Tow Hitch

Nothing major, but decided it was time to put on the last assembly that would bring the Land Rover back to the configuration it was in when purchased. I wanted to keep the original pin-type fitting, partly for authenticity and partly as it's useful for recovery, plus a ball mount for versatility.
 provided the complete kit, which included the bolts, nuts and a generous supply of galvanized washers. The mounting and backing plates were galvanized by 3 Bros. - they don't come from the supplier this way. A very nice consideration by 3 Bros..

The only issues during assembly: the galvanizing of the chassis had made the bolt holes too small by a small fraction, and had to be drilled out. A larger problem was that the holes of the mounting plate and those of the chassis didn't line up - the top right was out of position. This had to be corrected for the bolt to go through.

Below, the kit, with tow ball masked off in preparation for priming and painting. The ball/pin casting is zinc plated.

Just a view of the casting with self-etch primer so the paint will adhere to the zinc, and after painting.

On the left, the original pin-only fitting (welded to mounting plate, in turn welded to rear cross member when the previous owners made their own replacement cross member).

The Workshop Manual illustrations (supplied by 3 Bros.) for attaching the tow assembly. While the double-nut method worked well for the smaller upper bolts, it wasn't possible for the lower, due to the flange on the rear cross member (see next photo).

The thick backing plate has to be placed in location first (to prevent pull-through of the bolts when under load), then the nuts, and then the bolts put through from the outside. There isn't room for lock washers. A check for tightness will be needed now and then. The hitch bolts will need to be longer if double nuts are to be used.

The final assembly.

Workhorses

When walking back to the Land Rover today, I noticed this tableau. Probably 50 years here between the two trucks. I wonder if either of these has a chance of still being around in another 50 years?

Fall Colours

When for a drive at lunch today. Fall colours just coming in, and will only last a week or two at best. Always a nice time of year.

(click on the picture for full-size view)

Thermostat and Housing

The Land Rover had been running too hot ever since it went back on the road after the restoration. Everything tested ok, the coolant sytem had been flushed, thermostat worked, radiator worked, brakes weren't dragging, timing was good, etc., but temps were consistently about 20C too hot. Nothing drastic, but not normal, and something I wanted to correct.

Further testing of the old thermostat showed that it could stick shut from time to time. A look at the coolant system design also appeared to show that the large Kodiak heater hoses were likely bringing  a lot of coolant directly back into the engine, coolant which doesn't pass through the radiator.

At first I tried to find a new thermostat, to see if that would cure the problem, and while I eventually found one, they are obviously very hard to come by and subsequently quite expensive. This rarity might pose problems in the future. That, and the Kodiak hose question, made me look at the later thermostats used on Series 2a and Series 3 vehicles.

Those designs (there are two types) looked as if they might have some design advantages over the original, and after some more research, the late 2a/3 type looked best. It's thermostat has a 'skirt' that blocks a large part of the flow back into the engine, the rest then going through the radiator. It also has a 'cap' that, when the engine is cold, appears to stop flow to the radiator more thoroughly and direct more coolant directly back into the engine until the engine has warmed up.

The earlier thermostat, which didn't seem as effective, is a 'waxstat', with the same permanently open hole at the top as with the bellows type, which means more coolant going immediately back into the engine without passing through the radiator. The open thermostat doesn't do that much to divert flow to the radiator except lack of resistance down the radiator channel, which is offset from the main channel.

The newer housing installs without a problem onto the older type cylinder head. I installed an 82C thermostat (the other option is 74C), went for a long drive, and the engine, once at full operating temp, stayed at 82C. Right on the money. It would seem the problem is solved.

Below, the original 1960 housing. Note how the radiator return-hose empties directly back into the engine. It still does with the new housing, but the thermostat and housing design directs far more coolant to the radiator, and appears much better able to cope.

On the left, the original housing and (rare) bellows-type thermostat. On the right, the new housing with skirted thermostat and gasket in place. (Parts are sitting on spray can lids, in case you're wondering.)

On the left, the skirted thermostat and outlet housing. On the right, an earlier waxstat outlet. Note the differences in the openings. The inset image is just there to show the waxstat shape, as I don't have one here.

