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Small query


Nonimouse

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After 29 years, I'm replacing the boot floor in the Disco. It's only just started to get the tin worm, but I'm fussy.

I had a chat with the MoT lass this morning, about making it removeable, and as to what constituted an equivalent to spot welding. Self tappers are out, which is good. I loathe riv nuts.  So I'm thinking of some 6mm bar, running the length of the floor, that's drilled and tapped, then spot welded into place (just so I can use the spot welder).

Comments on anything prettier that's lso rust proof

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29 minutes ago, hurbie said:

just weld in a new floor , decent coating and your set for another 25 years (maybee put in a little acces hatch for the fuelpump)

I hear you, but want to be able to access on a regular basis (yearly) for ease of maintenance...

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6 minutes ago, Nonimouse said:

I hear you, but want to be able to access on a regular basis (yearly) for ease of maintenance...

i thought there's not much to service under the loadspace. but it's been a while since i last owned a disco

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Floor is ribbed, so can you get the replacement first, then trim the existing floor to be an inch smaller than the replacement all round, then use foam sealing tape and Chimney nuts and button head machine screws to fix.

Will the novelty of maintenance wear off ?

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15 hours ago, landroversforever said:

A drilled and tapped strip is probably the easiest in both use and attachment. Other thought is bonding it in. If you're wanting to remove it every year for access, then just bond it in and a sharp knife would release it easily for access?

Not sure if this will be okay for the MoT lady. She say's 'equivalent to the existing spot weld - like a nut and bolt'

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On 1/27/2022 at 4:20 PM, Bowie69 said:

It has body mounts on it...

Has been clarified before it can be classed as structural.

The boot floor doesn't but the surrounding floor does. From factory the boot floor is spot welded in, not seam welded. The supporting cross members are part of the surrounding floor, three are sectional

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1 hour ago, Chicken Drumstick said:

Don't think the central spot welded bit has any mounts on it. It's no more structural than a sunroof I'd have thought, just on the opposing part of the body. ;)

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That's what I just said and why the MoT lady is happy for me to make it removable - as long as it still retain it's relative structural ridgity - ie - fasten it down securely

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22 hours ago, Nonimouse said:

The boot floor doesn't but the surrounding floor does. From factory the boot floor is spot welded in, not seam welded. The supporting cross members are part of the surrounding floor, three are sectional

 

20 hours ago, Chicken Drumstick said:

Don't think the central spot welded bit has any mounts on it. It's no more structural than a sunroof I'd have thought, just on the opposing part of the body. ;)

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Now I am back at my computer, rather than trying to get a post together on my phone which keeps inserting line breaks randomly while replying..... I wanted to clarify this :)

Agree with both here, in a way! 

When rusty, the floor is very often a failure as it inevitably is within 300mm of body mounts, therefore structural. 

Whether seam or spot welded in makes little odds, in fact show me any modern car that has any seam welding on it and I will be very surprised.... The rest of the D1 body is spot welded together.

From factory, the floor is spot welded to the crossmembers in @Chicken Drumstick's post, I know because they are a pain to get out, whereas the rest of the floor has normally disintegrated round the edges so can often be lifted out bar these 😛 

What @Nonimouse's very friendly MOT tester is suggesting is that the boot floor *IS* structural as far as the MOT is concerned, or there would be no reason to be insisting that the replacement is nut and bolted in place.

@Nonimouse, what are the objections to rivnuts? Spinning? Seen the hex ones? would make things much simpler, I'd have thought.

...and breathe :)

 

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18 minutes ago, Bowie69 said:

 

 

Now I am back at my computer, rather than trying to get a post together on my phone which keeps inserting line breaks randomly while replying..... I wanted to clarify this :)

Agree with both here, in a way! 

When rusty, the floor is very often a failure as it inevitably is within 300mm of body mounts, therefore structural. 

Whether seam or spot welded in makes little odds, in fact show me any modern car that has any seam welding on it and I will be very surprised.... The rest of the D1 body is spot welded together.

