More Stickers Please.
Published Monday, October 30, 2006 by Chris Lawler.
Having given the Trooper a new paint job we are now desperately trying to cover it up with sponsorship logos. WE ARE LOOKING FOR A FURTHER CASH SPONSOR TO HELP GET THE TROOPER DOWN TO THE GAMBIA. Please help or get in touch if you know someone or a company which can help!!
Vegantune Ramblings
Published by Chris Lawler.
Right then children. If anyone reads this post in its entirety you got too much spare time and if my Mother reads this I am aware of the atrocious grammar sentence construction and or spelling and intend to do nothing about it.
To summarise I spent a week at Vegantune running myself ragged to get quite a serious amount of work done on the Trooper, what follows is a rambling account of what I got done, not forgetting Mr Branfields contribution on sat, perhaps I'll put up another post about the MkI landrover I'm glad we're not driving to Gambia.
I've the work down by area on the car not by chronolgical order.
Brakes
Both front discs and pads needed replacing, removal of the discs requires removal of the entire auto locking front hubs, handy but at least I know how they work now!
Front right behaved itself generally and the calliper was fine after a brief clean and flush through, it was suffering slightly from excessive pad and disc wear causing over extension of the calliper piston.
The front left calliper refused point blank to be removed from the calliper carrier, closer inspection revealed the upper pivot pin was seized inside the calliper, also the cause of the Trooper pulling to the right under braking. Removing the pin was somewhat emotional and included a trip to the local machine shop but was finally resolved by Gary a blowtorch and a hammer, a deadly combination that stubborn pieces of machinery rarely survive.
Having cleaned and reassembled the calliper an initial bleed of the brakes revealed that the pin was also bent. I think this was already bent and contributed to the pin seizing. The result was to hold the calliper un-parallel to the surface of the disc, when the pedal was pressed the calliper first re-aligned, flexing the carrier casting before applying any real braking force, resulting in a crap brake pedal and the likelihood of the brittle casting failing from fatigue.
The pin was ‘persuaded’ back into alignment by yours truly while someone sat in the drivers seat applying the pedal so I could visual inspect the amount and direction of flex. I would like to point out that was an edited and abridged version of events that that in no way captures the unrelenting stream of appalling language and general level of violence aimed at said inanimate object over a 3-4 hour period.
Rear drums were removed and shoes inspected, all found to be tickety boo. Minor lip to drums ground back, drums cleaned, repainted and refitted.
Brakes re-bled and voila, one correctly performing brake pedal.
Front Hubs
Whilst removing the front auto locking hubs I noticed damaged to the left inner bearing seal, the inner bearing race was difficult to remove and closer inspection revealed heaving scuffing and pickup on the stub shaft indicating that a previous bearing had seized and rotated on the shaft.
The bearings didn’t look standard and I may have modified the cage a little during removal so the whole assembly was replaced, involving removal of the bearing seats from the hub itself so new matched pairs can be pressed in. The scuffing on the stub shaft also had to be ground back to allow refitting of the inner bearing.
Both sides were thoroughly cleaned and repacked with lithium grease before re-assembly.
Front lower ball joint
The gaiter had long given up the ghost and the joint was dry and on its last legs and needed replacing. Typically the ball joint bone was connected to the upright bone which was connected to the drive shaft bone which got right in the way of ball joint removal so the top joint had to be cracked, the damper removed, hub half disassembled and driveshaft removed whilst levering out the old joint and replacing. Some of the loads in play are quite significant as the front torsion spring is loaded up to allow removal, again bad language ensued before all was well in the land of suspension.
Rear Diff/Propshaft
The pinion shaft on the rear diff was loose and some muppet had silicone sealed the flange between the shaft and diff to preent oil lose rather than re-torque the shaft which was duly tightend. Job done. Oil was dropped and refilled including a dose of Megapower 1010 lubricant additive.
Engine
Plugs, leads, dizzy cap and rotor and air filter replaced.
Inspection revealed the belt round the water pump was mis-aligned. Removal was require anyway to replace the cam belt. Having finally removed the plastic covers I was able to see there was no adjustment in the water pump shaft i.e. the water pump was working but had modified itself, possibly due to the force applied by the crap thermo-viscous fan attached to the shaft. Inspection revealed a polished length of shaft where the mounting boss used to sit. New water pump ordered.
Cam belt replaced amid usual ringing of hands, have I missed a tooth, is the timing out, is this a interference engine, are the valves going to contact and will the world stop spinning. It didn’t.
Various accessory belts replaced with new items during rebuild.
To allow access I removed the rad, whilst it was out I fitted a proper kenlow electic fan directly to the matrix. This removes the thermo-viscous wonder and a now redundant piece of cowling that was restricting air flow which will help cooling no end.
