SeriesG
Offroader
Truer words were never spoken!The problem is, that for every evening that you can do 2 jobs, there are jobs that take two evenings!
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1971 Series IIa 88" Overhaul
- Thread starter SeriesG
- Start date
Just catching up with the thread after me and the boy being literally laid out by some horrific bug .
Amazing progress @SeriesG .
Just out of interest , I had dreadful trouble with my new clutch slave cylinder on my S3. The as by the book setting caused the clutch to slip slightly on hills. Lots of faffing and I couldnāt get it right until I took it for a drive armed with my homemade āsplitā ring spanner and adjusted , tested on the road , adjusted etc . That worked well and I didnāt have to adjust it again when I switched from 2.25 Diesel to 2.25 Petrol .
Amazing progress @SeriesG .
Just out of interest , I had dreadful trouble with my new clutch slave cylinder on my S3. The as by the book setting caused the clutch to slip slightly on hills. Lots of faffing and I couldnāt get it right until I took it for a drive armed with my homemade āsplitā ring spanner and adjusted , tested on the road , adjusted etc . That worked well and I didnāt have to adjust it again when I switched from 2.25 Diesel to 2.25 Petrol .
That is a lovely amount of effort to avoid buying this:
Bracket - Alternator (FF013622) for Land Rover Series IIA/III
Famous Four Products are Independent Land Rover Specialists based in Lincolnshire, UK. We provide Genuine and Aftermarket Land Rover Parts and Accessories, Service, Repair and Restoration. Order Online, by email to [email protected] or phone on +44 (0)1507 609444
www.famousfour.co.uk
At that price, I can't blame you
Better crack that whip on yourself. Last year I was just doing 'a few jobs' on my MG Midget and before I knew it, it was the end of August!
SeriesG
Offroader
Sounds like a nasty experience - sure hope you're feeling better now.
I think your idea of adjusting once on the road it a good one. It's hard to tell what's really going on without driving it.
I'm also thinking I'd better spend a bit more time bleeding it. I think some of my loss of stroke at the clutch may be coming from squishy fluid.
SeriesG
Offroader
That's a pretty nice looking bracket really and likely more rigid than what I've built. It is rather pricey though - almost as much as I paid for the alternator itself. Six of one and half a dozen of the other I suppose.That is a lovely amount of effort to avoid buying this:
Bracket - Alternator (FF013622) for Land Rover Series IIA/III
Famous Four Products are Independent Land Rover Specialists based in Lincolnshire, UK. We provide Genuine and Aftermarket Land Rover Parts and Accessories, Service, Repair and Restoration. Order Online, by email to [email protected] or phone on +44 (0)1507 609444www.famousfour.co.uk
At that price, I can't blame you
Better crack that whip on yourself. Last year I was just doing 'a few jobs' on my MG Midget and before I knew it, it was the end of August!
It's easy for projects to get out of hand time-wise. My wife is off to babysit the grandson tonight so after a bit of supper I'm going to get busy in the garage and see if I can get a bunch of things stroked off the whiteboard. I want to hear this thing run already!
Last edited:
So do we
SeriesG
Offroader
Ha! You guys are probably getting tired of hearing me ramble on and on about this idiotic project. It will eventually run and drive I swear!So do we
SeriesG
Offroader
I tried to stay focused and get some real work done over the last few days. Most of the work now is small and finicky and hard to get enthusiastic about but I set my mind to it and got busy. Engine wiring got completed including the new alternator. Engine fuel and vacuum hoses are now all installed and tightened up and unused or open vacuum ports plugged. I tightened up the engine and gearbox mounts, the loosely fitted new exhaust system, and every other nut, bolt, and screw I could find. I was going to try to start the engine today but found that the fuel pump isn't pumping fuel so that's out until the replacement arrives. There's still loads to do in the meantime anyway... like making up new front steel brake lines which should be done before I mount the radiator anyway. And then there's the fuel tank...
