pair of Optima batteries in the other box.

47668

I also made a battery box for the cranking battery - another Optima 31A. I have an isolating switch on this one so I can disconnect the power easily. I'm thinking of mounting my spare 31A in the rear storage pod to give extra power when winching. ( I have bought 8 of these Optima 31 as I can get them at a good price)

47667

The other battery banks are isolated from the cranking battery by a VSR ( with a by pass switch) and each bank of two batteries is connected via a three way heavy duty switch. I can isolate either bank or both from the main control panel, solar power and alternator power. There is a lot of welding cable in this set-up. 70mm2 for the main earth and winch leads ( as they are quite long) 50mm2 to the started motor. 35mm2 for each of the house battery banks and 1mm2 for the alternator connection. You can see the marine battery isolator behind the fuel tank. There is another one that isolates the two winches as well.

47666

spudboy

7th June 2012, 10:17 PM

Hi Iain - it's really come along, and the end looks to be in sight.

8 Optima batteries :eek:

Have you put it on a weighbridge lately? Would be interested to see how
much she weighs in at.

Thanks for posting all those pictures.

Cheers
David

slug_burner

7th June 2012, 11:01 PM

I have good service from one of those optima 31s I have had it for a about six years and still going and get flattened regularly by my parked up D2 so I recharge about once every three to four weeks.

garyvoss

10th June 2012, 09:58 PM

Looks fabulous Iain. We are looking for an adventure vehicle now, but cant find one that suits! Making one looks like it needs skill and commitment - not sure I have either!

Iain_B

17th August 2012, 07:10 PM

Time for a quick update - first off the a/c compressor and second alternator is now on. I will be running dual belts as the 140A alternator and a/c compressor is very close to the limit of a single 13A V-belt, and I have quite a few spare pulleys on the crank.

50027

The next project was the roof rack board/tropical roof/sun deck. This 3.3x1.2m piece of plywood got a decent coat of paint - 2 coats of International Everdure, four coats of International Interprotect, two coats of PCP two pack polyurethane, and the then the top part got a coat of UPOL Raptor bedliner to create nice non-slip surface. With about a 10 hour wait between coats, this took quite a while

50028

While all the paint was drying, I painted the roof with Barrier Shield 2000 - a heat reflective paint that according to the tests, is the equivalent to a 50mm fibreglass bat. http://www.australianpaints.com.au/?page_id=82

50030

With all the paint work drying, I fitted the reading lights to the wooden plinths - there are a set each end of the bed, and another one over the chairs.

50029

Finally, since the Mog is not going to be ready for this year's trip Outback, I decided to fit a Safety Devices Roll Cage to the Land Rover, and Ashcroft Limited slip lockers front and rear. Here is the "before" shot.

50031

Iain_B

17th August 2012, 07:32 PM

Some more photos.

First is the control panel / switch board. There are two circuit breaker panels, two Sunsaver duo solar regulators and a NASA Instruments Clipper BEP2 Battery monitor which should enable me to estimate the amount of charge left in the batteries.

50032

The roof rack edge /tree protectors for the solar panels is also on - quite a fabrication exercise - there as more than 60 components to weld up on this - took a couple of weekends to finish.

50033

I got my friendly sheet metal shop to make up a couple of boxes for the clothes drawers under the bed. They are 1mm steel, and pretty strong. The top one is for Trish's clothes, the bottom one for mine. Which seems out of proportion to me considering I'm almost twice her size and she normally wears about half as much clothing as I do - but she insists that what is needed. Still figuring out that one.

This is the Load Test - about 25kg of weight and the two don't touch each other or the floor.

50034

I finally change the roof hatches / skylight and fitted them - this is Mk III - an off-shore boat deck hatch. The skylight light is 11mm thick acrylic and solid aluminium frame. Much better than the plastic RV style skylights I was going to use.

50035

I found a low profile water "u" trap replacement for the shower and the sink connection to the grey water tank. Quite an ingenious device that prevents the water sloshing back up, whist still providing an easy flow. It is available here: http://www.northcoach.com.au/product...less-Trap.html

50036

lardy

17th August 2012, 08:06 PM

Hi mate, whats the story with the hatches as I am formatting my roof similar to yours?
Also are the fuel tanks standard or did you get those fabricated?
The mog looks awesome overall you must be chuffed.

Iain_B

17th August 2012, 10:02 PM

The first hatches were the Dometic Mini Heiki 400x 400 - they were a fair quality but a hard plastic and did not have a seal - apparently this is the Australian requirements for caravans as they have to have a minimum ventilation requirement. However, that would not be good for dusty roads as they let the dust in. They are also plastic - and would not take a hit from a tree very well. I took them back and got the second ones were the Fiamma 400x400 - they would seal up, and had a lower profile, but after I dropped one, and it cracked, I decided that they would not last.

After looking at all the RV hatches, I decided that the RV style hatches were not so good for an off-road truck, so I decided to look at the Marine hatches - problem was they are a different size - 421x421. The ones I settled on were the Vetus Magnus - suitable for ocean going yachts, fully water tight to about 3m, so definitely water tight enough for the truck. I have to make a internal frame and insect screen, as the Vetus people have advertised a frame and screen, but they are not available yet.

The fuel tanks are OEM, just not Mercedes - one from a Bedford truck, the other from an Iveco truck :)

lardy

17th August 2012, 10:29 PM

Thanks for that excellent response, appreciate the detail certainly should save me some issues, I take it they have a website i'll have a look.
I bet they do windows also.
I have an issue where the main 101 tank will have a high pressure fuel pump the second tank will be a slave and have a standard in tank pump any idea how to achieve that in regards to the unions ???

Iain_B

17th August 2012, 10:46 PM

This is the Vetus Website - Welcome to Vetus.com! (http://www.vetus.nl/du/pressreleases.php'subaction=showfull&id=1250844323&archive=&start_from=&ucat=7&)

They make bigger ones, 627x627 being the biggest - not big enough for me. I went with the Seitz windows - double glazed acrylic, with blinds and insect screens. My wall thickness is 75mm - the Seitz windows fit up to 41mm, so I have to make a frame for them. They have a good reputation on the various forums in regards strength, and water tightness. I have lots of windows in my truck - like to keep it light and airy :)

Not sure what you mean about the fuel tanks, but I would have a transfer pump if you only want to run one main fuel pump, and route the breather line back into the secondary fuel tank just in case you forget to switch it off.

lardy

18th August 2012, 09:13 PM

Thanks I appreciate your help, you having been through all the drama's sure encourages me to get busy re-skinning the 101 many thanks I'll send you some shots of the end result.
Regards andy

Iain_B

4th January 2013, 01:54 PM

It's been a while since my last progress update - but here are a few more photos of the work done over the last few months.

First off is the bedside lockers have been fitted. They work great, providing the extra storage space and a nice ledge to put stuff on. The mattress and slat base is very comfortable - better than our bed at home.

55109

I have found a place for the diesel furnace / water heater / engine pre-heater. I will need to bend up some aluminium to protect it from water etc during river crossing, but it is more than 1.3m about the ground, and the furnace needs to be the lowest point on the water jacket or so the instruction manual says.

