Motleyholt

Well it's been an interesting weekend, arose bright and early on Saturday to walk the mutts and give the foden a bath before it's first social engagement at the Stotfold mill show. Started the foden and moved it to the pressure washer, cleaned it and turned it off for a quick cup of tea before leaving. Got in to leave, turn the key and click......nothing. 14 months of faultless starting, first day out and won't play. Dug the jump pack out of the van and the multi meter. Jump started and headed to the show as there was an entry window for exhibitors. Luckily its only a few miles. Lined up with it's descendant. Not far from its great great grandfather. The weather brightened up and it was a pleasant day. When I arrived I tested the voltage at the batteries to discover a meager 22 volts and no charging at all. Realised i had no battery light when the ignition was switched on. As I had to come home overnight the truck was jumped again and I hot footed it back as not to loose all the remaining juice. It does have a electrical stop on the engine so a flat battery could be a disaster. Made it back and had a go at finding the fault. Obvious first start was to check the bulb as without it most old alternators won't charge. Bulb was fine so cab went up to check the alternator and belt. Popped the plug out to check connections and whilst there checked the brushes just incase anything was stuck. I've not delt with this style of alternator before, there is no large power cable on this one just five average size wires in the multi plug. The controller is in the passenger footwell which is where I went next. The plugs were all disconnected and the continuity was tested to the dash bulb. Nothing, problem diagnosed now just have to find the missing link. By this time it was late so the Sunday run to the show was scrubbed in order to sort the fault out. Because the headlight switch can turn off all the dash lights there is a relay to switch the alternator warning power through a resistor behind the dash. The first problem was found here as it was incorrectly connected at the relay. When switched to blackout the resistor wasn't being connected. Possibly been like it since new. But still no circuit. The wiring diagram shows a diode between the controller and the relay. But where does it hide? I went to the donor cab as its all Stripped out apart from the wiring. I found that the wire goes into the dash, out to a diode pack, back to the dash and finally to the relay. Then from the relay back to the dash and the bulb. Testing at the dash multi plug. Diode pack Made a temporary part from a fuse type diode I had on the van. And a circuit was made yippee Plug everything in, turn on the ignition and hey presto still no warning lamp. Test from controller to alternator and have a high resistance. Pull the bulkhead plug and found some green corroded pins. Made a DIY pin cleaner from a bit of brake pipe with a piece of emery cloth rolled up inside. Crimped the pipe to stop the paper disappearing. Cleaned the pins, sprayed it with contact cleaner and Refitted the plug. Success at last. Charging at last. On the down side I now have the rad alarm constantly going off even though the coolant level is fine. A job for another day....

Well it's been a few weeks and epidemic of work has been reducing the fun quota. But some progress has been made. I have overhauled the leaky brake chamber. After a bit of homework it looked to be a simple job, you already know where this is going..... just build up the air, chock the wheels, release the hand brake, remove the hand brake locking bolt, fit a big washer, apply the hand brake, remove the giant circlip and withdraw the spring and piston.... ...that's as far as it goes. There is an internal circlip on the push rod that the release bolt acts on that stops it all exploding if the casing or giant clip fails. So off with the pipes and clamps for the service brake diaphragm to reveal a bolt that holds it all together. Once removed everthing can be withdrawn. Everything looked fine apart from the housing bore which showed signs of water ingress and light scoring. There wasn't much grease left, what you can see I added when the piston wouldn't come out. In a vain hope that a little lubrication might just fix it. Polished the bore with some fine wet and dry and cleaned everthing. Splash of etch primer. Some green and reassembled. Refitted the locker box doors. Which needed a little fettling as my hinge repair welds fouled and stopped the doors closing. And finally I drilled out another batch of rivits on the crew box. Although it looked horrendous the panel isn't that bad and being 3mm thick I'm going to cut the worst side off and weld a strip on. The thoery being that this will be quicker than drilling the hundreds of holes! I have drilled many more out but not enough to release anything. The doors and windows need to come out first. Next weekend is the fodens first show outing, the Stotfold mill, steam and country fair 7th/8th May. Just off the A1 junction 10. Shame it looks just the same on the outside as when it was purchased!

Pressure or vacuum? Vacumn would be fairly normal for old breathers with a valve/ball bearing in. Pressure can escape but water can't get in. Net result slight vacumn when cold.

wheel nuts as requested, 3 left and 3 right. I can have more parts if you need any. The rear brake linkage is mostly there.

