79 109 hartop camper build .

Rummaged around and scared up all the dash parts and fitted them in place along with ignition barrel and lock and cowls looks like I'm missing the heater vent controls and its cover , will have to look at old pics to see it I had them at the start.. Looking for the mesh screens for the bulkhead vents, mine were buggered at the blaster . Insulated the lower dash / heat exchanger in the hope it works more efficiently .. worth a try .. missing a few wee support pieces for the steering cowl shroud, Something a jubilee clip and a home made bracket will fix.. Ordered up a few parts , Air vent hoses, park switch gizmo on the side of the wiper motor, motor works but terminals in the park gizmo are rotten .. The replacement should fix it .. also picked up some new plug leads and service items, and a few other wee odds and ends for the final hurdle/s . Its really begining to look like a decent old land rover again ..

I couldn't get over the price for the side corner fixing bolts, so bought some threaded rod and with a few nuts and washers will do the job at a fraction of the price .

Best start a new list of jobs to do , but definately knocked of a big chunk of work doing the insulation and "trim" stuff over the last few days ..

Noticed that the fuse box wiring is a bit suspect in that the wire terminal insulators have all perrished and a couple of the wires are perilously close to the ignition / steering lock clamp. Easy fix with a double application of decent heat shrink tube .. other wires need the odd replacement terminal but other than that the main dash / bulkhead loom isnt to bad , A tidy up with new terminals and some loom tape will refresh it.

The front to rear loom is toast , the rear end was just cut off as the wires were brittle , likewise the front section so will redo that entire front to rear part with new materials . likewise the engine loom and the front lights . They were knackered ..Might be able to save the plugs but doubtful.

clraned out the wiper boxes and freed them off , likewise the bowden cable wiper drive , eliminating the hard grease and re greasing to take the load off the motor , Motor was working, surprisingly, despite the broken terminals and rust in the park connector gizmo ..

Hopefully lights wont be a problem, I bought all new tail lights etc so hopefully no bad connection problems . Will add additional chassis to body earths to keep the atoms circulating freely..

Just confirmed from old pics that the landy did arrive with the heater controls, so the mission for today is to find them ..

Some of the bits I took off mine have been in hiding for 5 years! I'll never find them.

Didnt find the heater controls but now have a good clean garage and a huge bag filled with rubbish ,, scored some replacements off ebay along with trim . Gave up on the vent screens and retrieved the old ones from the scrap and fudged the mesh about a bit to limit the size of the odd hole.. them painted them body colour .. just waiting on a few bits to arrive, so having a look at the seat mounts, using the original seat to floor mounts with the back rest hinge removed. Respaced them to shift the new seat away from the door a wee bit, the Jag runners on the seats will secure to the old landy seat riser , giving it the lift to allow the slider to extend into the rear tub area . So I drilled out the spot welds on the landy ones to remove the back rest pivot posts and split the double support to make two from one ..

will get them cleaned up and bolted in later .. got to fix a leak on both the bathroom sink and kitchen sink first though.

Leaks fixed and drivers seat sorted and mounted ,, works fine .. Its got to come out again to paint the old landy risers but for now its in and seems to work for me Moved it left by around 2 to 3 inches which centres the steering with the seat and gets your elbow away from the door .

Okdoke, got the rear tub dropped down and located on its mount tabs on the chassis . I cheated here . I save money and time where I can. I wasnt paying for the new nut plates so considered making my own, then reconsidered when I remembered I had a load of M8 aluminium Nutsert inserts . So it was a simple case of enlarging the original holes in the rear tub, inserting the nutserts and squeezing them into place ..

I dropped the body down but needed the assistance of a G clamp and a rathet strap to pull the body holes in line with the crossmember tabs.. Got all the bolts in with my fingers so all good in the end . Always takes longer that you expect but still saved a bit of time and money.

This job was top of the list. I had to make a list last night and get back on the wagon.. The interior stuff was a bit of a distraction. Sp moving from the rear forward , I got the body mounted, rear spring nuts n bolts beefed up spring plates checked for tightness, shock bolts beefed up, and rear axle brake lines secured with new original type rubber insulators and a hand full of 13mm P clips ( from my stash of odds and ends) to keep it all neat and tidy ..

