I’ve set about fixing the issues I caused last week. Here are a few pictures and videos of the progress. First it was off with thw track rods, as some of the ends had badly split rubbers and though there was little play, I feel that it’s a good idea to just replace the ends while I am here. So they’re on order now. Next the half shafts came out. Then I popped the prop off and the diff out, it’s still locked up, I dragged out my old diff and checked the back lash, adjusted it a touch. So now it’s a case of waiting for the order of new bits to turn up. The diff can go back in, half shafts back in. then when the track rod ends turn up I can put that all back toegether and it should be road worthy once more. Then I […]
Went out along Waxall Lane from Chilfrome end, with a friend in his Disco 3. It was good until the junction that goes down to the Irish Bridge. This point was very badly washed out, and perhaps had been driven rather lot when wet, maybe by something with much bigger wheels than my LR. I did wonder if had been a tractor. Either way I got very stuck and pulled out twice. The second time a valve stem got broken off causing a flat tyre. While stuck at one point I felt something in the steering system give and now the wheels aren’t aligned anymore. Also the locking diff is stuck engaged. Other than those three minor incidents and the lack of any real distance covered, it was a ace laning session. Now I’ve got some work to do before it’s drivable again.
Well actuality I think I’ve got a noise in a diff or perhaps else where. So I jacked up the front and spun a the wheels and prop, but could hear nothing out of the ordinary, but this lead to some routine maintenance being carried out. I need to find a way of recording this information. I failed to find the noises I was looking for but also haven’t driven it since doing this, so can’t be sure that I’ve not resolved it accidentally. Anyway, a good job was done. I still think there is a lot of back lash in the rear diff, but I need to find the enthusiasm to take it off the road for a day or two to do it.
I ddid Gascoigne Lane again at the weekend. The southern crossing I skipped as it looked very deep, which gave me confidence that the northern most crossing would have been less washed out during winter and would be easily passable. So I headed into the northern one and soon realised that my feet were getting wet, so it was deeper than I’d hoped.
I ordered a coupler/bush, to adapt from some female metric thread to 1/4″ BSP male thread of thew air line. I guessed it was M10 ish thread on the inflater thingy. I guessed wrong. It was perhaps M12. I don’t know, and now it doesn’t matter anyway. The metal filler stuff, similar to plastic padding came out and resolved the issue permenantly.
After driving the Land Rover on the beach the other week, I was prompted to think about my tyre pressures. I could easily reduce them but of cause re-pressuising them is harder. I had in mind that I could added a quick coupler to the air system that is used to operate the diff and then I’d have access to about 5 liters of 100 psi air. I had previously purchased a coiled air line and a tyre infalter thing, but hadn’t thought about how exactly I’d do it. In the end I just got on with it and did it. Done. One full tank will do one tyre from nearly totally flat to 20 psi, it’s unlikely that my tyres will be that flat, but the compressor will have to run at least a couple of times to do all four tyres.
I was finding that adjusting the windscreen wiper knob was difficult when driving due to it’s small size and the minimal protrusion from the dashbaord surface. We we’re out last weekend when Abigail had some kin dof pouch of food stuff, this came with a lovely cap which I thought would work perfectly as a knob… The red thing: I’ve not used it yet, it seems to be okay, just epoxied it to the old knob, so not a lot of going back now.
Dan and I embarked on a twilight drive, tracing the sinuous curves of Burton Road, winding my way from Abbotsbury to West Bexington. The timing was deliberate; a calculated decision predicated on the serendipitous span of dry weather, a respite that had endured for the better part of a week. A diligent perusal of TrailWise had forewarned me: in inclement conditions, this thoroughfare becomes a quagmire, an impassable terrain unforgiving to the unprepared traveler. As I navigated the road, a medley of earthy scents intermingled with the gentle hum of the engine, punctuated only by the occasional splash of water beneath the wheels. Puddles, like scattered jewels, dotted the path sporadically, yet the road remained mercifully unmarred, its integrity preserved by the benign weather. Above, the sky unfurled in a grandiose display of evening hues, casting an ethereal glow upon Dorset’s revered Jurassic coast, a panorama of unparalleled beauty stretching […]
There was a little flooding of the river again over the road. I went to play in the flood water.. Once I found the tree I nipped home (back through the flooding) for my axe and hand saw and set about clearing it. I had great fun for a couple of hours.
I had a tin of red gloss Humbrol paint that was just lounging in a draw. When I spotted it some time back I thought about doing the wheel centers and wheel nuts in red. I made start of the other day: I am thinking that I’ll clean up the wheel centers and do them in red also. I might remove the drop from the Land Rover text, not sure yet.
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