I think i might have bitten off more than i can chew!

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I couldn't get the drop arm off when I replaced my bulkhead so I lifted the bulkhead out backwards leaving the stearing collumn in place a little bit fiddley getting it past the gear sticks but it came out. Put replacement galv bulkhead on the same way.
 
well i fanally lifted the rear tub off today and uncovered a whole load more work to be done. the rear crossmember has rotted pretty bad on one side. it has already been replaced some time ago and where it has only been welded on the bottom and the sides so the top has continued rotting so im not sure if there will be any decent metal to weld to! the two rear spring hangers are knackered, the drivers side is so bad i was worried the whole thing would collapse while i wad under it stabbing away with my big pokey screwdriver!! the rear outriggers are a joke also, the drivers side isnt even straight and the passenger side has been plated all round and the inside was completly gone. have a look at the pics and see what you think. this is my first landy and im wondering what i have let myself in for. maybe ill have it done fir next years bad weather!!!!

ill get some pics on now
 
first off don't panic especially if you can weld, all you'll need is time, thought and materials

there'll be folks here that can suggest ways to fix your problems

i rebuilt the dumbirons on my '65 109, replaced two outriggers and rebuilt the rear end of the chassis before fitting a new crossmember

don't cut anything off before we get to see photos of the affected areas

here's a link to some of my work in case you haven't seen it before, which may help to give you ideas of how to repair it, i never plate over rust now (have done in the past), i always remove it and replace with the correct thickness metal which is easy with the body panels removed
My 1965 109 pictures by NiteMare_08 - Photobucket
 
Matcal1999


photos as promised. ill get some more tomorrow after work, my phone died hslf way through! !!!
 
well the little bit of rot i've seen in the photos you've linked to (i've looked at all 11 and will ignore the bulkhead for now) of the chassis doesn't appear to show anything that can't be overcome, we could do with cleaned areas to give clearer pictures

you probably have rot in the chassis rails where they join the rear crossmember which is easy enough to repair once the crossmember is dissected to remove it (don't just cut the chassis rails to get it off), i cut my crossmember to bits to remove it and then carefully cut the welds to get the remaining little bits off (i made my jig up first) just don't rush, look and think twice before attacking it with the grinder, i cut mine off using 1mm cutting discs as they give the tidiest most accurate cuts

do not buy a generic crossmember with extensions as they are designed for the 88" chassis, one without the extensions will allow you to repair your chassis rails and fit it perfectly (i've seen someone struggling to fit one with the extensions onto a 109)

both outriggers can be bought as can the rear suspension hanger, generic bulkhead outriggers are for the 88" chassis but can still be used on the 109

i spent nine months rebuilding my 109 (not every spare moment but an awful lot, i also didn't completely strip mine in one go) take on one repair at a time, don't cut everything off just do one job at a time, you can then see progress as you remove, replace and paint each part when you do it one bit at a time plus it gives you reference points for measurements

you're also lucky as you're starting this project as the daylight hours are getting longer and the weather is about to warm up, i started mine in November 2010 as we were running out of daylight and had three or four inches of ice on my pond in December (i had a 200gallon fishtank freeze solid from top to bottom :eek: biggest icecube you've ever seen :bump2: )

find yourself a local fabricator and buy/scrounge some offcut 2mm sheet steel so you can cut your own repair plates to let into the chassis where needed, carefully scribed you can cut it with 1mm cutting discs to the shape/size you need it

G clamps and fabricators magnets are very useful items as are molegrips to assist with holding parts in place while you tack them, tack only before welding to ensure you've got it in the correct position, most important to check before finally welding on permanently
 
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