Eightpot
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Posts posted by Eightpot
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18 hours ago, Anderzander said:
I was thinking of one of those - looking back on an old thread Noco was one of the recommendations.
Yes I have a noco, very nicely made and easily turns over a tdi. They are a very good price at Halfords if you have a trade card
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Yeah I'd go high, no point damaging an expensive battery over a packet of bacon and a six pack. For peace of mind you could pick up a Li-ion booster pack to keep in the cubby box, getting quite cheap now and safer than asking the mrs to push the car for a bump start..
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Britpart kit DA4649 has the inserts, studs and plastic rivets for a whole door card
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Always wondered how long ice cubes etc would last in a flask in the bottom of the fridge? Some of the modern wide neck soup flasks look like you could get a few choc ices in, or sawn off lollies 🙂
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You need some flock rubber window seal, for windows up to 6mm thick from memory. Can buy per metre from ebay, woolies trim etc. Pull any old rotten seal out, push this back in, you dont need to go round the corners, even a bit top and bottom will stop the rattling.
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I've got a few fridges dotted about in different vehicles, some thoughts on those if its of help - a couple of old Waeco CF40s which have exceeded all expectation, only downsides are fragile lid & doesn't slot in as neatly with its more curved shape, though later models look better. Tried a tropicool thermoelectric which worked nicely as well, obviously not as good as compressor but big improvement on the standard halfords type boxes.
Engel 35 & 40l are what cockroaches will store thier beer in after armageddon. Lacking in features, neat shape, gets slated for lack of temp control but few fridges actually keep accurate temperature and it works fine anyway, tough as old boots, will not die. Also had a little 20l one which I ran as a freezer, not very compact but worked ace.
National luna weekender 50, very nice size, about same outside dimensions as engel 40, great storage baskets, can properly keep a good supply of food/drink and able to access it without it all getting smashed. Loads of features. Pricey but nicey but I have had some with issues with circuit boards and coolant leaks, though after lots of harsh use. Generally very nicely put together, mercedes of fridges.
National luna twin 50 - as above but with freezer compartment which is nice for chucking the weeks supply of meat in without getting blood soup in bottom of fridge, nice to have an ice cube for the g&t or chuck some lollies in.
All the above have similar current draw, total power draw depends on insulation thickness (insulation jackets make a difference) and so does internal size & how much food is in there (so don't buy one bigger than you need). I've noticed some of the cheap modern compressor fridges (like the Bearmach one) suck quite a bit of juice. Tip on installation - if you cant connect the power lead directly to battery, keep the supply wires as short as possible and heavy guage, even a small 0.2v drop over the lead makes a big difference to how well the fridges work with the engine off, cigarett sockets for example are no good.
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They can be mated with an adaptor plate and reworked spigot bush - the gearbox will slot into existing holes in the chassis. Getting the clutch plate/arm/slave set up will be a fiddle but should be easy enough to find the best combo on the internet somewhere.
I ran a 2.8 isuzu tdi with LT95 in a very heavy Range Rover and found the ratios were fine, can't see a 300tdi/LT95 in a 90 would struggle with the ratios.
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70 odd miles a day in a Defender will probably get old pretty quick. Mrs Eightpot has a nice Saab 9-3 estate which is a nice looking modern classic, loads of room, super comfy, 150bhp, uses it for her 180 mile commute twice a week for the last 3 years, hardly spent a cent on it, does an easy 45+mpg and can pick them up for a few hundred bucks. I'd get something like that and save the rattler for the weekend 🙂
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If you want to go 2k, arrange to get 2 or 3 litres mixed up in advance as it works out cheaper and your bodyshop can draw what they need with less waste and you will have a consistent colour mix.
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Clearly you have been spared but only to suffer a worse fate. Never try to beat the system, you should have made efforts to snap the bolt as prescribed 🙁
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The stuff sold as enamel these days is 1k synthetic polyeurethane. It's main drawback versus 2k polyeurethane is the hardening time - hours v weeks. It's cheaper and safer to use though as no isocyanates. Once hardened, it's very tough.
