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Saracen not going to Combined Opps


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I do have a question though. As I look at old pictures of Saracens in NI, I see some have padding, and some don't. Why is this? anyone have knowledge of this? Cheers Nick CWC Canada

 

It would depend on whether the modification had been carried out in accordance with EMER WHEELED VEHICLES V617 Mod Instr. No. 89 March 1974. This was issued on blue paper indicating it was for immediate implementation.

 

"Interior padding is cemented to the interior surfaces in the hull and turret to improve crew safety and ballistic protection."

The kit was supplied with 66 pads in 52 different shapes, some required cutting punches to be applied so it seems that they were just this thick horse hair matting.

 

It was intended for "all vehicles held by user units"

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I do have a question though. As I look at old pictures of Saracens in NI, I see some have padding, and some don't. Why is this? anyone have knowledge of this?

 

Cheers

 

Nick

 

CWC

Canada

 

It would depend when the photos were taken. Mk 1-3 Saracens did not have the lining, while the 5 and 6 did. The 5 and 6 came online at some stage in the early to mid 70s as a response to escalating violence in NI.

 

Cheers,

Terry

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fantastic, i love reading some of the detail people have on vehicles it is quite immense...lets keep logging it in here for future reference, once those guys hwo actuall used thes ethings are gone, this will be the only record...well and a few manuals...

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  • 3 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...
Nic,

 

Have you sorted out the cooling issues with your Saracen? Any updates?

 

Cheers,

Terry

 

Well a few months back I tried fitting an auxiliary fuel pump (but it was a rather cheap and nasty one) I also opened the floor vents. The theory being that the hot air that is trapped at the back of the engine bay can escape through these and indeed when the engine is running there is a flow of hot air venting from them. The additional fuel pump is to overcome what I'm pretty sure are vapour locks. I tried this set up and there was an improvement although at the end of the test run the engine did stall and when re-started was not running smoothly. However, I did see that the choke was partly engaged so this may have accounted for the poor running.

 

I recently bought a NOS double ended 24 volt SU pump and have today completed a some what neater installation than the Facet pump fitted in the summer.

 

The final 'mod' I will make is to blank the front facing slats in the beehives, the thinking here is that this should avoid any ram air from the forward motion of the Saracen opposing the air venting from them.

 

Subject to some nice dry weather over Christmas I will give the Saracen a test run, although with the low ambient temperatures it may not be a true challenge.

 

 

vent.jpg

fuel pump.jpg

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  • 3 months later...

Did you sort out the poor running of your sarry

sounds a bit like the issue I had with my ferret on that it would run fine for a few miles & then start to miss & loose power untill it eventually ground to a halt. If left to cool down it would then run fine for a while before repeating the problem. Turned out to be the condenser breaking down at high temperature. A new one from Bannisters cured it. Still going strong.

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If left to cool down it would then run fine for a while before repeating the problem. Turned out to be the condenser breaking down at high temperature.

 

It always seemed curious to me that B Series distributors use metallized paper capacitors rather foil & paper ones.

 

I know metallized paper types have "self healing" properties and with hundreds or thousands of healed repairs they can maintain near the original capacitance. But they are not really healed just a breakdown avoided & another one appears. They do fail with time and their tolerance to temperature is known not to be as good as foil-paper ones.

 

I know the capacitor lives in its own little chamber within the distributor & there is a system of air circulation, but why use a capacitor with poor temperature performance?

 

On the other hand the screened ignition used in Land Rovers & a few other applications use the DZS4A distributor. This is only vented by two pairs of vent holes directly in the distributor cap protected by a fine gauze. Looking in VAOS Section LV6/MT8 it specifies "condenser, high temperature" & this is a foil-paper type.

 

Why not have this extra temperature tolerance in a B Series? In my experience of testing a large number of capacitors over the years neither type seems any more susceptible to failure with time.

 

I have conducted tests with good examples of both types using a hot air gun & a Megger. Curiously the samples I have used of both types seem to fail (ie insulation resistance goes down) at broadly the same temperature.

 

I have been unable to measure the temperature as my infra-red thermometer gun refuses to give sensible readings on the capacitor body, even it I paint a black patch on the capacitor & aim the gun at that.

 

In practical terms if the capacitor is too hot to comfortably touch its insulation is compromised once it is cooled to being slightly warm it has returned to its original properties.

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Don't forget, Clive, that the Land Rover FFR was designed and produced significantly after the B series, which probably explains some of the improvements.

 

The lack of shroud on an RFC Saracen explains the overheating though - I'm not aware of anyone that has removed the shroud and does not have significant problems with heat management.

 

Cheers,

Terry

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Terry fair point about removing the RFC shroud & resulting overheat.

 

My point was a curiosity about the choice of capacitor.

 

Although the distributor DZS4A was used in FFR Land Rovers, the earliest application I am aware of was in the Morris auxiliary engine on a Centurion that pre-dates B Series engines.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Gents, I am currently having my Saracen overhauled by a shop and after re-reading this thread, I had asked the shop to add electronic ignition. I think there are kits to do this. Does anyone have experience with any specific kit for the B80 and where to source them? Also, is the low pressure fuel pump suggested in this thread a worthwhile addition? Any recommendations on model to get? How costly is the pump, and does it really enhance operating reliability? Mine is a MK6 and I live 100 miles from NY, so it's not a "hot" climate... though it can hit 40 C on summer days.

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http://www.classicheads.com/Electronic_Ignition.html

 

The fuel pump doesn't need to be anything special but should run on 24v and be in-line with your fuel line, as near to the tank as practical (mine is under the battery tray, near the filter). It should be wired so that you can turn it on and off; normally you shouldn't need it but can switch it on when starting and in the event of a vapour lock.

 

The most important thing is shrouding that radiator.

 

Cheers,

Terry.

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  • 1 year later...

So last year I had this excess engine bay heat problem on my Mk6 that the previous owner had converted to 'normal' flow cooling. I tried a number of measures to overcome this, none of which were successful. Over the winter I converted it back to reverse flow cooling with parts obtained from Richard Banister. Today I took it out on its first test run and the problem seems resolved. I drove about 6 miles which previously would not have been possible.

 

Fingers crossed and I will get to Combined Ops this year.

Nic

 

image.jpg

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Awesome work.

 

I've never understood why people mess with the RFC cooling systems; I know a guy with a Mk 3 that has been "converted" to regular flow cooling too, and he has a lot of grief with it as well.

 

Cheers,

Terry

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