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New project - Mk 1 Knocker 6x6


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Can you put it in oven to warm it up a touch say 50 degrees and try again?

 

Hmm - good idea - I never thought of that. I had considered using a hot air paint stripper but the oven sounds a better idea. Will have to wait till the OH is out for a few hours :-)

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Finally got the old horn apart today - took an application of heat, one last soak in WD 40 and then some percussive maintenance. :cheesy: It will need a new set of screws if I can get it working again as the old ones are pretty chewed up.

 

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That's the good news. Not so good news is I cleaned the contact points with some fine emery paper then hooked up a 24v booster pack to the terminals - and nothing!! I would have expected there to be a buzzing from the points opening and closing. All the connections look good so I think the object that looks like a condenser on the right of the unit has failed. Not actually sure either what it is or if it can be replaced as yet so luckily I have the smaller 24v replacement unit. I would like to get the original working again though so if anyone knows exactly what the object is and if its replaceable it would be appreciated!!

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Another productive - and slightly painful - day working on the Militant after being grounded for 2 weeks without a car!

The passenger door is now stripped down ready for rust treatment and primer/paint. One lock screw, one winder screw and five of the inner panel screws were rusted in place and had to have their heads/nuts ground off. Once the inner panel was off the reason for the excessive corrosion on this side became evident - the bottom of the door was full of leaves blocking the drain holes.

Actually got the window winder mechanism out of this side - 3 of the 4 screws and nut undid easily enough.

The next step is to get some sheet steel to fabricate a new inner panel - as well as outer skin panels - I will be nosing on line this week.

 

 

Also got the tailgate down through 90 deg and held by the chains so access could be had to the living accommodation in the back body. Unfortunately the building wall behind the vehicle was too close so access had to be via the side - and the first time I tried the step ladder went flying leaving me to go the other way!! Again.

Inspecting the tailgate showed it to be pretty poor, if I can find a better one it will be easier to replace than try to repair this one. I was pleasantly surprised at how light it was inside the living accomodation despite the only light access currently being via the entrance door. Need to get hold of a gas bottle (17.5 Kg) for cooking and the fridge and a leisure battery for the lights at night

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Certainly hope so mate - want to get to W&P and was hoping to do the AEC rally too. Right now the only practical thing stopping me is the lack of a silencer! :)

Next weekend I want to prep the passenger door, put a top coat in the drivers door, try and sort out the fuel and temp gauges, maybe fab a new inner door panel for the passenger door. If I do get to the shows its not going to look pretty :) A mix of bondaprimer and NATO green. :)

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If I do get to the shows its not going to look pretty :) A mix of bondaprimer and NATO green. :)

 

Work in Progress, mate. Punters love to see that. And after they've gone home, you'd be surprised how many show people will ask sensible questions about how it's going etc. Many will have useful advice and parts to offer.

 

If you don't make the AEC one, aim for Long Melford 1-2 July. It's only about 8 miles from Sible, nice little country show, with an ever growing green presence.

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Work in Progress, mate. Punters love to see that. And after they've gone home, you'd be surprised how many show people will ask sensible questions about how it's going etc. Many will have useful advice and parts to offer.

 

If you don't make the AEC one, aim for Long Melford 1-2 July. It's only about 8 miles from Sible, nice little country show, with an ever growing green presence.

 

Damn!! Out of the country in Belgium from 22/6 till 2/7 - over in Belgium reassembling a friends Series LandRover. paid work too that will go towards the running of the AEC....

 

Was thinking of doing the HCVS one in Haverhill on the 9th July - that's only 14 miles or so from where the Militant is. Nice short run as a pre-W&P test. If I get the silencer issue sorted.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Another days work carried out on the Militant.

The remains of the screws rusted in the passenger door that would not undo last time had to be drilled out. So the remains were flattened with an angle grinder, centre punched and drilled out using a 3.5mm drill. Took a bit of doing but eventually all the remains were out of the door. Then the surfaces were cleaned up to lose the loose surface rust followed by applying a coat of Jenolite rust converter all over.