Oil and filter replaced with a Mega power engine flush and treatment.
Fuel filter replaced and re-routed as the pattern part casing was too big to fit in the original position.
Finally the engine was run with a Mega Power FISC system and additive added to the tank to clean through engine internals. Valve heads and seats etc.
The Cost
This is a quick breakdown of costs and value of the work.
Parts at cost £343
Parts at RRP £460
Mega Power FISC £90
Oils and Fluids £60
Sundries £20
Labour 5 days ~ 40 chargable hours @ £65/hour = £2600
Sub Total £3230 + VAT
Total £3795
This is a rough costing but safe to say that you just paid for this work though a garage it would cost well in excess of £3000. Of course in reality, this would never happen as it far outweighs the value of the vehicle but at least it illustrates the value we’ve added to the Trooper.
Finally thanks to Vegantune, Crazy Horses Racing and Simon at Jet and Helicopter I came out from the weekend having spent a net total of £38 pounds!! This is tied up in parts that were not used and could be returned i.e. would could achieve a net outlay of £0 but we’re hanging on to them to donate with the Trooper.
To summarise I spent a week at Vegantune running myself ragged to get quite a serious amount of work done on the Trooper, what follows is a rambling account of what I got done, not forgetting Mr Branfields contribution on sat, perhaps I'll put up another post about the MkI landrover I'm glad we're not driving to Gambia.
I've the work down by area on the car not by chronolgical order.
Brakes
Both front discs and pads needed replacing, removal of the discs requires removal of the entire auto locking front hubs, handy but at least I know how they work now!
Front right behaved itself generally and the calliper was fine after a brief clean and flush through, it was suffering slightly from excessive pad and disc wear causing over extension of the calliper piston.
The front left calliper refused point blank to be removed from the calliper carrier, closer inspection revealed the upper pivot pin was seized inside the calliper, also the cause of the Trooper pulling to the right under braking. Removing the pin was somewhat emotional and included a trip to the local machine shop but was finally resolved by Gary a blowtorch and a hammer, a deadly combination that stubborn pieces of machinery rarely survive.
Having cleaned and reassembled the calliper an initial bleed of the brakes revealed that the pin was also bent. I think this was already bent and contributed to the pin seizing. The result was to hold the calliper un-parallel to the surface of the disc, when the pedal was pressed the calliper first re-aligned, flexing the carrier casting before applying any real braking force, resulting in a crap brake pedal and the likelihood of the brittle casting failing from fatigue.
The pin was ‘persuaded’ back into alignment by yours truly while someone sat in the drivers seat applying the pedal so I could visual inspect the amount and direction of flex. I would like to point out that was an edited and abridged version of events that that in no way captures the unrelenting stream of appalling language and general level of violence aimed at said inanimate object over a 3-4 hour period.
Rear drums were removed and shoes inspected, all found to be tickety boo. Minor lip to drums ground back, drums cleaned, repainted and refitted.
Brakes re-bled and voila, one correctly performing brake pedal.
Front Hubs
Whilst removing the front auto locking hubs I noticed damaged to the left inner bearing seal, the inner bearing race was difficult to remove and closer inspection revealed heaving scuffing and pickup on the stub shaft indicating that a previous bearing had seized and rotated on the shaft.
The bearings didn’t look standard and I may have modified the cage a little during removal so the whole assembly was replaced, involving removal of the bearing seats from the hub itself so new matched pairs can be pressed in. The scuffing on the stub shaft also had to be ground back to allow refitting of the inner bearing.
Both sides were thoroughly cleaned and repacked with lithium grease before re-assembly.
Front lower ball joint
The gaiter had long given up the ghost and the joint was dry and on its last legs and needed replacing. Typically the ball joint bone was connected to the upright bone which was connected to the drive shaft bone which got right in the way of ball joint removal so the top joint had to be cracked, the damper removed, hub half disassembled and driveshaft removed whilst levering out the old joint and replacing. Some of the loads in play are quite significant as the front torsion spring is loaded up to allow removal, again bad language ensued before all was well in the land of suspension.
Rear Diff/Propshaft
The pinion shaft on the rear diff was loose and some muppet had silicone sealed the flange between the shaft and diff to preent oil lose rather than re-torque the shaft which was duly tightend. Job done. Oil was dropped and refilled including a dose of Megapower 1010 lubricant additive.
Engine
Plugs, leads, dizzy cap and rotor and air filter replaced.
Inspection revealed the belt round the water pump was mis-aligned. Removal was require anyway to replace the cam belt. Having finally removed the plastic covers I was able to see there was no adjustment in the water pump shaft i.e. the water pump was working but had modified itself, possibly due to the force applied by the crap thermo-viscous fan attached to the shaft. Inspection revealed a polished length of shaft where the mounting boss used to sit. New water pump ordered.
