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How much can you cram into a day?

Main
Posted by min200 Sun, November 30, 2014 19:58:53

I was up early. I just cant seem to have a lie in like other folk after 6 hours of snoring I wake up wide eyed and ready to start the day whether I want to or not. After staring at the ceiling in the dark I lay there determined not to get out of my pit until 7am. At 7am I was just finishing my first cup of tea waiting for the light to come in enough so I could potter outside on the Landy.

A bowl of cornflakes later and a play online the light was good enough for the chickens to want to come out so it was good enough for me to get myself into my baby grow and get stuck back into the electrics. The washer bottle and pump were the last of my wiring issues so I bolted them back into place, wired the washer pump up filled the bottle full of washer fluid and wondered if my luck could hold out for it to work.





It bloody worked!! I pushed the button the pump whirred into life and the fluid worked its way through the pipework and squirted onto the screen! Um that's all the electrics working then...I mean all of them the lot everything electrical on a Land Rover is operational. This must be a first on the planet and must be worthy of a prize of some sort!

That done its about 8am and the family are enjoying a lazy lie in and snoring away so I decided I would get the old leaky tank out and the new shiny one in place.
First I had to start taking the bits out of the tank.



The feeder pipe had to be swapped over as well as the fuel sender.



I then undid the four bolts that hold the tank in and that dropped out soon enough.



The new tank went in easy enough with the use of my jack to help balance it in place whilst I added the bolts to hold it in place. Soon enough it was done plumbed in and wired up. Being a tight git I drained the fuel out of the old tank checking it was clean and added back into the new tank. I should say here when I removed the fuel line from the old tank I folded it over itself and used a cable tie to stop any fuel leaking out.





Im glad I splashed out for a new tank because it should give me many years of service and that is the whole of the fuel system now replaced.

I fired it up and all is well in fact I love being able to turn the key when ever I want to and hear it running it never fails to bring a smile to my face!

By now the tribe were up and around and we had to head down south to look at a replacement bike. Don't you hate it when folk lie to you about the condition of a motor. This was supposedly on mint condition but after arriving it was scraped and scratched and dont get me started on the state of the nearly rusted through exhaust!
So a wasted trip of a 130 miles but we did call in on family and it was very good to see my baby sister and her fiancée back from Australia then we got fed a big fat roast to boot!

Now home and relaxing for a couple of hours wondering how the weekend flew by so quickly and still looking for a bike.

www.justturned40.co.uk
 
Thanks glad you are enjoying the read :)

Loving the Landy myself and a excited the MOT is drawing nearer but kind of a bit disappointed the initial build is nearly done!
 
Murky Mornings.

Main
Posted by min200 Wed, December 03, 2014 22:03:32

I am impatient to get this project done and I really don't want it to finish. You must have been there yourselves with something you have done at some point, you put in hours upon hours of effort relishing the challenge and hating the project at times. You sacrifice your pocket money the time you should have spent with the kids and offer up the odd limb or two in order to christen it with blood the Landy gods require if you want it to ever fire up into life again.

With December now upon us I have had a look at the calender for the month and to say the schedule is hectic would be a mild understatement. If I want to get any sort of time on the project it is in a small hour long window sometime from waking up to leaving for work. No really I am being serious! If I want any time to myself to do as I please I have that one option for most of the rest of the month....having a family seemed like such a good idea at the time!

Its amazing what you can do in a couple of hour long stints though. First I set to getting the old drivers side seat out. This is straight forward enough by simply lifting the base out and then folding the back of the seat forward. You will probably find that it doesn't want to go past the steering wheel of course but I found that just by moving the steering wheel from side to side a couple of times helped my "persuade" the seat back down. The single bolt removed from each side saw the back out pretty easily and quickly too.



That seat was pretty tatty and probably wont be any good for anyone but that wont stop me throwing it up onto fleabay on a free listing for 99p though! Hey any money back is a bonus and yes I am that much of a tight git...at times.

The seat frame was looking a bit rough...



and I still had some green left so that got liberally splashed around the frame and rear bulkhead...



Onto the passenger side and that too was past its best so I got to splash it about a bit more...



