hattymender

And another good thing about Paddocks! They're open Saturday, well morning anyway. Why, why, why are most parts suppliers shut at the weekend when 90% of us want to buy something?

I've used Paddocks for years and never had a problem, as such............... The problem is the location. Wife get's one hint that I need something and it's ok. to collect, "let's go now!". Via Crompton (shops), Matlock (shops), Denby Dale (knitting shop, normally bored silly at this stage), Peak Village (shops), Chatsworth (House, garden centre, farm shop. I hate bl**dy garden centres). Net result. For every £1 I spend she spends £4. Then says that "It was your day, we went for your Land Rover. So you can take me out tomorrow somewhere I want to go". Also. The lock on the toilet at the back of the store is a bit tricky (you drink a lot of tea waiting for shopping to finish)........................

Sod's Law strikes again. Later type. I'll just have to be careful (for once).

After a protracted delay (about 6 months) 'project V8' was started up last week and all's well except for a leak from the overflow/breather on the RH carb. Suspect the float needle will have varnished up with being stood so I'd like to strip and clean. But I don't want to disturb the linkage/carb balance. Can the carb be removed without disturbing settings?

I'm getting a bit worried here about the 'might is right' theme. I've always tried to be considerate and not push a situation. If I wanted to get somewhere fast then a 110 isn't a good idea. Even the V8 (when it eventually runs) is more for being able to keep up (modest) speed on hills rather than tear up road in 'Mondeo rep' manner. There's always going to be some tit on the road but with the current level of anti Land Rover press I think we should try to be better than the rest. (That is unless they cut you up by a Skoda in which case it's fair do's to scare the little s*d). Also. How many here are men of 'slightly cosmetically challenged' variety? My wife doesn't understand the problem at junctions; "you just smile and wave and they let you out". Doesn't work for me. I wonder why?

There's adverts on the telly that I hate, you know the ones, 'drive this and people will **** themselves' or 'drive this and they think you're Yoda' etc. But today I've driven the 110, the Escort and the 'Moggy' around the same round about on different errands with different results. 110. Transit van was thinking about pulling across me, thought again and stopped. Escort. Some muppet in a Skoda carved me up as if I wasn't there. Pretended he hadn't seen me. Moggy. Botched getting it into 1st (no syncro). Cars actually stopped on roundabout and waved me out with a smile. The answer? A Series 2? Big enough to have presence but old enough to get a smile?

Reverse isn't a problem. Just get some military rear bumpers aka 'reversing sensors'. Must strongly recommend Labrador snot as a 'matting agent' for window. But how much do you use center mirror? One of the best things about Defenders is the side mirrors, I almost never use the center one.

Ah! Just noted that you're starting from a 300TDi? Radiator, not good (intercooler and all that diesel tosh). Need a new one. Also engine mounts. 300TDi have the 'square' ones? You'll need older style brackets (angled with 'round' mounts). LPG. On a V8 you'll need an 80 liter tank to get beyond end of street. This needs space. Not too bad on a 110 but could be very limiting on a 90.

I'm about 90% of the way through this (been at 90% for last few months!) with a 110. Some points to note: Engine mounts. If your using a 'long' bell housing they need to be about 4" forward. If you use the short box you'll need to modify bulkhead/exhausts. Radiator. Slightly different but a 2.5 one can be made to work. Cable, battery to starter motor. On a 2.5 the starter's on the near side, on a 3.5 it's on the offside so you need longer cable. Prop shafts. Don't know if it's the same on a 90 but of your using a genuine V8 gearbox/transfer box the prop shafts aren't the same as a 2.5. Electrics. The good news, just plug in the harness and it's compatible. Exhaust. Obviously different at the front end but back box is the same. Exhaust manifold bolts. If you forget to put them in the sound it makes when you first start it is bloody scary.................. So it's not a five minute job. But I've just got mine started and I've used a couple of gallons 'setting it up', well that's what I tell the wife. In reality I've just been running it up and down the farm yard grinning like a drain at the sound.

Cheers!

Lost a bolt at some point during re-build. (How do you loose 1 out of 16?). Part number SH506101L according to the book. Anybody know what size/thread that is so I can get one locally?

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like I was already there without knowing it. I was dreading some smart arse saying 'diesel' (which can be a bigger pig to set pump timing) or megasoemthing...........

I've just had a complete brain fart and removed distributor without making an alignment mark. Hey, ho. Probably needed re-timing anyway. And such fun getting oil pump and drive gear to align! But how to set up static timing with electronic ignition? (35DLM8) Normally on with points it's easy enough just put multimeter (or lamp, or rizla paper) across points and make sure it lights up at the desired setting. Then when it's running do it properly with strobe. But no points. So I'm stumped.

Cheers for that, I'd already sussed it this afternoon but wanted re-assurance 'cos it's not mine. Plus I'm at 'hero' status with the owner 'cos I could change his cam belt without a manual (followed Les Henson's write up though).

My friend's Freelander has got shot viscous mounting bearings. Spares not available 'till mid week. "No problem, we'll take prop off 'till spares come it's easy on a Land Rover" says me. 75% easy of the way in and we're stuck at the gear box end. Does the prop pull out of the rubber gaiter 'Ford style' with a circlip retaining it? Or do we have to unbolt the cylinder it pushes into? Or something else? Please help a Defender owner out of his comfort zone

Girls, mostly. Hatty's, well, a Hatty. Large, ponderous but strangely attractive (to me anyway). Prudence, is small, old and prim. Hector's bothering me. Too much in the habit of saying "come on old lass" (Yorkshire) or more frequently "start you cow". Just wouldn't work with a boy's name. Think she'll (she?) have to be Hatty as well. It'll save confusion It's a character thing? Our Fords euroboxs' don't have names.

