hi all,
this is my first post on this forum after many many years of landrover ownership and the faffing about that comes with said ownership!!
as metioned peviously many defender 110 bodies have been cut down and fitted to a disco or range rover chassis, similarly many disco/RR chassis have been cut to accomadate a swb or 90 body.
i have recentlyish completed a disco chassis cut to 88 with a swb body (this body is very similar in design and mounting pionts to a defender body)
it is possible and very achiveable as long as you have the skills and tools/equipment to complete the job succesfully and more importantly, SAFELY.
but this job isnt one to take on without plenty of forethought and planning as it is a massive job to undertake in your spare time (and if your like myself) in your own small garage or workshop.
once the disco body is removed the chassis must be cleaned and all the outriggers that are surplus to requirements must be cut off, this takes an age in itself and you soon become fed up of the grinder and/or the gas!!!
another awkward task is the positioning of the body on the chassis to allow mesuring up and tacking of your fabricated/bought outriggers that hold the body/bulkhead/fueltank etc in place, for this you must find a reference point on your chassis that corresponds with a critical body part such as the bulkhead. all theese outrigger positions are critical to ensure you have the correct alignment and levels for your body work.
when all the out riggers are on and your body is hardened down you will realise what a mamouth task it is to fit all of the ancilleries and make sure that everything is in line and all parts meet up with each other correctly. in my experience this part of the project takes the most time but makes the difference etween a job well done and a job thats just done!
the fabriction and welding required to complete a project like this is substantial, there is a big difference between sticking a patch on a chassis or sill and relying on every single one of your weld runs to hold your vehicle together. you just think of the saftey of yourself and your passengers and everyone else on the road/track/wherever you may be using the truck.
however if you feel you are capable of the job in hand, you will feel an immense sense of satisfaction on completion of the job and an even better feeling when a fellow enthusiast takes a look and is suitably impressed with your work.
i hope some of this may be of help
i have some phots of the build, if your interested i will stick some up.
good luck
rory