55110

The table also arrived - this works great, providing a nice surface to eat, write stuff or just to look at maps. The side by side seat is much better than sitting opposite each other when it comes to discussing routes and plans.

55111

The table swings out the way for the night time position, whilst still being a usable surface.

55112

The drawers under the seat can hold a large amount of stuff - there are two positions, the first one can be accessed with the table in place, and the second requires the table to be removed to access the rear of the drawer.

55113

A lot of behind the scenes work as well - the 240V inverter has been fitted, the permanent battery chargers, the solar regulators, battery monitor, switch panels etc. Loads of heavy duty cable and switch gear. The system is now live - with the solar panels keeping the batteries topped up thanks to the skylight in the shed - only 0.5A but that's enough to keep everything at 100% charge most of the time.

scarry

4th January 2013, 04:26 PM

What about a pic of the Puma,it looks good as well,saw it in the flesh the other day;)

Where did you get the roll cage/rack from?

Iain_B

4th January 2013, 05:40 PM

Safety devices roll cage - made the roof rack myself.

Only got some of us camping on the last trip on this computer - more on the home one..

55133

55134

chewy7

8th July 2013, 07:31 PM

This is amazing! What a truck! Keep up the great work! :D

Iain_B

1st December 2013, 09:55 PM

Almost a year since my last update. I have done a lot of work, but after my wife got sick, I did not spend anywhere near as much time as I used to. When most of the treatment, operations and reconstructions were finished, we needed some time away, so we went on a a three month trip around Australia (http://www.aulro.com/afvb/multi-state-reports/182168-our-three-month-lap-australia.html

Now we are back, and things are going better, now time to get stuck into the truck, and hopefully get some real progress done.

First to recap progress over the past year:

plumbing and the electrics.

I've installed the hot water heat exchanger, I had to made a frame to get it off the floor, so that all the pipework will fit, otherwise it would be too difficult to get to. Next was to run all the water lines. The system is fairly complex.

The supply system consist of:

Two water tanks
Two independent supply lines
Two pre-filters
Two water pumps
Filler system (common fill point but with each tank isolated)
Air breather system on each tank connected to the fill point

The 20 litre hot water tank is heated by the engine cooling system, or the Webasto diesel heater. The on-board cabin heater is also part of the system, with isolation valves on the heaters to block it off when it is not required. As the engine can heat the tank to over 88 degrees, I have to fit a tempering valve - that blends the very hot water from the tank with cold water to reduce the temperature down to 40-50 degrees so it doesn't burn you. Since the water in the tank gets very hot, it expands, so there is also a expansion valve to bleed the excess pressure.

The delivery system consists of::

2 shower heads ( hot and cold - one in the entrance way, the other in the boot - which doubles as the outside kitchen tap)
Sink ( hot and cold)
2 drinking water taps (connected to the Seagull IV filter - next to the sink, and another tap in the boot.
Outside hand washing tap ( front passenger side - cold only)

This shows the outside tap, can't see it unless you get under the truck, when the fuel tank is in, it will be hardly noticeable for outside unless you are really short. We can also switch it off from inside the truck.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/12/1005.jpg

There is a quite a lot of fittings required to get the rigid lines around the various compartments, and I have to keep the pipes accessible, but also out of the way. I'm using the John West system of push fit fittings. The fittings can either be a simple push on fitting, but that would be a bit too easy. The best way of doing it is to use inserts on ends of each pipe that reduces the possibilities of leaks, then locking clips to hold the fittings in the full lock position to stop them from coming loose over rough roads. So each pipe has the extra fittings, means you do everything twice, making everything fit, then taking all the pipes off again to fit the inserts, as once they are in, you can't take them out if you need to trim the hose a bit.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/12/1006.jpg

Next off the interior of the camper. This has been a long and drawn out saga, to date almost two years in the making, but it is getting closer.

The fridge slides and all the drawers are all in, The slides have a catch mechanism that keeps the heavy fridges in place. The drawers for pots, pans etc are made from 3mm aluminium, so they can handle the load. They are pretty big, so should be able to take all the gear and the day to day food supplies.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/12/1007.jpg

The rear locker is also in, and so is the sound system. After a bit of modification and stiffening, the sound is really good. I has also fitted the fans, the first ones I fitted were pretty noisy, the locker amplifying the sound, so I got some I tried fitting a rubber pad, but that did not do much good. After a bit of research, I found what was rated as the quietest fan on the market, the Camframo Sirocco fan (http://www.caframo.com/marine/marine_products_12voltfans_sirocco807.php).

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/12/1008.jpg

Whittworths had them on special, for only a bit more than I could have bought them Overseas, so I headed off there and bought a pair. What a huge difference, they are really quiet on low speed, and have a faint hum at full speed. They fold flat against the back as well, and even have a timer from 2 - 8 hours.

I also fitted the toilet slide and the door of the toilet, but there was a problem as the hinge is about 3mm proud of the side of the door (there is a strip to cover the edge) as the lightweight panels are only 12mm thick, and the hinge is 15mm. Unfortunately that mean the toilet slide did not work properly - hitting the hinges, so I had to reposition the toilet slide so it would work. An hour of two of repositioning and refitting, and we have a toilet. As usual, there was a problem, the little handle that you move to direct the flow to the solid or liquid containers would hit the door. So that hand had to be cut off, and a lower profile handle made that I put in the inside, out of the way. At last the whole thing was functional. Now to make the catch to hold the slide in position so it is not putting any load on the door.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/12/1009.jpg

The radi needed an external amplifier, as it generated too much heat inside the control panel cabinet. The good side is that the sound is even better with the amplifier.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2013/12/1010.jpg

I'll post more photos and reports a bit more often now that I'm working on the truck a lot more.

Iain_B

14th December 2013, 07:31 PM

Just finished my automatic steps for the camper - one of the many requirements if you want your truck registered as an RV here in Queensland.

I used a Warner 12 volt Linear actuator Model number DE12-17W41-05FP015 with a 5 inch stroke. It is IP56 rated and has a maximum force of 120lb/55kg.

The actuator has build in limit switches, and a static lock of 220lb/100kg. The stair is over-centre locked, so even if the actuator fails or falls off, it is unlikely to fall open, as it needs about 15kg of push force to overcome the first bit. There is a simple switch, a DPDT switch wired up so one way it extend, one is retract. Extended has a warning light which I use to trigger a warning buzzer is I try to drive off with the step down. I'll use the clutch switch to energise all the warning circuits, as there will be others like the rear locker or the boot being open.

Pretty happy with the result, now I just have to take it all apart again, fit the aluminium stair treads and make it look pretty I'll use teflon washers on all the joints to make them as smooth as possible, and fit lock nuts to all the bolts. Everything is a pretty loose fit except for the joints around which the steps rotate, they were the most difficult to align, especially when welding tends to pull things when the metal shrink. My philosophy has been to build things like an AK47 rather than an M16, lots of clearance and a little precision as possible and still functional. Two reasons, first as a Civil Engineer, is we get things within a centimeter we are doing well and my fabrication talents don't extend much in the way of precision fit. The second reason is that things wear, and is they need tight tolerances, then they tend not to last that longer in the dirt and mud.

