don't come in much anymore, deleted the resto thread a while back, just though some folk who followed the progress would like to see the van today. Hope to have it back in the shed this week. cheers for now good luck with your restorations .
Dont come in much at all these days , Vans been on the road for 8 years now . Furthest trip was its first outing from North East Scotland to South Wales via Snowdonia , and A and B roads , short stint on the Motorway but rather avoid it . Remaining trips have been all over Scotland and regular weekends and short hauls during the summer .. what there is of it . So far over thousands of miles Its had only 3 issues , crap leisure batteries , a broken rear adjustable spring arm and the latest excess clutch travel . Other than that its all gone well still running the same points and condenser with 2 plug changes and regular oil changes . Only thing that bugs me is on "hotter" days on dual carriageway runs or when undertaking a long climb the oil light has a tendency to flicker . I sually keep going at a slower pace and it sorts itself out, or climbing the Balach na bah on the NC500 I stopped at the top to let it cool down .. I've stuck to 20/50 GTX but reading stuff it seems thinner oil might help ? Clutch has always been very light but always worked well , untill a few weeks ago when I was starting the prep for this years outings . It moved 10 feet and when pressing the clutch to select reverse the pedal hit the floor . Turned out the clip on pin securing the cable end to the pedal had somehow come undone and the pin was hanging out the cable end with a bend on one side of the tang . After a temprary fix the clutch pedal was even lighter than previous and not clearing to select gears .. Having ordered up a cable bundle for the correct year ( 71 to 79 ) I fitted the new cable but unfortunately the pedal was still crap. Its now adjusted its full thread and although still ultra light awith a fair bit of pedal travel before there is any resistance thw gears shift well through the box but Im not happy with it . Clearance on the clutch arm is around 1/2 an inch . Looking at the different cable lengths from 68 to 79, I think using a LHD 3190cable will help .. im going to give it a go before considering a deeper dive .. last thing I want is clutch failure in the wilds The broken rear spring arm was the result of hitting the mother of all speed bumps and actually getting airborne . as we launched the front end , the bang from the back end and subsequent radical rear end suspension drop confirmed the worst .. Fortunately when you break down in a camper you can chill out and have your dinner Eventually got recovered and back home and while driving the van 60 feet to the drivefrom the back of the recovery, the other side spring plate let go and the entire rear end dropped on the deck anly thing for it was to drive it as far up the drive as it would go and leave it till the following day . Turned out that the welds on the torion bar spline where it was welded to the spring plate had sheared . I cleaned things up and re tigged them adding a little weld wire to enhance the weld area . So far so good for a further 3 years .. The original would be better but the adjustable are a lot easier to work with .. Other than that its been good .. Feeling im getting a little to old for the trendy van though .. sat minding our own business , we were asked if it could be used as a background for some Italian wedding magazine pictures .. The wife loves it . I still have an attachment wouldn't build another but might be tempted with a 64 rhd split screen I've found up a drive locally .. Cheers for now ..
4 things ... crap chrome headlight trims .. its took me 3 years to get around to it but bought stainless steel replacements last week and a new JK cover . asthe van lives outdoors all summer . Last cover lasted 6 years .. if this one last that long I will be tripping 70 when it needs renewed LOL.. bay camper camping days micht be drawing to a close by then..
Those pics of the scottish scenery look great, we cannot wait to head up this year, third year running & we absolutely love it.
The pic above the text was taken at Auchmithie , just north of Arbroath, thats local to me . There is a tretcherous loose surface road down to the grass area .. Its not encouraged these days but its doable .. coming back up its best to get the passenger to dtopp things comming down as you need a good run to get up in a camper . Next pic is at Glenshee . You can prebook to park up in there car park rea at the ski centre with hook ups and they leave the toilets open .. you can get tickets for the chair lift for some cracking views if its a clear day .. you can either walk back down or get the chairlift back .. its a short drive to Braemar from there , some great drives in that area . 3rd pic is at the roadside parking spot on the A82 just past Oinch on the road to Fort William 4th pic is Glen Coe at the Devils staircase .. last pic is in Aberdeen they are just random pics .. These ones are from Glenshee , Got to admit its one of my favourite places , These are taken from the chairlift and a walk down to one of the lochans .. Its a good walk if your into walking and your unlikely to bump into anyone .. This is just 40 minutes from me so an easy run but for the climb to the summit ( highest road in the UK ) The van is usually in 2nd and managing around 20 mph .. and yup,when I stop in the car park the oil light is flickering .. it gets a bit hot I think.. but its done it a dozen times now with no ill effect .. If your into Mountain Biking you can take your bike up on the chairlift and get a day pass , the downhill is fast and loose , but you can take to the land rover tracks , there are some great routes .. Then end your day back at the van in the ski centre car park.. In the morning the dear heard will be crossing the road its a magical place .. My ashes will be scattered at the summit .
We head back on 23rd August! We love Arisaig / Camusdarach and last year we stayed in Shieldaig, what a wonderfull village, we was made very welcome! On our last leg, we try to get to Fortrose Bay, we love it there and last year we visited Portsoy, again a very welcoming village. To top it all, last year we met Simon from The Levellers and spent a while chatting to him.