1k poly is for industrial applications so only available in RAL and BS colours as a rule, no metalics. You can get it mixed in a close colour to factory paint with a colour match device from an auto paint shop.
For a series LR that used BS paint colours, a green laner, ex mod etc synthetic is absolutely fine, for a smart modern defender you want to invest in & keep, go 2k.
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Namibia definitely one of my favourite places. You know you're in a different world standing next to Himba in a Spar 😄
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Aside from nicer switches, theres not much to gain really - surely some brighter bulbs or swapping the instruments out for VDO would save a load of hassle.. If I were going to retrofit a dash I'd go further back to S2/2a style, much smarter.
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Got one in the back of my 110 csw, great for camping and stuffing all the sleeping bags pillows and flumpy stuff on out of the way.
I made my first one out of an old dog guard turned horizontal with four brackets welded on - if I hadn't already ordered a fancy one I'd have kept that, was every bit as good.
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For regular punctures, sticky tyre plugs work very well if you have a pump or compressor to air the tyre back up. Used them loads in Africa and just came across a wheel & tyre in the workshop I repaired with a plug in north Africa 14 years ago- still fully inflated. Used one of those plugs and a self tapper to fix a big fuel tank leak once as well - useful things to carry.
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I keep a 7.50 on the bonnet as it's good for an extra 3 mpg on the motorway 😄
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I've gone through a bunch of different cookers/burners, nowadays I just use a camping gaz 907 bottle with the camping gaz burner attachment screwed on - stable, plenty of heat, cheap, takes up little space, lasts ages, very portable. Surprising what you can do with one good burner.
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It does sound like a slipped timing belt - maybe the belt tensioner has moved or damaged or belt about to snap. If you know how to put a timing pin in the injection pump you can check if the flywheel timing slot is visible in the bottom bellhousing hole.
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Lots of rubber blanking grommets on ebay, just found 80mm ones for a couple of quid
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My list of mechanical failures obtained overlanding in several LRs all over Africa/Middle east over many years is as follows and in some rough order of volume;
Punctures, worn out shocks, broken UJs, Worn hub bearing, bits dropping off due to vibration (almost everything at some point), shock punching through an axle mount, chassis cracked due to HD springs, one broken layshaft (25 yr old gearbox)
Most of the list is delayed if you avoid or clean off mud & dust regularly and try to keep vibration down which is the killer. Most of the action I think for most folks doing those routes is actually at speed on dusty corrugated roads rather than trying to climb out of muddy ditches in difflock, which is maybe less than 1% of the time, so its more about tyres/shocks and keeping everything attached 😄
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There are different challenges with overlanding through say Africa - its more of a careful longevity test than trial of strength. Totally worth buying the best quality parts but upgrades and mods aren't necessarily an advantage.
LR have the balance about right with the design & build. If you're managing to break props, driveshafts and gearboxes in the middle of the bush you're trying way too hard and need to revise your technique - it's much more about driving prep & planning, honing good skills and lots of mechanical sympathy.
That said, I do like to give it some beans if there's some action to be had, look forward to rolling round in the gravel reattaching the results and spending days mooching about the industrial estates of Africa searching for tat. Heaven. 🤤
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Less is more for overlanding, and parts much easier to get than even ten years ago so taking something standard then just not breaking it is a good way to go. You meet so many people overlanding who have blown thier bank open buying wildly over capable cars and then don't want to get them dirty, can't get them fixed or become robbery targets and ultimately it detracts from the reason for being there.
Years ago I met a very interesting guy in Libya who had a battered old cruiser, just two front seats in it, no brakes (plenty of time to slow down in a desert), no lights, kit consisted of a pan, bowl, fork, rug, blanket, torch, lighter, with which he stayed out in the desert for weeks on end. I try to keep close to that though my good lady likes a few extras.
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Typically, 2 mins after posting I find the info I need, no need to investigate for me thanks 🙂
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Roof Luggage
in Getting out and about
Posted
I'd looked at getting a used Thule ski carrier to store the oztent in - would work well alongside a canoe.