Now as it happens I know where there is an axle on half a chassis!! Would you like me to recover a few if it's still there?

G clamp and a socket also very good at removing clevis pins if you have the space 👍 looking extremly good now, you must be pleased.

Mystery solved...

Gear lever looks like fun to operate. Do you have an operation to have an extra elbow planned?🤣. Ergonomics weren't on the priority list at the time I guess.

So you would move the cable end towards the pivot at the engine or away from the pivot at the pedal end. Or drill several holes and experiment. I prefer a longer pedal travel on old off roaders, otherwise as you bounce over the slightest bump you will get wild throttle movements. When I built hybrid Land Rovers with v8's it was essential but probably not such a big problem with the horse power you have🤣.

Tried the new jack out as I couldn't be bothered to fire up the compressor and drag the air line out. Had already loosened the off side wheel nuts but needed a fraction more altitude to remove the wheel. Pulled the drum and found a good pile of dust in this side. Probably the cause of my judder, will set up the origonal drum on a big rotary table and see if it's still round. The shoes have never fully bedded in. The damp is brake cleaner. Roughed up the shoes and fitted the new drum. Wheel on and that left me with a difficult decision....should I take it for a test drive on a sunny Sunday afternoon?! The cyclist I passed at the beginning of the run probably thought I should have stayed at home as he disappeared in a cloud of smog from a Rolls that's only been idling for an hour or two. Brakes are now lovely, much more pleasant to drive without having to hang on to the steering for dear life when braking hard. On the down side one of the back brake chambers has sprung an air leak from the park brake side. I think these are obsolete now but I suspect Crouch's will have some. Otherwise I'll be making a cage and jig to disassemble it on the press. The spring inside needs to be carefully released to get to the diaphragm. Might be a big o ring at the back too. Something for next weekend.

Do you need more or less pedal travel? Or just a better pedal position?

I'll start again....Two wheels, in excellent condition, tyres look good and some twisted metal 🤣

I suspect the half shafts are missing or cut as the pinion shaft is welded to the chassis and the pinion bearing is exposed and rusted!

I'll have a look tomorrow, if interested let me know and I'll see if I can aquire it, or parts. I think it'll be scrap at some point.

What would identify it as one or the other?

Seen this today and would be interested to know what it was? Could be three separate vehicles, chassis is definitely ex mod and axle appears to be cable brake only. If anyone is interested I'll make enquiries. Located in Bedfordshire.

I'm always a bit wary of the hi lift type ratchet Jack's as they are so unstable but invaluable in the mud with the Land Rover. The only jack I would like is a toe jack for lifting the machines on to skates when things need moving around. My go to jacks are now 20t air/hydraulic jacks, short and tall. And my 4t trolley, only 4t as I need to be able to lift it in and out of the van!

That was my thought but the folks a Crouch's, who have had a few of these, thought this was the jack. But a round jack handle that would also be the cab bar would make more sense. Although the clips are too small to hold a jack size handle. One day it will all become clear and either way its a good solid jack that will find plenty of use.

Well the jack fits, Still not convinced it's the correct one as the little clamp has no where to locate. Unless I'm missing a strap? And what goes in these?? Would have expected cab bar/jack handle. I've got the cab bar/wheel brace bar in the clips behind the seats. The clips above would only hold between 10 and 15mm. Made some progress with the brakes, Jacked it up and lugged the wheel off by hand....some fool has blocked access to the wheel removing trolley with a crew box 🙄 Removed the drum securing bolt and found a couple of UNF bolts to fit the extractor bolt holes. Apply some pressure on the bolts without stripping the threads, cast iron isn't that strong, and then rotate and tap the drum with the big hammer. When the note changes you know the drum is on the move and the extractor bolts can be tightened to apply pressure again. After a while the bolts will be all you need. Leave the bolts in as they will give you a handle to lift the drum. Cleaned with brake and clutch cleaner as undoubtedly these shoes will be stuffed with asbestos and even modern brake dust will do you no favours if you blow it about with an air line. Shoes hadn't even fully bedded in as some areas had never touched the drums. Although there is a little oil on the back plate there was nothing on the shoes. so I'm going to pop the new drums on and rough up the shoes to see if the drums were the cause. If not then I'll need to dig a little deeper, maybe shoes too.

