Series lwb station wagon door gaps.

[jason110]

Evening folks. 

I need some help. 

we are in the final stages of rebuilding the series 3 lwb station wagon and may of hit a snag or two. 

the door gaps are widely off, I sort of expected needing a bit of adjustment, but they seem mental big! 
 

I’m just trying to work out where we need to take up the slack if a kind person measure their door gaps. I.e A to B pillar top of door, A to B pillar at just underneath the top hinge and then A to B pillar bottom of the door. also, could I ask for the repeat on the B to C pillar please? That would help us and perhaps point us in the right direction.
 

just a few questions,

1. the bulkhead has spigots front and back on the through bolts. I’m guessing they can be cropped if needed to move the bulkhead back a bit. 
 

2. the B pillar is welded to the sill is that normal? 

alternatively; if someone in Ceredigion/ Pembrokeshire wouldn’t mind me coming over and waving a tap measure over your landy that would be great. 
 

Edit - I’m sorry, on my iPhone I can’t figure out how to get the photo right way up! 

[steve b]

A bit more background on what repairs/replacement parts have gone into this build would help to give some pointers . 

Looking at the pic the rear tub could be too high and not at 90degrees to the BH door posts ? 

The B post , sill and full C post are a welded assy.

I've got some measurements in my book in the workshop so will take note of them tomorrow if you need them .

Starting with the BH door post at bubble vertical using shims under the wheels might help to narrow it down . 

Nice workshop , I also want to ask what's hanging on the chain hoist in the background ? Just being nosey 

Steve

[Gazzar]

Yes, I've had the same photo issue with an Android phone.

 

The hinges can be moved around a lot more. Your rear doors need to be raised, losen hinges, lift the door beyond the roof, then tighten. The curve of the panel is the key thing.

It's an organic process, adjust, check, adjust, check, repeat.

Watch out for slop in the hinges.

Patience.

Then take it all apart and spray it.

[jason110]

49 minutes ago, steve b said:

A bit more background on what repairs/replacement parts have gone into this build would help to give some pointers . 

Looking at the pic the rear tub could be too high and not at 90degrees to the BH door posts ? 

The B post , sill and full C post are a welded assy.

I've got some measurements in my book in the workshop so will take note of them tomorrow if you need them .

Starting with the BH door post at bubble vertical using shims under the wheels might help to narrow it down . 

Nice workshop , I also want to ask what's hanging on the chain hoist in the background ? Just being nosey 

Steve

Hi Steve, 

Thanks for getting back to us. 

a bit of background - we bought the chassis as a 3 door lwb series 3 Landrover that had been restored, ran it for a bit - it had a dog tired 2.5 Di engine in and was generally unpleasant. we then found a LWB 5 door station wagon that had been mounted onto a scimitar chassis to look like a lowboy type thing. the body work was cracking on the lowboy thing. you can see where this is going right! so the 5 door body work has been mounted onto the original 3 door chassis. I believe its on parabolic springs hence why it sits a bit high. 

I've been doing some searching myself, and found Britannia restorations on youtube. he has two short videos and I think the issues is as you say, the B post and the Bulkhead aren't square to each other. 

we took some quick measurements it looks like the bulkhead to B pillar at the top hinge are of a greater distance than at the bottom of the door aperture. 

thanks, its not mine. its the old boys. we used the chain hoist to lift the roof on. I found that chain hoist in Southampton. its bolted to the roof steels. 

 

51 minutes ago, Gazzar said:

Yes, I've had the same photo issue with an Android phone.

 

The hinges can be moved around a lot more. Your rear doors need to be raised, losen hinges, lift the door beyond the roof, then tighten. The curve of the panel is the key thing.

It's an organic process, adjust, check, adjust, check, repeat.

Watch out for slop in the hinges.

Patience.

Then take it all apart and spray it.

thanks Gazzar, the hinges are an issues too. we have rebuild kits in the post. the aim today was to get them in so we knew if needed to make adjustments before paint and not scratch the pain then. 

 

gotta love old landys! 

[Gazzar]

Hummmmm, I recognize the bonnet on that.

[jason110]

41 minutes ago, Gazzar said:

Hummmmm, I recognize the bonnet on that.

Indeed. Hope the bits serve you well mate. 👍

[Gazzar]

The bulkhead and screen are going to end up in a cream lwb 2a station wagon.

[Snagger]

The three door and five door chassis vary slightly in that the three door has six pairs of floor support hoops all at the same level, the front pair extending well above the swooped part of the chassis.  You’ve obviously dealt with their removal, but the five door chassis has to support the cross member that supports the back end of the rear floor and front edge of the shorter tub, and if they’re too low, then the sills will be pulled down at the back and the pillars skewed.  Are you confident that the measurements are right for those cross member mountings?

[jason110]

6 hours ago, Snagger said:

The three door and five door chassis vary slightly in that the three door has six pairs of floor support hoops all at the same level, the front pair extending well above the swooped part of the chassis.  You’ve obviously dealt with their removal, but the five door chassis has to support the cross member that supports the back end of the rear floor and front edge of the shorter tub, and if they’re too low, then the sills will be pulled down at the back and the pillars skewed.  Are you confident that the measurements are right for those cross member mountings?

Hi Snagger. 
 

thank you for that. I’ll have to check with the brother and get back to you. It’s his project. I’m just the spare pair of hands! 
 

I’ll get back soonest. But there is a definite skew to something 

 

jason