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#Post#: 89267--------------------------------------------------
Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: Wooden Date: June 9, 2014, 2:25 pm
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According to the website, RDS are going to be offering new
Fairey overdrive units from August this year.
Ok, they will doubtless be ££££ (although it will be interesting
to see how they are priced compared to, say, a complete Ashcroft
series 'box); but more useful to us could be the opportunity to
purchase spares once again that have been unavailable for a
while.
We'll see...
HTML http://www.faireyoverdrive.com/
#Post#: 89287--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: Jackual Date: June 9, 2014, 5:39 pm
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Oh, They've changed the dates, When I was buying parts for my
Fairey I looked at the RDS website, and it said they were going
into production 'later this month', which at the time was April.
They must be making them now and building a stock of them for
when everyone rushes to buy one.....Yeah right.
#Post#: 89370--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: fuckwit Date: June 12, 2014, 4:43 am
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I'm not sure I can see the wisdom of this anyway. To make the
thing won't be too much cheaper that the Roverdrive design
Sorry, but the Fairrey unit is the poor relation to Roverdrive
unit, so unless it's significantly cheaper, which I can't see
how it can be by much of a margin, why would you choose to buy
one anyway?
[I run several businesses so wtih businessmans' head on]
Frankly if i was runnign that business I'd be worried. All I'm
going to get is jsut as the Wooden indicates is heaps of
customers wanting the parts for the older units, the same parts
that always fail. These customers won't want to pay all that
much beause if they did they'd buy a new unit, and those that
do want a new unit will buy a Roverdrive or Ashcroft unless I
were to price my new Fairey so low I can't make real money.
Despite it costing no less to tool-up and manufacture again, who
would I be making it for? My own vanity?
I might go into business supplying the usual parts to revamp the
old units, but the rest.... I'd be worried. Can some of you see
why?
And money where mouth is, would you tool it?
If I went into business doing that, most would want to revamp
thier old units for pennies, until I've gone broke.
#Post#: 89371--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: Wooden Date: June 12, 2014, 5:00 am
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Has anyone any experience of the Roamerdrive unit? They're about
£800 new - easily less than three times the price of a 'known to
be good' Fairey unit on t'bay (although I have seen Fairey units
tip the £500 mark lately..!).
#Post#: 89372--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: StuartN Date: June 12, 2014, 5:10 am
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I too have seen dubious second (third fourth...) hand fairy
units reach 500 on the bay.
I really want to fit an overdrive but that was a lot of money to
stick on red.
That Roamerdrive certainly seems like a better bet.
I have only seen them advertised in CLR mag, does anyone have
experience of them?
S :thumbs:
#Post#: 89394--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: niteram Date: June 12, 2014, 2:38 pm
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not that this really helps!
I have a Roverdrive fitted to my latest project,
but as I've never driven it, I can't tell you how it drives.
BUT
It's a realy nice looking piece of kit, and the finned lower
transfer case cover is pretty too.
#Post#: 89406--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: a twig Date: June 12, 2014, 4:39 pm
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I've seen rave reviews on some of the US LR forums,
expeditionportal etc, seem pretty good. Roverdrive had to
re-brand to Roamerdrive due to the copyright from LR.
#Post#: 89407--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: Sunny Jim Date: June 12, 2014, 4:56 pm
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[quote]Has anyone any experience of the Roamerdrive
unit?[/quote]
I currently have a Roverdrive fitted that has been in use since
2007. It is the earlier version which, from what they say, has a
different synchroniser in it from the current model. Prior to
that I fitted a Fairey overdrive from new in 1979 and ran it
until the major rebuild in 2006.
The Fairey worked OK for all the time and over 100,000 miles
that I had it, and it was rebuilt and sold on after the rebuild
of the Land Rover was finished.
The Roverdrive was easy to fit and the lever comes through the
same hole that the Fairey one did. I did have to bend the
operating lever on the Roverdrive myself so it fitted as the one
it came with was for left hand drive - this is in the
instructions. I also shortened it slightly. I found the
Roverdrive is quieter than the Fairey (which had a little bit of
a whine from new) but I had to adjust the detent spring on it as
it would work out of gear thrashing up a hill in overdrive
third. The adjustment was simple to do and I have not had any
problem with it since.
I also had a problem with oil leaking from the dowty washers on
the Roverdrive so had to seal them in. Despite all the warnings
about checking the oil every week on the Fairey, it never seemed
to have a problem with oil level. Note that my transfer box is
vented with a standard axle breather tapped into its top cover.