New housing and thermostat in place. It would seem much simpler to change thermostats with this design, too.

Have re-routed the heater return-hose to the side of the engine away from the exhaust manifold, too, in case that helps cooling by keeping the hose away from a hotter part of the engine.

Just needing the fan shroud to go back on, once another test drive confirms there are no leaks.

Finally, after a long test drive, fan shroud re-installed, and heater hose attached to center bolt of the valve cover with an aviaton hose clamp, to stop the hose touching the ignition wire or valve cover.

'Eyebrow' Headliners

Finally got around to doing the 'eyebrow' headliners. These are steel stamped plates covered with glued-on fabric-backed vinyl. The steel had become heavily surface-rusted and this had pushed off and to some degree distorted the vinyl surface. The glue itself hadn't survived particularly well, either. The vinyl came off just by pulling up the fold-over sections. The vinyl itself had survived pretty well for it's age, however, although the small bumps from the rust, and other distortions formed around screw holes and places where the headliner touched the body, were impossible to get rid of. The fold-around edge locations were definitely there to stay, but this helped to put the vinyl back on exactly as it was originally.

 Below, the basic steel forms, de-rusted and painted with a rust-paint.

 

 

The vinyl glued back on, using 3M's High-Tack Spray Adhesive. The vinyl insisted on keeping most of it's original shape, and to counter this the internal edges were taped down after painting to prevent slow curling and hopefully eliminate future delamination. The cut of the vinyl is factory original; that's how it looked originally. Not pretty, but it did the job.

 

Test fit of both headliner halves. That is not their original colour - they were white, as was clearly shown by the areas that had remained hidden. That's just 50 years of dirt, possibly combined with cigarette smoke, who knows.



Finally painted the halves with the excellent paint for vinyl used for the roof headliner.

Just an after and before view. Note how screw holes and top edges do not lign up. Welcome to quality control, 1960-style.

All three original headliners, roof and eyebrow, installed with their original vinyl. Very happy to have been able to keep them.

Door Seal Rivets

The by-the-foot rubber door seals that were installed have been peeling off, in spite of using very good quality 3M glue. I spoke to Peter Baker at 3 Bros.and he kindly sent over a complete kit of new door seals for the Land Rover, the purpose-made ones with metal strip inserts, the kit including the correct tubular rivets and the loan of a top-of-the-line river squeezer. A really nice quality kit. Unfortunately the peculiarities of this vehicle (factory body assembly left a lot to be desired, but was kept as it's authentic to this vehicle) meant that these new seals can't really be used, as the doors will not close. Instead, after some experimentation and testing, there appears to be a way to use the tubular rivets on the by-the-foot rubber door seals. This method works well, and keeps the authentic look inside the cab.

Below: finished results, from inside the cab, at rear of door. No more holes, just nice new aluminum rivet heads.

In the plastic bag, the rivets as supplied by 3 Brothers Classic Rovers. A box of 3/16" aluminum backing plates were purchased elsewhere, to serve as the metal support plates inside the rubber door seal.

First step, drill a 3/16" hole into the rubber seal from the inside surface, going only through the first two layers (out of three). Don't drill through the outer curved part. Keep the drill turning quickly so that the rubber doesn't bind to the bit.

Secondly, use a pair of needle-nose pliars to slide a backing plate into the hole. The rubber is quite stretchy, and will allow the backing plate in and then essentially close up afterwards.

Third step, center the backing plate within the seal using an awl or whatever serves the purpose. The rubber will keep the backing plate in position once it's where it needs to be.



The next step is done on the Land Rover - just doing it here for illustration. Push the rivet through the hole in the door seal flange on the Land Rover, then through the seal and backing plate. Then the tubular rivet can be squeezed very easily. The rivet squeezer means the pressure on the river can be modulated to be just tight enough to hold the seal, without flattening the inner surface of the seal too much and thus distorting the  seal, as usually happens with pop rivets. 

That's all! : )





Long Short Drive.

On a nice day between two rainy ones, took the dog for a short drive after work. If you've twelve minutes to spare, or want to see what it's like driving a Land Rover, or are just having trouble falling asleep, come along for the drive. : )