THE ICEMAN restoration
- Thread starter THE ICEMAN
- Start date
Well didnt get that much done on Sunday as i ended up pulling the transfer box out of a mates 4wd for the day. Still had time to polish the new radiator header tank and clean up and paint the cowling for the fan. Not sure if ill keep the cowling as i plan to fit an electric fan.
Just bagged a remote servo so that should help with the brakes. ie it will have some[:0]
Got the rocker cover all cleaned up and painted along with the alternator. Later in the week i plan to start on getting some of the wiring into shape as i just got a large tin of original 'bullit' connectors and other assorted 'lecky bits.
A mate gave me a nice chrome oil pressure gauge that fits nicely in the dash but it is of the electric type. Does anyone know what type of sender these use? Its a smiths gauge.[?]
Gonna really kick into gear with this project in the next couple of weeks as the budget is sorted so will be doing some more regular posts. I will also put some ideas i have had up in the mechanical hints 'n tips section.
Cheers Aaron.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Just bagged a remote servo so that should help with the brakes. ie it will have some[:0]
Got the rocker cover all cleaned up and painted along with the alternator. Later in the week i plan to start on getting some of the wiring into shape as i just got a large tin of original 'bullit' connectors and other assorted 'lecky bits.
A mate gave me a nice chrome oil pressure gauge that fits nicely in the dash but it is of the electric type. Does anyone know what type of sender these use? Its a smiths gauge.[?]
Gonna really kick into gear with this project in the next couple of weeks as the budget is sorted so will be doing some more regular posts. I will also put some ideas i have had up in the mechanical hints 'n tips section.
Cheers Aaron.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
quote:
Originally posted by Dodgemark
great to see the work you guys can do yourself on the vans, only wish i could:I absolutely fantastic love seeing it all.[^]
Dodge Glendale
Ditto Mark!
The Bush Pig is golden again thanks to Tamiflu;-)
Originally posted by Dodgemark
great to see the work you guys can do yourself on the vans, only wish i could:I absolutely fantastic love seeing it all.[^]
Dodge Glendale
Ditto Mark!
The Bush Pig is golden again thanks to Tamiflu;-)
Re the brake servo: My understanding is that a servo only reduces the pedal pressure required to activate the brakes, it does not increase brake performance. You need to improve the pad/shoe to disc/drum ratio so there is more contact area. Benefits of the servo though are of course less strain on your leg muscles and if you do stand on the pedal more force wil be transmitted to the brakes. That's my understanding anyway.
If I told you I was a pathological liar, would you believe me?
I'M GETTING A HIGHWAYMAN !!!
I'M GETTING A HIGHWAYMAN !!!
Thats exactly right Bazz. One of the main reasons for trying to reduce the pedel pressure needed is to make it easier for Mrs ICEMAN to drive, that and i intend to upgrade to disks in the future. The ones from a Humber hawk will go straight on but there are approximatley zero humber hawks here which makes it a bit more difficult. There is a big hot rodding scene here so i think i should be able to get something made up.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
quote:
Originally posted by THE ICEMAN
Gonna really kick into gear with this project in the next couple of weeks as the budget is sorted so will be doing some more regular posts. I will also put some ideas i have had up in the mechanical hints 'n tips section.
Cheers Aaron.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Your not kicked in already[:0] my god you'll be a blur of activity. Looking forward to seeing your shared knowledge
[/IMG]
Originally posted by THE ICEMAN
Gonna really kick into gear with this project in the next couple of weeks as the budget is sorted so will be doing some more regular posts. I will also put some ideas i have had up in the mechanical hints 'n tips section.
Cheers Aaron.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Your not kicked in already[:0] my god you'll be a blur of activity. Looking forward to seeing your shared knowledge
LOL just sniffing round the edges Panky
The plan is to have everything except the interior finished in the next three months if possible. Its hard though while running a business full time and landscaping the garden as well as.......ZZZzzzzz......ZZZzzzzzz.......