Next job is to undo the bolts securing the tank and fit the new rubber insulators .. and move forward from there ..

Next on the list is to fit the rear prop and that buttons up the rear section below the belt line .

Keeping to the rear and moving above the beltline im making the corner upper body to tub mount bolts an hope to get the sides secured so I can get the insulation in the rear buttoned up..

There isnt much in the mid section other than the insulation and re fit the bulkhead support which I will have to do before final fit of the top sections ..

That should cover tonights exploits ..

Then will move onto the front and tie up all the loose ends there .. Will keep you posted

Managed all the above after tea got the prop in and moved onto the upper body side securing . cut some lengths of threaded rod 90mm long spun a nut up the thread dropped on a large thick washer and a stack of 5 smaller washers and another nut to secure the sandwich. The wee stack of washers located inside the body tube to centralise the pin .. that's pretty much all there is to that, then got the rest of that upper side secured . Bit annoying that the large button head bolts that locate the bulkhead removal bar, dont let the new seal sit flat on the lower tub might need a little sealer injected in there ..

Will get the passenger side buttoned up on Monday, and move forward to aligning and securing the bulkhead now that the tub is fixed in place .

Looked out the fuel filler tube and gave that a good clean up. Will need to coat that but will hold off until I have a wee stack of those parts so as not to waste to much material..

Im hoping I have the wings off for the very last time might shoot for next weekend to be doing the final paint prep . Im getting used to the look of it in the flat blue so might just spray its final coats, flat it back and leave it

Spent a bit of time pondering the camper interior layout and how to tackle it . Im definitely going for the aluminium and riveted look with a solid wood counter top and moveable 2 ring burner . The plan is to locate the burner on the back door in a flip down platform so it can be dropped with the back door open or closed ..

Also had a look at ways of hinging the roof . and think I have come up with a neat solution that keeps fabrication to a minimum . ( maybe) Home work is to research some suitable hinges..

I also contacted the fella I spoke to that builds tents and marquees.. He was keen to do the canvas work but latest e mail seems to have been ignored . Might have to research tent making as well how hard can it be ?

I want some canvas on mi trailer but want it made of the canvas you used to get at scouts. Love them thick tent poles anorl.

No doubt I'll end up stitching my own

Brrrrr,, blooming struggled to day with the temps.. trying to fit 8mm nuts with fingers that felt more like frozen sausages was a task ..

Fitted the fuel filler pipe today, and yes it took that long ..LOL The rubber connector was stiff as a board and the cap needed some attention. Got t all buttoned up with the hasp at the top and it just seemed like a hassle to keep the hasp up out the way while fumbling to fit the cap.. So removed the nuts and flipped the hasp to the bottom where it could just flip down onto the bodywork .. Of course the cap then didnt orientate with the hasp so had to undo the nuts again and clock the filler pipe so the pins on the pipe clocked with the clamps in the cap and the hasp lined up with the leeper on the cap.. then bolted it up for the forth time .. ( loosing the will to live and by this time lost all feeling in my feet ...) Stood back chuffed at the days efforts, then loked at a pic and saw the proper orientation for the hasp was as I had it first time which did seem a real pain in the butt holding the hasp up while pressing the cap down and trying to locare it on the pins , just seemed like a proper hassle .. But now I think Im gonna have to do it all again tommorrow ... LOL.. Might just leave it as it is just seems so much more user friendly ..

Idid get all the bolts and nuts along the rear body sills and tub to inner sill abd sat base to inner sill nuts swpped from temporary nuts to nylocks and beefed up.. Also got delivery of a couple of parts one being the park brake quadrant clevis pin .. Add showed it with anti rattle spring, it arrived without No big deal just dropped them a message to let them know and see what they do .. Its only £2.50 but its the principle .

