FridgeFreezer

MS (-Extra firmware) has table switching for fuel + ignition already, you just have to wire a simple circuit to the switch. I don't know if other settings get switched but it's bound to be in the documentation somewhere...

If brake fluid kills germs I'm now immune to everything after this weekend

The amps were ~55 to ~70 can't remember exactly what, I think it was ~55 to ~64 for the lap joints and ~60-70 for the tee pieces. The super skinny filler wire didn't help, it takes so long to feed in an inch of it just to get a little blob compared to the thick stuff that just takes a small dab.

Should be absolutely fine, won't need an overdrive. As Bowie says, you might get away with one of the 1.1 ratio boxes if you find one but 1.2 will be fine and they're ten a penny. With our 1.4 transfer box + OD we cruise at 70mph at 2200rpm, with a 1.2 box and no OD you'll be at ~2400rpm, no big difference.

Our ambulance runs that combo - 4.6 V8, R380, 1.4:1 LT230 with Roamerdrive, 3.54:1 diffs and 235/85R16 tyres and it works well, I suspect in a lighter truck (especially a SWB) you'd more happily use the 1.2 ratio LT230 as TBH most of the time you could leave the overdrive engaged in the ambulance and not notice - it's only big hills where the weight & aerodynamics make themselves known! Bear in mind that's a 2.8ton truck with the frontal area of a block of flats With 4.7 diffs you might drop to 1:1 ratio in the LT230 but those are harder to find.

Honestly most of the time, no. MIG is the pump-action 12-bore poop pistol for steel work unless you're doing something fancy. TIG takes 2-4x as long, but you can (in theory) get neater welds, with better heat control and a posh finish - the real benefit of TIG is you can go from steel to ali to stainless to dissimilar just by changing filler rods & settings. With MIG you've got to change wire reels, maybe liners, maybe gas, maybe use a spool gun... TIG is quite "clean" and quiet but the test pieces that were a ~7 second MIG run are more like a ~20 second TIG run even for the tutor, and you've got to be a lot more controlled about it. You can't get under a car with a TIG torch and filler rod and wave it in vaguely the right direction of a patch and pull the trigger. With MIG you can point the gun upside-down sideways into a nook you can't even see, pull the trigger and get a weld into an awkward corner of chassis. With TIG you'd have to hang the car from the ceiling and come in on a wire like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible before even thinking about getting a tack weld on

^ What Bowie said, there's even a full thread on it with pictures by yours truly in the technical archive.

So far I've done a few small bits but the bench is so covered in sh*** from working on the 109 that I've not really had the space or time to do any. I did TIG two nuts onto a plate on Friday, so there's that

So, scores on the doors for TIG week 2; more practice (much like MIG week 2) and some joints: One drawback is their stock of rods is all ~1mm which is quite hard to handle/feed and needs miles of rod to fill even a short joint, tutor is trying to get some thicker stuff for next time. Still, it's coming along, I gradually got some sort of consistency even if it's not winning any internet welding beauty contests! Oh yeah, they'd changed gas bottles over and gotten air in the lines so there was a lot of random porosity going on in occasional bursts - tutor thinks there's maybe a leak that's let the air in. This is the total evening's output from me: Starting bottom left and working up basically - you can see it gets less awful as you go. This was my least worst lap joint, I think: And probably my least worst fillet: Hoping they stay open for the last 2 weeks, it'd be a real bummer if they paused or cancelled it at this stage!

D2 isolating cups are worth a look if you're after a small improvement in noise - they're retaininig rings dipped in rubber effectively.

If they're silly money take a look at ARP stud kits, if they do one that'd suit it's both a nicer thing and sometimes a cheaper option - IIRC for the V8 it's cheaper to fit ARP bits than all new genuine bolts, no brainer really!

I started an account with ParkerSteel and as long as you order a decent lump of stuff they'll deliver by lorry for free and the prices are pretty much trade (obviously small fry don't get much discount!) - only issue is all the lengths are 6+m and any properly heavy stuff you need to be able to handle it when the lorry arrives. I chuck a generous extra portion of 25x25 box/angle and 6mm & 8mm rod into any order just for random jobs and to bump the order up.

I find the top speed of a Series is more about the brakes / handling / noise / vibration than any horsepower issues

Using an interesting classic as a daily driver is a curse - it means any problem has to be sorted and the novelty of the "character" quickly gets old and becomes regular old discomfort and inconvenience! I daily drove a Freelander for ages and it was great, but as the 109 was off the road the FL got off-roaded and ended up suffering more than it should... now I drive a 2WD Jag/Mondeo, it's quiet, comfy, quick, cheap to run & service and it means I only drive the 109 off-road and only have to work on cars as a fun hobby rather than to get me to work on Monday. An ecobox or van / pickup might be a good daily, and you'll appreciate the 109 that much more when you get into it.

For a pressure gauge I'd assume one terminal is the supply (regulated or just 12v) and the other is the sensor (not switch), ground through the body of the gauge.

Well 7sisters is still on so you can all come to that instead as long as there's less than 1000 trucks we'll be golden

I reconcile selling projects off as passing them to someone who'll hopefully have more time/enthusiasm for them. Walked round a car show with a mate who kept saying "I used to have one of those! I should've kept it!" but no-one has enough storage or money to keep every car just in case it becomes a future classic.

Ah, that explains it, they're one better! I assume a 187 or 203 would be even betterer but maybe too much numbers for the whassname?

I can only assume I've had ones where a plug has been replaced then, because I've definitely had ones without. Same goes for any drain plug though - sump, diff, gearbox.

The RAVE manuals are online for free, I think there should be links in the technical archive section.

Most of us here have very little idea what a 186 or 202 is - care to explain?

I've got three words for anyone reading this thread: MAGNETIC DRAIN PLUGS! You can get gen parts for some things, Nige sells some insanely strong ones (surprise!), or any hydraulics shop should be able to sell you one with a magnet in.

^ Very much this. I hit a point early on where I had the 109, a kart, and a Mk1 Golf in resto and the result was zero time or money to get anything done on any of them. Sold 2 of the 3 and it was a weight off the mind and wallet, let me focus on one thing and actually do (mostly) what I wanted to get done.

Have you got the factory RAVE manuals?

That looks far more proper!