It does make a hell of a difference a quick coat of paint even though I know these parts wont really been seen that often its nice to just "know" I have done it right.

I have bought off of the tinterweb a passenger side door top it as brand new unused and seeing as I had to fit a new window kit to that side anyway I decided for the price of £15 I may as well "know" both of the door tops are new and that the glass wont be dropping out every tome I close the door like it does at the moment. The current passenger side door top is pretty rusty and will need a bit more exploration when its taken off to see if it would be worth keeping as a spare.



The new one was the wrong colour so while I had the paint out...



Once the kit arrives I will get the glass in and tops changed over.

Next it was time to fit the windscreen wipers and I could not find them for love nor money. So after scratching my head and looking in many boxes along with all of my "safe" places I gave up and ordered a new pair convinced I had thrown them away by accident along with a load of rubbish out of the back of the Landy. The next morning I found them of course in plain sight on top of a toolbox. In my defence it wasn't a safe place toolbox and the mornings are very dull along with the wipers being very small and black.

Anyway it turns out I have two different types of wiper arms fitted to the Land Rover one being a series one and one slightly thicker one. A drill bit and some persuasion soon had both of the wipers fitted.



I think I will replace the arms at some point but I will get the MOT done first.

www.justturned40.co.uk
 
Yes I agree, I think the project part of it is the fun part.
Probably why my neighbours hate me as I'll do as you've done, drive it for 6 months, sell it and start again :eek:
 
Normal Service Has Been Resumed

Main
Posted by min200 Sun, December 07, 2014 19:34:02

The bike crisis is over. I have picked up exactly the same bike as I own today so I can now get back to commuting as it should be done in a city. When I say exactly the same bike I do mean exactly the same bike! Its the same model year engine size and colour! What are the odds?

I was going to borrow some cash and spend a lot more and get something newer but when this came up for £750 fully serviced with new boots battery exhaust system and my old bike sat there basically with every spare that I could need it was a win win situation.



The old bike will be stripped down and boxed up for the time being so I will have no worries of expensive repairs for some time to come!

My plan was to MOT the Landy by Christmas but the bike issue has out me back a couple of weeks on that plan. A turn up for the books is that Wifey has informed me that even though it looks like next Saturday was full of things to be done and visits to be made it is just for her and work friends so that leaves me with a full day to play with the project so maybe just maybe it could get an MOT before the new year.

I am not going to rush it though I want it done right but tis the time of year for miracles...
 
Love the teapot, looks very well for the price. And having a complete bike worth of spares makes it great value. They're a better bike than people think.
 
They are overlooked which suits me fine it keeps the price down. Same frame engine and wheels as a Bandit of the same age too which makes me laugh but hey why pay the extra??

Excellent cheap commuter bike ideal for the city!
 
I guess the bike is pretty good in the city centre.
We was working on the Victoria shopping centre their a few weeks back and that was crap to get out of on a night.
 
I guess the bike is pretty good in the city centre.
We was working on the Victoria shopping centre their a few weeks back and that was crap to get out of on a night.

Yep the city gets pretty much gridlocked daily so a bike is a must here for me!

More Landy updates to come soon folks!
 
Seat Back Bolts

Main
Posted by min200 Tue, December 09, 2014 21:25:32

It was bloody cold this morning in fact the Landy looked white and I was going to take some lovely Winter shots of it while I was out there but quite frankly I got sidetracked as usual and only remembered when I was on my way to work...typical.

This mornings reason for poking around the project was to see if I could find a couple of bolts that would fit into the passenger seat back so into the box of nuts and bolts I dived. When this search proved fruitless I remembered I threw loads of nuts and bolts into the spares big blue tub that was in the rear so I jumped in there and had a good sort out putting even more bolts into the right box of spares...success!

I found four bolts with the same thread pattern that along with a washer or two will fit so the seats should be in on Saturday :)

So I have a busy day planned while Wifey is off out with friends on the project including fitting seats, belts, changing oil and filters along with the spark plugs then last but not least fitting the new bonnet strap for the spare wheel on the bonnet.