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
The plan is to have everything except the interior finished in the next three months if possible. Its hard though while running a business full time and landscaping the garden as well as.......ZZZzzzzz......ZZZzzzzzz.......
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Right here is this evenings efforts. Decided to make a start on the intake manifold. Started by cutting off the old flange for the top draught carb. Then i made up a disk of steel to fit in the hole that was left. Next the disk was welded in using special cast iron welding rods. I was a bit surprised at how easy the weld was as i expected cast iron to be a real pain to deal with. I made sure to pean each bit of weld as i went and so far there seems to be no issues.
After that was done i used a hole saw to make the new hole of 1 1/2 inch in the 'side' of the manifold. A 30mm length of thick wall steel tube was then welded in ready for the carb mounting flange to be welded onto.
This is about as far as i got so here are a couple of pix to see how its going. Needs a tickle up with the grinder and the insides seeing to with the die grinder but other than that should be good.
Commeracer what did you do with the large hole in the top of the exhaust manifold? I cant just weld a plate over it as it wont fit in under the intake[?]
Still have to open out and tap the holes in the flange to mount the carb and generaly grind, clean and fettle but getting there.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
After that was done i used a hole saw to make the new hole of 1 1/2 inch in the 'side' of the manifold. A 30mm length of thick wall steel tube was then welded in ready for the carb mounting flange to be welded onto.
This is about as far as i got so here are a couple of pix to see how its going. Needs a tickle up with the grinder and the insides seeing to with the die grinder but other than that should be good.
Commeracer what did you do with the large hole in the top of the exhaust manifold? I cant just weld a plate over it as it wont fit in under the intake[?]
Still have to open out and tap the holes in the flange to mount the carb and generaly grind, clean and fettle but getting there.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Well done you should have a stainless deflector plate that sits between the manifolds to direct exhaust gases downwards, you need to retain this in place to avoid a big stagnant hole. What i do is weld another piece of 2-3mm stainless on top after grinding down the manifold a bit, then weld the three bits together.
You also need to grind as much as possible off the bottom of the inlet manifold, completely remove the flange as this will give you as much airspace between the two manifolds.
Best to also weld up the 4 redundant bolt holes at the bottom as well.
while you,re at it there is a nasty lip just up from where the exhaust sealing ring sits, that needs radiusing in too
"you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
you should have a stainless deflector plate that sits between the manifolds to direct exhaust gases downwards, you need to retain this in place to avoid a big stagnant hole. What i do is weld another piece of 2-3mm stainless on top after grinding down the manifold a bit, then weld the three bits together.You also need to grind as much as possible off the bottom of the inlet manifold, completely remove the flange as this will give you as much airspace between the two manifolds.
Best to also weld up the 4 redundant bolt holes at the bottom as well.
while you,re at it there is a nasty lip just up from where the exhaust sealing ring sits, that needs radiusing in too
"you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
Excellent, thanks for all the help and advise guys.
I will do all of those things and grind, radius and generally 'flow' both manifolds as much as i can. Should make a big difference
Anyone played about with different needles for the SU carb? Its a HS4.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
I will do all of those things and grind, radius and generally 'flow' both manifolds as much as i can. Should make a big difference
Anyone played about with different needles for the SU carb? Its a HS4.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Can,t really help with the needle, as i fit the 1 3/4" carbs
try it with whatever is in it and go from there
"you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
try it with whatever is in it and go from there
"you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
Spent a few hours in the garage this weekend and got some of the fiddley job out of the way.
Started by finishing off the intake manifold and fitting the SU carb in place. It fits well and the top of the dashpot plunger ends up about 5mm below the cover plate that was over the old air filter. I also added a vacuume take off from the manifold for a brake servo. This will use 10mm polythene hose run round the back of the motor and then to the servo.
