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#Post#: 30723--------------------------------------------------
The Shed!
DIR By: inglishg
Date: July 12, 2012, 5:20 pm
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This is my baby! Bought it several years ago without an MOT for
"an 'undred squid". It's a 1965 S2a which still has a number of
original military features.
Eventually after standing for a year or so, a good friend in
Sarf Wales devoted some time to getting it back on the road
(some significant chassis repairs were needed where the
underseal which the squaddies had 'lovingly' applied, had
cracked and allowed damp to be held against the chassis and
caused corrosion.
So, in 2009 The Shed returned to the road!
One noticeable feature was that the gearbox was noisy in all
gears except 4th, but I put that down to a duff gearbox, and I
thought I would replace it at some point, but until then, I was
always glad to get into 4th gear to make driving a little less
harsh on the ears.
I used The Shed mainly on short journeys, except for one major
trip for some greenlaning in the Lakes.
On one steep hill climb (up to Hartshead Moor Cafe) using 1st &
2nd gear low-box the gearbox noise was clearly "wrong" so I
thought I'd check the oil level. I was a little taken aback,
when I put in over 1 ltr of oil :eek:
I'd been told the fluids had all been done when the Landy was
put back on the road.
Anyway, the gearbox was now relatively quiet in all gears! But a
subsequent check of the oil revealed it was heavily contaminated
with copper bearings - it looked like the oil contained copper
grease - so it was obvious the gearbox had been terminally
damaged by driving it so much with no oil.
However, I continued to use The Shed, and the next major trip
was an off-road weekend at Coney Green (near Worcs) with the DTC
(Doctored Title Club). This was a 130 mile treck, but The Shed
made the journey effortlessly.
The problem came, when I made a daft decision to head for a mud
run on the Saturday morning. I was hesitant about attempting it,
but a bit of bravado and an audience - including our own
Feelinperky - had me selecting 4WD and 2nd gear and dipping the
front in. I soon got stuck.
I climbed out and onto the bonnet and awaitied Feelinperky to
throw me his winch cable so I could hitch it onto the front so
he could drag me through the rest of the mud run and out the
other side.
All seemed fine, and off I went to play again.
Later that day, one of the guys needed to be taken off-site to
buy some Landy spares, and I offered to take him. This was a 30
mile journey, but The Shed was running great, and it was a good
excuse to show off my pride and joy.
On the way there, I commented that the engine was sounding a
little noisy, and the gearbox was beginning to feel particularly
"loose". Anyway, we got to the garage, and whilst the guy was
buying his bits, I flipped open the bonnet to check the fluids.
Strange, I thought...why is the oil level so far up the
dip-stick. Then I wiped the oil off the dip-stick to re-check
the level, and I felt the oil was "gritty". I realised that when
I was stuck in the mud-run, I had left the engine turning over,
and the muddy water had enetered the engine via the rocker
breather and the filler neck. The sump was full of a grinding
paste. I was now producing noticeable amounts of blue smoke...
I also had the prospect of a 30 mile return journey, knowing I
was destroying the engine all the way back.
I did buy some new oil, and back at Coney Green I dropped the
oil and filled with new, but the engine sounded terrible. It was
very poorly.
But, there was still another day of playing to be had, and I
carried on like a gud 'un!
The gearbox continued to get worse, and eventually, selecting
reverse would often find 1st, or even no drive at all. Later it
got totally hit and miss about whether selecting a gear would do
anything at all!
By the end of the afternoon, The Shed was as good as dead, and I
had to phone for the Orange Taxi to take me home.
Then, The Shed spent towards a year looking very forlorn and
unloved. A group of friends came up one weekend to help replace
the engine and gearbox, but it was a further year or so before I
put my hand in my pocket and asked another friend to get The
Shed MOT'd, and about 6 weeks ago The Shed was back on the road
again!
Now, I'm just trying to improve the comfort and practicallity,
and try to make The Shed a little easier on the eye. It really
is a "shed" at the moment.
Fortunately, the guy who lives opposite is a fantastic neighbour
and is keen on carrying out cosmetic repairs. Tomorrow the work
starts!
I suspect that when he has done his bit - which may take quite
some time, I may need to choose a new name, as The Shed might be
a little insulting to my good neighbour. We will see.
#Post#: 30724--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: inglishg
Date: July 12, 2012, 5:39 pm
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Before any problems...
[IMG]
HTML http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/inglishg/Coney%20Green%20May%202009/IMGP1550.jpg[/img]
Not a good place to park with the engine running! (filling the
sump with muddy water!)
[IMG]
HTML http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/inglishg/Coney%20Green%20May%202009/IMGP1566.jpg[/img]
Feelinperky to the rescue!
[IMG]
HTML http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/inglishg/Coney%20Green%20May%202009/IMGP1571.jpg[/img]
[IMG]
HTML http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/inglishg/Coney%20Green%20May%202009/IMGP1572.jpg[/img]
Replacing the engine & gearbox. I really appreciated all the
help from so many fantastic "Landy" friends.
[IMG]
HTML http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/inglishg/The%20Shed%20rebuild%20-%20March%202010/IMGP2261.jpg[/img]
[IMG]
HTML http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/inglishg/The%20Shed%20rebuild%20-%20March%202010/IMGP2263.jpg[/img]
[IMG]
HTML http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v332/inglishg/The%20Shed%20rebuild%20-%20March%202010/IMGP2265.jpg[/img]
I'll post more pics as the cosmetic work is carried out.
#Post#: 30733--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: Drew 5292
Date: July 13, 2012, 1:04 am
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Great story so far 8)
Keep the patina'd blue. You can't buy that again.
#Post#: 30744--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: mr.scruff
Date: July 13, 2012, 4:03 am
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That's a nice old bus
#Post#: 30756--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: inglishg
Date: July 13, 2012, 7:25 am
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--- Quote from: Drew 5292 link ---
>
> Great story so far 8)
>
> Keep the patina'd blue. You can't buy that again.
>
--- End Quote ---
Ah...it might be a little late...
Today, the neighbour is working on preparing the body for a new
colour...
I do agree though, that I like the current colour, but it's
flaking off at present and needs sorting (says the wife!)
#Post#: 30821--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: Landyphil
Date: July 13, 2012, 1:22 pm
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Just don't let Neil "Snaplegs" influence you're decision of
colour!
#Post#: 30926--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: inglishg
Date: July 14, 2012, 3:42 pm
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Snaplegs ain't influencing the colour...
It's gunna be BLACK!
Today, the bodywork continued to be prepared, and this evening a
primer coat has been applied.
Tomorrow, it'll be wet-n-dried in preparation for the top coat.
I'll post some pics over the coming days...
#Post#: 31001--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: feelinperky
Date: July 15, 2012, 9:43 am
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yes i remember pretty much all of this! rofl i liked the blue
colour, shame its going! im sure danny will soon reduce the
paintwork to its previous hue! :thumbs:
#Post#: 31110--------------------------------------------------
Re: The Shed!
DIR By: inglishg
Date: July 16, 2012, 7:31 am
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Blue is now Black!
I don't know whether to risk posting a pic of the current
looks...
It's entirely gloss black...including all the cappings and the
bumpers.
The paintwork will be wet n dried over the coming couple of
weeks, to totally flatten any brush marks. We then may apply a
couple of coats of laquer!
Oh, and how about tinted windows :eek:
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