MilitaryTrucks

The stock hubs fit an old imperial size tyre 12.00 R20 which is rare and difficult to get hold of and likely to become more so. The new tyre law from 1/2/21 mean you have to have a tyre less than 10 years old on the front axle and the military tyres the vehicle comes with are all pre 2000. I want to change the hubs to fit a common metric size tyre of 315x80 which is slightly larger but nothing that will cause a problem. To do this I need new rims and have been qouted including VAT around £90 to £150. The issue is they are a 10 stud fixing and the Daf is eight stud. Aparently a stock rim to fit this metric size tyre would fit without any offset problems the issue is the number of studs. Does anyone know a good supplier of wheel hubs that I could contact to get the five hubs I need? Aspect have been recomended but the cost is £400 plus per rim which is more than a new tyre. They would obviously be really good quality but it is too much for my pocket. It has been suggested buying the 10 stud rims and then cutting the eight stud center off my existing rims and replacing the 10 studs fixings on the metric hubs with these. Sounds dubious to me but apparently the rims are made without the fixing 'plate' and these are welded on afterwards. Not being a fabricator or welder this is not something I would consider and it would need someone skilled to ensure the weld was structurally sound and presumeably ensure the hub was balanced. I would also prefer to keep the original hubs and tyres for authenticty puposes and use the metric ones for pleasure driving. Alternatively if anyone knows where I can get a supply of second hand 12.00 R20 tyres that have a few years left or just a few thousand miles of wear plus a few years or more to give me some searching time this would also be an option. I am not after an off road tyre a normal HGV road pattern would do. Thanks in advance for your help. Bob

Thank you for all your replies, it has certainly given me something to think about. I liked the look and ease of cordless but having seen the cost of air tools they are so much less even figuring in the compressor. Buying a right angle impact wrench or right angle wrench and an impact wrench with batteries, charger etc comes to a lot especially if going for something like Milwauke who seem to have a large slice of the market. Their M18 range looks really good but then it costs, a lot. I was surprised at the low price of air tools, some the cost of a rechargeable battery for a cordless impact wrench. Corded 240 volt impacts come in a lot cheaper too but choice seems limited and most seem to be very large and I have not come across any compact versions but possibly they are there and I have yet to find them. I think my choice will be between buying a corded impact wrench and a corded right angle wrench (a nut runner?) or the same but air powered. My only concern with air is that someone mentioned the CFM requirement being an issue. As I would not want to do any large area spray painting a good amatuer compressor with a 50 litre tank and around 10 CFM would probably do. It would not be getting constant use and I could adapt what I do if necessary to allow it to recharge. Those are my thoughts from everyones comments and more research based on them. Please feel free to say 'but you have forgotten' or variations of this as money is limited so making the right decision is important. Thank you again for all the help and advice.

I am considering buying an impact wrench to make my life a bit easier. I have noticed a lot of the things I want to remove and replace involve getting into tight places so am considering buying a Right Angle Impact Wrench as being narrower it would hopefully fit into more spaces. Assuming this is correct my next decision would be whether to spend more to get a more powerful one or spend less and get a normal impact wrench as well. Knowing nothing about these tools my thoughts are: are they worth the money in terms of making life easier when doing a restoration? are right angle impact wrenches effective? would I be better off buying a less expensive right angle wrench and also buying a normal impact wrench as well? what budget would I be looking at for any of these options to ensure I bought something that would work and not be a source of frustration? have I missed something that would be a better option? Apologies if the answers to this are obvious to the more experienced but after contorting myself to undo rusted nuts with a socket or spanner while at the same time holding the bolt head still I am ready to embrace technology if it would make my life easier. It would also hopefully reduce the damage to my hands and so reduce my wifes worrying about infection, bless her. Thank you in advance for any help. Bob

Sounds a bit to kill or cure for me but I will keep it in mind as a last resort😊

Thanks for all the advice. I just need to get on with it now😊

Having never had to do any restoration to a vehicle before yet alone something as large as a truck I have attempted to plan it out hence the steps below. Does this sound the right approach, have I over thought it or missed something? I have a Leyland Daf 4x4 hence the NATO Green as I assume this is the correct colour. I also chose drab as I have never seen a gloss finish on a vehicle like this. All thoughts and suggestions gratefully received as I would rather get it right first time and end up with a job that will last a good number of years. Step Bodywork Action 1 Badly rusted areas Drill and Wire Twist Knot Cup brush or Rotary wire brush to remove 2 Sound metal areas Random Orbital Sander with 80 grit paper 3 Lightly hammer around holes to slightly recess the surrounding metal 4 Any rust remaining Apply rust treatment 5 Fill areas where metal has rusted through Glass Fibre filler with Glass Fibre Mat behind the hole 6 Sand Filler Sander plus 400 grit paper 7 Prime twice Bonda rust primer 8 Under coat Green Coach Enamel Undercoat 9 Top coat NATO Green drab Coach Enamel Chassis and inside of wheel arches Steps 2 and 4 There are no holes in the structural steel work. 7 Paint using EPOXY MASTIC type paint Thanks in advance. Bob

I need to do some restoration to parts of my Leyland Daf 4x4. There are spots of non to serious rust in various places on the body but the front wings are both in a sorry staff with rust having gone through in two places on both. After stripping back to metal and repairing I was wondering what type of primer to use on all these areas. Some would be visible but as it is stored outside would get very wet and others would be hidden from view and liable to get very wet and dirty. The old red oxide of my youth seems to have been replaced by Zinc Chromate as a primer. Is this right? In addition there also appears to now be epoxy primers which some people say coat very thickly and should not be used on visible surfaces. Would the advice be to use the zinc chromate on visible surfaces and an epoxy on the hidden or would one of them do both and in which case which would be best? If there is a better option I would also be very interested in this as well. If one is also more forgiving of amateur surface preparation and use this would also be useful to know. All advice would be very gratefully received. Thanks in advance. Bob

I have always liked the look of military vehicles. They are in general always well engineered and as modern vehicles have become encumbered with engine management systems, electric this and that with panels that dent if you sneeze on them the over engineered and simplicity of military vehicles has a big appeal. Previously I had a Dodge Ram military truck, ex US forces, that as well as being wonderfully over engineered, abuse was expected I think in its use, you could sit on the wing with your legs dangling in the engine bay while you worked on the engine. The V8 never had to work too hard and once we had to run it with the cooling system nearly dry for a few miles, not something you would do with a modern engine. Sadly had to give it up many years ago. Looking to buy a new vehicle now for the pleasure of owning something like this again but also to enjoy driving it, going to events and hopefully taking part in charity events to use it to raise money for them. Looking at Leyland DAF 5 ton 4 x 4 with the Cummins 5.9 Turbo as a possibility. Love something with six or more axels but the budget will not allow and also not sure the neighbours would appreciate the new view:-) Still early days in making up my mind so thought joining this forum would not only allow me to make contact with people who had an extensive knowledge of the subject but also let me see what other options there are. Thanks for letting me join!