I spent many hours trying to find a good location for the servo. From what i understand they are often mounted under the passanger side floor but in the Highwayman this is where the starting battery is located. After alot of mucking around i discovered it would just fit under the drivers side floor between the brake master cylinder and outer step panel. Its a bit of a squeeze but it just goes and with any luck it wont foul the door check thing. If it does i will make up one for the inside ala morris leather strap type of thing. I like this position as it keeps all the pipes and hoses as short as possible and the servo is slightly lower down than the master cylinder which will make bleeding easier (i hope)
Still got to sort the accelerator cable out with some kind of mounting bracket for the carb and find a way of attaching the return spring.
The eagle eyed of you may notice the lack of fan on the water pump. There is a Kenlow to go on the front of the rad (once it arrives)
Rebuilt the clutch slave cylinder and fitted with no problems, even remembered it goes on the back of the bellhousing flange
What have people replaced the original plastic clutch pipe with? Its kinda past it. Should i use steel brake pipe and a flexi to the cylinder?
I am waiting on some new shocks for the front so made a start on getting the front suspension together in the meantime.
Finished up the day by stripping down and rebuilding the handbrake cable and installing. Interesting thing, i attempted to brease the cable using the grease point about half way along the cable but couldnt get any grease in[!] Eventually i discovered the nipple went nowhere as there is no hole through to the inner part of the cable[V] It would seem that the only way to lube the cable is to dribble oil down from the handbrake end. I dont know if this is how they all are or if i just have a monday one
Next on the hitlist are the brake and clutch master cylinders, brake pipes and flexies, front suspension and the rear axle. All the wheel cylinders are in quite good shape but need new seals all round to be sure there are no leaks
The servo is a VH44 the type for drum brakes, this should reduce pedal pressur by about half all going well.
Anyway enough prattle here are some pix of the stuff above[8D]
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Started by finishing off the intake manifold and fitting the SU carb in place. It fits well and the top of the dashpot plunger ends up about 5mm below the cover plate that was over the old air filter. I also added a vacuume take off from the manifold for a brake servo. This will use 10mm polythene hose run round the back of the motor and then to the servo.
I spent many hours trying to find a good location for the servo. From what i understand they are often mounted under the passanger side floor but in the Highwayman this is where the starting battery is located. After alot of mucking around i discovered it would just fit under the drivers side floor between the brake master cylinder and outer step panel. Its a bit of a squeeze but it just goes and with any luck it wont foul the door check thing. If it does i will make up one for the inside ala morris leather strap type of thing. I like this position as it keeps all the pipes and hoses as short as possible and the servo is slightly lower down than the master cylinder which will make bleeding easier (i hope)
Still got to sort the accelerator cable out with some kind of mounting bracket for the carb and find a way of attaching the return spring.
The eagle eyed of you may notice the lack of fan on the water pump. There is a Kenlow to go on the front of the rad (once it arrives)
Rebuilt the clutch slave cylinder and fitted with no problems, even remembered it goes on the back of the bellhousing flange
What have people replaced the original plastic clutch pipe with? Its kinda past it. Should i use steel brake pipe and a flexi to the cylinder?
I am waiting on some new shocks for the front so made a start on getting the front suspension together in the meantime.
Finished up the day by stripping down and rebuilding the handbrake cable and installing. Interesting thing, i attempted to brease the cable using the grease point about half way along the cable but couldnt get any grease in[
!] Eventually i discovered the nipple went nowhere as there is no hole through to the inner part of the cable[V] It would seem that the only way to lube the cable is to dribble oil down from the handbrake end. I dont know if this is how they all are or if i just have a monday oneNext on the hitlist are the brake and clutch master cylinders, brake pipes and flexies, front suspension and the rear axle. All the wheel cylinders are in quite good shape but need new seals all round to be sure there are no leaks
The servo is a VH44 the type for drum brakes, this should reduce pedal pressur by about half all going well.