I've years of experience with tyre changing. But we all have off days: Slow (very) puncture, I'll do something about it......... Best tyre leavers out. Nipped first (new) inner tube. (tut, tut, school boy error). Put a patch on it "to keep for emergencies". Put in second. Nipped it. (bast*#d) Put first back in. Patch leaked. (aaahhhhggggg!) At some point stood on fairy liquid bottle, spilt the lot (new). Then it rained. Drive will be nice 'n clean. Said something 'unfortunate' when she inquired "how's it going?", tea's now in dog. Gave up. Put original tube back in. Threw replacements away (and most of my toys out of pram). Currently sulking. Please reassure me, you've done worse?

Brasso? Got some somewhere, I'll try it 'in a discrete corner' and report back. Cheers

Autum on the A63. West to east run to work. Sun in eyes going (on a good day, normally raining) and coming home, mucky screen making it hard to see. After shifting the cobwebs (made sure spider was safe), mud, cig smoke residue, etc, etc and giving good polish with windowleen there's still 20+ years of scratches and blemishes. Recall in the past you could get a polish that would remove, or at least reduce, scratches. Any suggestions?

Been running on LPG for years and the question never occured to me. But if you didn't have some air in the tank what would you have when the fuel runs out?

Cheers, I'll give it a go. Forgot I'd even got the plate so not much to lose!

In a very uncharacteristic moment I did a garage tidy today and found some chequer plate I'd set aside to make wing top protectors. Blowed if I know where or when I got it. It's thick stuff, about 4mm. Vents? If I cut a hole for the heater intake I'd have quite a step, it'd look pants (especially as the plastic vent screen's been cracked for years). So, drill a pattern of holes in the plate so it's flush? Could be tricky as raised 'chequers' tend to make drill wander? Anybody had any success with this approach?

Do you use the same ignition map for LPG? Thinking of going this route (my early Christmas present to me?), I will be running LPG 90% of time so having a dedicated ignition curve for LPG would seem to make sense and justify the exercise. 'Justify' being for the wife. I want to do it 'cos I want one. Justification enough?

A friend passed me an old copy of 'Farm Ideas' today, never seen it before and it's a publication of (unexpected) genius. One bit, obviously lifted from America, was far the best (sorry if it's old news): Tool Definitions: • Drill Press: A tall upright machine useful for suddenly snatching flat metal bar stock out of your hands so that it smacks you in the chest and flings your drink across the room. • Wire Wheel: Cleans paint off bolts and then throws them somewhere under the workbench with the speed of light. • Electric Hand Drill: Normally used for spinning pop rivets in their holes until you die of old age, or for perforating something behind and beyond the original target object. • Skil Saw: A portable cutting tool used to make studs too short. • Pliers: Used to round off bolt heads. Sometimes used in the creation of blood blisters. • Belt Sander: An electric sanding tool commonly used to convert a minor touch up job into major refinishing job. • Hacksaw: One of a family of tools used for frustration enhancement. It transforms human energy into a crooked, unpredictable motion, and the more you attempt to influence it’s course the more dismal your future becomes. • Mole Grips: Generally used after pliers to completely round off bolt heads. If nothing else is available thy can also be used to transfer intense heat of welding to palm of your hand. • Welding Gloves: Heavy duty leather gloves used to prolong the conduction of intense welding heat to the palm of your hand. • Oxyacetylene Torch: Used almost entirely for lighting various flammable objects in your workshop on fire. Also handy for igniting the grease inside thw wheel hub you want the bearing out of. • Table Saw: A large stationary power tool commonly used to launch wood projectiles for testing wall integrity. • Hydraulic Floor Jack: Use to lower automobile to the ground after you’ve changed the brake shoes, trapping the handle firmly under the bumper. • Eight foot long 4x4: Used for levering car upwards off a trapped jack handle. • Tweezers: A tool for removing splinters and wire wheel wires. • Stud Extractor: A tool ten times harder than any known drill bit that snaps neatly off in bolt holes. • Two Ton Engine Hoist: A tool for testing the tensile strength of everything you forgot to disconnect. • Aviation Metal Snips: See Hacksaw. • Phillips Screwdriver: Used to stab vacuum seals under lids, opening old style paper and tin oil cans and splashing oil on your shirt. But can also be used, as the name implies, to strip out Phillips screw heads. • Straight Screwdriver: A tool for opening paint cans. Sometimes used to convert slotted screws into non-removable screws. • Pry Bar: A tool used to crumple the metal surrounding the clip or bracket you wanted to remove. • Hose Cutter: Used to make hoses too short. • Hammer: Originally used as a weapon of war, nowadays is used as a kind of divining rod to locate the most expensive parts around the target object

Just fitted an inner tube at mate's. He had a wire device with valve cap on end which is used to feed valve through hole. Very handy. I could do with one, but he can't remember where he got it or what it's called. Anybody know? Anybody made their own? Looks like you could solder an old bike brake cable onto a metal valve cap? Cheers