The tank itself was cleaned, painted, and ready to go in but the forward tank-mount outrigger was rusty so I had to fix that before it could be installed. I measured where it was, cut it off, and cleaned up the side of the frame. I made up a new outrigger from two pieces of 3 X 3/16" angle iron I got from the scrap bin at work. The 6" combined height of the two pieces matches the frame perfectly which was handy. It's more beefy than the original and that's just fine by me.
I jacked the tank into place with the new outrigger loosely attached to it and bolted it all into place. After a bit of wiggling it around and finding a place where it liked to sit comfortably I welded the new outrigger to the frame as much as I could. Doing it that way saved a whole lot of measuring and messing about and guaranteed it was in the right place. I then removed the tank and welded it in a few more places. It feels very solid. A bit of paint makes it looks good again and hides my ugly welds for the picture quite nicely.
I replaced the filler neck flexible lines while waiting for the paint to dry. I had tried to find a genuine filler hose or at least an OEM but couldn't and had to settle on a Britpart piece. What showed up was a "eurospare" branded part and it looks quite good really. Of course I can't possibly tell if the rubber is "good" or not but it felt good - nice and supple. Also it didn't have that Britpart rubber stank I've come to expect from Chinese products. I might be alright with this part.
It was a real struggle to get the new hose into place but I finally made it work and jacked the tank up into place again and fastened it up with zero alignment issues. While things were apart I took the opportunity to clean off all the silly silver spray paint someone had put on the filler mount, taking it back down to the raw galvanized finish. I think it looks much nicer now. Anyway... whew! The tank is back in!
The tank itself was cleaned, painted, and ready to go in but the forward tank-mount outrigger was rusty so I had to fix that before it could be installed. I measured where it was, cut it off, and cleaned up the side of the frame. I made up a new outrigger from two pieces of 3 X 3/16" angle iron I got from the scrap bin at work. The 6" combined height of the two pieces matches the frame perfectly which was handy. It's more beefy than the original and that's just fine by me.
I jacked the tank into place with the new outrigger loosely attached to it and bolted it all into place. After a bit of wiggling it around and finding a place where it liked to sit comfortably I welded the new outrigger to the frame as much as I could. Doing it that way saved a whole lot of measuring and messing about and guaranteed it was in the right place. I then removed the tank and welded it in a few more places. It feels very solid. A bit of paint makes it looks good again and hides my ugly welds for the picture quite nicely.
I replaced the filler neck flexible lines while waiting for the paint to dry. I had tried to find a genuine filler hose or at least an OEM but couldn't and had to settle on a Britpart piece. What showed up was a "eurospare" branded part and it looks quite good really. Of course I can't possibly tell if the rubber is "good" or not but it felt good - nice and supple. Also it didn't have that Britpart rubber stank I've come to expect from Chinese products. I might be alright with this part.
It was a real struggle to get the new hose into place but I finally made it work and jacked the tank up into place again and fastened it up with zero alignment issues. While things were apart I took the opportunity to clean off all the silly silver spray paint someone had put on the filler mount, taking it back down to the raw galvanized finish. I think it looks much nicer now. Anyway... whew! The tank is back in!
Splendid work! Such creativity as well fabricating mounts for the alternator (wot's one of them?) and tank. I'm trying to remember how I did my clutch, I mean apart from neglecting to set up the 11mm clearance for the release sleeve when I first installed it which made it impossible to correctly set the length of the slave pushrod. I also had a persistent oil leak from the clutch operating mechanism which necessitated removing the gearbox a number of times before I found the source and cause of said leak.
Reminds me, I still have a leak on the speedometer drive housing to fix.
Reminds me, I still have a leak on the speedometer drive housing to fix.
SeriesG
Offroader
Ha! It seems that each vehicle has its own set of rules. We've no choice but to work through the bugs one at a time until everything is settled. Such is the fate of those who choose to drive 50+ year old cars!
