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July 21, 2024July 9, 2024

Footwell Repair Part 4: Floor Panel Repair, Failing Spectacularly at Metal Working (Post #663) 7/20/2024

I started the day with glorious visions of finishing the welding on the Floor Panel. All I managed to accomplish was spectacular failure.

Things that worked:

I had some luck with my homemade plug weld drill bit. It worked well at removing the layers of primer and seam sealer I had foolishly laid down.

Welding. Some of my welds actually held pretty well. I managed to get a good ground and the welds stuck until I stressed them too far. On second thought, maybe that means the welds sucked.

My home made air hammer … hammer bit stretched the metal a lot. But the shape I needed and the one the I got weren’t going to work.

Things that didn’t work:

Welds. As before, they popped when put under a lot of stress.

My understanding of metal working,

My spinal cord did not like the constant bending over.

After I had the panel welded in place I tried to apply my air hammer on the panel to get the metal to stick. I also tried using self tapping screws to get the panel to stay in place. This may have worked better if I had shaped the panel better.

All in all, it was a waste of wire and gas. I’ve since cut the panel down smaller. I cut all the plug welds off. I’ll try edge welding when I start return to make the fix. Changed the way the transmission tunnel weld was fixed. It’s now straighter less “bowl shaped”. I’m pretty sure I’ll need help holding the panel in place while I make the first few welds.

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That’s it for this week. Like and subscribe.

Thanks for reading and Happy Rovering.

https://youtu.be/-0hDDW1aPcE

June 30, 2024June 23, 2024

Footwell Repair Part 1: Footwell Repair (Post #660) 6/30/2024

stu·pid·i·ty /sto͞oˈpidədē/ noun

1 : the quality or state of being stupid

2 : a stupid idea or act

3: working in a metal shop building in the heat of an Oklahoma summer

Good grief it was hot today. The shop was 120F° (48.8°C) when I opened the big rollup door. After a few minutes the temp calmed down to a very tolerable 105-110°F (sarcasm). It was about as hot in there as I’ve ever seen.

But temperature is not something we let ruin a good time. Some people go camping in this heat, I don’t. Some people continue to run as a hobby in this heat, I don’t. Some people work on their Land Rovers when its this hot outside, I definitely do.

The heat aside, I have to work on this Land Rover at every opportunity if I’m ever going to drive her again. So there I was sweating my b@11s off to make a floor panel patch.

I started with measuring the size AGAIN. I seriously measured for this patch at least a half dozen times. I then proceeded to cut a patch from my recently procured steel.

The patch needed a lot of manipulation to get close to fitting. I bent the panel by hand first and then used the BF hammer to get it even closer. I’ve still got a long way to go to get this even closer.

One of the seems in the deep bend along the transmission tunnel is not welded. That will need to be welded and sealed again. I also have a small patch to fix next to the bulkhead on the door side. Those two will be the next two things I tackle.

Once those are fixed, I’ll be able to finish the patch. The patch will need to have another 1/2 inch trimmed off. Then…there is the two bends that are there for structure or to limit the vibration. I’ll need to build a jig and use the air chisel as an air hammer to bend the metal.

This is going to take a router bit that will closely approximate bends. And it will take me making a jig. I watched a video on YouTube by “Make It Kustom” where he did this very thing. I’ll need to make the same tool he did. And I’ll need my air compressor…which…is now disabled.

Seems my last working air fitting end, which started leaking recently, now will not hold any tools because the ball bearings are missing. And if that wasn’t enough, my hose end is now stripped out and I won’t be able to put a new fitting on, so I get to buy a new hose too. Super awesome.

That’s where I decided to shut down my work and jump in the pool.

Thanks for reading, like and subscribe, and Happy Rovering.

https://youtu.be/U5KY1AeaX0s

June 19, 2024June 19, 2024

Footwell Repair Part 11: Wheel Well Panel (Post #658) 6/19/2024

In this post I talk about making my replacement panel for the front passenger side wheel well. I went to Chickasha Industrial and bought a piece of scrap 20 gauge. It will be just the right amount for the fender and the floor panel. Happy I didn’t have to buy a giant sheet.

I started by making my measurements and then checking them again. After I finished that I checked the measurements again. In the video I show how I needed to have a trapezoid shape. And after typing trapezoid in this post I realize I have spelled it wrong in this post, which is being exported as I type up this post. Oh well…..

I referenced “Mephisto’s Trapezoid” from the 1981 Pee Wee Herman – Live at the Roxy show which was on HBO. It’s one of my favorite shows to watch and was the inspiration for Pee Wee’s Playhouse. Captain Carl, played by the amazing Phil Hartman, tells his story to Pee Wee about getting lost in Mephisto’s Trapezoid. Comedic genius.

I cut the steel and then measured again. I made some bends to get the inner edge and the back lip right. After getting the panel made I could tell I needed to make some adjustments to the fender well too. So I did some hammer and dolly work and got everything sorted. I also had to adjust my panel after I got everything sorted. No biggy.

I dry fitted the panel at least six times. I’m pretty sure I can get it into place with just a few plug welds. I’m going to try my hand tomorrow at modifying a broken drill bit to make a plug weld bit. If that doesn’t produce results I’ll probably run to a welding shop and see what I can find. The gist of this is you can paint everything and seal it with whatever then remove just the part of the paint you need to weld.

