Defender Build Thread "A Long Road Ahead"

[deadeyedik]

Hi All

I bought a nice fresh mot'd rotten defender about 3 months ago as a play toy and general pull apart and fix play toy. So here is build continuous build thread and general mucking about with it.


I started of wanting to fix the rotten bumper by welding new plates on it for now until i designed my own over the top bumper over winter.


Once i had removed the bumper and front grill i had time to have a nice long look at what the front end had to offer i realised the fun i was about to have


So the front end strip down began by removing all the usual to allow me access to the front cross member. ( you can see the rot at either end and front of the cross member)


The cutting started at the cross member itself and then moved onto the 2 brackets behind it and then onto the 4 patches of rust around the chassis legs.


Luckily enough i was able to find as much plate etc at work to bring home for the insert patches and to be able to remake the brackets behind the cross member.

Once the patches were in i then got myself (from work again) a nice over the top front cross member to weld in its place lol.


Then enjoyed a nice after noon multi running it in place.

I then welded the brackets on the back and painted it a nice standard black..

 

[b3nc123]

Looks like your a dab hand with the welder mate. Keep the pics coming

 

[Pricilla]

Nice welding

 

[deadeyedik]

Thanks, it helps being a fabricator when owning a landy lol.

I just read through what i wrote and it makes me sound like a 7yr old who's just come back from summer holidays and has to tell the class what he did over the 6 weeks

 

[Kwakerman]

While the front is off change the cam belt (easy access) unless you have concrete proof it has been changed recently.

 

[Turboman]

While the front is off change the cam belt (easy access) unless you have concrete proof it has been changed recently.

Excellent advice imo!

 

[deadeyedik]

thanks for the advice kwakerman that plus a few other goodies i have bought over the past few weeks will be tomorrows thread update.

 

[cornish rattler]

Hi All

I bought a nice fresh mot'd rotten defender about 3 months ago as a play toy and general pull apart and fix play toy. So here is build continuous build thread and general mucking about with it.


I started of wanting to fix the rotten bumper by welding new plates on it for now until i designed my own over the top bumper over winter.


Once i had removed the bumper and front grill i had time to have a nice long look at what the front end had to offer i realised the fun i was about to have


So the front end strip down began by removing all the usual to allow me access to the front cross member. ( you can see the rot at either end and front of the cross member)


The cutting started at the cross member itself and then moved onto the 2 brackets behind it and then onto the 4 patches of rust around the chassis legs.


Luckily enough i was able to find as much plate etc at work to bring home for the insert patches and to be able to remake the brackets behind the cross member.

Once the patches were in i then got myself (from work again) a nice over the top front cross member to weld in its place lol.


Then enjoyed a nice after noon multi running it in place.

I then welded the brackets on the back and painted it a nice standard black..

Nice job i will be doing the same but as i can't weld i am going to cheat and replace my chassis with a new galv one

 

[deadeyedik]

Over the past few weeks its been like christmas/birthday/easter and my bar mitzvah all rolled into one (plus having a bit of spare cash) hopefully it shall continue.

I have ordered and received the following:

- 2'' terrafirma pro sport kit
- Terrafirma turrets and securing rings
- Snow cowl
- Wind deflectors
- Modified cam belt kit
- Service filter goodies (minus the oil)
- Fan belt (still to arrive)



As Kwakerman said, i also thought while the front was off i would do the cam belt and fan belt just for peace of mind. The place i bought the defender from said it was done but couldn't prove it so its a no brainer really.

The suspension was a "crap i may as well while i am here" moment as well. When i took of the passenger wing and discovered the state of the turrets it would of been stupid to leave them if i want to go play this winter. I knew the springs and turrets would need doing when i bought it but didn't know how bad until i stuck a screwdriver in it and was left with half a turret.

There are other things i wish to order over the next month or 2 so fingers crossed it all goes to plan

 

[deadeyedik]

Just been out and around the landy kicking tyres and generally wasting time thinking of new ideas to play around with.