Cam belt replaced amid usual ringing of hands, have I missed a tooth, is the timing out, is this a interference engine, are the valves going to contact and will the world stop spinning. It didn’t.
Various accessory belts replaced with new items during rebuild.
To allow access I removed the rad, whilst it was out I fitted a proper kenlow electic fan directly to the matrix. This removes the thermo-viscous wonder and a now redundant piece of cowling that was restricting air flow which will help cooling no end.
Oil and filter replaced with a Mega power engine flush and treatment.
Fuel filter replaced and re-routed as the pattern part casing was too big to fit in the original position.
Finally the engine was run with a Mega Power FISC system and additive added to the tank to clean through engine internals. Valve heads and seats etc.
The Cost
This is a quick breakdown of costs and value of the work.
Parts at cost £343
Parts at RRP £460
Mega Power FISC £90
Oils and Fluids £60
Sundries £20
Labour 5 days ~ 40 chargable hours @ £65/hour = £2600
Sub Total £3230 + VAT
Total £3795
This is a rough costing but safe to say that you just paid for this work though a garage it would cost well in excess of £3000. Of course in reality, this would never happen as it far outweighs the value of the vehicle but at least it illustrates the value we’ve added to the Trooper.
Finally thanks to Vegantune, Crazy Horses Racing and Simon at Jet and Helicopter I came out from the weekend having spent a net total of £38 pounds!! This is tied up in parts that were not used and could be returned i.e. would could achieve a net outlay of £0 but we’re hanging on to them to donate with the Trooper.
I asked if we could actually have one of each.......
Published Monday, October 16, 2006 by Chris Lawler.
..which was a non starter but Simon Gusterson very kindly donated £100 to help out with our parts bill from last week. Simon races with Vegantune and is pictured below at Lydden hill earlier this year.
Thank you very much Simon
Look out for Simon's 2007 attack on the Clio Cup in a new Vegantune prepped vehicle test spanked by Rich at the weekend!!
Brute force and Ignorance
Published by Chris Lawler.
Full write up to follow of my week at Vegantune and the work we got done on the car to come. This is just to say a massive thank you to Rich at Vegantune and Gary at Crazy Horses for their help over the week and to Stuart from QLM for the oil, lubricant additives and FISC service. There is no way I could of got a quarter of the work done without your help, cheers chaps.
Watch out Europe.
Published Friday, October 13, 2006 by Dave Branfield.
Not quite understanding the true extent of what they are unleashing on the rest of Europe and North Africa (something must have been lost in the translation of 'charging yellow beast' and 'run for the hills'), SeaFrance has just foolishly provided us with a ticket to ride...
The general consensus on the P2B chat portal is that there will be some sort of gathering at Hyde Park on Sunday 17th Dec, where all assembled will cough and splutter past Gav's Dad whilst people look on in shock, horror and disbelief! We will, of course, be there with knobs and warm weather gear on. Good lord, there really is no turning back now!
Knee Update
Published Wednesday, October 11, 2006 by Dave Branfield.
For those interested, I went to the doctor yesterday to have a look at the state of my knee.
It appears that I've torn the meniscus cartilege in my left knee and the joint won't straighten or 'lock'. Looks like keyhole surgery for me, then. With 9 weeks to go before blast off (so to speak), I just hope that I can get seen by the surgon within around 4 or 5 weeks time! As ever, my curiosity got the better of me and I had to have a poke around on Wikipedia to see what they said. It makes me feel a bit sick...
"One procedure involves threading long needles into the meniscus and out an incision in the back of the knee through the aid of a guide tube called a cannula. The suture thread ends are tied together on the outside of the knee capsule layer to bring the tear together. Another procedure requires specially designed devices that employ multiple sutures and knot pusher instruments to allow surgeons to provide excellent meniscal repair with just a single 1 ½” incision.
The majority of meniscal tears are not suitable for repair and instead the torn piece is removed, known as a menisectomy."
Taken from www.wikipedia.com
Yummy! Not even Ed the Crock can save me here!
On the up side, Chris is embedded and making a nuisence of himself at Vegantune and should be doing some updates on the car fixing scenario. The 'One Woman Army' that is my mother, has started fundraising for us with typical gusto and an early report states that £20 has been raised so far at her end. Watch out good people of Wormingford and Colchester! Thanks Mum, we are now looking at a £65 total and I haven't started properly yet for obvious reasons!
Dave.