Next week this door inner will get a coat of bondaprimer then the week after that both door inners and the instrument panel will get a coat or two of Deep Bronze Green. The doors and instrument panel will then be ready for re-assembly.

 

Mean time the old inner door skin has been brought home to aid in fabricating a replacement - I have a new sheet of 1.2mm steel and spray-on marking blue. Tomorrow should see the new steel get a coat of the marking blue around the edges and where I expect to be be cutting a strip off through being over-long. The old and new panels will then be clamped together with two of the edges aligned and the shape of the panel traced through the marking blue with a scriber. The hole locations for the screws will also be be marked the same way. Once done the new panel can be cut and filed to shape then cleaned up and given a coat of bonda primer Another problem with the old panel was the inner surface had been left as bare metal which doubtless aided mightily in the rotting.

 

Doesn't sound much but I was satisfied with the work done. Might have got more done but for hassle getting out of the drive - some twonk decided to park over the drive run-down just as the Rangie was backing out!!! 90 minutes later I finally managed to get out!! :mad:

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  • 2 weeks later...

Bit more done on Saturday. Last of the seized screw remnants on the passenger door was removed with mole grips - they undid - albeit reluctantly- with mole grips clamped on after a weeks soaking in penetrating fluids. Then the inner face of the door was rubbed down and given a coat of Bonda Primer ready for a coat of DBG next week.

The old door skin was then clamped to the new sheet of steel after it was aligned with the scribed outline and then all the holes bar the centre one for the winder handle were drilled through. I need to get a hole saw to do the winder hole and there are roughly 4 maybe 5 holes that will need to be measured and drilled on the bottom edge and that part of the existing skin has rotted away.

 

Original plan was to cut the new panel to shape with a jigsaw but it was recommended that I use a cutting disc in the angle grinder to do a quicker job and give a clean finished edge. Seemed a good idea so Sunday I went shopping on-line for cutting discs at the DIY stores - and Mr Murphy stuck his oar in. My angle grinder is so old the latest discs won't fit!! On the off-chance I had a look on the Machine Mart sitein case they did the size I needed. Nope - they didn't either - but Google popped up a list of discount codes and when I did the math I could get a replacement grinder plus a pack of 5 disks for more or less the same price as the likes of B&Q wanted for the packs of disks. So I did - should be here tomorrow :)

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Bit more progress...... Went shopping today for an 18mm hole saw to cut out the opening for the window winder handle. Thought it would be an easy job to get one - I was WRONG!!! Plenty of 18mm ones there - if you want to cut through plasterboard or ceramics. All the steel ones started at 20mm - after trying the usual big DIY chains as our local tool shop closed a year ago I was out of luck. So a phone call to Machine Mart later I wound up with a set of stepped cone drills that covered the 18mm size. Worked well too, nice clean cut. Edges and holes are de-burred and the inside face has been given a coat of Bonda Primer.

Now the panel is about 95% complete - all I need to do is transfer the hole positions from the door frame to the new skin panel and the job is done. At times like this the long distance between home and where the Militant lives is a right PITA!!

 

Anyways - this time some photos!!

 

Passenger door cleaned and painted inside:

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Old skin rivetted temporarily to the new one to let me use it as a template for cutting and filing - you can see clearly the missing areas at the bottom where the holes need transferring from the door frame:

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New and old panels side by side:

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New panel - inner face - just needing the last few holes at the bottom:

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And I can't remember if I posted these before - the refurbished steering wheel ready and waiting to be refitted. A vast improvement over the old cracked condition!!

 

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Back over the Militant today.... New door panel was offered up to the passenger door for a test fit and secured by 3 screws, left, right and bottom, to see if everything lined up. Good new is nearly everything did. Not so good is that the top 3 holes for the door lock were too high and had to be extended down about 1.5mm by file. 3 holes out is not so bad I guess - although how they were out is beyond me as the old panel was clamped to the new one and I drilled through that.