SeriesG
Offroader
So before I could fasten down my radiator I needed to replace the front brake lines. I can do it later but it's easier now. I had bought a cheapo chinese-made double-flaring tool but it proved substandard so I bought another one: it's similar to the one @Big Sandy recommended but was available overnight on Amazon and less expensive so I went for it. It works much better than the china kit. I also quickly turned out a bending mandrel on the lathe from a piece of scrap aluminum. Again the lathe proves handy...
I ended up making up a new line for the right side but the one to the left side looked really good so I put it back on after cleaning it up. I think it must have been replaced already at some point.
With the front hard lines taken care of I figured that I aught to work on the wheel bearings and brakes so I have something to hook them up to. I reckoned the rear was the best place to start as it's easier.
I got to thinking about it and came to the conclusion that I really should pull the diffs while I'm in there. I don't intend to rebuild them at this point unless I have to but I really should check them out at the least just to make sure they aren't going to blow up on me. I pullled the rear axles and drained the remaining crud from the housing. Yes there was water. Not much mind you but it was there. The diff nuts came off fairly easily and with the help of a floor jack I had the diff housing out and onto the floor pretty quickly.
Surprisingly it looks really good! No broken teeth or gears, no excessive wear, and no rust. Sweet! It needs bearings but not in an "Emergency!" sort of way so I cleaned it up some and pressed a new pinion seal into place. The old one was so bad it's compression spring was outside the seal! Good thing I had a look. I wire-wheeled the nuts and blew them out so I'm not struggling with them when while laying on my back under the vehicle and trying to do four arms worth of work with just two.
I then ran a wire brush over the housing studs, scraped, filed, and cleaned the gasket surface, and dobbed the rest of the crud out of the diff sump. I then wiped the housing and the diff gasket surfaces with acetone and applied Permatex "ULTRA Blue" silicone gasket maker onto the housing.
Again with the help of the floor jack I hoisted the diff assembly into place and fastened it onto the housing. I know it looks much the same as it did in the "before" pic but rest assured it's cleaned, adjusted, and re-sealed. It was a bit of work but I feel better knowing what's going on in there. On to the wheel bearings!
I ended up making up a new line for the right side but the one to the left side looked really good so I put it back on after cleaning it up. I think it must have been replaced already at some point.
With the front hard lines taken care of I figured that I aught to work on the wheel bearings and brakes so I have something to hook them up to. I reckoned the rear was the best place to start as it's easier.
I got to thinking about it and came to the conclusion that I really should pull the diffs while I'm in there. I don't intend to rebuild them at this point unless I have to but I really should check them out at the least just to make sure they aren't going to blow up on me. I pullled the rear axles and drained the remaining crud from the housing. Yes there was water. Not much mind you but it was there. The diff nuts came off fairly easily and with the help of a floor jack I had the diff housing out and onto the floor pretty quickly.
Surprisingly it looks really good! No broken teeth or gears, no excessive wear, and no rust. Sweet! It needs bearings but not in an "Emergency!" sort of way so I cleaned it up some and pressed a new pinion seal into place. The old one was so bad it's compression spring was outside the seal! Good thing I had a look. I wire-wheeled the nuts and blew them out so I'm not struggling with them when while laying on my back under the vehicle and trying to do four arms worth of work with just two.
Again with the help of the floor jack I hoisted the diff assembly into place and fastened it onto the housing. I know it looks much the same as it did in the "before" pic but rest assured it's cleaned, adjusted, and re-sealed. It was a bit of work but I feel better knowing what's going on in there. On to the wheel bearings!
SeriesG
Offroader
Once the rear diff was back in its housing I went about ripping off the brakes and hubs. As anticipated the steel brake lines didn't give up their positions easily and will have to be replaced. Everything else came off alright though and once the excess crud was scraped off, went into a Rubbermaid container full of warm citric acid solution. Hopefully by tomorrow sometime the parts will be ready for final cleaning and a bit of paint. Then I can reassemble and go on to the front axle!
OOOwwwww that's rusty !!