It appears that I've torn the meniscus cartilege in my left knee and the joint won't straighten or 'lock'. Looks like keyhole surgery for me, then. With 9 weeks to go before blast off (so to speak), I just hope that I can get seen by the surgon within around 4 or 5 weeks time! As ever, my curiosity got the better of me and I had to have a poke around on Wikipedia to see what they said. It makes me feel a bit sick...
"One procedure involves threading long needles into the meniscus and out an incision in the back of the knee through the aid of a guide tube called a cannula. The suture thread ends are tied together on the outside of the knee capsule layer to bring the tear together. Another procedure requires specially designed devices that employ multiple sutures and knot pusher instruments to allow surgeons to provide excellent meniscal repair with just a single 1 ½” incision.
The majority of meniscal tears are not suitable for repair and instead the torn piece is removed, known as a menisectomy."
Taken from www.wikipedia.com
Yummy! Not even Ed the Crock can save me here!
On the up side, Chris is embedded and making a nuisence of himself at Vegantune and should be doing some updates on the car fixing scenario. The 'One Woman Army' that is my mother, has started fundraising for us with typical gusto and an early report states that £20 has been raised so far at her end. Watch out good people of Wormingford and Colchester! Thanks Mum, we are now looking at a £65 total and I haven't started properly yet for obvious reasons!
Dave.
SPONSOR US NOW!
Published Friday, October 06, 2006 by Dave Branfield.
So HOT off the press that it HURTS!
The IBFC Publicity Brigade have been whipped into action and I have before me another graphical masterpiece that any 70s Disco-Night promoters would be proud of.
Chris and I will be brandishing these pieces of A4 wherever we go now and as you stare in disbelief at the cutting edge visuals, we'll be right there harrassing you for as much money as you've got!! Three poeple have already fallen foul of the charm offensive - Many thanks to Sam, Ruth and Pippa who've donated £45 already! Spot on. Seriously, we need to raise around £4000 before our Dec 16th departure date, so give whatever you can, its much appreciated. I'm giving one to Gav for his office, with the promise that if he fills it up, we'll send in a special IBFC cake for their trouble! GET INVOLVED PEOPLE!!!!
SAUSAGE!!!!
Published Tuesday, October 03, 2006 by Chris Lawler.
Yup thats right, with one member using crutches and the other sporting a feindish hangover and the war cry of SAUSAGE!!, Team IBRAKEFORCAKE produced all their secret ninja moves from the government and launched themselves at the Vegantune garage in North London, with surprisingly litle resistance!! Dave...
Me and Davros
Hmm, something missing.
The other cars at Vegantune look on at the Trooper with envy...
Anti bonnet mishap device
no trip would be complete without.......
Dave and myself have been up to Vegantune to give the Trooper the visual once over and get a handle on what’s hot and what’s not before I have some time off in the week beginning the 16th October to actually carry out the work proper. Thanks to Gary, now next door to Vegantune at Wild Horses Racing, for some appliance of pry bar and a vast amount of experience where necessary.
Minor Works Carried Out
Fit bonnet pins and catch as the original catch is broken
Re-wire RH rear light cluster as the side light wasn’t working
Topped up and checked engine and transmission oil
Battery terminals replaced
Battery refitted properly
Air filter is horribly clogged
More stickers!!
Results of a stern looking at
Front pads and unfortunately disc are completely NFG
RH front caliper is very, very sticky
Front lower ball joints, excessive play. Need replacing
Rear live axle diff drive very loose
I am now on the look out for a local motor factor who might be willing to help us out with some if not all of the parts we need including a roof rack. Next up, pilfering visit to the local scrappy to look for interesting bits, mainly spot lamps.
Laters
Me and Davros
Hmm, something missing.
The other cars at Vegantune look on at the Trooper with envy...
Anti bonnet mishap device
no trip would be complete without.......
Dave and myself have been up to Vegantune to give the Trooper the visual once over and get a handle on what’s hot and what’s not before I have some time off in the week beginning the 16th October to actually carry out the work proper. Thanks to Gary, now next door to Vegantune at Wild Horses Racing, for some appliance of pry bar and a vast amount of experience where necessary.
Minor Works Carried Out
Fit bonnet pins and catch as the original catch is broken
Re-wire RH rear light cluster as the side light wasn’t working
Topped up and checked engine and transmission oil
Battery terminals replaced
Battery refitted properly
Air filter is horribly clogged
More stickers!!
Results of a stern looking at
Front pads and unfortunately disc are completely NFG
RH front caliper is very, very sticky
Front lower ball joints, excessive play. Need replacing
Rear live axle diff drive very loose
I am now on the look out for a local motor factor who might be willing to help us out with some if not all of the parts we need including a roof rack. Next up, pilfering visit to the local scrappy to look for interesting bits, mainly spot lamps.
Laters
About us
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