 

Once the holes were extended all was well - the missing hole positions were transferred from the door frame tot he new skin and also drilled and de-burred then the panel was re-affixed to the door and given a coat of Bonda Primer. Quite impressed with how smoothly that dries when applied by brush!!

 

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Whilst the door panel was drying I took the two door caps and, using the handy vice bolted to the front bumper cleaned the thick paint and surface rust off with the trusty angle grinder then gave them a coat of Bonda Primer too.

 

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By this time the door panel had dried sufficiently to allow the screws holding it on to be repositioned and the bare metal under the original positions coated too.

 

Finally the two retaining screws that I could not undo in the drivers door winder mechanism were cut off - angle grinder again - and the winder assembly removed, that door also getting a coat of Bonda Primer over it where the winder assembly had previously blocked access.

 

That was it for today - primer has to be left to go off so next week it will be a case of getting the Deep Bronze Green on then the week after the doors var be reassembled. Hopefully by then the dry weather will finally be here and the canvas can come off the roof and the cab framework behind the passenger seat can be addressed.

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Another says work done - sadly no photos this week as it turned into a race against time to get the work done and the canvas cover pulled back over before heavy rain set in.

Both inner faces of the doors have a coat of Deep Bronze Green using a resin paint normally used on Traction Engines - I thought this was better for resisting the water and thus any future corrosion. Inner surfaces of the inner door skins likewise have a coat of this paint as do the door cap's so next week should see the doors reassembled with working window winders and that will be another job crossed off the list.

The work wasn't helped by the kind souls one horse box down who decided to sweep it out sending dust and debris flying through the air.

One oddity I noticed for the first time today. The door glass on the passenger side has a metal cap on it that sits into the top window channel - but the drivers side door glass does not have this capping, being just the edge of the glass that seats up into to top channel. I suppose at some point in the past one of the doors, or just the door glass has been replaced.

Pity they didn't do it like for like.

 

On the parts front I've managed to get the proper horn assembly off eBay - Lucas 24v Altette so that will get a coat of sating black when it arrives during the week and can also be fitted next week - another job done. Just leaves the silencer and possibly the air leak still from the brake pedal valve (been soaked in WD40) to make her useable.

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  • 2 weeks later...

No progress to report this week sadly. After 10 years unemployment its a case of weighing fuel usage against what I want to do and this weekend I wanted to get up to the AEC rally both for inspiration and for parts hunting. So no trip to the Militant on Saturday. What I did manage to get done was coating the exhaust clamps and ejector stub in jenolite - they are now inert and can be painted ready for when the silencer has been modified,

Sunday though was a good day - lots of inspiration drawn from the vehicles on display as can be seen from the photos here that start with Robs Militant:

 

http://s34.photobucket.com/user/ArtistsRifles/library/AEC%20Society%20Rally%202017

 

It was nice to wander around in the sunshine chatting to other owners then go shopping. Came home with a good silencer that just need the mounting flanges swapped over - cost the bank breaking amount (not!! :cheesy:) of £40. Same seller let me have a foot brake air valve on approval - need to get mine out and compare the two. If it fits mine then I send him the money, if not I send him the valve back. One of the things I love about classic motoring is parts suppliers are more than happy to do this to help out.

So all in all a good weekend.

 

Sobering to realize that the 2.5 hour journey in the car would equate to nearly just over 4 hours in the Militant :) And that's without the 1.5 hour drive to get to where the Militant lives :)

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Ran the replacement silencer down to the local exhaust fabricators this afternoon to get the flanges swapped over. Became pretty clear they were not interested in the work when they insisted the vehicle be brought to them. Cue cynical laughter as the access way to their workshop is so narrow that the wheels of the Militant would be running over the parked cars either side. So I need to find an alternative solution. Made me feel slightly pee'd off so I came home and attacked the silencer clamps getting all the crap off them and giving them a coat of etch primer ready for a couple of coats of Deep Bronze Green.