The Fairey was prone to crunching a bit on gear changes
sometimes and the Roverdrive can baulk when changing up, needing
a bit of a one-two action; it is smoother changing up at ca
50mph. You don't have to do the bit about holding it whilst
letting the clutch in.
There is no doubt that the engagement teeth on the Roverdrive
are superior to the Fairey in terms of size and strength, and
the means of securing the clutch sleeve is far better on the
Roverdrive.
I fitted my Roverdrive to a Whitehouse reconditioned suffix C
gearbox - they actually loctite the rear nut on the mainshaft to
stop it unscrewing itself over time so you need to tell them not
to! The old gearbox was left in the back garden as Whitehouse
don't bother with early gearboxes. I removed the old Fairey and
stripped it for a rebuild: I found the clutch sleeve had become
loose on the mainshaft and there was wear between the splines on
the shaft and the clutch sleeve. The engagement teeth were part
worn on both the clutch sleeve and the input shaft of the
overdrive so both were replaced. I also fitted new seals, new
springs in the synchroniser and new slippers on the selector
fork. The parts came to about £230 in all so not pennies by
anyone's standards, but cheaper than a new unit. The baulk rings
were only slightly worn, but were swapped round to even things
up.
I rebuilt another unit for someone I knew that had similar
issues to mine and it worked OK, although he had to adjust the
selector fork slightly so it would stay in gear (this is
mentioned in posts about rebuilding Fairey units). His had been
previously bodged, the joints were crudely sealed with silicone
and the circlips had been forced off.
The problem comes if you pay £300 for a unit that then needs
£200+ of parts fitting, plus a couple of evening's work to sort
it. The benefit over a new one becomes less. I sold my rebuilt
one for £450, which I think was good value at the time! If you
have to start replacing lots of bearings, plus input and output
shafts, things get very expensive. I could not say if all the
parts are currently available?
So there is my experience of both - I have only done a few
thousand miles with the Roverdrive so it has yet to beat the
Fairey for durability. The reason I went for the Roverdrive was
that it was available new where a new Fairey didn't seem to be.
Also at that time, I wasn't sure what could be done with the
Fairey. I actually bought the Roverdrive about 2004 whilst
collecting parts for the rebuild that didn't start for another
couple of years.
Sunny Jim
#Post#: 89409--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: Wooden Date: June 12, 2014, 5:16 pm
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Thanks indeed for the comprehensive response - certainly food
for thought.
I await with interest to see how much the new Fairey unit is...
#Post#: 89455--------------------------------------------------
Re: Fairey Overdrives - Available New Once More
By: NoelC Date: June 14, 2014, 5:48 am
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My Roverdrive (now Roamerdrive) I've had from the initial
launch, must be 2002 as it's the 8th UK unit and came over in
the first batch from Rocky Mountain. I'm guessing I've put
20,000 miles or thereabouts on it, initially on the '66 109 and
now the '72 88. If I remember the cost was £650 inc. VAT,
Paddocks had been knocking out the last of the Fairey units at
£459 a couple of years earlier.
Pros: It's quieter than a Fairey and much heavier duty as Sunny
Jim has said. The hex nut they supply for the mainshaft is
vastly superior to that wanky castellated thing and far easier
to torque.
Cons: The engagement is much heavier than a Fairey, and mine
started crunching on the disengage unless you came to almost a
complete stop. This was back in 2008 and the RM UK agent (Martin
Hogan) sorted this for me, I paid for a syncro hub and he fitted
it for free with some input from Jeremy Pinney of RM the other
side of the pond, can't complain at all at the customer service
as I had the unit for 6 years, another 6 years on and it's fine.
RM seemed genuinely interested to get their hands on the unit to
see what had gone wrong, and now it seems an updated shifting
mechanism has been designed. At present mine also jumps into
neutral when disengaged and giving it beans in 3rd gear,
although I think that could probably be adjusted out.
RDS manufactured a batch of Fairey overdrives a few years back
and were knocking them out at $1250, at the time slightly more
than a Roverdrive. If you can pick up a cheap Fairey that works,
great. I've a Fairey on the '66 109 and ambulance and touch wood
both are OK and quiet at present. If not, a Ro(am/v)erdrive is
money well spent, mine may migrate to the Tdi lightweight soon.
I can't see any sense in spending a packet on the Fairey when
it's design flaws are widely known and have not been addressed.
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