IMG 0007 - YouTube

Now I can make up the template for the grey water tank that goes under the shower.

spudboy

14th December 2013, 09:53 PM

Just finished my automatic steps for the camper - one of the many requirements if you want your truck registered as an RV here in Queensland.

...

That doesn't seem fair. What if you want to keep things simple, and just have manual pull out steps?

What is the benefit of having it registered as an RV? Here in SA, the rego for 1 year is either $1500-ish for a truck or $1300 for a campervan, so there's not a lot in it.

Iain_B

14th December 2013, 10:39 PM

Manual steps are "external fixtures" so not allowed

Rego here is around double for a truck, and you need a annual roadworthy test as well. When we go overseas, it would be pretty hard to get the roadworthy :)

Iain_B

16th February 2014, 09:57 PM

Time for another update. Things have been happening, allow sometime it has been two steps forward and three steps back.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/529.jpg

First off is the camper heating system. This has to have been one of the must frustrating parts of the build to date. It has taken an extraordinary amount of time, and I've done thing three or four time, and still not got it right. Finally I can say that I think it is in to stay. The diagram below shows the basis of the system. I explained how it works in the last blog post, so I won't go into to again. The main problem has been with the number of stainless steel fittings, and getting the joints to seal. I have had threads fail, "galling" is the technical term and stainless steel is very prone to galling. It occurs when you tighten up a joint with lubrication ( I can't lubricate or the sealer won't stick) When you try to loosen it off again, the threads bind up and you can't get it undone. This is very frustrating when it is something I need to undo to get to be able to get the manifold out of the truck.

I decided to us the Loctite thread sealing system, this was recommended to me by the suppliers and other people on the net. It was definitely the wrong decision. Loctite will set up within a few seconds once the threads are tight, only problem for me is that I normally have to turn the joint to get it to line up, and in that few seconds it takes to check that it is properly alignend, the sealant has hardened. Now if you are a 1/4 of a turn out, and then tighten it up a bit more, the sealant then leaks. I found this out the hard way by getting everything installed, and then testing the system with air. About 10% of the joints leaked. So then I had to take it all apart again, and that when the sealant had done it's job and it was very difficult to undo. It would sometimes take me half and hour to get one fitting loosened, and all my strength just to turn it a tiny bit. It was so frustrating I did not take any photos, but did remember to take one of a leak in the return manifold in the boot when I was testing it. I pumped the whole system up to 4 bar, and sprayed soapy water on each joint and bubbles form where there is a leak. I changed over to PTFE tape, a heavy duty pink tape I have been using on other parts of the camper water system with great success and no failures so far. In hindsight I should have just done that from the beginning. This time I tested each section before I put it in. Finally, around 11:30pm on Thursday night I was able to say that the system should now not leak. I hope this is the case, I'll see once I get water in, it is air tight to 4 bar, and that is four times the pressure the radiator runs at.

On a separate note we decided to buy a little induction hot plate. $60 off eBay, and I put it to the test. It is really quick, boiling the same 1 litre of water in old 7 minutes, less than a third of the time of the diesel stove. The downside it draws a massive 185A. This means it is not really a practical solution for cooking unless we are running the engine.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/530.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/531.jpg

In between the frustration of the water system, I decided to do a few jobs I had been putting off for a long time. First was the stay on the tool box compartment. With a bit of fiddling and some new brackets, I got the Jaguar XJ-S pneumatic boot stays I have had for years fitted. One is enough and whilst it took a two goes to get the right angle. length etc. It works and fits nicely. I have a spare stay as well.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/532.jpg

I also fitted all the clamps and support for the brake lines and airlines on the axles and torque tubes, fitting the breather lines for the diff, the air handbrakes and various other things that can suck in water if they were used when we were parked up in a river or something. Rerouteing some of the line led me to discover another problem. I have been using the ARB compressor to top up the air system to release the handbrake whenever I want to move the truck or just to check for any air leaks in the system. I decided to re-route one of the lines, and discovered the was a lot of water in it, and some of the fittings were starting to rust already and that was on the airline going straight into the Wabco dryer. This is not good, as it means that the the dryer will get used up quickly. The problem is the high humidity over hear, close to 70% some days. I looked in to various solutions and decided the best way to go was to install the "wet tank" before the dryer. Previously I had put this after the after the dryer, to catch anything that got through the dryer. I did this based on recommendation from a few other people who have a wet tank just after the unloader valve. I spoke to Air Brake Systems who have been supplying all the parts for this build. They said it would be a good idea to install the wet tank before the dryer, as this would greatly increase the life expectancy of the dryer, and prevent contamination of the desiccant with oil as well.

It was a bit more difficult than just changing over a few air lines. A proper wet tank has be be vertical, so that it can do a good job in separating the water/oil out. This meant I had to reposition both the wet tank and the purge tank which I had mounted horizontal. Finding a new home for it proved fairly difficult. Eventually after much crawling around and hitting my head numerous time on various parts of the the chassis, I found a good spot, mounted on the rear plate, right at the back of the truck. It fits nicely, with all the required clearance for camper movement, suspension and frame movement. It only require a flat bracket with no welding, just a bit of a bend. Drilling the holes in the rear plate was not so easy, but made possible at least by my right angle drill.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/533.jpg

There was no space for the purge tank with the wet tank in this position, but I found a good spot for it under the front of the camper which solves another problem of the fuel filter being easily visible from casual passers-by. The original bolts were too high up to use, so I tapped in four 8mm threads into the support bracket, and fixed it to the underside of the camper through the checkerplate. Four stainless steel countersunk screws and it fits very nicely out of the way.

As you can see I have also been busy fitting up the fuel system. This took quite a bit of figuring as like all things on this truck it is pretty complicated. This is the system I have come up with.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/534.jpg

From the fuel tank, fuel is drawn up into a 100 micron washable filter. This filter is to protect the Facet pump. The Facet pump has two uses, first off to prime the system. This enable us to bleed out air should we every run a tank dry pretty easily. I have one on my Discovery Tdi and it makes changing filters or sorting problem like air leaks very simple. It will not be needed when the engine is running, as the lift pump is capable of drawing fuel out of the tank, but it will sure make it easier to prime the system. I had to get some pumps in from England, as the total lift require is around 60cm. The ones sold here can only lift around 30cm at best, I know because I have one and it struggled to prime itself out of a jerry can with only around 25cm of lift, taking about 10 minutes before it eventually started to flow. I got two of the Posiflow pumps that can lift 1.2m, so that should work OK I hope.

The CAV filter/water trap is next, these are cheap little filters that will keep the nasties out of the Pollak valve. It seems the main cause of failure of the Pollak valve is it jamming due to contamination and the plastic gears stripping. This should solve the problem without creating a fuel delivery problem which a smaller filter might. I bought a box of 10 CAV filters for $30, which is not bad for something I have been running on the Discovery for 2 years without needing to change the filter.

Next in line is the Pollak valve which switches fuel supply between the two tanks. It also switches the return line and the fuel sender unit lines. I may decide to fit another fuel gauge for the second tank, but it would only take a second or two to switch over the valve if I was unsure of how much fuel was in the second tank so I may not.

