Post by grumpynorthener on Jul 27, 2024 6:09:01 GMT
This Javelin gets delivered elsewhere today - the owner thinks that the wiring / charging problem can be sorted with a bodge that doesn't involve the expense of a new wiring harness to replace the 75 year old well past its sell by date original
And he's very welcome to think so - Bodges are not something that I'm willing to subscribe to
Post by grumpynorthener on Jul 30, 2024 18:28:52 GMT
So for the past few hundred miles the Range Rover has been slightly down on power and its been showing a slight exhaust haze when the engine comes under load - This normally indicates a induction problem and could very well be dying turbos - I sincerely hoped not as this would virtually write the vehicle off - Rebuilt turbo's are plentiful and cheap enough (its twin turbo) But the fact that the body has to be split from the chassis to access them on a 17 year old motor with seized mounting bolts etc would be a nightmare
So I opened the bonnet in the hope that would be something simple and it was - a split hose from the intercooler to the manifold
I replaced both hoses in 10 mins - £55 fix bearing in mind that £13 of that was for next day delivery - Test drive confirmed that it was business as usual - I'll call that a good result then
Post by grumpynorthener on Aug 3, 2024 7:29:45 GMT
Temporary visitor to the workshop for a few days - I'm doing nothing to it other than providing storage for a few days - a neighbour several houses down the road is having a house built and his drive is overwhelmed with contractors vans
Not a temporary visitor - its been in the yard forever - belongs to a school which built the body as a school project in 1979 / 1980 - It needs a new home but I have remove the gearbox first to resolve a issue
Problem being that the cab floor which should be removable (gearbox comes out through the cab) isn't removable because they have built the body on top of the cab floor
So its going to have come out from the underside - the chassis cross member & pedal carrier has to be removed along with several other parts
Post by grumpynorthener on Aug 5, 2024 6:40:32 GMT
Clutch removed which is a little more complex than your standard clutch plate / pressure plate set up
Then the bearing drawn off
Which in turn gave me access to the crank / flywheel nut - these work loose which results in quite a noisy engine - you can see where others have previously attempted to tighten the nut with the bearing in place - the nut bearing witness marks of a hammer & chisel method to try to tighten it
What it really needed is this - A long breaker bar swung on until the bar starts to bend 'tight' - I managed to obtain nearly half a turn on the nut which will make all the difference
Clutch back together and the gearbox can now be refitted
Post by grumpynorthener on Aug 6, 2024 7:34:51 GMT
Combined gearbox & bellhousing had taken a battering and had been previously welded back together - Its what you get when the mounting bolts are left unchecked / work loose
Some of the bolts had seen better days too - these were replaced
Gearbox back in
Along with the chassis cross member & pedal carrier
Propshaft refitted
Toe board panel fitted
For which I had to make up new floor connecting bearers for - the old ones were scrap
Which just leaves the exhaust to go on this morning
Post by grumpynorthener on Aug 17, 2024 7:35:08 GMT
Canvas side screens refitted
New floor covering fitted to replace the perished one in the drivers footwell
Then just a general clean up of everything else
Flooring still requires the rubber dressing to be applied
Rear seat slats readily lift out to give more load area - It's very nearly there, just the engine bay to wash down today then it can go - I'll probably send it to auction - lots of potential to a prospective new owner, garden centre, market trader, flower vendor etc or stick a coffee machine / ice cream freezer box in the back - maybe even a prom bus
Post by grumpynorthener on Aug 18, 2024 9:53:50 GMT
Engine bay washed down
Which has made it presentable
Another completed and ready for gone
The plaque on the dashboard names the pupils involved in the rebuild - All the history of which is documented to display boards which I'll take a pic of later
Post by grumpynorthener on Aug 19, 2024 7:38:53 GMT
Story of the restoration / build of the bus - The pupils involved gave up their free time after school & weekends to progress the project
I think that they did exceptionally well for a school - took them 12 months to build from scratch including the engine / drivetrain / chassis rebuild & restoration
All the hardwood & timber along with the steel sheet & metalwork were donated by local companies - Its a shame that it still cant be put to use at the school but health & safety along with insurance complications and the lack of seat belts reduced the vehicle to storage only for the last 3 decades
Post by grumpynorthener on Aug 26, 2024 7:35:05 GMT
With lots of workshop & distractions activity works have been very slowly progressing at Grumpy Towers with the new ensuite
But the shower tray is fitted
And the tiling completed
Hand basin & radiator fitted
The WC is still work in progress but well advanced
I'm having to strip out part of the old shower room on the opposite side of the building in order to gain access for the waste & water connections - There is also a large amount of hideous bodges to correct installed by the previous utterly clueless owners - everything from very poor / ill planned pipe runs to directly connected wastes (without traps)
The majority of the pipe runs are now installed
But nothing has been easy - I knew it wouldn't be when we first planned it, disregarding the time taken to correct all the bodges, the new ensuite is on the opposite side of the property to that of the soil / waste pipe - I had 2 options - Install a new main soil & drain to that side of the property - This would have been a 30 metre run with the underground pipework having to be trenched to a 2 metre depth through clay and by hand has there is no access for an excavator down that side of the property - An expensive option has I would have had to contract the work out - I simply wouldn't have had the time to undertake it myself
The other option being to connect to existing soil pipe on the opposite side of the property - firstly it would have been very difficult to install and achieve the correct pipe fall on the pipe given the limited depth of the joists - Secondly this steel supporting beam prevents the 110mm pipe run although I managed to get the 40mm shower waste installed through the beam after checking with a structural engineer
To resolve the issue I've installed a macerating pump system - this is sited in the next room and will be enclosed by an acoustic wall
Of course nothing can happen without the approval of certain member of the household who maintains random quality control checks
I love doing tiling and that shower area is very neat although I think I would have used wall boards in the shower area as they are essentially maintenance free and easier to dry off after a shower. Not sure about the tiles behind the basin! I would need the first tile behind the tap to be central to the tap or have the grout line between the tiles centred behind the tap unless that throws things out even more when you tile behind the wc? Coming on nicely though.