Defender 110, a Bedford cf and a utility truck walk into a bar...

[Badger110]

The seating area was a direct replacement for what was already there.

 

When driving it is folded away and when stopped it is opened and provides a full width bench seat.  

 

This time i removed a 3rd auxiliary battery as it really wasn't needed and sunk the batteries into the floor to give me some space to store stuff above it.

 

The seating looks like this when folded up

 

In case you're not sure how the rear bench seat works, it goes like this;

 

In open position, the main 2 front driver and passenger seats are slid and folded forward.  I did have to make a spot weld on the seat mechanism which allows me to ' hold ' the seat in the forward position as standard landy seat frames just fold forward after a certain point.

 

This allows the rear bench seat to unfold like this

 

 

With the cushions which are stored up top ( and are also the bed for up top too )

 

 

 

Voila, you have a bench seat the full width of the Landy!

 

Hang on you ask, why is there only 2 cushions?  Well it's to show that the bench seat is also a split seat which means you can have one of the front seats in it's normal position.  This works when i'm travelling solo and don't need to adjust both seats

 

Underneath the offside seating is the compressor, battery 2, MPPT controller and lots of wires!

 

 

With a false floor to hide it and allow storage

 

 

The nearside is the same, but with the fusebox, inverter, charging relay and battery 1

 

 

So that's the bench seat explained, now onto the offside of the Landy!

 

 

 

[Badger110]

The offside was the trickier part and if i'm honest i didn't know how i was going to do it, until i got there.

 

The remit was to provide a bed for Nikki to sleep on as i usually bunk up top and she was on the floor with the dog!

 

The rear storage was a mirror of the nearside and the upper storage, again a mirror but i had to adjust it slightly to allow me to gain access to the top bunk.

 

After a few ideas, i came up with a simple slide out base which gives 700mm width when open and 400mm when closed and utilises some storage underneath.

 

 

 

As a side note, the actual bed base then turned into a small bench seat which wasn't planned, but as the cushions and size when closed, it all kind of worked.

 

 

It did mean the top storage went down to 2 instead of 3 compartments and i created more storage areas with a solid back too.

 

Also to note, the bed on the offside coincides with main bench seat being available to give the full length ( 1.7m ).  In an emergency you can just crash out on it

 

So that's the main build done.  I basically carpeted the entire inside before building the units so it's nice n snug.  I redid a lot of the wiring, tidying it up and making it neater and simpler in places. 

I fitted some USB ports in the back, extra lights and also made a cubby box for the front which sits above the integrated subwoofer

 

 

 

The area just above the driver/passenger heads used to house some speakers, but i ditched them and redid the area to include more storage 

 

 

 

I shall provide some more pictures when it stops raining and i get the roof open again, until then, thanks for reading!

 

 

[landroversforever]

Been following your Instagram photos so great to see it with the captions  

[Wytze]

42 minutes ago, Badger110 said:

There are some benefits to being ill with covid and stuck at home for 3 weeks, it gave me the opportunity to redo the rear of the truck.

 

I've spent some time in the past coming up with ideas and thinking of how/what scenarios i would need them in and in the end, none of them really worked in real life. 

 

I built the last idea of the truck on the basis we'd be in it...in the end we spent 90% of the time when parked up, sat outside it and rarely used the interior that much.  When i used the truck on a course for a week, it did work really well, but the sink and cooker were a waste of space if i'm honest as when you want to cook outside, you had to move it all around.

 

So the rebuild of the interior remit was as follows;

 

To be able to sleep 2 people and a basset hound.

 

Storage for all our gear, clothes, food for extended periods

 

Comfortable and warm if we need to sleep in it. 

 

Cooking would be done with our hiking gear ( Primus cookers ) and water would be from a container only.

 

Lighting and power where needed. 

 

 

 

So first up was to dismantle the rear of the truck and examine what i had to play with, take some measurements and pop down to a local place to use their CNC machine.

 

I cheated a little here using the CNC machine as normally i'd do all that work myself ( being a wood butcher ), however it's sometimes easier on the mind and time, to give it to someone who has the ability to do it quicker and it's less stressful

 

Armed with some drawings, i came up with some ideas of how it was going to look and asked them to cut out the facia's of the storage units with the doors and hinge recess's done for me.