The second function of the Facet pump is to be able to transfer fuel from one tank to another. I have not shown it on the diagram, but it is a just a valve between the supply line of one tank and the return line of the other. Opening the valve with the pump on will draw fuel from the tank, through the filters and back to the other tank. This should enable us to clean out dirty/watery fuel should we be unlucky enough to get some. I still have to fit these ,just looking for some small valves.

The photo below shows the set-up on the drivers side with showing the CAV filter and the Pollak valve. The mount on the valve was a bit weird, being at a strange angle. I decided to fit a support bracket to hold the fuel line and take all the weight off the Pollack valve. That should help it survive a bit longer.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/535.jpg

Other things that have been done is the exhaust system for the Webasto 90ST diesel furnace. I will drill a hole into the side of the bash plate, and direct the hot exhaust inside. This will protect the exhaust from any direct water going up the pipe, and also provide heat to the engine sump as well. Might as well use the waste heat to provide some extra warmth.

I also fitted the stainless steel PTFE hoses that run from the front to the back of the truck for the camper heating system. I sure pays to shop around, I go the 10m of hose for $270, and another $150 for the fittings and crimping. I was quotes $125 per meter to make up the hoses from Pirtek and even more from other places. Because of this I struggle for a week trying to get some solid stainless steel lines bent up and fitted, but it proved to be too difficult. I might have been possible with the camper off the truck, and the cab tilted , but I could not make the pipe fit. I scoured the internet, found a company call Pacific Hoseflex who sell the hose in bulk and asked them for a quote on supplying 10m of the braided hose.

The hose is very strong and very stiff. I had a 50/50 choice between which angle I wanted the hose tails relative to the one in the front to be as once they are crimped they don't move. I got one right, but was out by 180 degrees on the other one. A spare elbow later, and it was all sorted.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/536.jpg

I also got the little electric booster pump. If it is marketed by Davies Craig, but it is actually a Bosch pump. it is tiny and doesn't need any brackets as it weighs less than the hose. This is what the heating system looks like now. I have used a special hose supposedly good for everything from oil to transmission fluid to fuel at 300psi , so should last for a while in our heating system.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/537.jpg

Finally a last "beauty shot" from this evening.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/02/538.jpg

slug_burner

17th February 2014, 12:09 AM

When does the expedition start?

Pedro_The_Swift

17th February 2014, 06:35 AM

gawd,, I hope the heater for my van isn't that complicated:o

scarry

17th February 2014, 08:44 PM

Not a bad pic on the phone next to the hot plate either.....:o:D:D

Iain_B

18th May 2014, 10:26 PM

LOL, didn't think anyone would notice :)

Good news is that the camper fit-out is basically complete - 2 years behind schedule and over budget, but a really good result. The attention to detail is great,and I am happy with the result.

I'm busy rewiring the truck, so no sexy photos, unless you like loads of wires, and I have used a few hundred metres already. I have gone a bit overboard again, but I enjoy fitting electrical accessories, so have loads. So far I have used 24 Carling Contura II switches, and another six to go :)

Next is the overhead console and stereo, along with two amplifiers, and 8 speakers :)

weeds

19th May 2014, 05:20 AM

Some pics of a unimog touring AUS

77463

77464

I must pop around around and check your rig out........I'm sure it's a bit more comfy than the ones I drove in the ARMY

Iain_B

19th May 2014, 08:22 AM

I've seen that rig when it belonged to the previous owner. It is pretty big, and the tyres are massive - too big in my opinion and weigh 125kg each - without the split rim wheel which is another 40-50kg. It is a 1980's Unicat used by a German prospector for years out in the Goldfields.

spudboy

19th May 2014, 01:13 PM

Hi Iain - any idea what the size of those tyres was?

I wanted 385/65 R22.5, but the rear axle weight was too high for this size, so I had to up it to 425/65 R22.5. I can move them around and change them by myself, but damn, they are heavy buggers :(

I think my tyres weigh 75Kg each, and the rims would have to be another 25Kg maybe, so that's around 100Kg for the tyre/rim.

Iain_B

19th May 2014, 01:46 PM

They are Michelin XZL 14.00R20, and the rims are Mil spec split rims.

They are 49" tall :eek:

spudboy

19th May 2014, 04:17 PM

OK - thanks

Mine are 1139mm OD = 45" approx. Still big :p

Iain_B

15th July 2014, 12:25 PM

Just a quick progress update. Now working on the cab and rewiring the whole truck. I have made the rear wall back board, and installed the sound system. The amp fit nicely behind the seats and can't be seen from outside.

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I have also made an overhead console - quite a lot of work but it looks good. The console holds two 7" monitors, the radio, CB, a/c controls, all the vents and ducts and the banks of switches.

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I've done the final coat of high-build filler/primer, and with a bit more sanding it should be ready to go to the upholsterers to be covered in a vinyl to match the seats.

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The door cars will be covered in the same carpet as the rear wall, and have two net pockets. The OEM MEB door pocket holders from the new Unimog/Zetro range were only $40 each and hold 1.5 litre bottles, and are very tough - held on by seven 6mm nutserts can take my weight.

80464

and finally, the cabinetry in the rear of the truck is complete, it looks great and we will eventually get over the price shock :o

80465

spudboy

15th July 2014, 12:44 PM

I like those door pocket holders. $40 is good value.

And I am very jealous of your crawl-through hole between the cabin and canopy. They are a great idea.

Cheers
David

Iain_B

15th July 2014, 03:56 PM

The crawl through is as big as I can make it, the two seats behind are for passengers. When you sit in the seats in the back, you can see out of the windscreen. We will get it registered to carry four people eventually, as when we go on our trip around the world, then we will have our kids come and visit now and again - they will have to sleep in a tent though, might have a roof top tent on the top of the truck - penthouse suite :)

tonic

15th July 2014, 04:04 PM

Looking great Iain, it is a credit to you. Your old roof rack has had a couple of great small trips now. It takes our 3.1m tinnie with ease and the side awning we put on is great.

Must get up one night and have another drool over the Mog.

The ho har's

15th July 2014, 04:08 PM

Looking good there Iain.

The 6x6 is nearly finished :) and we suggested to Dave to drive over in it to see your Mog:D

Mrs hh:angel:

Iain_B

16th July 2014, 12:15 PM

Tell him I look forward to seeing it.

Iain_B

22nd October 2014, 07:27 PM

It's been a while since an update, so here is a brief report.

Most of the work has been on the overhead console and all the wiring. Glad to say it if finally finished.

This is it pre-upholstery.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/10/555.jpg

and then after they had finished

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/10/556.jpg

The shape made it very difficult to get the leatherette smooth in some places, and my choice of the cover material being quite stiff did not help. I think it looks good, and every thing fits very nicely.

I also made a nice little subwoofer enclosure - just need to have the bass :)

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/10/531.jpg
Just a little 12" 2000W Eclipse SW8200. it makes a huge difference to the sound. The only things left to fit for the sound system is the two dash mounted tweeter, and the IPod extension down to the glovebox.

The wiring is almost finished, just have to tidy things up. I am going to label all the wires, it will make fault finding easier in the future. I have over sized all the wires, and have a lot of fuses in the circuits, basically one for each function. I measure the actual current draw, then go to the next available fuse size. As I have relays for nearly all the power circuits, most of the fuses in the dash are 5A, and all the wiring is 15A or heavier.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/10/557.jpg

I have the winch controls and diff lock switches on the dash, I also kept the winch remote socket, should give the best of both worlds. All the switches are the Carling Contura 2 models. There is a lot of them, 24 at last count.

