My £100 Series 2a slow build project

250 mile round trip to pick up me new old heap that I bought off ebay for the princely sum of 100 sheets and found a nice garden growing inside the tub



And there's a gearbox which is a bonus but I don't know what state it's in



The n/s front wheel it jammed up so dragging it onto the trailer was fun especially as there's no steering linked up but it's now safely on my drive.

It would appear that it's ex-military judging by the screw on glass lenses and the connections on the back end which makes life a lot simpler as I can return it to cammo green



The inside is 'interesting' and will take some sorting out







Got to work with Henry and filled two bags but only after I'd filled two bin bags of leaves and mouse eaten foam from some scabby bucket seats, the tub looks better



The bulkhead is better than I could have wished, in fact it's probably better than my defenders but there's a thin piece of aluminium covering the footwells and firewall







Considering that it was sold with a knackered chassis what ever the MOD painted on it it seems to have held up remarkably well, the footwell are a bit holey but considering all the leaves and soil the were hidden under it could have been worse.



I don't know what to make of the front spring hangers, do the look normal??



I also found this under some leaves but I don't recognise it as a normal series heater



I'm having some trouble locating the chassis number, I've read that it's located on the RH spring hanger but is that as you look at it or as you're sat in it and is it on the inside (engine side) of the chassis or outside??

Advice is more than welcome I'm going to set to it with a wire brush tomorrow as I'm determined to find it so I can look into registering it

On a huge plus point the front panel is almost rust free:high5:



That's all for tonight, time to look on ebay for some parts...

You have your work cut out for you. I live stuff like this!
Hope it goes well keep the pics coming.

I think it looks worse than it is, dig the birds nest

good luck with the resto

Hope you are going to keep the fuses, they are part of its originality.

I couldn't work out why the custom gearbox mount to start with, but then I seen that someone has put the springs on top the axles rather than under, that would also explain the modified front spring hangers. That must be one high beast, are you going to put it back to standard?

elan23 said:

Hope you are going to keep the fuses, they are part of its originality.

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I might just put the cover over them and 'forget' about them until it sets on fire

Murtle said:

I couldn't work out why the custom gearbox mount to start with, but then I seen that someone has put the springs on top the axles rather than under, that would also explain the modified front spring hangers. That must be one high beast, are you going to put it back to standard?

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Who ever did it many decades ago has made a right bodge job of it, they obviously thought they could lower the whole drive train, engine and rad.

As for putting it back to standard I'd be embarrassed to drive it like this





I've just made my first purchase of some POR15 for the chassis which looks remarkably rust free considering the bloke I bought it off couldn't remember how many years ago he bought it and parked it up under a tree. I'm hoping to start stripping it down soon, I've got a friend who's come across from Burundi to avoid the current political turmoil so I've got some free labour

does look a bit of a funny thing to have done, still for £100 its a good buy nonetheless

Right, just done a deal on a Series 3 rolling chassis with axles, springs, steering setup and bulkhead and complete wiring harness for me to transplant for £300 delivered. Don't know if that's a good price or not but a new loom is the best part of £200.

Wuz going to ask 'how many Landrovers do you want?' then realised that I had amassed four! They creep up on you...

Marmaduke said:

Right, just done a deal on a Series 3 rolling chassis with axles, springs, steering setup and bulkhead and complete wiring harness for me to transplant for £300 delivered. Don't know if that's a good price or not but a new loom is the best part of £200.

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just spent a long time sorting the electrics from scratch on my s3 - with assistance from peeps on here - never touched auto electrics before, tbh if I had to do another I would just get lengths of the right colour wire and do it myself.

probably be a massive saving c.f. buying a loom, well worth it if you have the time.

honolulujoe said:

just spent a long time sorting the electrics from scratch on my s3 - with assistance from peeps on here - never touched auto electrics before, tbh if I had to do another I would just get lengths of the right colour wire and do it myself.

probably be a massive saving c.f. buying a loom, well worth it if you have the time.

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It's just so I get an idea of what goes where, he's said he needs to keep the front axle so it's now £200 delivered. I plan on selling the rear tub, wings, rear axle, windscreen and seat box so hopefully I can make a fair bit back, it's just the steering box is really expensive to buy new or used and mine has got no voltage regulator or engine mounts so it'll be a really useful source of hard to get hold of parts. I'll just have to strip and rebuild my axles which'll cost a fair bit but is probably better in the long term and should help keep its value.

I'm hoping to start stripping mine down towards the end of the week as the series 3 is being delivered sometime next week so I need the room

Some pics of the Series 3





I'm feeling a little guilty about braking it up but at the same time I need the cash for the 2A

does the 3 have an id?

honolulujoe said:

does the 3 have an id?

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Vin plates are there and I'm getting a receipt so I might apply for the v5 and strip it and put it in the shed as it's nearly tax free. It'll be missing engine, trans, steering rack, front clip, bonnet, roof, door tops and loom. The front dumb irons 'need attention' and the bulkhead looks like a sieve. Have welder, can weld.

Saying that I was on the services south of Birmingham and some bloke pulled up with a Defender on the back he'd just bought for £500 200tdi with a spare engine, V5 the body work was rough and the clutch had gone but the chassis looked pretty good so there's bargains to be had somewhere...

I would get the v5 and keep the 3 even if you just sell it later, a tax free id is worth something.

I would love a bargain like the defender chap got, trouble is it always seems to be some other schmuck that gets them.

Started the strip down of my 2a this morning, I bought an impact gun from Aldi a few weeks ago for twenty quid and it's quite possibly the best twenty notes I've spent



A couple of hours later everything but the suspension is ready to come off



I can't work out why the bulkhead is covered in a thin sheet of aluminium, any ideas??



Shocks look in great shape considering their age and being out in the elements for years but they're goosed



The chassis is surprisingly rot free all over which is nice as when I bought it the bloke said it was knackered



The roll bar leaves a bit to the imagination



That's all for today, hopefully I can coax my mate around tomorrow to help me carry the tub, bulkhead and the truck cab down the garden then I can strip the axles off ready for the Series 3 coming

It all looks surprisingly good, and pretty much complete. Yes, having an impact gun takes a lot of the labour out of rusty nuts and bolts. Makes it worth taking stuff apart just to clean it and paint it.

Love the patina of green moss on everything.

Brown said:

Love the patina of green moss on everything.

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Not to sure I'll love it when it gets wet

Re: Aluminium:

Heat shield, perhaps? Were it here in the land of eternal rust I'd call it a bodged repair and be looking for rot underneath it.

Got to say I love the looks of it - you can fix this up no doubt. BRAVO!

Alan