Anyway enough prattle here are some pix of the stuff above[8D]
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Looking good there [^]
you should be able to overcome the throttle/spring issues by using the carb abutment plate from a mini, this is a plate that goes between the carb/manifold and solves both throttle and choke cable fitting as well as return spring
"you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
you should be able to overcome the throttle/spring issues by using the carb abutment plate from a mini, this is a plate that goes between the carb/manifold and solves both throttle and choke cable fitting as well as return spring
"you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
Great stuff, hope you don't mind that we'll be plagarising this in the spring [8D]
Commer 'Hi Tor' by TorCars
Commer 'Hi Tor' by TorCars
Go for it Paul! Happy to be of any help i can.
Ill make the mistakes and tell you how not to do it!!!
'Racer i had a look at the mini plate you mention but it wont go easly in where i want it so think ill make up a plate that goes over the extended end of the carb mounting studs and use a couple of 'nylocks to keep it nice and tight. Also means i can take it off for fettling without having to remove the carb every time.
Thanks again for all the encouragment folks, it really helps keep the project going and the momentum up.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Ill make the mistakes and tell you how not to do it!!!
'Racer i had a look at the mini plate you mention but it wont go easly in where i want it so think ill make up a plate that goes over the extended end of the carb mounting studs and use a couple of 'nylocks to keep it nice and tight. Also means i can take it off for fettling without having to remove the carb every time.
Thanks again for all the encouragment folks, it really helps keep the project going and the momentum up.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Good show keep it up
"you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
keep it up "you were only supposed to blow the bloody SLIDING doors off"
Hi all, Been busy in the garage again this weekend
Before you all get over excited there arnt any pix as there is not alot to see. Started by removing the gearbox... Yes i know it only just went in[:0] but the day after i found a bloke not to far away that supplies and fits the J type overdrives. He does all the mods to the tailshaft etc and all i have to do is send him the 'box. $850 all in.
Removed, stripped and rebuilt the brake and clutch master cylinders as well as rebuilding all the wheel cylinders. Spent quite a few hours bending up all new brake pipes and sorting new ones to go between the master cylinder and servo. This job was harder than i expected but got there in the end. I have dropped the new pipes off to get the flares and tube nuts sorted. I hope to get all the pipework sorted in the next couple of days all going well.
Front shocks are being replaced with high pressure gas type from a toyota highlux but with a smaller bottom eye as there is no direct replacement available. This should improve the ride no end as the original armstrong units were in shocking order...
Has anyone tried a rear antiroll bar on the commer?
Another question. Has anyone any idea if its possible to add aircon? It can be 35degC and 100% humidity here so it would be really cool if it can be done[8D][8D][8D], would any of the export models have had it installed?
Will post pix as soon as i get the pipes etc in.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
Before you all get over excited there arnt any pix as there is not alot to see. Started by removing the gearbox... Yes i know it only just went in[:0] but the day after i found a bloke not to far away that supplies and fits the J type overdrives
. He does all the mods to the tailshaft etc and all i have to do is send him the 'box. $850 all in.Removed, stripped and rebuilt the brake and clutch master cylinders as well as rebuilding all the wheel cylinders. Spent quite a few hours bending up all new brake pipes and sorting new ones to go between the master cylinder and servo. This job was harder than i expected but got there in the end. I have dropped the new pipes off to get the flares and tube nuts sorted. I hope to get all the pipework sorted in the next couple of days all going well.
Front shocks are being replaced with high pressure gas type from a toyota highlux but with a smaller bottom eye as there is no direct replacement available. This should improve the ride no end as the original armstrong units were in shocking order...
Has anyone tried a rear antiroll bar on the commer?
Another question. Has anyone any idea if its possible to add aircon? It can be 35degC and 100% humidity here so it would be really cool if it can be done[8D][8D][8D], would any of the export models have had it installed?
Will post pix as soon as i get the pipes etc in.
A commer down under - or down under a commer?
There was a pic fairly recently on retro rides ? of a commer with an air con unit on the top
Sybhil & no1
Sybhil & no1