 

Picked these up the following day and began the build on the near side first.  

 

The floor was the original celotex (30mm ) and the walls were already lined with 10mm acoustic 

 

I began by mocking up the idea i had, which was quite a loose idea, but one i knew i could change as i went along.

 

My first thought as i did this was the compressor wasn't in the right place anymore, so i removed it.  I was also going to move the webasto as well, but in the end left it in the same position 

 

This is a top down view of the near side showing the webasto and compressor before i moved the later

 

 

Some of you will notice that the Webasto has been replaced by a chinese version, this is because one turned up brand new for 70quid, and as the webasto is due a service, i fitted this one.  Everything is pretty much the same except the controller, which if i'm honest, is better than the webasto as it has a manual pump override for priming the system!

 

 

The nearside was finalised with storage to the rear, 3 top storage areas which also work as a work space when the roof is up and storage underneath the work space for cooking etc

 

No laughing at my picture. I like it. 

 

Next up is the seating for the rear area

 

 

i think it looks great!

[Badger110]

5 minutes ago, landroversforever said:

Been following your Instagram photos so great to see it with the captions  

Instagram makes life so much simpler when posting up, but it's nice to interact with folk who've followed from the beginning

[Snagger]

That is looking great.  Looks very professional.

[Badger110]

We looked at material for the seating yesterday as although i do love the ' old-multicoloured-curtains-made-into-cushion-covers ' look of it, Nikki has quite categorically told me no.

 

Time to get the sewing machine out and get a crash course on youtube seamstress course's! 

 

 

[Stellaghost]

6 minutes ago, Badger110 said:

Time to get the sewing machine out and get a crash course on youtube seamstress course's! 

Aldi and Lidl regularly have sewing machines for sale its where I bought mine when I made my lightweight seats and seat back

looking a bit scruffy now as the whole project needs restarting 

it's surprisingly easy to get the hang of only problem is my good lady has had me making cushion covers, tablecloths etc

regards Stephen 

[Badger110]

I've spent a few hours tonight looking at how make some and managed to 'borrow' the MIL's machine....whoever invented the needle and thingamajig it goes into was a genius!

 

and perhaps a little sadistic as it gets mind boggling 

[Peaklander]

Here’s our cushions and seat bases. This is the second version, the first were old curtains!

[Arjan]

Love that !

[Peaklander]

The fabric came from a well known textile company called Shufflebothams in Macclesfield. They have thousands of rolls. That material was the last 6m on the roll and is very 1970s but we loved it the moment we saw it. The owner said that it came from a mill that he had 'cleared' and would have been the 'leader cloth'. So it was a test print onto cloth but only for a run to check the print before being used for paper printing. 

[ThreePointFive]

On 4/6/2022 at 8:52 PM, Badger110 said:

The offside was the trickier part and if i'm honest i didn't know how i was going to do it, until i got there.

 

The remit was to provide a bed for Nikki to sleep on as i usually bunk up top and she was on the floor with the dog!

 

The rear storage was a mirror of the nearside and the upper storage, again a mirror but i had to adjust it slightly to allow me to gain access to the top bunk.

 

After a few ideas, i came up with a simple slide out base which gives 700mm width when open and 400mm when closed and utilises some storage underneath.

 

 

 

As a side note, the actual bed base then turned into a small bench seat which wasn't planned, but as the cushions and size when closed, it all kind of worked.

 

 

It did mean the top storage went down to 2 instead of 3 compartments and i created more storage areas with a solid back too.

 

Also to note, the bed on the offside coincides with main bench seat being available to give the full length ( 1.7m ).  In an emergency you can just crash out on it

 

So that's the main build done.  I basically carpeted the entire inside before building the units so it's nice n snug.  I redid a lot of the wiring, tidying it up and making it neater and simpler in places. 

I fitted some USB ports in the back, extra lights and also made a cubby box for the front which sits above the integrated subwoofer

 

 

 

The area just above the driver/passenger heads used to house some speakers, but i ditched them and redid the area to include more storage 

 

 

 

I shall provide some more pictures when it stops raining and i get the roof open again, until then, thanks for reading!

