Finished changing the Defender tailgate fittings to the sturdier ones of the Series 2, and everything has gone together very well (see previous post for what it looked like before). Had to drill one new hole for the center bolt on the hinges, and new holes for the capping rivets. The last thing to do will be the galvanised 'rub strips' that attach to the top surface (when gate is open). These should be riveted on, but as the Defender is double-walled, with a gap in between, as opposed to the Series 2 being just a single sheet, this will take some experimentation. Worse comes to worse they can be attached via screw - but rivets would be nice. Then it'll be time for some Pastel Green paint there, too.
Doors are back from welding at
BGM Metalworks. They did a great job, and even voluntarily rebuilt the severely rusted part of the driver's side door frame. Nice service! Now it's on to refining the weld surfaces, treating the remaining surface rust, and then paint.
Last but not least, have re-painted the logos. There was enough of the original black paint to follow the original demarkation lines very closely. The black stops just short of the top surface, not right at the edge.
