Gazzar

I agree on the return - has to go to the tank; on my 109 I tapped into the hose that connects the two upper chambers of the tank. Simple, as it used one of the "tee" fittings from the vacuum manifold on the petrol engine. As for the switch, what do you gain? Well, you gain a simple system that switches both supply and return to the relevant tank that uses standard LR kit. If I was doing it, I'd fit the pumps on relays, but you point about the gauges is well made. If you rewired the switches so that the 12V supply came from the fuse (same as stop solenoid), then to the tank Switch, then on to the (either/or as switched) relay, parallel with the gauge, and finally to earth through the variable resistor in the tank, then that would work. Another fringe benefit is that you could wire a switch into the relay supply and have it as a sort of anti theft measure. Or just pocket the two relays when leaving it!

Just brain storming here: If you use the dual tank switch it has an electrical contact for the gauges, I think? I think you can use an electric pump for diesel, so why not have two pumps, one for each tank, selected by the switch electrics, and have the returns plumbed into the pipe work? A bit of redundancy, with two pumps, yet simple enough. G.

Almost exactly the same, but may have no seat belt bracket mounting holes. G.

Oh, fit leaf springs! You'll appreciate the coils afterward!

Oh, yes positive earth WAS used, and has some advantages over negative earth - as the electrons flow the other way rust is slowed down somewhat, no wonder they switched to negative earth. I don't know if FFR were ever POS earth, though. Oh, and an AutoSparts loom is certainly one way to go, if you value originality, though when I do my Lightweight, it will be a basic DIY loom, trailer cable and a few genuine colour coded cables toward the extremities, to ensure simplicity. G.

Yes, that's my main concern with the dipped approach, I don't think it's all that much better than the sprayed. I think I'll stick with the plan, assuming it stops raining when I'm not at work, on holidays, doing wife directed DIY or some other non-landrover task. God, I miss my workshop. Ah, well.

It won't shift the paint, though. Which bothers me. I think a good zinc spray, followed by a thorough interior waxoil, will be good enough. And powercoat black over the rough zinc. I don't like powercoat in general, but I've seen the finish that the zinc leaves and it will take powercoat very well, I suspect. Anyway, I'll try it, if I ever get the cursed new crossmember fitted - endless flippin' RAIN!

Yes, MIG is a fairly friendly process, once you have a well set up machine. I'm self taught on a secondhand cheapo Clarke, and really struggled until I got the set-up right. There is a good UK forum dedicated to mig welding - google it. G.

I know the advantage of dipped over sprayed re box section, I've also seen inside LR chassis and there can be a LOT of paint, crud, sand and stuff inside them after a few years, all of which would prevent the dipped zinc sticking. I've also seen old chassis that have been dipped that carry several kilos of zinc in some forgotten chamber, doing nothing but costing money each time you hit the throttle! Yes, with a new chassis, dipped is the smart choice, but for an old chassis I think that this is a good option, plus it's only 5 miles down the road, saving £50 on diesel and a days travel. I'll hot waxoil the interior when I get it back. I'm going to get it done, I might get the axle casings done while I'm at it! I wonder if he can powdercoat the zinc with black? G.

Baulk rings actually look very good, happy with them. Anyway we've taken a good chunk out of the cost - it's closer to £500 now, and that's changing a hell of a lot of stuff. I've also ordered the speedisleeves for the output flanges - £20 a pop! Cheaper than the recon flanges, and a far superior finish. G.

Does anyone have experience with hot zinc spraying? I was talking to a bloke who does it today and he was quoting me about £150 for shot blasting and spraying a chassis. I'm seriously tempted with the Lightweight chassis, it makes sense, especially when doing a second hand chassis, as you can ask the guy to preserve the chassis number and preserve the ID, which is important in some parts of the world. I know I'll have to waxoil the inside, but the sacrificial action of the zinc reduces the chance of rust by a lot anyway. It is also less likely to distort bulkheads and door frames, and the like, and it can be painted straight-away. Looking it up it is used on oil rigs, road and rail bridges and is a good alternative to hot-dip galvanising.

So, what's the middle like? Time to buy a MIG! I'm going to fix up a lightweight chassis this weekend, weather permitting, main rails are good, but all riggers will be replaced, rear crossmember and post gearbox member. G.

That's a fair question, but there is quite a bit between the front and the back. Not much metal, but a fair bit of work, including the engine mount parts, the bulkhead riggers and gearbox parts. There is a fair bit of internal bracing and crush tubes in that area. Still, it should be possible to have the price come in at £600 point. Though quality would suffer a bit, which wouldn't be good. I wonder how much it would cost to get the main chassis rails etc laser cut? The steel would be longer than the standard sheets, I suppose. You'd need a press brake to fold the crossmembers and 'riggers. A few jigs would be needed, and a decent welder. The costs are kind of adding up, when you think about it. But if you spread it over a couple of dozen chassis.... Maybe it is a bit of a step from the shorter parts to the longer parts? Don't know.

It's what I thought. Are they serviceable? They appear to be eroded or chipped. How important is that to a clean change? G.

And ditch my 10 spline truetrak? Noooooooooooo. G.

I know what you are saying, but the LR diesel had a bad reputation, despite being one of the first small diesels. How much of that was abuse, and how much was a outdated engine being compared with a modern unit, I don't know, but I never liked mine. G.

Some pictures (gotta love camera phones - so convenient). Opinions? Worn out? D suffix or earlier? Because if they are earlier I'll price up the corresponding layshaft and pinion - that might impact on the cost of the rebuild. G.

Yes, I know, still, I'd love to have the kit and brains to challenge them! I'm disruptive that way! Anyway - we're still debating the way to go with this box. What do I have to photo to confirm whether the 1nd and 2nd gears are ECM or plain cut? I can see a slight taper on the nubs, does anyone have a picture to show the difference?

Agreed regarding the 3 bearings! The primary difference is the diesel crank is forged, and the petrol is cast, the diesel is stronger, but it has to be, thus, as Tanuki says, it's not up to the job. I believe that a reground diesel crankshaft can be used in a petrol. But not vice versa. Oh, as I learned from here: Forged - a lump of hot steel whacked into shape Cast - hot steel poured into a mould.

Yes, up to speed on that - not sure what version he has - but the parts are available from Ashcrofts. G.

All the 3rd 4th stuff is going to be replaced - it's junk. Rust killed the pinion and the gears. I'd forgotten that the layshaft was different. Anyway - I think that the owner may be going down the R380 route. When you add up all the costs there's very little in it, and, as he already has a decent R380, it makes a bit more sense to use it behind the V8. So I might rebuild this box with the cheapest parts I can find, just to see how bad they really are. Blue Boxes everywhere! What's the law on poor quality parts in England? Can I return them after examining them if they really are rubbish?

Ah, now why would the DVLA let reality get in the way? When I registered my 109 I told them it was retrofitted with a diesel - they ignored it. SO long as you have proof that you made reasonable efforts then you should be fine, unless you drive in London and the TD4 doesn't pass the emissions standards.

Yes, but thinking aloud here: If the entire cluster is the same suffix then does it matter? in other words, all the bits that interact are the same, so it shouldn't effect things.

Oh, learned that one on a series 1 box I did a few years ago! I appreciate the offer but I'll be putting together a big order, if we go ahead! G.

Thanks, That's what I was thinking. G.