I thought i would make a start on removing a few things before the big "cambelt change day" and noticed the alternator wasnt spinning freely as it should and while all the belts are off got me thinking do i:

- Replace it like for like
or
- Upgrade it and to which one?

just wondering what all your landy's are running

Chris

 

[Kwakerman]

What are your plans for it, if you are looking at fitting winch / dual battery / big lights etc then uprated may help, if not then standard should do.

 

[deadeyedik]

I am currently making a bumper at work to house a winch but yeah ill be fitting extra lights and a few other gadgets around the thing. Uprated it is then, thanks for the help kwakerman

 

[deadeyedik]

Thread Update:

After i finished work on saturday i decided to do the cambelt change while there was some sun light and no rain around.

Being my first cambelt change i was a bit cautious/apprehensive about doing it but with the verbal guidance from the old man during it wasn't to bad.

Started to disassemble the front of the engine as you do.


Once the cover was off i noticed a little pool of oil at the bottom of the case and decided to change the crankshaft oil seals while the cover and belts where off, which meant i now have to wait till next weekend to finish the job but never mind!

I cleaned up the case and the cover ready for when the seals arrive and i can the reassemble. This is where i am up to with it.


Sundays adventures saw me jacking the landy up and sitting it on 2 axle stands so the front wheels could be removed in preparation for the suspension change.

I set about removing the passenger side first as i already have the wing off and it was easier to access. The rust and rot had really got hold of the nuts and bolts so most had to be cut or beat off to free the suspension.


The more i dig and replace stuff on this rust bucket the more rot i find that i just cant bare to leave to another day so the time scale then end ups increasing but i suppose it will be done right first time.

So i found some rot/swelling just in front of the suspension seat on the chassis (between the 2 painted black areas pic below). That will be next weekends job along with finishing off the cambelt.

In preparation to installing the suspension i cleaned up the seat by chipping away the surface rust and painting it with chassis paint to help protect it (to what effect i dont know). I will be shot blasting the lower seat at work and painting that as well.

 

[deadeyedik]

Mini Update:

Got home from work tonight to find a nice little surprise waiting for me. Mine were starting to crack and once again seeing as the front end is in pieces i thought it was best to replace these as well.


Just waiting on the crankshaft seal to arrive so i can patch that part of the engine up.

I have also been busy this evening marking out lines on the new bumper (metal box section) to cut over the weekend. I will also be mocking up a bash guard out of cardboard to copy next week. Pics will follow this weekend.

 

[Kwakerman]

While you have easy access to the chassis rails I would stick a coat of paint on then as well as the spring seat. Always worth doing this sort of thing when you have the opportunity.

 

[deadeyedik]

Once the welding is finished and out the way ill be going over the chassis from front to back giving it a check over and paint, i know there is a few other areas that need attention soon but thanks for the heads up kwakerman

I have purchased some terrafirma tubular turrets to replace the rotten ones i had and as much as i like the finish on them i was wondering what everyone else has done with regards to protecting them or painting them?

 

[deadeyedik]

Thread Update

This weekends playing was a bit hit or miss due to the crap weather so i only managed to get half of what i would like to have got done.

Saturday's task was to finish the cambelt off so i could seal the casing back up and not worry about things getting in there. My new seals arrived during the week.


So i set about pulling the old ones out with a seal puller and tapped the new ones in using the original seals and a hammer. Once they were in i put the tensioners and belt in place then timed it up which was a fiddly job of constant checking but all in the name of a good running engine.


I made sure the timing case and cover were free from old gasket then put the new gasket on, pushed the cover on and then using the cardboard guide of where the bolts went placed then in and tightened them up.

Just waiting to choose an uprated alternator so the front can be classed as finished.

Sunday was a hit or miss day of rain again but i managed to cut the last bit of rot out of the front end and weld new plate in it place.


This is were i got to before the heavens opened and stopped play for this weekend. I still have a long list of things to do before the front end can be rebuilt but i am glad of the progress i am making on my first project.