 

 

That's nicer than my house.... As I'm about to try carpetting something for the second time in my life I have the utmost respect for the quality you've achieved with this. The finish on the panneling is really nice too, I love these colour choices.

I don't (and never will) have Instagram so don't forget about us on here when you're updating!

[FridgeFreezer]

Following TSD's lead we used a company on eBay who make covers to spec in the far east - you tell them a shape & size & material and they make custom and post to you and honestly they've been brilliant.

Covers were made by: http://stores.ebay.co.uk/GoodFabricStore

Foam came from http://www.thefoamshop.co.uk/

[Wytze]

7 hours ago, FridgeFreezer said:

Following TSD's lead we used a company on eBay who make covers to spec in the far east - you tell them a shape & size & material and they make custom and post to you and honestly they've been brilliant.

Covers were made by: http://stores.ebay.co.uk/GoodFabricStore

Foam came from http://www.thefoamshop.co.uk/

Love the drapes,  with a compass you'll never get lost😁

[Anderzander]

On 4/8/2022 at 10:17 AM, Snagger said:

That is looking great.  Looks very professional.

Doesn’t it just !  The standard and finish of the units and benches is outstanding !  Well done 👏🏻 

[landroversforever]

9 hours ago, FridgeFreezer said:

Following TSD's lead we used a company on eBay who make covers to spec in the far east - you tell them a shape & size & material and they make custom and post to you and honestly they've been brilliant.

Covers were made by: http://stores.ebay.co.uk/GoodFabricStore

Foam came from http://www.thefoamshop.co.uk/

How thick did you go with the seat base John? 

[Peaklander]

Not speaking for FF here 🥷 - ours are 100mm foam with square corners. It was ordered from gbfoamdirect.co.uk, cut to size then the covers were made to fit, zips and all. If our Alucab roof is down I can just sit with my head scraping the ceiling of the bed above.

[landroversforever]

2 hours ago, Peaklander said:

Not speaking for FF here 🥷 - ours are 100mm foam with square corners. It was ordered from gbfoamdirect.co.uk, cut to size then the covers were made to fit, zips and all. If our Alucab roof is down I can just sit with my head scraping the ceiling of the bed above.

How do you find the 100mm thickness? Supportive enough?

 

[Peaklander]

@landroversforeverthey are only for sitting as we have a big bedroom upstairs 😄

The 100mm is an upgrade from the first ones and they are great. The seat bases are 400mm deep which is 250mm past the original wheel boxes.

The cloth on them is to stop the bases slipping off when travelling

Thanks @Badger110

[landroversforever]

Thanks Peaklander! Just asking for my sister as they’re coming to the end of a van conversion.

[FridgeFreezer]

9 hours ago, landroversforever said:

How thick did you go with the seat base John? 

According to the receipt, 75mm in V38 High Firm Blue foam.

[Badger110]

We are using ours as seating as well as bedding so I went with 130mm firm v38 foam from the foam shop too.

I find it very comfortable to sit and sleep on.

I have ordered the blue high firm for Nikkis bench/bed…but that was a mistake but she’s happy with it

I must add that the roof height in mine is higher than a standard, about 120mm at the seating area and even higher in the middle as the roof arches

[Badger110]

On 4/12/2022 at 1:30 PM, Peaklander said:

The fabric came from a well known textile company called Shufflebothams in Macclesfield. They have thousands of rolls. That material was the last 6m on the roll and is very 1970s but we loved it the moment we saw it. The owner said that it came from a mill that he had 'cleared' and would have been the 'leader cloth'. So it was a test print onto cloth but only for a run to check the print before being used for paper printing. 

I love that pattern! 
 

Nikki tried to get a similar but the sample turned out to be a bit washed out, so I went for a tartan…

[Badger110]

Found ourselves in Western-Super-Mare at the Pageant of Transport with a local car group so I took the opportunity to get some pictures.

 

The bed is shown in situ whilst the roof is up. The cushions ( still using the curtains! ) are used as the bed base