Jimmy our 68 westy

[mike202]

+1 on the seats

nice to know you've found somewhere you're happy with doing repairs. 8)

 

[67westy]

Awesome pics mate - seats look fantastic and Penny looked comfy on the hammock!
Looking forward to the cruise down on Thurs! 8)

Me too mate, should be a good test for your new carbs

+1 on the seats

nice to know you've found somewhere you're happy with doing repairs. 8)

Thanks Mike, took a lot of hints from your thread so cheers for that wouldn't go anywhere but mpw now!

 

[67westy]

Well the first camping trip with Penny was a definite success had a really good drive down to DATC and a great time whilst we were there. A few pics from the show

After that I needed to get an MOT which unfortunately didn't go to plan Didn't actually fail I just didn't make it to the MOT station. Broken clutch cable cut short the trip there :x Last year the battery died straight after the MOT, the van seems to hate this time of year!

I had a spare so got it changed tonight, will get booked in on monday with a bit of luck

 

[mike202]

Nice pics of DATC which looks like a really cool setting for a show

Pity about the clutch cable, hope you get the MOT sorted :roll:

 

[67westy]

Nice pics of DATC which looks like a really cool setting for a show

Pity about the clutch cable, hope you get the MOT sorted :roll:

Thanks Mike,

Round 2 of the MOT went much better, I actually made it there for a start! Bus flew through the tester said "It's spot on, I couldn't find anything wrong even if I was trying to be picky" :mrgreen:

On to operation beam swap :msn4:

 

[67westy]

The beam swap started today with an afternoons work, old beam has an adjuster that never let us get back to standard height. Also hoped to be able to run with bump stops as the old beam had them removed. Started off with a couple of reference shots:

The beam I've had for a while now:

Fitted a new steering idler pin as it was easier to do now rather than in a year or two when it's all fitted.

Ended the day like this with old one removed:

Tomorrow is swap running gear and hopefully end up all reattached

 

[StuF]

Wow - epic work there mate!

 

[67westy]

Just realised that I forgot to finish off about the beam

So got the new beam all fitted up, went fairly smoothly once the torsion leaves were in (nightmare job!)

And the beer bottle after pics:

So gained a fair bit there Went for a test run and still managed to clout the beam on one bit of road :evil: Plenty of clearance in the arch though so then it was off for new tyres:

Went with 175/70/14C so have a 95 load rating and extra steel bands. Must say it handles better with a lot less wandering and drift around corners. Still managed to rub the arch on one bump on the way to skegvegas but to be fair StuF had all 4 wheels and his trailer off the ground at that point :lol: Possibly 175/65/14 would have been a good compromise but I'm very happy with the 70's for now and I can't afford any more tyres :lol:

Also had time to but the pop top fringe on, only taken a few years!

before:

After:

 

[magoo]

Enjoyed that thread! Maybe see you on the road somewhere.

 

[67westy]

Well it's been a while since I updated this so I thought I would get up what jobs have been done in the last few months. Firstly we were due for a weekend camping at a 24 hour race towards the end of september. As the temperature was dropping I thought Penny would appreciate the propex working, it's been tempremental for a while and apparently on older models this can be caused by the type of airflow sensor used (5 flashes on the control unit). The upgraded sensor can be bought from propex (http://www.propexleisure.co.uk/shop/air-flow-sensing-upgrade-kit" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false so kit received and off we go.

New kit:

Propex opened up:

Old sensor was an IR sensor picking up the pattern on the fan:

My sensor had a piece of dirt on it, this probably caused my problems but as I had the new one and everything was apart I thought I would fit it anyway:

New one in situ:

Sealed the unit back up with silicone and it ran perfectly all weekend so hopefully that issue wont come back!

 

[67westy]

Next up was the mystery of the disintegrating fan belts. The alternator was noisy and there was in/out movement on the pulley so I was advised to get it sorted.

This bearing was meant to be an interference fit but dropped straight out, obviously something not quite right!

Showing signs of wear on the commutator as well:

So got the new one:

No fitted pictures but it is much quieter now and no movement at all. I think I will try and get the old one refurbished as I imagine the quality of the new alternators has decreased over the years

 

[67westy]

I decided this year that I would try and move the van every few weeks (even if it's just to the end of the drive and back) as previously I have let it sit from October to Feb/March time and the odd thing has seized (normally hand brake!). So on the last attempt to move it I made it to the end of the drive and just started to pull out when the front right brake locked on. Managed to get it moving again by backing off the adjuster, seemed a bit odd so I thought I better take the drum off to have a look.

Not ideal! Might explain why the brakes occasionally pulled on the last couple of short outings. I had a measure of the drums whilst they were off and they were close to the limit (couldn't measure accurately as my calipers were too small) so new drums were purchased from machine7, listed as late split but fit the bay with the correct seal.

New shoes on, everything cleaned and a smear of copper grease on the adjuster:

New drum on, fitted new bearings at the same time. Old ones looked in good shape but it seemed a false economy to reuse. Tried drifting the new races in with little luck, 5 mins on a press and all were in nicely

 

[67westy]

I forgot the shiny bits we got for the van

First up was an awesome westy buddybox from myvanway. Can't wait to start using it in the van, currently sat in the living room:

Next up is the waeco cdf-26 so I can have cool beers next summer (or if the wife is reading it's to keep food fresh for the nipper ). Room for 6 2 litre bottles plus some fresh food:

Decided to see how cold it gets, yup that is -19c it's at. Froze a bottle of water no probs:

Current draw should be around 0.4-0.5 amps per hour. So with the 110ah battery it should be good for about 4 days or so with other usage. Solar panel might be tempting next.......

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[Myvanway]

:lol:


8)

 

[67westy]

8) 8) 8)

 

[StuF]

8) 8) 8)

Winner! VS is the only exhaust to install! 8) 8) 8) 8) 8)

 

[67westy]

Got a chance on Friday to get this sorted, its lovely

Before:

During:

After:

Nice and easy to fit, much better than wrestling with a poor fitting stock exhaust

Also raised the rear a little to level it out following the work in the front last year. Had a knocking CV joint though so it's another job to add to the list

Sent from my Nexus 6 using Tapatalk

 

[slammed72]

Looks great bud !!! The vs exhaust looks great

 

[Myvanway]

Yer!! 8)

 

[67westy]

Looks great bud !!! The vs exhaust looks great

Cheers its a nice bit of kit, definitely money well spent I think

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