This is a giant experiment because the entire floor pan in the back is going to be done this way. The holes are there and all I’ll need to do is get the Z bar in place and make a crap ton of plug welds. Then I can get the entire seam sealed with bedliner and or whatever.

That’s pretty much it for now.

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https://youtu.be/nPFNPa3TgQY

June 3, 2024June 3, 2024

Footwell Repair Part 9: Seam Sealer (Post #656) 6/3/2024

In this installment I apply seam sealer to the most recently welded “L”. Seam sealer was not how I wanted to seal this joint up. I wanted it to be welded closed. That is just not possible. It wasn’t originally built that way. I can only hope the seam sealer I’m using will last long enough for me to quit this Overlanding Hobby.

I also look at the floor patch I’m going to need to build. I talk about the two structural bends in the panel. I saw the guy on Make It Kustom [Youtube] build a jig and a tool to make these kinds of bends. You can look through his videos to find it. I’m going to think long and hard about this before I tackle this problem.

It might be fun to build the jig. I will need to buy a router bit to get the jig in the right shape. I’ll probably need to build a special air hammer bit like he did too. It would be a one off fix. I don’t think I will ever tear this apart again.

It’s a short video and I know it’s über riveting content watching me smear seam sealer. In my defense I didn’t have time to produce anything else this weekend. Saturday we visited the Evil German Dude and his lovely wife. Paparazzi Ford was there too. The Evil German Broad made brunch for us and we all got to catchup on the latest happenings and see their almost finished “cabana”. That’s what the county commissioners called it for tax purposes.

It’s an amazing space and it took a lot of forethought, planning, engineering to make it as awesome as it is. Several things I saw had me comparing how much time I’ve spent thinking about the future state of the Big White Bus. I know I’ll have some great ideas that will need additional thought and probably re-engineering to get them right.

I picked up a parts washer from EGD too while I was there. So that’s pretty cool. That’s all for this week. Like and subscribe to the blog and the Youtube channel.

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Thanks for reading and Happy Rovering.

January 8, 2024January 8, 2024

Air Compressor Failed (Post #638) 1/8/2024

Sometimes we have to take time out to repair our tools. Well, that was what I had HOPED I was doing, repairing my Husky (aka Campbell Hausfeld) air compressor. A few weeks ago while the air compressor was running I heard a loud BINK sound. It was actually kinda scary and I’m not gonna lie, I thought twice about exiting the area. Instead, I went over and turned it off. This compressor would not hold air overnight…ever, so something was not so great about the Chinese components used to build it.

The next time I started it up (to nail some baseboards in the pantry) it ran and ran and ran and ran…. The pressure never got above 50psi. I tried the nail gun and it wouldn’t even fire a nail. I googled a bit, and the most obvious issue was likely a failed piston seal.

I took the compressor apart and yep….there was an obvious failure.

The piston block was pretty rough too. It’s been in use in my garage and shop for 10 years (maybe 15) and who knows how long my neighbor used it before he gave it to me.

I got online and looked for the replacement part, which turned out to be unobtanium. They discontinued that pump and only a few parts were still available for it. I first contemplated trying to find a new compressor to mate to the tank. One of the things I hate most about the stuff that is built today is most of it is throw-away. If it has a failed part, you just toss it and buy another.

Ben at Tractor Supply was telling me about his air compressor which he inherited from his grandfather who bought it when Sears still sold quality stuff. He said it just runs and runs. Its industrial…bullet proof…and probably will out live him too.

They just don’t make stuff like that anymore. The really wasn’t an option to buy a new compressor for that tank. I’d probably have spent what a new compressor costs to upgrade/repair this crappy Chinese air compressor. So a new compressor was the solution.

I was resigned to buying Chinese-made again mostly because quality air compressors you could probably rely on for ever cost more than what my Range Rover is worth today. Don’t get me wrong if money wasn’t an issue my shop would have some seriously nice stuff, but that damn Money Tree will not sprout in my backyard.

I lucked out that this new DeWalt is “Made in America” (from foreign sourced parts). This is a win in the “employ Americans” as much as possible mindset. I also picked up an air chisel while I was there and it was made in Taiwan! That’s a double win cause it was cheap and I get to stick it to the Chinese Industrial Complex by supporting straight up dissidents. WIN WIN!

I’m a little poorer, but I now have reliable compressed air in my shop again. A compressor that can run a wider variety of tools due to its output capacity of 6.2 CFM.

Next week if it isn’t too cold I’ll be welding and the goal is to finish up the rear wheel well. I need to order a B pillar replacement. I found one online and it will be mine for about $65.00(US). Half that cost is shipping from jolly ole’ England.

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Thanks again for reading and Happy Rovering.

February 2, 2021May 16, 2023

Southwest Oklahoma Expedition – January 2021 Part 2 (Post #591) 2/2/2021

If you missed Part 1, jump over to that post and catch up (the link is after the break). Or don’t, this is still a free country, more or less, depending on who you ask. What follows is Day 2 of the Great Southwest Oklahoma Expedition! See there, this trip just got more awesome the more we drove!