 

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Nice pictures BTW

 

Cheers Rob :) I had a good day out Sunday and it was great to meet up again and see the red beast in the flesh so to speak :) Be great to have at least 2 Mk 1's there next year - if only to offset the all Bedfords :):) If I'd known it was open to all marques I'd have brought the FFR Landie up on the Friday. :)

 

Must admit to being a bit miffed at the local company - I've had work done there in the past and they've always been good. That said I did not recognize any of the crew there now so maybe a change in philosophy. Oh well - their loss.

I've followed your suggestion and have e-mailed a few fabricators in the area to see if it the kind of job any of them would be interested in taking one. Failing that its Plan F and the DIY approach. A absolute last resort because I haven't touched a MiG welder in 20+ years.

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I had a reply from one local engineering company who think they can carry out the work on the silencer. Had to send them photos and measurements and am now waiting to hear back from them.

I had a day off yesterday - entertaining too as I was up in the audience of the Beeb's election debate in Cambridge (and got paid £50 for the privilege!!) - made a change, Beeb looked after the audience prior to the debate and after.

Today it was crack-on time with the parts at home. After getting the OH to empty the washing lines (its amazing how effective the threat of covering their sheets and towels in Deep Bronze Green is in getting them away from the TV and clearing the lines. :) ) I strung the two exhaust clamps up between two of the lines on twine and gave each one a coat of deep Bronze Green:

 

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Now I have to wait 16 hours for the paint to cure then they can have a second coat - its resin based so should be a bit more resistant to chipping than enamel. I also need to cut down the bosses on the winder mechanisms - but I need a vice to hold them in so that will have to wait until back at the Militant.

Edited by ArtistsRifles
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Another day - another head ache!! :( Cracked on yesterday with the window winders, cut the bosses down to about 2mm on the new winder mechanisms, first with a cutting disk in an angle grinder then filed them flat to approx the same height. Then went to fit the passenger side one. Cue start of the headaches. First off- something is fouling the horizontal bar the winder mechanism bolts to on the door. With no mechanism fitted the glass slides up and down freely.

With the mechanism fitted I have to use something (e.g. a screwdriver) to separate the arm from the door bar.. Going down works OK albeit with a resistance until the winder arm drops below the door bar. Looking at the old mechanism it has a straight arm whereas the new one has a crank in it.

Next problem is the lower left screw cannot be accessed with the mechanism in place. The only time the quadrant clears it the glass has dropped too far and blocks access. Either I cut a new hole in the quadrant, thus weakening it, to allow access or I put the screw into the hole before fitting and let the quadrant retain it until I can get a nut on it.

This means the doors cannot be completely reassembled properly until I can resolve these issues.

At the moment I am thinking I might have to reuse the old mechanisms - cleaned up the drivers side one works fine and the passenger side one has a notchy engagement making me think one of the smaller crank teeth has sustained damage somehow.

 

Went to fit the replacement horn - and found I had left the bloody mounting bolts at home 60 miles away :(

 

So - a busy although not very productive day. Still waiting to hear from the local engineering firm as to when they can do the silencer mods for me.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Silencer went in for modification last Friday and I picked it up today. They've done a nice job on it it. As soon as I got it home it was out with the wet 'n dry and the entire thing was rubbed down to remove any remaining loose surface rust and then Jenolite was applied to neutralize the remainder.

 

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Once that had dried thoroughly in the (luckily) hot sunshine a coat of VHT exhaust paint was applied - satin black. Hint - for a Militant silencer a 500ml spray can is barely enough to cover the entire silencer.

 

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So I have another can on order to apply a second coat before fitting which hopefully will be this Saturday.

When it came off only one of the olives was present - between the down pipe and the silencer, the one between the ejector stub and silencer was missing so luckily the guy I bought the silencer from had a spare one. The one that was on was badly coated in carbon deposits so I cleaned those off with a sanding pad in the angle grinder and gave that a coat of Jenolite too.

Am I right in thinking a coat of exhaust paste/cement will be required once the system is reassembled??

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Neil, do you still live in Dagenham, and travel up to Sibble to restore your Knocker ?

