1973 Sheldon High Top Camper

Main wire earthed out if all else is good ?

 

Got it started this morning, I think it was a loose wire on the coil causing the issue. Dwell checked out on meter, and the bus sounded much quieter following valve clearance adjustment. If the car parked behind is anything to go by it's still running a little rich though!



Should I wash it off or leave it as a warning not to park so f***ing close?

 

Perfectly normal, water gets past glass, drains through door, onto step and out. If it was caught bt the door it's got out inside the seal so maybe the drain hole is blocked.

 

Only just seen this thread...nice bus!

 

looks a nice tidy one, make sure the rear gutter drain holes are clear and open, on my friends they were covered when the top was fitted so the whole gutters just rusted away over time.

 

I drilled a extra drain hole into the corner of the of door (handle end of door between rubber and skin) as mine is parked facing upwards, works ok

 

Yep this was one of the first jobs I did. Gutters were full of crap (i.e. leaves and stuff) when I bought it, but the top seems to have been fitted properly leaving the drains clear. There's some surface rust to clean up and paint but thankfully no rot.

 

Make sure your drain holes are not letting water come in and go under the rubber carpet over the wheel arches, I did this and ended up with a hole rusted through the wheel arch
Tony

 

But they must drain inside the door seal? The only place to drain the doors OUTSIDE the seal is at the front.

 

As the bus is facing upwards when parked up the water just drips out of the holes and down the body, no water on cab floor or behind the seat!

 

I've still got to finish servicing the van but had a couple of hours this afternoon so had a fiddle about inside. More adding stuff to the to-do list than actually ticking anything off, but probably a necessary part of the process!

It was full of junk, so I cleared it out to have a good look at what's what. Suggestions on a postcard please as to what this bit of plywood was doing under the rear seat base - as far as I could tell all it was doing was taking up valuable storage so I removed it. Possibly there to strengthen the base, or protect the speakers? In either case not particularly effective, and not supporting the brackets or anything as far as I could tell.

Before:


After:


Glad to see that the floor is solid, was slightly nervous as the sheet of MDF at the bottom looked like it had got damp, but all OK under... Woodwork for the seat base isn't very well secured, currently held down with three brackets at the front only, except one has no screw in it, and on another the screw has stripped the thread. Will get a couple of brackets to hold down the rear corners and pop some new screws in the front.

Did wonder if the brackets below are supposed to be bolted down, but this one doesn't reach the wheel arch and the one on the other side (visible in the picture above) is nowhere near anything...maybe there's supposed to be a brace across them?


Next I had a look and found 2 access covers to the fuel tank area. Opened the large one towards the side and was able to inspect the filler hose, which appears to be nearly new, wish I could say the same for the breather hoses... Also measured the resistance on fuel level sender as the fuel gauge only ever reads empty. It looks new, but 80 Ohms was the reading which indicates that it is knackered.


Having seen the breather hose here I thought I'd have a look at the ones in the engine bay. One was completely disconnected and fell apart when I took it off. I've bought some decent hose and will replace them. Not too sure what to do with this though - should it run into the air filter and if so how and what would I attach to it? Would be a bit of a faff as I currently have a Weber progressive with an aftermarket air filter. Could I just cap it off as a temporary precaution?


Oh, and here's the original colour (no, not the rust or the red oxide). I'd be tempted to revert to it if I got round to a paint job. Any idea which blue it is?


Next time I'll actually get something useful done. The to do list is growing... I did at least manage to replace a broken window winder handle!

 

Quite a good day today, the sun was shining and I got a few jobs done, although as usual there was a bit of ballsing up mixed in with the success. Got a new fuel sender from GSF, was chuffed to find my local branch had one in stock. A breath of fresh air compared to my last 2 classics (Saab and Datsun) to have such good parts availability. Anyway:



A working fuel gauge! Although the needle seemed to be wobbling slightly due to a loose contact under the dash - wiggling the gear knob seemed to change the reading slightly. So I had a look under there, and somehow in the process ended up knocking something that resulted in me getting covered in screen wash. Whatever I did has caused some kind of leak in the water pipes/valve on the steering column. Grr...

Also managed to get the drivers door lock working although it's a slightly shallow victory as now pretty much any key works in there. Still, better than leaving it completely unlocked, which is what I've had to do up to now. Lubricated up the mechanisms in the door, cleaned the drain holes and sprayed some waxoyl in there for good measure. Better.

Fixed the loose wire on the coil properly with a new crimped on terminal, fixed an intermittent rear light, and replaced one of the perished original fuel breather hoses while I was at it.

Progress, but now I need to sort out the windscreen washer.

 

What a brilliant show us your ride thread ,keep it coming ,love the bus

 

Cleaned up the front bumper today while the littlun was asleep. Am sharing work and childcare with the mrs at the moment. Has its benefits and downsides, but was glad to get a couple of hours of tinkering today. Not completely comfortable leaving him asleep in the house while I work on the van, but this afternoon I quickly whipped off the front bumper and took it out into the back garden to clean it up.

Before:


After:


I was going to paint it but it came up so well that I think I'll either touch in the grotty bits or leave it as is. It looks much better, but still "in keeping"... bumpers are supposed to take the odd knock anyway.

Was surprised to discover that I needed a 1/2" socket to undo the bolts holding on the bumper. Is this normal? I thought everything was metric on the bus?

 

Took a day off work today... The sun was shining and I want to get away in the bus over the easter holidays so I did a few jobs.

Fixed the sliding windows in the high top. They were seized shut with years of crud and the handles fell off when I first tried to open them. Cleaned up, lubricated the runners and stuck the handles and trim back on.


Added some brackets at the rear of the rock and roll seat base, and replaced the useless existing screws. Solid now and thankfully still folds up and down OK.


Refitted the front bumper. Anti-sieze on the bolts and new screws on the number plate.


Continued cleaning up the interior. Any idea where the units come from? Bus was originally a Devon.


It's amazing how time consuming all these little bits and bobs are. Doesn't help that the bus was/is absolutely filthy. Not sure it's ever been cleaned inside.

 

just love this hightop too!

 

prototype bay front arches glad my bus isn't the only mongrel!

 

Keep at it tommy

 

Well spotted! I hadn't noticed...

Thanks Para, lots on the to-do list but trying not get involved in anything that might take it off the road - I'm hoping to take it away over Easter. Would be good to finish off the engine service first...got hold of an Accuspark SVDA to fit too - looking forward to seeing if it runs better with that than the current 009.

 

Dont take it off the road dude if you can help it

Are you going to techenders?