Resumed installation of the Diesel heater as well ( after tea) It was even colder .. resorted to 4 T shirts and 2 fleeces, doubled up on the socks and tracky bottoms and 2 pairs of heavy cotton overalls, a balaclava and a beanie .. Managed to last a couple of hours and resorted to welding up a mount bracket for the heater just to get some warmth .. Needed a hot water bottle on my feet to thaw them out .. Cant get gas till mid week as there is a national shortage of propane cylinders and they are out of stock currently ..

Any way, decided that the original spot for the diesel heater , under the driver seat, is the best place for it .. Means making a protective cover but it puts it in an unused space and should be relatively OK with a decent box over it .. I doubt I will ever go through anything much deeper than a moderately deep puddle LOL thats enough adventure for me LOL.. I will pretend its a new style 100k landrover used for adventures to TESCO..

I just popped mi ed out of the back door and went and sat back in front of the telly

Thats probably a good place to be , mind you in front of the computer looking for old land rover bits its more appropriate

Im just putting some heat into my bones befor I venture out to the shed today ..

Decent progress today despite the weather, Still bloomin freezing and no gas for the burner .. Hopefully get a call its in stock on Wed .. not that I will get there to collect it without digging the car out .. Must be 14 inches of show out there, I kid you not ..

Anyhoo, sticking with the programme and working my way to the front, I got the diesel heater mounted under the driver seat void .. solid as a rock and fairly sheltered but will need a cover to keep the worst of the road muck off it .

Run the air inlet pipe and made up the exhaust and it all come out rather smashing . Just got to secure the silencer and exhaust pipe and the jobs nearly done . Was going to convert a 5 litre jerry can to mount on the inner wing for the diesel fuel , but decided that was going down another worm hole so sticking with the plastic fantastic they sent with the heater .. After trimming the flash off the moulding, I had to then revise the outlet connection. The mount tab in the tank is right on a moulding seam, and inside the tank the outlet piece is round and doesnt seat in the base of the tank as there is a step at the moulding join.. Tsk.. Its never just a fit up and go .. So Flushed off the outer face and filed down the outlet boss so it sat into the groove on the seam. Added a couple of rubber O ring seals and nipped it up. Fingers xd it will be sealed . Thats going to mount on the inner left front wing so I dont have to be filling diesel containers inside the cab area , just lift the bonnet and there it is , I can spill as much as I like

Just in to reference the best position for the fuel pump . I've had the question answered already, just got to hunt back and find it Should have the heater installation completed on Wednesday .. ( other than the cover ) another task ticked off, plenty more to go .

auld duffer said:

Decent progress today despite the weather, Still bloomin freezing and no gas for the burner .. Hopefully get a call its in stock on Wed .. not that I will get there to collect it without digging the car out .. Must be 14 inches of show out there, I kid you not ..

Anyhoo, sticking with the programme and working my way to the front, I got the diesel heater mounted under the driver seat void .. solid as a rock and fairly sheltered but will need a cover to keep the worst of the road muck off it .

Run the air inlet pipe and made up the exhaust and it all come out rather smashing . Just got to secure the silencer and exhaust pipe and the jobs nearly done . Was going to convert a 5 litre jerry can to mount on the inner wing for the diesel fuel , but decided that was going down another worm hole so sticking with the plastic fantastic they sent with the heater .. After trimming the flash off the moulding, I had to then revise the outlet connection. The mount tab in the tank is right on a moulding seam, and inside the tank the outlet piece is round and doesnt seat in the base of the tank as there is a step at the moulding join.. Tsk.. Its never just a fit up and go .. So Flushed off the outer face and filed down the outlet boss so it sat into the groove on the seam. Added a couple of rubber O ring seals and nipped it up. Fingers xd it will be sealed . Thats going to mount on the inner left front wing so I dont have to be filling diesel containers inside the cab area , just lift the bonnet and there it is , I can spill as much as I like

Just in to reference the best position for the fuel pump . I've had the question answered already, just got to hunt back and find it Should have the heater installation completed on Wednesday .. ( other than the cover ) another task ticked off, plenty more to go .

Click to expand...