I am two villages up the road to Haverhill, so not far if you need a hand lifting anything heavy.

 

The Governor.

 

That's me still. :)

 

Thanks for the offer, I appreciate it very much. When I get to the outer skin panels on the cab I'll drop a PM through. Right now - apart from the silencer right now its been the much smaller internal skin panels..

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Back over the old girl today and got some more done - not as much as I wanted but still - progress is progress. :)

Went to fit the new silencer and found as suspected that the holes in the mounting flange on the downpipe and extractor stub need opening up to clear the new metric size studs. Unfortunately no one else was over today and the only external power socket available was about 6m short of the end of the 25m lead I plugged into it. So no way of drilling out the flanges. :(

However I did get the silencer loosely hung on the mounting tabs below the chassis rails:

 

Militant%20silencer%20hung%20in%20place_zpsq7kksweu.jpg

 

Before anyone says anything - the paper is only there to protect the paint on the silencer whilst the studs are aligned with the mounting flange on the downpipe and will be removed before the clamp bolts are fitted.

 

Part of the delay in fitting was that the manual says insert a rod into the opening of the silencer and if it only goes 3/4 the length then that is the "IN" port. If it goes all the way in that is the "OUT" port. Sounds simple - until I cut a length of wood down to fit in the dia of the openings and tried it - it went all the way through from both ends. So I picked one at random to be the in end. Hopefully this will not come back to bite me once it's all connected.

 

The bolts that held the silencer in place had been crudely cut off in the past and it proved to be a nightmare trying to get the nuts to thread properly. So I took the old 4" angle grinder down to where the power point was and proceeded to grind the jagged ends off before returning to the Militant and using the vice on the front bumper to hold each bolt in turn whilst I finish off flatting them with a file and the chamfered the edges. Once done the nuts threaded on nicely I think I need to source another pair of 3/8" UNC bolts for the clamp bolts as the originals were pretty terminal on inspection.

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I'm off to Belgium Thursday - got a weeks work rebuilding a Series for a friend so I thought I'd head up to the Militant today and try to get at least level if not ahead on the two Saturdays I'll miss.

First job was to finish off the silencer. Popped it back off the vehicle and drilled out the 4 holes in the down pipe flange to take the slightly larger diameter studs.. Did the same to the ejector stub and used that to verify the holes were indeed large enough to fit the studs. Once satisfied the olive was coated in exhaust cement and the silencer slipped onto it. The rear hanger was then bolted loosely into place whilst the 4 securing nuts were tightened after which the rear hanger was tightened The front was then slipped into place and secured to the chassis hanger before the clamp bolt was tightened. I still need to get a clamp bolt for the rear hanger. Lastly the rear olive was coated in cement and placed in situ and the ejector stub slipped home onto it, the nuts being tightened to hold it in place.

 

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Last thing for the exhaust was to wrap an exhaust bandage over the pin hole in the down pipe until such time as the downpipe can be removed for a welded repair or replacement. Right now its probably in the most awkward place possible - just where the exhaust passes behind the rear front spring hanger.

 

Next job was to sand down the front bumper and sides of the front wings getting rid of the loose pain and surface rust on the bumper and getting the wings ready for repair later. The bumper was no problem:

 

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The sides of the front wings was a different story. Plans to repair these with inserts of steel welded into place just bit the dust - look at the photos and you'll see why:

 

Drivers side:

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Passenger side:

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As welding to fibre glass isn't really a valid option I think I am going to have to persist with the fibre glass and filler for now until such time as I can afford to have the wings re-manufactured - quite honestly the remanufacturing is waaay outside my skill levels!!

 

Last job of the day - and thus no photos was to mark out the existing horn bracket to take the new Alette horn. Original one was held on by two of the outer ring of screws. This version has a wide dia body though so that was a non-starter. So I drilled two holes in the base of the support to match the new bodies supports and bolted the two together, Still need to clean out the inside face of the bumper so I can bolt this into position and then work out how to connect it to the loom.

 

And that was it for the day.

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