Thanks for reading

 

[deadeyedik]

Thread Update

Friday:

After work i had a few hours of light which i made good use of by starting to dismantle the drivers side suspension ready for when i put the new set on, this side is largely the same as the passenger as in the turrets are colanders and the springs are rusting just as much.

Once all the parts were drilled or ground off i had a little clean up/inspection of the chassis spring seat and to my "amazement" i found a little more rust in the form of a hole on the seat. I know its not much and i could possibly weld it up but with the rest of the seat looking scabby and thin i thought i may as well replace it.


I finished up for the evening as i was a bit miffed that i will be doing more welding rather then assembling.

Saturday:

The weather was on my side for the day which was put to good use in taking off the drivers wing so i could access the spring seat better plus also have a look and paint the chassis once the welding has been done.

This wing was much easier to remove which is always a bonus. Visually there wasn't much progress once the wing was off as most of the time was spent prepping the area and marking datum/centre lines ready for the new seat.

With all the brackets etc that came off i have taken them into work for shot blasting and painting which should give them a new lease of life.


Sunday:

I only managed an hour on it so i spent that time removing the steering shaft and dropping the steering box a bit so i could gain any extra room when grinding the old seat off. The UNF 6'' bolts that came out of the steering box drop arm were rusted and pitted so they will be getting replaced as well.

One of the advisories on the previous mot was brake lines corroded so that adds another thing to the list of things to do while the area is accessible.

Hopefully during the week i should be getting a few prezzies from the mail man

Thanks for reading.

 

[deadeyedik]

Mini Update

The mail man delivered the few parts i need to hopefully (fingers crossed) wrap up the front end welding wise and start assembling all the new bits on to the defender.


Suspension Seat was bought to replace the rotting one on the drivers side, which to be fair wasn't in that bad of condition but i know i would hate knowing there was rust going on in an area that i have just had apart.

Alternator Uprated is a 100amp high output denso and was bought as a future mod to go with the Twin batteries, extra lights, winch and other electrical good that i will be fitting. It is a replacement for the broken one i took of during the cam belt change.

RTC Steering Damper was bought as a bit of a bling thing for the front end but i try to justify the purchase by the price of it and the fact it was free delivery, the standard one got cut into when i was replacing the front cross member and the final reason was after reading a few threads the general census was that 33'' tyres would put the power steering pump under to much strain. lol it was a no brainer.

Thanks for reading.

 

[deadeyedik]

Thread Update

Saturday

With my suspension seat arriving during the week and the weather being good i thought it was a good idea to cut the old seat off and weld the new one on.

I started off by marking some datums around the seat and centre popping them for reference. i then ground off the old one also cleaning up all the loose surface rust around the area so i could weld to good metal.

Once the area was clean i marked out the new seat, cleaned all the paint off which will be in the way when welding. Fitting it wasn't difficult it was making sure everything was measured correctly that made me worry but after checking it 3 times with the other side there wasn't much else i could do.
Onto the welding.


I removed the bump stop and retaining bracket as it was covering part of the suspension seat that i needed to grind off, so i thought i would give it a clean up and paint it. Also removing it meant i could paint the chassis under it. As the welder ran out off gas it will have to be welded back on another time.

Next up was covering all the bare metal with chassis paint. (the pic was taken half way through paint all the accessible chassis)


While the paint was drying on the drivers side i took the opportunity to fit the passenger side suspension.


And once the drivers side paint was dry i assembled that.


Sunday

Tasks today were to get the front end back on its feet as i wanted to get the rear end up in the air and assess what i will need for the suspension to be changed there.


Once the front tyres were on i bolted up the steering box and connected the steering shaft. (all bolts that get put back on this project are all new and covered in copper grease)


While i had the ease of access i changed the oil filter and will be changing the oil at a later date (before it's first started up after the rebuild)


This is as it stands at the moment.


I have ordered some rear upper shock bushes and rear spring retaining plates (and now come to think of it i could of made some at work, dummy)

I said in my last post that i woud be doing the brake pipes as some of them are corroded but after looking around the landy i think it could do with a full brake overhaul which i will be doing next year before the mot.

Thanks for reading.