Down hill all the way to the pump.
Pump outlet slightly higher than the inlet.
Uphill all the way to the burner.

If you got the nylon fuel line then go ahead. If you got the soft silicone pipe throw it in the bin. You will be replacing it in 12 months.

Dont forget to look up 'priming' on youtoob. A series of button presses and the just the pump works. Just watch the pipe fill up until it reaches the burner then another button press and your ready to go.

Found one

I skipped back to page 6 where I had your instruction re the flow .. Just wanted to check those to make sure I have the bits in the right place ..all good .

I have the nylon fuel line . bought ths heater ages ago for the VW camper but its a bit on the large side and couldnt find a space to fit it so its just been knocking around the garage som had to use it on the landrover ..

When I bought it I went for zero tech and chose the non digital controls .. Ive got an on off button and a knob to increase the heat .. seamed like a good idea at the time Im not sure you still get the "manual" controls .. Will have to look up how to prime the pump with that set up..

auld duffer said:

I skipped back to page 6 where I had your instruction re the flow .. Just wanted to check those to make sure I have the bits in the right place ..all good .

I have the nylon fuel line . bought ths heater ages ago for the VW camper but its a bit on the large side and couldnt find a space to fit it so its just been knocking around the garage som had to use it on the landrover ..

When I bought it I went for zero tech and chose the non digital controls .. Ive got an on off button and a knob to increase the heat .. seamed like a good idea at the time Im not sure you still get the "manual" controls .. Will have to look up how to prime the pump with that set up..

Click to expand...

To be honest the one you have is the better control. My first was the digital but the one I have just bought is the simpler version.

Final fitted the bulkhead removal bar .. tonights exploits are to final fit the left upper bed side .. and draw a line under that part of the build .

Ive got the camera on charge so might manage a few update pics later .

Next stage is to tune up the bulk head, set the door gaps and bolt it all tight .. That will pretty much button up the main body area . Will sort the dash /lower dash and main wire loom before moving attention to the front section .. engine, wiring, and final pre paint front panel prep and mount.

The old fella I swapped roof caps with still has the replacement roof . With Covid he's sticking to the rules which is fine but I might just ask him to leave it handy so I can collect it without meeting up.. He also has the overdrive and a few other bits But nothing that will hold me back to much, but I can do with the roof cap so I can get accurate measurements for the framework for the roof mods.

Its no surprise that Im having revised thoughts on the roof flip .. They might pass but I have seen a few issues with the tented idea that despite it looking pretty cool and increase the volume of the interior massively it has some drawbacks that make it more of a liability .. Im remaining flexible with the ideas .

auld duffer said:

Final fitted the bulkhead removal bar .. tonights exploits are to final fit the left upper bed side .. and draw a line under that part of the build .

Ive got the camera on charge so might manage a few update pics later .

Next stage is to tune up the bulk head, set the door gaps and bolt it all tight .. That will pretty much button up the main body area . Will sort the dash /lower dash and main wire loom before moving attention to the front section .. engine, wiring, and final pre paint front panel prep and mount.

The old fella I swapped roof caps with still has the replacement roof . With Covid he's sticking to the rules which is fine but I might just ask him to leave it handy so I can collect it without meeting up.. He also has the overdrive and a few other bits But nothing that will hold me back to much, but I can do with the roof cap so I can get accurate measurements for the framework for the roof mods.

Its no surprise that Im having revised thoughts on the roof flip .. They might pass but I have seen a few issues with the tented idea that despite it looking pretty cool and increase the volume of the interior massively it has some drawbacks that make it more of a liability .. Im remaining flexible with the ideas .

Click to expand...

What you need are my plans for an uge great camara bellows that you can glue up in no time and make the top look like a rather fetching accordion

Are you modifying the suspension at all?

You will never know how spooky this is ... talking "hot rods on a landy forum, 2 mins ago I was replying to a "tractor post on a hot rod forum lol

thats just to weird ..

love the hot rod lady though.. saw it done with a willys looked mad as a box of frogs.. albeit a death trap lol worth a watch