From factory, the floor is spot welded to the crossmembers in @Chicken Drumstick's post, I know because they are a pain to get out, whereas the rest of the floor has normally disintegrated round the edges so can often be lifted out bar these 😛 

What @Nonimouse's very friendly MOT tester is suggesting is that the boot floor *IS* structural as far as the MOT is concerned, or there would be no reason to be insisting that the replacement is nut and bolted in place.

@Nonimouse, what are the objections to rivnuts? Spinning? Seen the hex ones? would make things much simpler, I'd have thought.

...and breathe :)

 

Riv nuts - hmmm. I'm never happy with Riv nuts unless they are in 3-4mm steel at the minimum. It's their unpleasant habbit of not undoing and just spinning around . Although I over maintain my vehicle and lavish Lanoguard on it every year, I just don't want that nasty twisting sensation... I might go with captive nuts, or I might go with a nice bit of 8mm by 12mm stainless bar I have, with threads cut into it

 

I do like my new MoT tester - she's very pleasant and, so far, the only female MoT tester I ever met

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Just now, Nonimouse said:

the only female MoT tester I ever met

What feels like eons ago (2002ish?), I ran around the country training MOT stations and their testers how to use the first iteration of the MOT computerisation system, 6 months work, 5 days a week mostly so over 100 sites, most with at least 2 testers, sometimes up to 6 at a time, so maybe 250 testers? I think I met two female testers during the whole stint.

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5 hours ago, Nonimouse said:

Riv nuts - hmmm. I'm never happy with Riv nuts unless they are in 3-4mm steel at the minimum. It's their unpleasant habbit of not undoing and just spinning around . Although I over maintain my vehicle and lavish Lanoguard on it every year, I just don't want that nasty twisting sensation... I might go with captive nuts, or I might go with a nice bit of 8mm by 12mm stainless bar I have, with threads cut into it

 

I do like my new MoT tester - she's very pleasant and, so far, the only female MoT tester I ever met

I have rivnuts holding my rear floor down (mines non structural and Ali) whenever I remove the fixings I copper slip them before going back in I haven't had issues yet.

Mike

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Hex rivets would definitely difficult to use as you would have to file the correct shape. I have only ever used them when I have had sheet metal laser cut.

I used to call rivnuts "nutserts" though there are many names for them. There is a type that we called "euroserts". These had a thick flanged head (I think the m8 had a 1.6mm thick flange). They were quite strong and I used them in many applications.  They were also splined for extra grip. Occasionally we would also weld this flange to the surrounding material. This minimised the chance of spinning.  You can also get them that are blind and this would stop contamination from underneath,  but would retain anything from above, including water.

I am thinking along similar lines for my defender - similar to you for maintenance,  but also to add extra storage. I was thinking of making a storage compartment for tools etc. My fuel tank is under the seat.

Good luck with it.

Mick

 

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M6 stainless Nutserts with flange head were £16/hundred last time I bought some in September. drilling and tapping stainless bar is a ball ache unless its already drilled and tapped? Stainless bolts and plenty of coppaslip and I cannot imagine you having a problem especially if you are taking it out once a year. getting there right nutsert for the gauge of sheet also helps avoid that spinning feeling.

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You can also get rivet bolts, just the male version of rivet nuts, with these there would be no issues with the threads getting  soaked and covered in carp as the threads would be in the rear load area, thread length could be trimmed down also, flange area is also thicker and a lot more sturdy than a rivnut

Regards Stephen 

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That’s interesting. I’ve used rivnuts a lot, but never heard of rivet bolts. Is there a special tool for setting them? I’ve tried googling, but not seen anything.

I’m going to be fitting side cages in the load area and it strikes me that this would be precisely the sort of place these would be idea - as you say, keeping the thread inside the car, and away from the wheel spray.

Ta.

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26 minutes ago, Northwards said:

That’s interesting. I’ve used rivnuts a lot, but never heard of rivet bolts. Is there a special tool for setting them? I’ve tried googling, but not seen anything.

I’m going to be fitting side cages in the load area and it strikes me that this would be precisely the sort of place these would be idea - as you say, keeping the thread inside the car, and away from the wheel spray.

Ta.

Nights at the moment but I will take pictures to show you  regards Stephen 

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