Despite all the wiring, only one is needed to start the truck, the rest are "luxuries"

Now working on the dash - making it higher, for better view of the instruments and to fit all the extra stuff in. I will also have a proper binnacle,- to shade the instruments as I found them difficult to read when the sun is shining directly through.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/10/558.jpg

The screens in the overhead console show the various camera I have. The most important ones for me are the left and right camera.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/10/559.jpg

They show if I will hit anything and vehicles in the lanes next to me. I have have high and low mounted reverse cameras. I can set it up so that the screen come on when put on the indicators, or into reverse, or run in quad screen mode. The screen dim when the headlights are on. The screen will also be used for the on-board computer, when I get around to building it.

Hoping to get some more time to work on the truck soon, my current contract does not leave me with much time to work on the truck at all, but it is coming to an end, but I have already got another offer, just have to decide what is more important at the moment :)

The ho har's

22nd October 2014, 07:38 PM

Are you going to be around on Saturday?? we might bring the 6x6 "Bush Commander" around it is registered now.

Mrs hh:angel:

Iain_B

22nd October 2014, 10:09 PM

I should be, it will be great so see it. Give me a ring before hand, in case I'm out getting parts :)

singlecell

23rd October 2014, 09:58 AM

I also made a nice little subwoofer enclosure - just need to have the bass :)

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2014/10/531.jpg
Just a little 12" 2000W Eclipse SW8200. it makes a huge difference to the sound. The only things left to fit for the sound system is the two dash mounted tweeter, and the IPod extension down to the glovebox.

A 600watt RMS sub in the front! What are you driving it with?! You wont have kidney function left after the first 100kms if you run it hard!

slug_burner

23rd October 2014, 07:33 PM

Given that Bass frequencies are not very directional you maybe better off by reducing the possibility of damage by placing the woofer on an out of the way surface.

Love how it is coming along, great work.

Iain_B

25th October 2014, 08:29 AM

A 600watt RMS sub in the front! What are you driving it with?! You wont have kidney function left after the first 100kms if you run it hard!

I can't run it very hard, hurts my ears too much. Only running 80W RMS at the moment, and have to adjust that do or if overpowers everything else. The numbers are just meant to sound impressive, :) I had this system in my Jaguar XJ-S, and the sound was just fantastic. That was the main reason for me wanting to fit it, as no point having a great sound system in a box in the shed :)

Given that Bass frequencies are not very directional you maybe better off by reducing the possibility of damage by placing the woofer on an out of the way surface.

Love how it is coming along, great work.

Thanks, the subwoofer box needs to be a minimum 25lt, with 40lt being optimum. I only managed to get it to 35llt which is a bit better. There is just not enough space inside the Unimog cab to fit it anywhere else. Despite the size of the camper, there is even less available space there, and I will only be able to fit a 10" subwoofer for that sound system. The camper system is more for sound quality than volume though, so that will be more than enough.

The subwoofer grill is all metal, and pretty strong, so hopefully will stand up to the occasional foot when climbing into the back of the camper.

slug_burner

25th October 2014, 06:01 PM

I understand that the box size is going to be difficult to accommodate in too many other places. I meant that the actual speaker cone could be placed on one of the other, preferably vertical, surfaces. That way it'll will not catch bread crumbs, spilt cups of coffee or cans of coke. You have built it now, it will probably stay that way.

Iain_B

10th June 2015, 06:56 PM

Back to working on the truck, I have decided to fit a new motor to my truck. I have rebuilt a 170hp motor, and currently the injection pump and injectors are away getting set-up for around 200hp. The old 125hp motor is out, and I have just about finished rebuilding the new motor. I have had all the components of the motor balanced, valves re-done and the head lightly skimmed. The engine is almost completed now, just waiting on a replacement sump, as I found a crack in the one I have, and it is easier to get another one than to get this one repaired.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/06/632.jpg

Here are a couple of videos of the engine rebuild.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUHQMGcD-2E

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ucopjM9H8ig

I'll compile the rest of the engine re-build over the next few days.

So far I have sent brand new 12 injector nozzles up for testing, and only one has passed. I'll be going up to the diesel shop next week, and will take some photos and video of the what a "good" injector spray pattern in like compared to the "failed" ones. 11 have gone back to the suppliers and another 11 have just arrived, hopefully we can get some decent ones in this batch, or I will just have to send them back until we get two good sets ( I want a spare set for our travels) I have a brand new injection pump, but unfortunately the RSQ governor does not fit on my new block - so I will have to make do with the RSV governor, but will fit the new pump to that governor, at least it has the boost aneroid so should make a bit less smoke.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/06/633.jpg

I also have some high speed axles, the rear one is already fitted, and I'll fit the front one as soon as the engine is in. With the new axles, bigger tyres and the Claas overdrive, and the new motor, I should be able to do 100kph at 2200rpm, just nicely in the power band.

Iain_B

28th September 2015, 01:30 PM

Time for an update. I've gotten loads of work done over the past few weeks, and today was a major milestone, the new engine is in and running.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18VTpnQLgFQ

It is really smooth, so looks like all the time and effort balancing everything was worthwhile.

Apart from getting the engine in, most of the work has been in the wiring and all the extras I've fitted to the mog.

Apart from a the air conditioning compressor, and the electric fans, all the wiring is complete. There was a huge amount of wires in this build, because of all the "extras" I have.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/09/83.jpg

I ran out of space under the heater unit, so had to run the wires over the top of the unit as well.

There are a lot of extra things in the overhead console as well.

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q9i-QuDmxq0/Vep9QlOWozI/AAAAAAAADbg/moldG4eFVfA/s1600/DSC06861.JPG

and that is all complete :)
https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/09/84.jpg

The new instrument panel took a bit of sorting out, but that is all done as well

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/09/85.jpg

and I think it looks good.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/09/86.jpg

The Range Rover Vogue seats need a bit of rewiring to get rid of some the things controlled by the "Body Control Module" but that is all done. The seat are currently sitting in plastic bags with the "Leatherique" conditioner on them, I had the foam in the seat bases renewed, and a tear in the seat fixed up. Next is to clean them up properly and re-dye them.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/09/87.jpg

Should get stuck into them later this week.

The rear of the truck is now finished, with all the tail lights etc fitted and working.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/09/88.jpg

I need to fit the new front axles, all the auxiliaries like the radiator, the inter cooler, bull bar, etc, then we should be on the road :D:D

spudboy

28th September 2015, 04:07 PM

Wow - that wiring is seriously complex behind the scenes! Looks nice with the dash on though.

Am always amazed when I read of the stuff you have done. Very clever man :cool:

Tins

5th October 2015, 09:10 AM

Somewhere back in this thread it was mentioned that the Mog will be too tall for a container. Plenty of stuff gets shipped in open top containers, so I'd look into that if you plan a World Safari. They usually have a tarp on top, and they get loaded last, as they can't get stacked upon. Just need care ( and a permit ) when trucking to and from the wharf, as they are over height.