Of course it will rain and spoil all of my fun...

www.justturned40.co.uk
 
nuts and bolts...
if you have a wilkinsons store near, have a peak to see if they do a plastic big you fill yourself of various nuts/bolts/washers all for about £3
I quite often pop into our store and think - what will I need today.....lol

cant praise you enough of your everlasting log of enjoyable reading - "min"....
 
nuts and bolts...
if you have a wilkinsons store near, have a peak to see if they do a plastic big you fill yourself of various nuts/bolts/washers all for about £3
I quite often pop into our store and think - what will I need today.....lol

cant praise you enough of your everlasting log of enjoyable reading - "min"....

Thanks fella! My Wilko's only does nuts and bolts in set bags :(
 
Red Tape.

Main
Posted by min200 Wed, December 10, 2014 22:39:36

Well there I was getting all excited about being nearly at the MOT stage wasn't I but I thought I best give DVLA a quick call this morning just to confirm what they needed from me to register the Landy. I thought I had researched this part enough in the past but I am so glad I called because they came up with an extra chore I knew nothing about!

Firstly I shall start with what you will need to register any ex mod Land Rover and this is direct from the DVLA and correct on 10/12/2014.

V55-5 form. Fill this out ready for return.

Proof of age. This can be via the heritage museum or sometimes is supplied by Land Rover if you can convince them and will get you an age related plate.

A Photocopy of your Driving Licence and Passport.

Current MOT.

So you MUST have the above all ready to send off with a cheques for the £55 registration fee plus at least six months tax which in my case for a 2.25 petrol is £126.50.

Your vehicle must be insured on the VIN or DVLA will not process your application.


Don't get too comfy as we have not finished yet.

You will also need to contact HMRC to get confirmation that no import duties are owing on the vehicle.
They will send you some forms to fill out (sorry do not have the number for that one yet)
which you send back and four weeks later they tell you you owe nothing as it was built for the MOD and never officially exported BUT this does create a "NOVA" number that DVLA "Might" check upon your registration application.

Keeping up ok?

The exact words form the chap at HMRC were "Well this is a waste of time call DVLA back to make sure they want to do this as you have used the freedom of information act already and can prove what regiments this Land Rover was with so its never been exported"

I called DVLA back to be told "Well we might check with HMRC but we might not but we do most of the time unless you can send us documentation from the manufacturer to say it wasnt built for export"

"Err I have proof it was built for the MOD" I said

"But thats not the manufacturers" DVLA said.

"But its proof it wasn't built for export it was built for the BRITISH Army" I say.

"That's not on my list" says the DVLA chap "But it might be ok"

"Do DVLA work in "might be's"" I ask

"Sometimes but if it is not accepted by who looks at it your application will be denied within two weeks" DVLA said.

"So" I point out "Would it not just be easier for me to do the HMRC thing then as that only takes four weeks and if I try on a whim just sending you what I have now hoping its enough and its not that will put me back a fortnight"

"Yea probably" I get from DVLA now bored man.

The paperwork has been applied for and seeing as it will probably take at least two months not the one they say as its Christmas time there's no longer any great rush to get the Landy Mot'd and insured because most insurance companies will only insure the motor on a VIN number for 30 days!

I don't like wasting money so patience is a virtue here and seeing as its been this long in the making a bit more time wont hurt now. If you are doing your own ex MOD rebuild start the ball rolling on the paperwork quicker than I have!
 
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Pillock.

Main
Posted by min200 Sat, December 13, 2014 17:54:48

I am starting today with the fact that I am stupid. I'm a pratt plonker tool dumb ass knobhead thick as two short planks not the sharpest tool in the box and of course a right pillock.

In fact calling myself those things is an insult to the people out there that are actually those things because my own stupidity has surprised even me. I had a realisation today whilst pottering around you know what its like you feel a bit smug and happy with progress and I was thinking how great it is that the Landy runs so well then the fact I didn't have to strip out seized clutch plates to make it move when I realised that this work of art I have been creating for myself just sits on my driveway.

