Thread: SpudBoy's 130 Defender camper build - UK to Sth Africa project

Originally Posted by Datt

Is that an LC4 in the background of the last pic?

Do you meant the motorbike you can just see behind the hacksaw (not sure what an LC4 is....)?

That is a little BMW G450X. Nice and light (105Kg I think) with just enough power

I got a PM from Iain up in Brisbane (UniMog Iain ) asking about the pipe bender, so thought I'd put the details up here in the main thread.

It came from JD Squared: JD Squared, Inc. and is called a Model 3 bender. It is mainly used to make buggy frames and roll cages in the US it seems.

The bender cost US$295, and each die costs another $150 to $250 depending on the size of tube you are bending.

I got 2 dies, 34mm and 48mm (? I think) as this was the standard tubing size available from BHP and used by the bull bar manufacturers in Australia. Note that the metric size confuses them (JD Squared) as they work in inches, but they will make customs dies to any size, even metric!

Shipping was quick and with the strong Aust dollar, I couldn't find anything available locally to match it either on price or functionality. It is beautifully made and very solid.

Hi David, do you remember the price of the shipping? When I bought my composting toilet ( same as yours) , the shipping was $200 USD but I suspect the pipe bender may weigh a bit more.

Iain - I can't really remember, but I do remember that the total package was more than $1000 as I had to pay duty and GST on it.

This was before I wised up to the fact that you could buy the Bender in one purchase (under $1000) and the order the dies a few weeks later as a separate purchase (again, under $1000).

If you ping them an email, they should be able to give you a quote, but I think you are right with the $200 comparison. It is a pretty heavy thing.

I've had an idea on how I wanted my rock sliders to look, and got around to building the first one last weekend.

The idea was that they should be:
- rock sliders
- tree protectors
- Air tanks
- steps
- side recovery points
- Jacking points
all in one unit.

I started out with a 75mm x 50mm x 3.2mm beam, and cut out the interference points with the main bulkhead bolts using a plasma cutter, and angled the front to be the same profile as the mudguard.





The main front attachment point is the bulkhead 19mm bolt and the rear attaches to the two outriggers.







There are 2 tabs which match up to the original LR tinwork to stop the sliders flexing left to right too, but no photos of them.

I have welded up the box section into an airtight 'box' and put in an air hose fitting, so I can pressurise them with my air compressor. I have a switch that will automatically turn on the compressor when it gets to 70 PSI and off when it reaches 100PSI.



I also put in a side recovery point in case the car ever goes over on its side or just to use as a lashing point.



The tree protectors/steps that I made a few weeks ago have been tacked on (I ran out of Argon on my TIG, so just used the MIG to do the tacks - will tidy up with the TIG when I get some more gas). The steps/tree protectors have been angled down at a 20 degree angle to make it a bit easier for Mrs Spud to get in/out.



And so (even though the photo is pretty crappy) you can see how it is going to sit on the vehicle.



I've just remembered that I want to be able to jack from these too, so I will add on some "catches" for my high lift jack to slot into so it won't slip left or right when jacking.

Nice work Spud,
I think I may steal your idea on angling the 34 pipe down to help as a step.
Are you planning on incorporating brush bars?
If you are yet to buy the pressure switch id be tempted to get a 100 - 150psi switch. With the limited volume of the RHS the extra pressure will give you a bit more punch.
It will also be worth coating the inside to limit condensation from the compressed air rusting them out.

S

If I was doing the angled side steps again, I'd make it more than 20 degrees. I saw some at 45 degrees and that was too much, so perhaps 30 degrees is the optimum angle.

The only on/off switch I could find was from ARB and was 70/100PSI. Any ideas where to go for a 100/150PSI switch? Am hoping that the volume of 2 sliders connected with a T piece will hold a good amount of air. I had a look at the air reservoir on an ARB diff locker compressor and it is only as big as a pack of cigarettes, so this should be heaps more than that.

Am planning a roll cage, which may/may not hook up to the sliders.

The insides have have rustproofing epoxy poured into them, swished around and then emptied out again, so I hope that does the job. I did think of putting in a small drain tap to empty out any moisture, but thought it'd be one more thing to break.