Brilliant work. Great truck. Just don't tip it over, as the Army manage to do often.

Roscodaily

6th October 2015, 09:22 PM

Hi Ian,
Well I thought I did well to talk my wife into building a camper on the back of an Iveco 4x4 next year when the new model comes out, but how did you manage to get her to agree to the Unimog! What a project, you have done a great job. Great reading,
Cheers Ross

Iain_B

20th October 2015, 08:23 PM

I'll go with the RORO to Malaysia for the first leg of the trip, I think myu mog will be harder to tip than my Land Rover, I don't have to carry much on the roof in the mog :).

Somewhere back in this thread it was mentioned that the Mog will be too tall for a container. Plenty of stuff gets shipped in open top containers, so I'd look into that if you plan a World Safari. They usually have a tarp on top, and they get loaded last, as they can't get stacked upon. Just need care ( and a permit ) when trucking to and from the wharf, as they are over height.

Brilliant work. Great truck. Just don't tip it over, as the Army manage to do often.

Iain_B

20th October 2015, 08:25 PM

I didn't tell her I was buying it :) She thought I was crazy, but now she loves it.

Hi Ian,
Well I thought I did well to talk my wife into building a camper on the back of an Iveco 4x4 next year when the new model comes out, but how did you manage to get her to agree to the Unimog! What a project, you have done a great job. Great reading,
Cheers Ross

Iain_B

20th October 2015, 09:13 PM

Mog is progressing nicely. I've got the engine cooling/camper heating system all installed, and have had the engine running up to operating temperature. The engine is super smooth and quiet. I have three air bleed points in the system, and a booster pump to ensure the rear heaters, and the hot water systems get their fair share of heat from the engine. The diesel furnace can heat the camper, the cab and the engine block. The exhaust is directed to the sump, to help keep the oil warm as well.

The engine air compressor is pretty good, getting the whole system up to pressure in about 5 minutes. I can speed it up by switching on the auxiliary ARB electric air compressor. The truck air system is pretty well sealed now, it retains full air pressure for over a week.

The air conditioner is also complex, having a dual system in the cab means I need to have solenoids for each evaporator, so I can run either side independently, this add a bit of complication with the single compressor, but with some diodes and a double pole switch of each unit, it all works pretty well. The a/c fan is controlled by the pressure of the a/c system.

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I've used Silicon hose throughout the truck, a bit over kill, but should last a long time. The water-air intercooler is operational, the pump and fan are controlled by the intake air ( post intercooler) temperature.

100890

The insulation bag behind the cab is a bit of an experiment. The transmission on the mogs is as noisy as the engine, and with the big hole in the back of the cab, I needed something to keep the racket out. The bag is made from trude side sail material, and attached with velcro to the back of the cab. The rubber mudguard material protects the bag, and will help keep it in place.

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When the cab is down, it has a bit of compression on it, but not enough to stop the mog from flexing. I can still get the cab to move relative to the camper, but it is well dampened, which I think is a good thing. Good news is that it keeps the sound out really well.

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I changed the voltage sensitive relay over to a Blue Sea Systems, Magnetic Latch relay. It has can connect the house batteries to the start battery, or be fully automatic, like a normal VSR, or can be disconnected. Since I have two alternators, one for the start battery ( 90A ) and one for the house batteries ( 120A) I will run with them independent in normal conditions.

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If my grease seals arrive from Germany tomorrow ( and they have the right ones this time) then I can finish the front axle, then hopefully by the end of the week I will be able to drive the truck around the industrial complex. I've had the engineer out for all the mod plates, and once we get them all sorted, I can get the Safety Certifcate, HVRAS for change over from truck to RV and then get it registered.

spudboy

20th October 2015, 10:11 PM

As always, all very interesting. I like the way you have made the "boot" between the cabin and the body. Is the sail fabric wrapped around some foam stuff?

The engine bay is a work of art!
http://www.aulro.com/afvb/attachments/projects-tutorials/100889d1445336901-progress-my-unimog-_dsc7036.jpg

Iain_B

21st October 2015, 07:20 AM

Thanks Dave, there are two different layers to the how the gap between the cab and camper are sealed. The inner layer is the same truck side sail matrial ( same as your awning) and has a steel frame and allows for the flex of the truck, and should hopefully keep the water and dust out. If we had known about the glue we found to "weld" the plastic when we made that part, we would have made it like a concertina, which would have been easier to install.

The bag if filled with the same Higgins Insulation (http://higginsinsulation.com.au/polyester-insulation/60kg-m3-50mm-thick-polyester-insulation-min-order-100m2.html) that was used on the Brisbane bus fleet. We used this in the walls and roof of the camper as well. There are two layers of 50mm thick insulation squeezed into the 85mm gap. It certainly makes a difference to the sound.

Pedro_The_Swift

21st October 2015, 07:48 AM

I hope you realise Iain, that its now mandatory for a pic of the speedo needle off the end of the dial?;):D

Fantastic build:cool:

Iain_B

21st October 2015, 09:42 PM

Should be easy, speedo only goes to 100kph :)

steveG

26th October 2015, 08:54 PM

Almost 6 years since the your first post in this thread. What an awesome build!!
Can't wait to subscribe to the trip blog :)

Steve

Iain_B

31st October 2015, 11:58 PM

My Unimog saw the blue sky for the first time in 6 years :)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvYW_DyZ0XQ

Pedro_The_Swift

1st November 2015, 08:18 AM

:banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::BigThumb:

malsgoing130

1st November 2015, 01:13 PM

Wow what an epic build I've been following it since day 1 i

malsgoing130

1st November 2015, 01:14 PM

Oops hit send too fast! Brilliant work Ian all the best with it.
Cheers
Mal

Iain_B

1st November 2015, 01:19 PM

Thanks guys, it certainly took a lot longer than expected ;)

Iain_B

6th November 2015, 08:45 PM

Got all Webasto 90S hydronic system operational, pretty noisy on start-up.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=61nT6B-KPDk

It then gets a bit quieter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BY36CVqqqa4

It can heat up the engine to full operating temperature in about 20 minutes. It heats up the hot water tank to shower temperature in about 5 minutes, and also heat up the camper really quickly. Not going to see much use in QLD for a few months other than as an engine pre-heater, but when we go overseas it will be a necessity.

I get the mod plates early next week, the engineer is happy with all the modifications. I will finish off all the cab upholstery in a day or two, fit all the a/c ducting and the ceiling panels and the cab will be finished. The grey water tank arrives on Friday, and should just slot in, all I have to make is a tie-down strap. Then it's just putting the second fuel tank back on, and getting the HVRAS forms and Safety Certificate, then I can register it.

I had a Vehicle Valuer come around to do a proper appraisal so we can get it insured and he valued it a quite a lot higher than I thought it would be, glad to see all the hard work paid off.

Been playing around in Photoshop with some graphics as well.

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spudboy

6th November 2015, 09:24 PM

Say no to graphics!!

Pedro_The_Swift

7th November 2015, 05:37 AM

Iain, I have a good mate (in Brizzy) that wraps stuff for a living,, PM me if interested;)

Sitec

8th November 2015, 11:13 AM

Very interesting thread! Surprised I've not found it earlier! Awesome build. I was in Brizzy last weekend, and I'd have come said hello if I'd seen this a few weeks ago. Will be following with interest as I'm soon to be embarking on my own build.. also on a Mercedes! :)

Iain_B

10th November 2015, 08:16 AM

Good luck with you build, is that the truck in your avatar?

