Dolly The Autosleeper

o yeh good shout.i find with undersell it depends which one you use.a nice smooth finish one is good but some are lumpy and just not nice!any plans on her this week?

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yh smoothe finish underseal is ok but mine is the horrid crap that goes on thick and ugly lol. im hoping this week i can get the bonnet and cowl stripped and get some red oxide on there for now. also planning to get some of my replacement panels stripped and ready for fitting. and im working on making a replacement latch for the bottom of the back doors, got a plastic prototype nearly ready to test then if all goes well i will be making a metal 1 with a rubber insert to stop any squeaking as you drive

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
ah nice touch on the latch :) its the little things with the vans that make them your own :) when will the welding start then?

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its looking like it will be done in november as my dad has booked a few days off to come up and asked me to get as much ready as i can, so that he can teach me to weld at the same time. (my first bit of welding is gonna be my exhaust lol) im so frustrated at the mo though as if i could weld it would be done by now lol plan is to have her mot worthy for feb latest. its only the welding stopping me from putting her in now lol everything else seems to be working fine now and she runs lovely. but i know it will be well worth the wait. my dad is a cracking welder. then i can crack on with planning all the little upgrades. just gotta decide if i want a later engine in her

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
If its running nice ...why put a later engine in? if it aint broke don't fix it as the saying goes:) (yes I know i don't practice what i preach lol)

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''COMMER'EnSayThat''
 
thats what i was thinking, dolly starts first time everytime and sounds great. the only reason to consider a later engine is that you get more power and slightly more mpg. but the downside is that you lose that lovely classic car engine note and to be honest i dont plan on rushing anywhere lol. im more interested in trying to stiffen her ride up a bit and get the brakes a bit more responsive. and i think the e2000 might have just what i need

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
My advice is to concentrate on the metal bits before you start thinking about upgrades. Before you know it February will be here and you'll still have half the body and welding done while you are puzzling how to mount the replacement engine and gearbox, fit new springs, uprate the shocks etc etc etc:I Get it on the road and find out what's it's like to drive a Commer before you turn it into something else;)

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How refreshing
 
just get some scrap metal and zap away :) teach yourself some ways and your dad can show you the techniques ;)
yeh stiffer ride for me is a must to mate! once you've got the welding bug you will be off mate :p

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yh agree'd on that john, would teach myself if i had a welder :( i think thats why im thinking and planning upgrades to keep my mind off the fact that i cant do the welding yet lol nearly brought a welder yesterday but it was only a 90 and i was told i need at least a 110 to do the job properly

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
haha well im a pro at that ;) i think if i had a welder here i could teach myself, i have watched my dad and uncle do it for years so i have a fairly good basic understanding. maybe i should save a few pennies and invest in one lol 1 way or another i will need 1 eventually lol. gotta cut off my sills soon to make it easier to access the inner sils and spring hangers. brown trousers time ;) lol i know i have NO front inner cills left :I

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
Hi Paul, regarding the brakes. You say they are not responsive? The first thing I would do is give them a really good service. New linings, cylinders, flexes etc then I would fit a servo. The VH44 drum version is the one to use. This will make the brakes excellent. I have done just this and the brakes are as good as I will ever need. Will lock all four wheels if you want. When in good nick the standard brakes are quite good but need a lot of pedal pressure, the servo reduces the pedal pressure by about half. Disks won't do anything to increase the effect of the brakes, it just dissipates the heat better to reduce fade and allows water and dirt to be flung off the disk rather than gunning up the inside of the drums. Keep them clean and add a servo and you will be amazed!

Well...alright then, maybe just a little...
 
cheers mate. its not so much that they are not responsive m8. the brakes work fine, its just that you need to push the pedal so hard to get them to work lol so servo is the way to go. but when you say fit a servo where would i fit 1 lol. was not sure if a bigger master cylinder would help things? the closest thing i can compare it to is my old xr3i, they had a vacuum pipe on the master cylinder. if you took off the vacuum pipe the pedal went rock solid. thats what dolly feels like.

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
although to be fair she has stood for a while so a good run will probably help loads lol

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
my 67 has a standard system and yes you need quite a lot of pressure on the pedal but dads van is older but with a later commer servo in the engine bay.they are so much better! yet all of my brakes are new,shoes,springs,cylinders hoses etc lol

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yh i think that may be the case with dolly, her brakes all work fine and she pulls up in a straight line. its just the amount of pressure needed on the peddles. if i can reduce that ill be perfectly happy with the brake system lol

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
yeh i think i am going to do in the next year :) first plans are trim the seats and get her painted.i will get some pics of the system on dads van mate and pm you in next few days ;)

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yh please m8, nice 1. i have decided to keep dolly as close to standard as possibl but with a few mods to bring her up to spec a bit ie: brakes, firmer ride. usual engine mods lol

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Dolly Commer Is Here http://66.129.69.181/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=6833
 
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