Looks like the 'fluid' I found in my front axle, not much sign of oil. I take it you have re-used those nylon nuts? not something I like to do myself, but I do understand your lack of supply for parts. I would be tempted to keep an eye on those as you run the vehicle and It might be worth adding those to the shopping list and replace them with new. Just to be on the safe side.So before I could fasten down my radiator I needed to replace the front brake lines. I can do it later but it's easier now. I had bought a cheapo chinese-made double-flaring tool but it proved substandard so I bought another one: it's similar to the one @Big Sandy recommended but was available overnight on Amazon and less expensive so I went for it. It works much better than the china kit. I also quickly turned out a bending mandrel on the lathe from a piece of scrap aluminum. Again the lathe proves handy...
View attachment 530963
View attachment 530964
I ended up making up a new line for the right side but the one to the left side looked really good so I put it back on after cleaning it up. I think it must have been replaced already at some point.
View attachment 530965
View attachment 530966
With the front hard lines taken care of I figured that I aught to work on the wheel bearings and brakes so I have something to hook them up to. I reckoned the rear was the best place to start as it's easier.
View attachment 530967
I got to thinking about it and came to the conclusion that I really should pull the diffs while I'm in there. I don't intend to rebuild them at this point unless I have to but I really should check them out at the least just to make sure they aren't going to blow up on me. I pullled the rear axles and drained the remaining crud from the housing. Yes there was water. Not much mind you but it was there. The diff nuts came off fairly easily and with the help of a floor jack I had the diff housing out and onto the floor pretty quickly.
View attachment 530968
View attachment 530969
View attachment 530970
Surprisingly it looks really good! No broken teeth or gears, no excessive wear, and no rust. Sweet! It needs bearings but not in an "Emergency!" sort of way so I cleaned it up some and pressed a new pinion seal into place. The old one was so bad it's compression spring was outside the seal! Good thing I had a look. I wire-wheeled the nuts and blew them out so I'm not struggling with them when while laying on my back under the vehicle and trying to do four arms worth of work with just two.
View attachment 530971
View attachment 530972I then ran a wire brush over the housing studs, scraped, filed, and cleaned the gasket surface, and dobbed the rest of the crud out of the diff sump. I then wiped the housing and the diff gasket surfaces with acetone and applied Permatex "ULTRA Blue" silicone gasket maker onto the housing.
View attachment 530973
Again with the help of the floor jack I hoisted the diff assembly into place and fastened it onto the housing. I know it looks much the same as it did in the "before" pic but rest assured it's cleaned, adjusted, and re-sealed. It was a bit of work but I feel better knowing what's going on in there. On to the wheel bearings!
View attachment 530974
I don't know looks like a nice caramel sauce
Maple syrup surely..?
Those diffs are heavy I do believe I have the scar on my lip to prove it ..great work there 
So before I could fasten down my radiator I needed to replace the front brake lines. I can do it later but it's easier now. I had bought a cheapo chinese-made double-flaring tool but it proved substandard so I bought another one: it's similar to the one @Big Sandy recommended but was available overnight on Amazon and less expensive so I went for it. It works much better than the china kit. I also quickly turned out a bending mandrel on the lathe from a piece of scrap aluminum. Again the lathe proves handy...
View attachment 530963
View attachment 530964
I ended up making up a new line for the right side but the one to the left side looked really good so I put it back on after cleaning it up. I think it must have been replaced already at some point.
View attachment 530965
View attachment 530966
With the front hard lines taken care of I figured that I aught to work on the wheel bearings and brakes so I have something to hook them up to. I reckoned the rear was the best place to start as it's easier.
View attachment 530967
I got to thinking about it and came to the conclusion that I really should pull the diffs while I'm in there. I don't intend to rebuild them at this point unless I have to but I really should check them out at the least just to make sure they aren't going to blow up on me. I pullled the rear axles and drained the remaining crud from the housing. Yes there was water. Not much mind you but it was there. The diff nuts came off fairly easily and with the help of a floor jack I had the diff housing out and onto the floor pretty quickly.