Very interesting thread! Surprised I've not found it earlier! Awesome build. I was in Brizzy last weekend, and I'd have come said hello if I'd seen this a few weeks ago. Will be following with interest as I'm soon to be embarking on my own build.. also on a Mercedes! :)

Iain_B

24th November 2015, 07:48 PM

At long last, my truck is now registered [IMG] In the end, it turned out a bit heavier than expected, full of fuel, people and water, we are 7.12 tons, so we don't have that much spare weight to play with. Going to look at ways of doing a GVM upgrade, even a couple of hundred kg will make it better. Talked to Mercedes Benz Australia, and initial conversations seem to say that it is possible.

It is great to drive, quite happy at 90kph around 2000rpm. I've set the boost to 10psi, and it gets there around 1500rpm, It can hold speed up the hills on the highway, not game to push it too hard as I've only got 60km on the new engine, so trying to be gentle in the beginning. I've read loads of websites and heard lots of advice on how to run in an old style diesel, and the one thing everyone seems to agree with is not to be too gentle on it, try not to idle it if at all possible, and keep it loaded up. Some say don't rev it, other says not to rev it hard under load, but you need to let it rev a bit now and again, and most say charge the oil filter around 500km to ensure the oil filter is not blocked with all the engine assembly lube and bits of silcone/RTV/gaskets. Portals and transmission are running around 50-60 Deg C after a trip down the highway at 90kph on the GPS.

My speedo is about 16% under-reading, so will head off down to the place for a new speedo correction gearbox, they are only about 15 minutes away, so will use the trip to compare the odometer to the GPS route distance. I have a small water leak on the camper water system (seems I crossed threaded a brass elbow somehow), and need to get the a/c system gassed up, as it was pretty hot driving around without a/c - been about 16 years since I last drove any car without a/c , I don't know how you guys with the older Land Rovers do it :) .

All going well I will have all these things fixed by tomorrow evening, then we will drive around some more to get up the 500km by the weekend. If the weather says good, we will be down on the beach early next week, and hopefully spend out first night in the camper.

spudboy

24th November 2015, 08:30 PM

That's exciting! A good milestone.

Iain_B

2nd December 2015, 10:33 PM

We sorted out the a/c system, and it works great, we had a few trips now around Brisbane. It has been pretty hot, 33 Deg C plus days last week. The air con works great, drops the cab temp down within a few minutes and then we only need one of the units on low. I'm still running the new motor in, but I can hold 95kph all the way down the M1 to the Gold Coast and back, and can hold 80koh up the Gateway Bridge. EGT got up to around 620 Deg C maximum up the bridge, air intake temperature after the intercooler was around 60 Dec C and we were running at around 10 PSI boost.

I've make a mock up of the centre console storage box from some cardboard. It is where we will store some of our cameras for easy access. It will make the Defender one look small, and hold our main camera with a F2.8 70-210mm lens. I will make the lid to match the arm rests from the Range Rover seats, similar material and stitching, and cover the front with carpet, maybe a wood insert or two . :)

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We also added some more sound insulation today around the gear nest area and drove down the M1 to Masters at Coomera. You can now hold a normal conversation when driving on the concrete part at 95kph. My Unimog actually seems quieter than my Defender since I still have the 255/85 mud tyres on it. I'm going to try and record some sound levels using my iPhone app, and record a video in both vehicles, then we will know for certain.

Iain_B

3rd December 2015, 09:33 PM

Measured the noise in the cab today, driving between Beenleigh and Mt Tambourine. Lowest was 70db, at idle and highest was 90db, when accelerating up to 90kph. On average we were around 80-85db for most of the trip. That's quite noisy, but not that bad.

Sitting in our loung room with the TV on, the same app is recording 70-80db.

slug_burner

4th December 2015, 11:30 PM

At 80dbA employment standards allow an 8 hour eposure per 24 hours. Any noisier and you start to reduce eposure by 1/2 for every 3db increase. I think that they have raised the 8 hour exposure limit to about 85dbA, haven't looked into this for a while but I'd say you are getting up there for noise. I'd hate to think what the noise level in the Defender would be.

Iain_B

9th December 2015, 03:36 PM

We had not done an extended trip, and measure the sound levels on various roads. This time we used a paid Sound level app, as the free one was rather basic. We installed on both my iPhone and my wife's to see if there was any difference and they were within 0.5db of each other all the time.

On the M1 concrete freeway @ 95kph, we sit at around 75-80 db, depending on whether we are going up a hill or not, strangely enough, going down a hill seems to be a bit noisier. We have not seen the 90db at all on this trip on either phone.

I tested the Defender using the same app, and was between 72 to 79db on the short trip to the workshop, never got above 80kph, I know the tyres start to howl at around 90kph on the M1.

We also ran the frequency analyser as well. Not sure what it all means but this is the output.

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So it looks like it noise levels will be similar to the Defender with the mud tyres on it.

Iain_B

10th December 2015, 08:07 PM

Close enough?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BQXlufpcx4w

Not to noisy either :)

102876

I hope you realise Iain, that its now mandatory for a pic of the speedo needle off the end of the dial?;):D

Fantastic build:cool:

Pedro_The_Swift

10th December 2015, 09:11 PM

When the camera went right I **** myself!! :)

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2015/12/670.jpg

Iain_B

2nd March 2016, 03:25 PM

Just got back from our 6 week shakedown trip in the mog. We did around 7500km over the 6 weeks, driving down the coast from Brisbane, to Sydney up to Canberra, then back down to the coast which we followed all the way to Wilson's Prom.

We did the overnight hike down to South Point to complete our set. We have been to all the mainland extremities ( N, S, E, & W ).

We followed the coast up to Adelaide, the went down the Yorke Peninsular before heading up to the Flinders Ranges, Arkaroola and then up the Birdsville Track, then back to Brisbane.

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We have a few videos including one around the Echo Camp Backtrack at Arkaroola.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ghgx62vjoVU

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5MF5jshDtM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dPeyjeznCcE

The truck worked great, so much more comfortable than our Defender with a roof top tent. We tended to cruise at around 90-95kph which is very comfortable, but did a few legs of the trip at 100kph. We drove the Birdville track when it was 45 Deg C in the a shade, and out external temperature sensor was reading over 50 Deg C on the track itself. Engine temp got up to 105 C on a long uphill but for most of the track it stayed around 95-100C, not bad for a fully loaded 8 ton truck. The a/c system worked great, keeping us cool in even the worst conditions, I had to turn off the outside air feed though, my wife recorded the air temp coming in at 55 Deg C at her feet.

We had a few minor problems, first was the second alternator was not charging the house batteries. I could switch over to the main alternator so it was no a problem but irritating. Solved it at a friends workshop - turns out the liquid insulation had gotten between the main power feed terminal, and whilst the wire seemed tight, there was no connection. A quick clean up and current flowed again. Second was a loose wire on the Auber temp gauge I use to control the electric fans, is gave some strange readings and I had to resort to the override switch to keep the engine cool up Craefer's Hill in Adelaide. Tightening the terminal has fixed it, but I added a mechanical thermo-switch in parallel for "just in case". We also had a loose earth connection in the engine bay that stopped everything with a relay from working. A new nut and some cleaning of the posts and everything was OK.

