paime

You could do so much with something like this and it would be a fantastic project. It would sell at a premium i think with the increase in staycation/camping holidays etc

Is it an easy job? I've read getting the arm off can be a bit tricky.

Not sure what to do here. Do I risk it and buy a refurb unit? I can't justify a £1k adwest unit so that's out the picture. Do I try to refurb my own? Seems a challenge for someone like myself who is a little more on the agricultural side when to engineering skills.

Sadly I think you're right. The cost of those aluminium hinges is something else which annoys me greatly.

Is it simple economics or material prices increasing, I wonder. You see it quite a lot these days with other items like body cappings, bulkheads and doors. It's becoming prohibitively expensive unfortunately.

I'm on the hunt for a new steering box just now and came across this post. Click the Paddock Spares link above for a sad lesson in Defender parts price inflation

Just the photo thankfully! If you zoom in you can see the inner edge of the brake line.

I nervously started work this morning. The first challenge was getting access to the threads with the drill. Had to bite the bullet and take the disc off to get at it from the other side which was a touch annoying. After that it was almost plain sailing. On my first attempt getting the helicoil in I put too much pressure on it and it jumped some threads. On my second attempt I let it guide its own way in and all was well. I'm amazed by how much grip it has now and even more amazed that everything seemed to work fine! Also had to Macgiver a tool for the tap as my one wasn't big enough.

Aha! I have one of those at work which will be borrowed tonight...

Really daft question time.....but do i put the tap in a drill or hand tool thing...?

The bits and pieces arrived tonight and you were correct, @Bowie69 it was a 1.25mm thread. Tomorrow I'll give the helicoil set a bash. I've never tapped or died anything before so I'm intrigued as to how easy/hard it's going to be.

M12 x 1.25mm and a set of thread gauges purchased! I've got a funny feeling I'm going to have to remove the steering bar to get at it properly but hopefully not. Will post pics when I get round to doing the job. Thanks folks!

Sorry guys, still getting my head round the thread sizes here. Is the below bolt likely to be 1.25, 1.5 or 1.75mm? There seem to be quite a few options for M12 helicoil kits so want to make sure i'm getting the right one.

I went for Bilt Hamber Etch primer followed by their epoxy coating. I also used their cavity wax from a rattle can (which is very good) and then to town with brush on Waxoyl as well. One big mistake i made was not being thorough enough with cleaning the chassis before i started and i've got some bits flaking off now.

It is a 'normal' caliper bolt but the first time it went in everything was fine and i managed to torque it up no bother. I had a similar issue on another swivel housing so i'm starting to think they're made of cheese! I'm going to triple check i'm using an M12 rather than M10 bolt tonight before stumping for a helicoil kit.

It's quite difficult to get a decent angle on it but here are a couple of shots. Really difficult to tell if the threads are duff the whole way through but when i put a new bolt in it barely got any grip at all so i'm guessing it's completely knackered. Edit: I've just realised it's M12, not M10 https://www.lrworkshop.com/parts/SYP500090

Would this be the right one then? https://www.chronos.ltd.uk/product/m10-x-1-25-thread-repair-kit/ There's also a 1.5mm kit but not sure which one to get.

When I eventually made it home I tried a new caliper bolt and it didn't catch any thread at all. It's very strange as I had managed to torque it fine when I put the brakes on 6 months ago or so and I'm not sure how it managed to strip the threads then fall out. Do I get the same size helicoil kit (M10) or does the insert drop it down a few sizes so I'll need an M8 bolt?

After driving about 100 miles on rough forest tracks last week my lower OSF caliper bolt rattled itself out and fell off leaving me with a loose caliper and a bit of a problem! I need to fix it permanently somehow but i don't want to get a hole new swivel assembly. Can i get away with using a helicoil insert and, if so, is M10 the right size? Any hints or tips with using them?

That'll make a cracking project! What turned itself into a missile in the transfer case?

A garden tractor?

I can't decide whether to guess now or wait until 7pm tonight!

The rear door opening the wrong way round is what's most confusing but I suppose that makes sense of it's being used on the other side of the road.

This thing is confusing my eyes: https://www.i-bidder.com/en-gb/auction-catalogues/historics/catalogue-id-historics10013/lot-c7a426ac-726d-4254-a51b-ad1a00efde12

Having had the unpleasant experience of dropping a TD5 fuel tank i would opt for cutting a hole in the floor personally. If you've got a mat in the back you'll never even know there's a hatch there. It's also much easier to disconnect the fuel lines from up top and just lift the pump out.