Project Start

Nice visit today to a project just getting under way, and only a few minutes north of here. A 1965 88", originally grey in colour, that looks in pretty good shape aside from what appears to be surface rust only (except for a few of the usual spots, such a lower grill panel). Bulkhead needs repairs but overall isn't bad, including door posts. Engine runs, and the gear box and transfer box levers all move freely. Chassis has been rebuilt by the previous owner at the rear, and hopefully, pending further inspection, could be re-usable. A very nice starting point for a restoration.

Fall

When is a chore not a chore? When you can do it in a 1960 Land Rover. :)

Took advantage of some gorgeous Fall weather to use the Land Rover instead of the "normal" car today. Nothing like rowing smoothly through an old gearbox, to the sound of  leaves beneath your wheels.

A Neighbour

Went mountain biking last weekend, and at the location what did I see but another Land Rover Series. Quite rare to see them locally, and an older model at that, judging by the two-angle stick shift, horn arm on the steering column, and turn signal/dome light panel, etc.. Doesn't appear to be in running condition, but then again Land Rovers can be deceiving. It is even the same colour as mine, but a different type with the 'deluxe' bonnet/hood, and appears to have originally been a truck cab, judging by the rear corners of the clearly home-made roof. Not sure what year, as the chassis has been repaired where the VIN is normally stamped, plus the data plate is missing from the inside bulkhead. Sent a message to the person who owns the place in order to try and learn more, but haven't had a reply.

EDIT: Spoke to the present owner, who said he bought it as-is off of a neighbor, where it had been left to rot in the bushes for years. The paperwork that came with the Land Rover indicated that the vehicle is in fact a '62 or something close. Many components would suggest otherwise, but who knows what may have changed over the years. Interior certainly looks pretty authentic for a '59 or thereabouts.

KPH Speedometer

The original MPH speedometer was never very accurate, due to a worn inner spring that stopped the needle from tracking around correctly, and so have finally 'bitten  the bullet' and installed a KPH unit, as reading speed would now be accurate plus require no interpretation on our kph-signed roads.

This speedometer is listed as being for a vehicle using 7.50x16 (235/85 r16) tires, while mine are 6.5, but having now driven a couple of times with the new speedo plus GPS to assess calibration, have found that under 60 kph the difference is barely noticeable (and with road vibration and bumps making the needle jiggle slightly, any difference virtually irrelevant). Above 60 kph the needle is reading about 6-7% higher than the GPS speed, but again with road vibration, plus the gauge location, plus parallax, making it hard to really tell - not to mention that at this speed one's eyes should be on the road!

But nice to have, and at a glance know pretty much at what speed I'm going without having to use the GPS.

Electrical Gremlin

Started the Land Rover a few days ago, and promptly lost the brake lights, turn signals and heater. Everything else was fine, vehicle ran smoothly, no smell of burning, etc.. Electrical issues are not my forté, and so was worried that this would be difficult to solve. Luckily, I like to keep the Land Rover clean to ward off corrosion, and so a visual inspection of the wiring wasn't too difficult to do. Nothing appeared amiss. Jiggled all the connections. Fuses were intact. What was the source of the problem?

Knowing that many of the Lucas issues were due to corrosion (perhaps due to connectors being aluminum bullets in steel sheaths....), connectors along those paths were examined, but all looked like the day they were installed. Then I took out the fuse again, in case there was some invisible cold- or condensation-related problem (it's been anywhere from 0°C to -20°C recently), and put in the spare - and voila, the Land Rover was back to normal. I put the original back to see, and things were still good. Source of the problem? A very thin and practically invisible layer of dirt or corrosion on the fuse-holding tongues/clips. Gave them a thorough clean, and everything works again.

Tongues in question (orange arrows):