When I say sits there I mean it sits on my driveway on the main ring road where everyone can see it day in day out, the Landy that now starts and drives. The Landy that I write an online blog about and any bad folk wouldn't hesitate to steal if they wanted the bits. The Landy that I have not been locking up or securing in any way...at all...even though its been running and has been drivable for a few weeks now.

That realisation woke me up I can tell you. You are always hearing of some scumbag stealing another Land Rover so I have made sure that my little project wont start run or be able to be driven away in any manner at all. Don't get me wrong if someone wants to steal something badly enough they will but hey why make it easy for the gits eh!

Anyway I had to start the day swapping a few bits over on the motorbikes mainly the exhaust system seeing as the new bike had a brand new Motad spanking exhaust on it that made it really loud reduced performance and was quickly getting on my nerves. On the standard system went and performance improved no end so I have a nice shiny exhaust gets to go on Ebay.

My attention then turned to the Landy. It was a tad on the cold side this morning.





I figured the best way defrost it was to see if it would start after a couple of weeks of standing which it did on the first couple of turns of the key! I love that arctic heater talk about toasty! First things first I wanted to get the drivers side door top swapped and the first nut came off no other but the second one had rusted through on the old top...






Out came the grinder to sort that little issue out and the new top soon dropped into place.



Then I wanted to get the seatbelts swapped over. I took out the drivers side one no problem just a couple of stiff bolts but a little WD40 and some brute force sorted them out. It was when I went to fit the nice Discovery ones I have had in my shed for months that the problem showed itself...



The original Series ones have a nice angle on the Latch arm but the Discovery ones are straight and bending wouldn't help because it twists at an angle as well. I'm a bit miffed as the fella who sold them to me sells lots of Land Rover bits and assured me they would fit straight in. Well they don't. Something else to add to the buy it list then.

Onto the seats then! I dug them out and fitted them drivers side first...



Then the passenger side...



So they are in. Nice to have seats again bit I am not sure if I like them! Still they will do for now funds are tight. On the subject of seats I need another back stop as well like these ones...



I am sure I had them all but I have either A) Sold them B) Thrown them away C) Put them some where really really safe.

The HMRC NOVA form has arrived so I can have some fun filling that out later but it will get the ball rolling which is nice. I have revised my expectations for the MOT time and I don't think it will be until the end of January now weather pending of course.

Right gotta go as the kids are pestering me about putting up Christmas decorations now..no rest for the wicked eh!

www.justturned40.co.uk
 
And that makes 100.

Main
Posted by min200 Sun, December 14, 2014 10:42:46

I'm sitting here just killing some time before we head off out for a family Christmas meal. You chaps know what its like it takes us 5 minutes to get ready including a shower and a shave then its an hour sitting about waiting for the woman or in my case women in your lives to finish preening pruning and hacking themselves about to look good while they are out to only then when they return wipe it all off and jump into slobby house clothes.
That has always seemed odd to me the whole "got to look my best" thing they do in case a complete stranger looks at them and judges them scruffy tramps but they are happy to turn into said scruffy tramps in front of us their life partners as soon as they are behind closed doors...go figure?

Even my mate Bob The Travelling Monkey freshly back from the States in ready in his Christmas togs...



I suppose us chaps are just a different breed.

Well the great paper chase has begun with regards to getting the Landy registered with DVLA by filling out the Nova form for HMRC. Insomnia has struck me again and in all fairness it must be two or three years since it last came along to push my limits of normal functioning in next to no sleep for a week or so and what better way to utilise the time and try to make myself drop off than getting out of bed and filling out a form for the tax man!

As it turns out it is quite straight forward to do and I shall get it posted off to them today. The notes state that I will have an answer in within 14 days...it doesn't state what 14 days are they working days or the number of days from their receipt of them? Couple into that the fact it is Christmas time and I have never known any civil servant to work over the Crimbo New year period and the fact we are dealing with the tax man here and they really dance to the beat of their own drum so I should hopefully hear something back by mid January which will tie in nicely with getting the MOT sorted providing they have all the information they need in the first hit.

