Jennings restoration

[jimberlake]

That is glorious! What a great colour scheme

 

[colinthefox]

The colour scheme is the same as when we bought it. What the colour is sprayed on is very, very, different. Some of the filler was 1 1/2 inches thick!
I think the van is more or less done now...........until...........

 

[S0updragon]

Brilliant. Well done

 

[colinthefox]

..........until...........

Head gasket failed again. The van went like a dream all around Wales, pulling like a train up some serious hills. Mushroom cloud of smoke just as we were reversing into our drive. Sorry neighbours! At least it could have been worse.......didn't need the flat bed of shame this time.

So I've been doing some serious investigation. The three failures have all happened since the injection pump was professionally rebuilt. In fact the first failure was only a month or so after the rebuild. I noted after refitting the pump that smoke under load had increased at the time. I investigated the "maximum fuel delivery" setting, and found it was quite a way over where I would have expected to find it. I've never had the confidence to play with these settings, always having believed that there was some kind of alchemy involved which could only be fiddled with by wizards with long beards. Not any more.

I reduced the setting considerably, no smoke at all, but the engine was completely gutless and wouldn't pick up, so tried a setting in the middle of the range, and hey-ho, still no smoke, picked up OK and pulled well, so that's where I'm leaving it, at least for now. It all feels more civilized without the smoke. I wonder if this will cure the gasket problem.

My other line of investigation is to see if there's an option for a heavy duty cylinder head gasket, probably of the laminated copper, or multi layer metal type.

Onward.......

 

[Leerec]

For a long time, I've wanted to replace the lower panels of the coachbuilt rear of the van.

Out of the factory, the panels were 1.2mm Aluminium, but the drivers side and half of the rear were 0.5mm (thin enough to wrap a turkey), as a result of a shunt back in the distant past. Added to that we (me actually) had made contact with a big rock sticking out of a welsh drystone wall a couple of years ago, so it was a job that needed doing.

So.....

View attachment 10046

Off came the nearside panel, and......

View attachment 10047

The rear panel with that dreadful toilet window had to go. Followed by.....

View attachment 10048

The lower half of the door which had rotted through at the bottom due to being in contact with the steel part of the frame.

View attachment 10049

Generally the timber framework was in remarkably good nick, but I reinforced many of the joints with brackets, and renewed wood where necessary. Several hundred stainless steel screws, and a load of panel adhesive later, here's the new panels fitted......

View attachment 10050

I warmed up the barn with one of those diesel powered space heaters so that the panels were fitted warm. That should avoid the panels going slack in the summer, should the sun ever shine. The side trims took a lot of straightening, as they had been badly abused in the past. Lots of screws in those too! You should see the motley collection of screws that I took out, many of them builders drywall screws, now stainless raised countersunk slotted heads for all those in view.

I've still got the nearside panel to final fit, but it's all cut out and clamped in place, ready to do next week.

This is what I need to get onto with Betty, where abouts did you source the aluminium, I was thinking about using Alupanel which is like the composite stuff that is pre coloured. I was going to go 3mm both sides just to ensure its solid

 

[colinthefox]

This is what I need to get onto with Betty, where abouts did you source the aluminium, I was thinking about using Alupanel which is like the composite stuff that is pre coloured. I was going to go 3mm both sides just to ensure its solid

I just found an aluminium sheet supplier online, and they delivered next day. Most cities have one.
I'd advise against 3mm panels. They'd be heavy, expensive, and more difficult to fit. They would deform just the same if you hit anything. I reckon that the original 1.2mm (edited) is about right.
You can buy oversized standard ally panels. Mine were 3.5 x 1.2 M I think. That saves having a vertical join.
The important things are that higher panels overlap lower ones to shed water , and that you have plenty of the correct fixings, and use polymer adhesive like "Sticks like ****" on decent straight framework.

 

[Leerec]

I just found an aluminium sheet supplier online, and they delivered next day. Most cities have one.
I'd advise against 3mm panels. They'd be heavy, expensive, and more difficult to fit. They would deform just the same if you hit anything. I reckon that the original 1.2mm (edited) is about right.
You can buy oversized standard ally panels. Mine were 3.5 x 1.2 M I think. That saves having a vertical join.
The important things are that higher panels overlap lower ones to shed water , and that you have plenty of the correct fixings, and use polymer adhesive like "Sticks like ****" on decent straight framework.

Thanks so much for this, will let you know how it goes when I finally finish the timber work