Just before we left we got the GVM of the truck upgraded to 8.0tons ( from 7.5tons). We were close to the 7.5 ton limit, and if we added two extra passengers and some more kit, we would have been over. Now we have a lot of breathing space.

We have a few modifications to make, first it to add the rear winch and some gas bottle storage to the rear of the truck. My wife is making lard canvas back to hold things like the ground sheets and tarps, storing them inside the rear compartment was a waste of space, and leaves a lot of dirt and sand inside the compartment. We have a realistic fuel range of 1000km, so will add few jerry can holder to the roof rack to hold another 100lts for some of the more remote sections. This should add another 400km at least.

All in all we are very happy with the truck, and will be heading out for 15 weeks at the end of the month, heading up north then over to NT, WA and then back via Alice Springs via some route we have yet to decide. :)

Judo

4th March 2016, 08:41 AM

Having a person in the shot really puts the truck size and height into perspective. I love it!

Iain_B

26th July 2016, 04:45 PM

We have finished our 22,000km trip around the top end of Australia in our Unimog. It has been great and the truck has performed fantastically.

We left Brisbane in early April, travelling up the Coast to Yepoon, then across to Lawn Hill. After a few days we headed out to Lorella Springs for a few days, then across to Mataranka. We made our way up to Litchfield, Darwin, then back down through Kakadu. Heading across to WA via Gregory NP and Keep River NP, then on to the Bungle Bungles. Back to Kununarra for a few days before some more difficult 4wd track taking the long way round to Wyndam, then down the Kurunji track to the Pentecost River.

Tyre problems left us stuck overnight on the side of the road south of Halls Creek before limping back to Kununarra for a week waiting for three new very expensive Mog tyres.

We then headed off down the Gibb River Road, up to Mitchell Plateau and all the gorges in between. Then off to Derby and Broome before heading up to Quandong and James Price Point for a week or so of relaxing on the beach.

Then down to Exmouth to swim with the Whalesharks (stopping on Port Hedland to collect two more tyres) before heading off to Karijini.

It was there that we decided to change plans, and instead of taking the Talawana Track to Alice Springs, we decided to head up the Canning Stock Route back north, it was just too cold in Alice.

Ten days on the Canning was fantastic, and the truck performed great in the sand. We met some great people on the track, and some really rude idiots intent on destroying the track as well.

Then back north to Kununarra, Katherine and Mataranka. We then hit the bad weather, and drove across to Townsville in the rain, then down the coast, finally getting good weather again in Airlie Beach. Then if was off to Yepoon, fora few day on a boat amongst the island, before finally heading home.

Here is a short picture gallery of our trip.

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/170.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/171.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/172.jpg

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https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/175.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/176.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/177.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/178.jpg

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/t31.0-8/13416743_293940180938957_2183674279468356094_o.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/179.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/180.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/181.jpg

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https://fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xtp1/t31.0-8/13503059_295532704113038_851625883885646578_o.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/08/1110.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/183.jpg

https://www.aulro.com/afvb/images/imported/2016/07/184.jpg

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/13537526_298857047113937_6554383494178599493_n.jpg ?oh=6c7b1f77c0188b4f992f4923a4da7b4b&oe=581ED4E2

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/t31.0-8/13517475_298856930447282_3646954001160669074_o.jpg

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Iain_B

26th July 2016, 04:48 PM

Just some dashcam footage of our last day on our trip

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tq45w2LExSo

Brisruss

26th July 2016, 05:41 PM

Don't you just love that country up there!
Thanks for the reminder what it was like.

Cheers,
Russ

spudboy

31st July 2016, 10:04 PM

Great photos.

What caused your tyre troubles? Stakings?

Iain_B

4th August 2016, 06:18 PM

It was old age, the tyres were three years old when we bought them, and it took me 6 years to build it, to the tyres were around9 years old. They were so brittle, that when I was taking them off the wheels, parts of the edges were cracking off. Talking to Continental, and Michelin state managers, they both said that 5 years is a tyres useful lifespan, you might get a year or two more out of them, but if you are using them off road at reduced pressure, then you are causing too much flex. There was no physical damage on either tyre.

Both rear tyres failed with a small crack in the sidewall. The first after about 200km of low speed work, when I ran them at 35PSI. We were on the "Kurunji Track" about 800m from the Gibb River Road. I thought I had staked it, as it was on the outside of the tyre, but I could not see any damage.

The second happened 500km later, south of Halls Creek on a tar road when we were running at 50PSI. Exactly the same small split in the sidewall. This one was on the inside of the tyre.

Archangel007

14th August 2016, 07:48 PM

Great read, awesome build. Very inspiring to say the least.

I wish you both lots of happy and safe travels in the Mog.

Cheers,
Andrew

Iain_B

14th September 2016, 05:16 PM

I've decided to fit a bigger fuel tank to our truck, so after much hunting around in the wreckers I got this 190lt tank. It should have a usable capacity of around 180lt ( the dimensions give a total volume of 205lt) so this will bring our usable fuel capacity up to around 340lt. This should bring our off-road range to around 1200km and our road range to 1600km.

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14202516_332734337059541_8972541357088191494_n.jpg ?oh=d0e7cef86cb76e25beeb7bb986b89a69&oe=58379E4C

We tracked out fuel consumption over almost 19,000km and it averaged out at 22.1lt /100km, with a best consumption of 17.7lt/100km on the Bruce Highway with a nice tail wind and a worst of 28.4lt/100km on the Canning Stock Route.

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14222171_329827814016860_2800720843437951494_n.jpg ?oh=d363e199772b0fd452d896aff870d31e&oe=583A26FA

Whislt this is a bit more than our Defender, the truck weighs around 8 tons, so not too bad.

I have relocated the air tanks to high up under the camper box.

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14184528_329010464098595_7733498336844598105_n.jpg ?oh=538a746d782d271c9537de63acb9af54&oe=5877C81D

I am having a large tool box made to fit in the space where they used to be, and it is big enough to hold 4 jerry cans if necessary, but it means all the heavy tools and things can be located down lower in the truck and frees up the side compartment of other things.

I have also had some new rear springs made. These are 20% stiffer than the old ones, and give me a 50mm increase in the bump stop clearance when loaded. A we have increased the GVM of the truck from 7500kg to 8000kg, we might as well make use of the extra capacity.

https://scontent-sjc2-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/14212065_329010817431893_5237573666222035450_n.jpg ?oh=db0a459d27232d992ec334ae80b4f700&oe=58742900

I finally got around to updating our travel map. The routes highlighted in red show where we have been with either the Unimog or our Defender. Still got a lot more places to go :)

https://fbcdn-sphotos-e-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-xpa1/v/t1.0-9/14089155_323706241295684_2227206432968134046_n.jpg ?oh=2a887c5d2b7810964c0f64ac8a9491bd&oe=5884F71E&__gda__=1484273574_fbee2d6d31c4c30e070f176893a886d 6