Got some retail therapy at Crouch Military last week and came back with a small hoard of bits and pieces. Nos brake drums, wheel brace, jack, cab bar and Nos clutch cover just incase! Also picked up a fellows snatch block to complete the winch gear. What a monster it is too, very well built. Gave the jack a good clean up and freed up the screw top. Not sure if it's the correct jack yet. I'll see if it fits somewhere tomorrow. If anyone has the CES I would be very interested to see a copy. Also got a couple of pressure relief valves for the front hubs. And finally some hub seals from xmod . So hopefully I'm fully prepared to service the front brakes and should have it all done in a day. And lastly a shovel, no picture as I think you all know what they look like!

Yes I'm hoping it's largely confined to the outer skin. Although I can see the frame at the base will need some tlc. The plan is to fit a board between the seats to make a full size bed and fit a hob and fridge under the fold up seats. I'm not sure if it originally had a heater but will probably fit one using the gas that runs the hob. A little way off that yet so continued stripping the outside. Got all the screws out of the guards, only one snapped. The whirly spinning vent is still operating perfectly but the extractor fan opposite is not so good. The motor still spins though. Will be fun reproducing the housing, possibly make a wooden former and spin some sheet over it. Not something I've tried so be fun to see how it works. The outer skin is made from about thirty panels fitted like tiles overlapping from top to bottom. So roof off first and then work down. Everything is held on with hundreds of pop rivets and sticky sealer. The rivets simply drill out, but you need to punch the steel pin out of the centre to do a tidy job. I use a modified punch with the end ground down. Once punched drill with a five mm drill. Prise the panel off the sealer. Repeat every evening until your arm aches too much. Now have a growing pile of bits for straightening, cleaning and painting. I'm expecting a serious frame underneath as the Foden's crane could barely lift it at full stretch.

The project continues.... Or rather a sub project. This will be my living quarters . Its one of the gun tractor additions acquired last year. It's the poorest condition of all the parts which is why it's next on the list. Rust... More rust... You guessed it more rust... Hopefully it's mostly in the skins which are all flat sheets riveted on The inside is in good shape and amazingly it's stayed dry It's also become storage for all the parts salvaged from the donor cab. Amazingly all the bolts for the lifting eyes and spare wheel carrier all came out with relative ease. Only needing some impact abuse to loosen. Everything was stuck with old fashioned dum dum type sealer, which never sets. Seems to have worked so I'll order some more for reassembly. Then I went for the more tricky screws that hold the guards for the roof vents. Tools assembled, heated the screws to soften the paint and the sealer. Picked all the paint from the screw head and used the impact driver to break the screw loose. Then worked the screw back and forth until it could be fully removed. one down fifteen to go! That's as far as I got tonight. Hopefully get some more stripped tomorrow. Lastly a pretty lorry and machinery pic...

Might be of interest.... https://www.facebook.com/groups/859603390775800/permalink/4687009334701834/ Hopefully got the link right, should be a pile of wot6 literature.

Would the first steering wheel also have had a complete steel band held within the wood rim? If I'm passing the local infamous scrap yard I'll have a look for something similar. A lot of early parts have surfaced recently as they re surface the yard.

Should be straight forward as a private HGV. The VTG1 was the easy bit, the DVSA emailed back promptly and communication was good. How old is your vehicle? There are many rules for HGV's that are age depedant. You will need tyres that are under ten years old on the front axle for instance. As an off road vehicle this will exempt some rules also. Generally most of the modern military vehicles comply with most of the civilian rules.....possibly with the exception of reflective tape everywhere 🤣. When you get to the MOT most of the testers will be more than happy to see something different and will help you get the right result. Before test go to the garage and get a voluntary brake test, smoke test and check the headlight adjustment. Retest's aren't free for HGV's. Whilst there ask if there is anything obvious that will fail test, we mechanic types can't help having a look on the grounds you might give us the work. Clean it thoroughly underneath and inside. An unloved vehicle will get poked and prodded twice as much. Check all the obvious things lights, tyres etc. Be courteous and polite, tell the tester if you have not been for a HGV test before. You will be staying in the vehicle throughout most of the test turning lights on and off, turning the steering, operating the brakes as the tester requests. You can usually pay the garage to put it through if you prefer. After the first test you will wonder what all the fuss was about! Then you have the fun part to get a registration number from the DVLA......