Steve King

Thanks Ralph Steve

The driver's side door mirror bracket decided to give up the ghost today - luckily I had a spare one. The flippin' mirror bracket is fitted to the top hinge which means a whole load of fun! Getting the door trim of was truly thrilling but at least all the bolts came out OK - or did they? OOH $h1t the top bulkhead captive nut has escaped! I found a replacement nut but the captive clip thingy broke when I tried to clip it in! Has anyone got the part No for the captive clip/nut that holds the front top hinge to the bulkhead? Thanks Steve

What a load of numpties! A good example of how not to drive off road. Seeing as they had another vehicle (a red 90 I think) why on earth didn't they try to drag the 90 out backwards? It would have made a lot more sense seeing as the front of the stuck 90 was against the ditch and the front wheels were barely touching the ground.

Well that was a turn up for the books! Yesterday I rang a new "authorised service centre" that has just opened down the road from work and they didn't have the M8 bolt in stock so they ordered one for me. Went to collect it today and they didn't charge me for it! OK I know the bolts go for 30p + vat or thereabouts but it is the first time ever I have ever got a freebie when buying LR parts! Hmm must be desperate for business I was even offered a cup of coffee whilst I waited!

Maybe Les will take pity on me and edit the link!

Oh $**t can't get that to work!

No reasonable offer refused!

Thanks M8 (I'll get me coat!!) Steve

Cheers guys! Steve

I've always thought that the fuel filter was a bit wobbly and wondered why the 2 mounting bolts were different. I've only just realised that there is a bracket from the wheelarch that should firm up the whole assembly - I think a previous owner must have lost the correct bolt and used a different sized bolt and a nut. The support bracket was pushed out of the way toward the headlight. The support bracket has a captive nut, can anyone tell me the size and thread? Thanks Steve

Fresh roadkill pheasant is very good or so I am told!

You're not wrong - for my sin I used to travel to Syria fairly regularly and Assad's revenge meant that I was sh______g through the eye of a needle after a few days. The only cure was regular large doses of duty free!

Well how about a portable fire escape ladder? This one is chain but at least it won't rot! fire escape ladder Steve

It depends exactly what sort of rope ladder you want and whether it is for kids or adults. This place sells ladders suitable for kids rope ladders Steve

Went to a village fair today and spent a couple of quid on the tombola stall and I won a pair of chavtastic England flags! They were truly cr@p! SWMBO insisted I put them on the Defender as penance (pennants? - I'll get me coat ) for taking the pi$$ and making jokes about the flags. Both flags broke after 50 miles and were last seen on the M11!

Cheers Paul. I obviously couldn't see for looking!

Oh by the way, my brother tried nettles the other day. Both his kids refused to eat it and he had to admit himself it was extremely bland!

Mmmm good thread! Personally I don't cook main courses on the camp fire, however my brother is a total traditionalist and cooks (and sometimes incinerates!) steak and chicken etc on the embers of a camp fire. I take a proper barbecue, although my brother ridicules me saying "Why do you bring charcoal to a wood?" I find a barbecue rather more predictable! However I do cook spuds and sweet potatoes in the embers of a camp fire. As far as recipes go I think keeping it simple is important. For meat eaters meat marinated in lemon juice, olive oil and your favourite herbs and spices and then grilled is a sure fire winner, as is chicken and bacon kebabs (the fat from the bacon stops the chicken from drying out). For veggies kebabs of tomatoes, mushrooms, onions and capsicums go down well. Garlic bread is nice but a little difficult to judge whether its on a fire or on a BBQ.

Bloomin' good idea! Well done that man!! I take it the spacing for the bolts is about right (or up to LR's normal tolerances!!!) : Steve

That's the same as the one on my Defender Ralph- except mine is about to break! I think the original design of the handle is cr@p and is inherently weak, but the strengthened version on e-bay is a lot of money for a bent tube! I'll call in at the local stealer Jon, but I reckon they'll want a bit more than £11 + vat!!

My Defender internal door/grab handle is useless. It bends when anyone puts any weight on it and I straightened it so many times I reckon it will break off by the bolts soon. The military ones are stronger I know, but I've never been able to find one. They seem to go for silly prices on e-bay. I just came across this and wondered if anyone has bought one and if so could you tell me if it's any good or not? Thanks Steve

Me and my two brothers each said a a little piece about Dad and his life at the funeral. I think it helped us to come to terms with things. A lot of people said to me afterwards that they wished they had got up and said a few words at a loved one's funeral but they couldn't face doing it. It was once of the hardest things I have ever had to do, but I'm so glad I did it. If you are able to get up and say a few words about your Mother in Law, it may help you too. When I came back from Mum's last weekend I brought the last bag of Dad's clothes to take to the charity shop. I was quite touched to see my ancient black and white moggy purr and try to climb into the bag of clothes. Before I met my wife, my cat used to be shipped off to my parents when I went on holiday and Dad and cat became very fond of each other. It was almost like my cat saying goodbye. All the best Mandy & Michael. Steve

They're fine for keeping food over the weekend, particularly if you stuff a freezer block or two in them before setting out. However I don't think they'd be much cop in Morocco.

I didn't find too much carp software on my Dell, but I soon got pi$$ed off with Works Version 7 and installed good ol' Office '97. As well as lacking all the silly flashy bells and whistles it runs a damn sight faster too!

I just bought a Dimension PC from Dell via e-bay (supposedly it has some minor marks but I can't see anything untoward) and they charged me £23.50 for delivery.