View attachment 530968
View attachment 530969
View attachment 530970
Surprisingly it looks really good! No broken teeth or gears, no excessive wear, and no rust. Sweet! It needs bearings but not in an "Emergency!" sort of way so I cleaned it up some and pressed a new pinion seal into place. The old one was so bad it's compression spring was outside the seal! Good thing I had a look. I wire-wheeled the nuts and blew them out so I'm not struggling with them when while laying on my back under the vehicle and trying to do four arms worth of work with just two.
View attachment 530971
View attachment 530972I then ran a wire brush over the housing studs, scraped, filed, and cleaned the gasket surface, and dobbed the rest of the crud out of the diff sump. I then wiped the housing and the diff gasket surfaces with acetone and applied Permatex "ULTRA Blue" silicone gasket maker onto the housing.
View attachment 530973
Again with the help of the floor jack I hoisted the diff assembly into place and fastened it onto the housing. I know it looks much the same as it did in the "before" pic but rest assured it's cleaned, adjusted, and re-sealed. It was a bit of work but I feel better knowing what's going on in there. On to the wheel bearings!
View attachment 530974
Whatever gets you off I guess.
This is turning into a really familiar journey, as when I got my vehicle everything I looked at needed something doing and it became an excercise in deciding what I could ignore.
For 6 years...and counting
SeriesG
Offroader
I pulled the pieces from the acid solution after about a 12 hour soak and the majority of the rust is gone. Once rinsed and dried off they look great. Much less work will be needed to finish them up now.
Just for fun I also soaked the worst bearing of the lot. It's unusable of course but it's amazing how much better it looks now. The citric acid thing IS a bit of a bother but if managed properly it is a wonderful de-rusting method.
Just for fun I also soaked the worst bearing of the lot. It's unusable of course but it's amazing how much better it looks now. The citric acid thing IS a bit of a bother but if managed properly it is a wonderful de-rusting method.
SeriesG
Offroader
I did some light wire brushing of the cleaned parts and then a bit of painting. I know it's all going to rust again eventually but a spritz of good paint over freshly cleaned surfaces helps to stave off the inevitable for a while at least. And besides... it looks good right now.
I bolted up the backing plate and brake parts which took a some juggling and referencing the manual as well as pictures found online. I think I've got it right but if anyone thinks anything different please do let me know.
I installed the new wheel bearings in the hub with Shell GADUS S3 V220C 2 grease and a new Corteco seal. I'm not entirely sure that's the ultimate lube or not but I think it should do for now at least. With the axle torqued down to the outer flange with a new felt seal I tightened it in place. Right hand side all together!
I then went at making up a new RH steel brake line. The wheel cylinder end was a double flare but the T-manifold side on the axle housing was a bubble flare. With some experimentation I found that the first stage of the double flaring process appeared to make a bubble flare looking end so I went with that. It felt like it sealed when I tightened it up but I guess we'll see when I bleed it. Anyway, the right-hand side of the rear axle is done. Tomorrow I'll tackle the other side.
One of tonight's background movies was "Beyond Mombasa" and I was happy to see a sweet Series 1 rumbling along in it. It was kind of unique with it's funny looking tub. Neat!
I bolted up the backing plate and brake parts which took a some juggling and referencing the manual as well as pictures found online. I think I've got it right but if anyone thinks anything different please do let me know.
I installed the new wheel bearings in the hub with Shell GADUS S3 V220C 2 grease and a new Corteco seal. I'm not entirely sure that's the ultimate lube or not but I think it should do for now at least. With the axle torqued down to the outer flange with a new felt seal I tightened it in place. Right hand side all together!
I then went at making up a new RH steel brake line. The wheel cylinder end was a double flare but the T-manifold side on the axle housing was a bubble flare. With some experimentation I found that the first stage of the double flaring process appeared to make a bubble flare looking end so I went with that. It felt like it sealed when I tightened it up but I guess we'll see when I bleed it. Anyway, the right-hand side of the rear axle is done. Tomorrow I'll tackle the other side.
One of tonight's background movies was "Beyond Mombasa" and I was happy to see a sweet Series 1 rumbling along in it. It was kind of unique with it's funny looking tub. Neat!