This is the 100th post I have done on the main blog forum Just turned 40. or www.justturned40.co.uk and I would like to say thanks to all of you who read it and thanks again for the comments you all send in and give to me both good bad and crazy! If anyone would like to get in touch directly you can email via [email protected]

Seems there are some stirrings from the top of the stairs so the tribe of women I live with must be nearly ready to leave and heaven help me if I am not ready to go once they have decided there is no turning back on the way they look because you never know what the next stranger might think of you....
 
Slowing Down.

Main
Posted by min200 Thu, December 18, 2014 07:47:23

I am not as good as I once was of that there can be no doubt. I know I am not old yet in fact I ma just starting out on middle age and there are those that would argue that at 41 I have not even started on that yet but I can confirm that I ache more easily these days that I did before.

Progress has slowed on the Landy because, as I am sure I have said before so forgive me for repeating myself, I have taken on the role at work of "shunter" that gives me set day hours at work and which is compiled of moving 60 trailers or so around the site at work which is the size of a very large village and consists of getting in and out of the "Tug" (like a truck cab) twice for each trailer and winding the legs of the trailer up and down before and after its moved hopefully in the right order so you don't drop the bloody thing on it's knees!

So for ten hours a day I get to do constant step aerobics along with an upper body work out and this is as you can imagine not the most mentally challenging role but it gives me set hours which as a HGV 1 driver is very rare and after three years of working into the early hours of the morning and not seeing my family all week long is a pleasant change! Oh and it keeps me fit whether I want it too or not. Even a couple of years ago I would not have blinked at the physical exercise of the role but even though I can keep the work up I now ache like hell when I get in and it takes a good twenty minutes to warm up my aching bones in the morning!

Another side effect is I only get the weekend to play on the project and the next slot will be Saturday morning when I must get the damned thing serviced properly before we have old friends arrive of who my good friend the mechanic will be more than happy to escape the woman chat that goes on endlessly for hours to play on the Landy with me so a polite cup of tea over twenty minutes should be enough before we excuse ourselves and leave the women to gossip and sort out lunch.

I have sent off the forms to the tax man for the NOVA number the DVLA want and have filled out the V55-5 form ready for despatch when the motor finally has its MOT. I hate paperwork so it's good to have it out of the way!

The project price list has not been updated for a while so here it is below adding bits bought and the taking away the last few bits sold off as well and I should have a bit more of an update on Saturday.

Landy Project Costs

Land Rover £375

Sanding Discs £11.70

Ignition Barrel £20

Heritage letter £21.75

2x Batteries and rear 1/4 light £35

Pair Battery Terminal Clamps £3.99

Floor pan nuts & bolts £6.50

Grinding disc £2.25

Under Seal £8.99

Complete set of lights £85

5 Litres Primer £24.99

4 Discovery Wheels £10.20

Rear Door £21.00

Front Door £20.00

Handbrake spring £1.50

2 Discovery wheels

Two seatbelts

Wing Mirror

2 Headlight surrounds

2 headlight frames £60

2 Front Doors £60

Nato Green Paint £36

Rear Window Seal and insert £9.99

Wiring connectors £3.00

2 tins of silver metal paint £7.00

Fuses & Sandpaper £4.50

5x tins black spray £5.00

5x more tins black spray £5.00

Clutch fluid

Exhaust putty

WD40 £8.49

Car Boot Bits £13

Front & rear shocks £59.45

Front & rear brake rebuild kits £81.62

Fuel tank & filler £40

Wheels complete with tyres £250

Fuel pump

Fuel hose

Indicator stalk

Bonnet strap

Brake switch

Fuel pump gasket

Fuel line clips £67.74

24v Wiper motor

24v flasher relay

24v heater

24v front loom

oil cooler

Door tops x2

Rear bench seat £67.50

Roof rack £100

Wheel nuts £8

Brake pipe kit £39

Wheels & Tyres £250

Exhaust System & Flexi hose pipes £66

Number plate light £5

Seat set £90

Fuel tank and service parts £136

Seat belts £61

Rear seat brackets £10

CREDIT FOR BITS SOLD OFF OF PROJECT £502

TOTAL £1631.16

www.justturned40.co.uk
 
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