miketomcat

We use Dan cover tents at work (like the pop up garage but much bigger) for boats they work well and definitely give a nicer work space. Two bits of advice first get a white one as they are much lighter inside so you're less likely to need lights. Secondly they suffer from condensation quite badly however you can either ventilate well to reduce it or adding a second layer of polythene inside with an air gap in-between makes a huge difference. Mike

Bottle or trolley jack and axle stands is all I do. Like you I have a workshop at the bottom of the garden but the drive is at the front of the house. Worst still I live on a fairly main road so I can't leave stuff out. Mike

I used pulleys with bearings on the vector system on my ibex. I was concerned about grit etc and as I didn't have the pulleys foers normally use it was a good excuse to get some. I've no idea what they came off as they were on eBay but they've been fitted for 7 years and I'm not very good at cleaning. In fact at one point I thought they had seized but it turned out the tube was full of mud, once clear it all started working again. Mike

Definitely interested if I can get there at the time. Mike

I reckon the rivet counters will be fooled, and that is no mean feat. Mike

Lead acid is flooded, AGM is often spiral wound (Optima), gel are generally completely sealed and deep cycle. Then you slip down the slippery slope of lithium..... At least this is my understanding and I'm generalising. Mike

That's great except as David points out, rarely are recovery points smooth/round enough for rope and your hook rarely fits. Let alone when there's no recovery points in the first place. Personally I have an issue with all this gear that relies on the rope sliding over it. It increases friction thus increasing wear and heat, there's also the mechanical losses caused by the above. Mike

I think it's easier to ship from the States to the UK than to Europe, but don't quote me on that. Either way it won't be cheap. A yank car dealer might be the best to ask. Mike

I have a similar system to fridge on the caravan build but I've only got one mppt30, two panels and two 110ah battery's. Last trip we were parked for 5 days in autumn and it struggle to keep up with the fridge so I turned it off overnight when it was cooler anyway. Hense I've added a second panel but haven't been out yet, though it's keeping the battery's fully charged at the moment. Mike

My 100w panel will deliver 3 amps fairly well but it's flat on the roof so sub optimal mounting. Angled and tracking would see better results but I just added a second 100w panel. It's difficult to tell what it will deliver because once the battery's full it drops back to under an amp. Mike

@Stellaghost https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/285646098876?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=Gd3D5qKKR_W&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=rj9sNdGlTqa&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/296155294321?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=Gd3D5qKKR_W&sssrc=4429486&ssuid=rj9sNdGlTqa&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY Mike

Tow rope (24mm 3 strand), Selection of shackles and strops 1-6ton and 2-5m, 1 endless strop 2m, 2 snatch blocks, 10m dyneema winch extension Spade, Winch blanket, Gloves, 12ton bottle jack, First aid kit, fire extinguisher, tyre repair kit and pump Warn X9 in a vector system with 11mm dyneema, I have 2 bridging ladders and a Hi lift but they stay in the workshop. Mike

My rear prop is nearly as long as a 130, it definitely doesn't clunk. In fact there's no noticeable difference to any other LR product (I've had several), Salisbury or rover axled. Sounds like more investigation is required. Mike

The connectors TSD mentioned look very similar to the NEMA 2000 cable plugs used on marine nav gear, often outside or in the bilge. Mike

The 3 bolt is imperial so the pipework won't fit either. I think the mounting bolts are imperial too, but the chassis spacing and hole size is the same. Mike

TSD has a mate who put a V8 transverse in a classic mini.... Anything can fit if you try hard enough. Ironically I saw said mini at a show long before I met TSD and was amazed, then I learnt a lot more about it and was both horrified and amazed. Mike

How many times have you seen a marshal in a relatively standard truck drive around a stuck monster to extract them. For instance my ibex has completely stock land rover suspension and drive line but I regularly get accused of having a tricked up truck. Mike

I keep pointing out to him that just fitting a big electric winch makes far more sense than messing about with hydraulic. Especially as in his words "I've barely needed a winch so far". He could have it sorted in a weekend instead of messing about for months. In fact if @FridgeFreezer were to fit an electric motor to a H14........ Mike

Oh I could, but it needed the cage changing, fuel tank replacing and moving, the roof changing to a rag top or a rear door similar to Bowie's, the radiator moving back to the front and the rear floor changing to allow seats and foot wells. It would have cost me circa £2.5k taken about 6 months and I'm still not sure I'd of had the height for child seats. On top of all that we had a baby and a house renovation, oh and I would of needed another car to get to work. So.......not much has changed really. I'm fairly sure I have the distinction of being the only tomcat regularly used for towing 3.5ton trailers. To be honest I loved my tomcat it was great fun but the ibex is much more practical/useful nearly as capable and still a lot of fun. Mike

Mine was diesel and built as a daily driver. I took it to the artic circle and to Bulgaria in winter (-20°c) amongst other locations. In fact the only reason I don't still have it is I couldn't fit two baby seats in the back. Mike

@Claytonv8 yours is almost certainly a tomcat, I recognise the layout of the frame. What length is it? Screen wise you have several options, tomcat used to stock a bonded in heated screen which I strongly recommend (I had on in mine) if you can get one as I think the business was up for sale. Secondly you can get a flat sheet of laminate glass cut and either bond it in or fit it using screen rubber just remember bonded needs to be big enough to land on the strip where as rubbered needs to be around 10mm smaller than the strip. I took my chassis to them where they fitted the spaceframe, I then built it from there. Feel free to contact me if you need to. Mike

The event up there last weekend was the last, a couple of club members were there and they reported it was the last ever. Mike

Unfortunately I suspect this is the first of many. Our hobby is becoming more and more frowned upon. I know Walters had the environment agency on their back for years, so I would imagine it's just not viable especially when rally and new vehicle testing doesn't leave the main tracks and pays better. The site will be sorely missed,😭 I've been instrumental in running events up there for over 15 years, we always bent over backwards to keep Walters happy and I love the site. Mike

Certainly in Russia we put the doors on the first click before entering the river, this allowed the truck to sink and keep contact with the bottom. Even so I was still pushed sideways. It was however 3ft deep and flowing, ash was walking it in front of me and the winch line was already out just in case. Mike

Didn't you call Ladoga in 09 gentle.... Mike