the tomcat & defender are owned by the same guy, the defender is an ex d44 truck that gets used now & then for challenge events, & as far as im aware they are both on lone to harper for use on projects etc,
Yeh we get to look at them every now and again in lectures which is cool. They would look better with 35" special tracks though!
I balls-ed up my a-levels so have to do BSc rather than BEng but hey. __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
In regards to the project...
I dropped in my rear diff to Dave Ashcroft (Ashcroft transmissions) a couple of months ago to see whether an Ashcroft locker could be made for my Landcruiser axles. After taking some dimensions he concluded that it would almost certainly be possible, however to make it economically viable he would have to have orders for about 100 units, and as he is only in the landrover market, to make this a reality we didn't think it was really possible at the moment. Bit of a shame as I've heard nothing but good things about them, and he was such a sound guy, but I'll have to go for an ARB, when I can afford one.
I returned the wrong shock absorber to west coast 4x4 a couple of weeks ago, and then received the right one a few days later only to find it was dripping with oil and had no pressure another 10 p&p to post it back to west coast 4x4...
I get back home in a fortnight so will crack on with it then, although I have quite a bit of uni work to do, and I don't really trust anyone else working on my truck so only time will tell how much I get done!! __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
have done a few bits and bobs over the last couple weeks connecting ancillaries (pas, alternator sensors etc). new fan and pas belts are on, clutch reservoir and all pedals are in, although will require further bracing/adjustment when i drive it round to the workshop.
also i've re routed clutch and brake lines without the need for excessive bending of the pipes or new pipes (so far...). the axles will be a different story though as i don't know much about sizing of brake lines or the connectors- assume they're standard but need to get my head around it and get a brake flaring tool.
started putting the vacuum lines for the 4H in and got some wiring to wire in the valves somehow..
got a couple of batteries for the truck and winch(s) and
also bought a bowmotor 2 Warn 8274 the other day (but no pics as it's not at the yard yet) and am currently selling my road truck (fourtrak) and offroader (RRC) to fund it all..
put the seat and steering wheel back in temporarily to make sure there was enough room behind the seat when its fully back
new bushes, seals, brake shoes and other rebuild bits..
armature skimmed down on the lathe
casing resprayed and topped up with oil.
i heard that the circlip that holds the brake mechanism on can pop of and it all self distructs into bits so when i had it all apart i took the shaft to get it drilled out on a lathe for a bolt and washer. the shaft was REALLY hard, obviously, but didn't get any softer a few mm into the shaft like we thought it might. even with carbide drill bits it wasn't going well so the bolt isn't as deep as i would've liked but is better than nothing!
freespool handle is missing but winching out should be quick enough anyway, but i've put some large washers on for now in case i do want to use it.
all i need now is synthetic rope!
also did a few other odd jobs on the truck e.g. started to put the wiring loom back in
steering column ready to weld- steel cylinder sleeved with landcruiser shaft with fourtrak top and a sportrak bottom section with UJ
also jigged up where the rad will go. made up a proper bracket but no picture
__________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
because the engine sits a bit further down and back, there's a bigger gap for the radiator which is good as they'll be plenty of room for a big intercooler
a Frontera or TD5 intercooler would fit accross the front (i think) but the outlet pipe would be quite far away from the engine inlet manifold. need to find something with the inlet & outlet close together so i might just end up using a fourtrak one tbh.
[IMG]http://i1125.photobucket.com/albums/l591/Rich_Lott/IMG_17201_zps73126adf.jpg[/IMG
however as the the radiator is at the standard height, the pipe would foul the viscous fan, so i've gone for a 16" Kenlowe electric fan.
also started looking at how to fit in the air box whilst leaving room for intercooler pipes as & when necessary
think something like this might be the best way. not sure about what snorkal to use atm, hopefully there will be an existing Safari type snorkal that lines up roughly with the box as i'm not really a fan of drainpipe on cars...
__________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
got a bit more done over the last couple of days,
kenlowe fan attached to the rad
made some chipboard stencils for a battery stand, then used some phenolic board (trailer floorboard) to make a flat base for the battery.
it'll be between the passenger seat and the back divide but i think i'll make a cover for it sometime
the clutch pipe is fairly near where the exhaust pipe will go so i put some stuff around it for a bit of heat insulation.
need to get the airbox piped in soon then i might be able to take it for a test drive soon __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
update...
got a few odd jobs finished over easter but was quite busy with various stuff and birthday antics.
my girlfriend made me an awesome birthday cake
it hasn't always worked in practice but rather than buying rubbish tools, equipment etc and then replacing them with better ones in 5/10/20 years i've been trying to build up a decent collection now which should last a lifetime.
thats how i justified this mityvac anyway should come in handy for the brakes & clutch.
anyway, like i said, a few small jobs etc-
the fuel filler was a bit of a headache but its sorted now. a piece of tube was machined down and fits inside the bottom rubber pipe whilst the bigger ID pipe fits over the outside of the bottom pipe and is clamped on.
also finished the work on another (group) offroad vehicle uni project recently
back to the truck...
except for the rear disc conversion everything that is left to do on the truck should come together fairly quickly (when i finish exams and actual have time to do it) in late June. should have a Safari snorkel in the next few days to. in the process of reading through threads but i'll try and do something like this for the rear discs
Bought some bits to fit-
disco 200 snorkel
so it will hopefully look like this
also bought a split charge relay (exactly the the same as the X-charge relay but without wires)
And some of China's finest gauges
EGT Gauge
Coolant Temperature gauge
still waiting for the boost controller and boost gauge __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
have been none stop all summer getting the truck towards completion so haven't update for a while but A LOT happended!
a couple of months ago the ebay battery for the winch arrived, but not exactly in the best shape as it had been dropped..
got sent a replacement straight away though so wasn't too bothered as i have a feeling that because its an AGM dry battery it might still work anyway.
offered up the snorkel on an old wing- looks sweet
bought a pair of vented landcruiser calipers which i resealed and put on the front with v discs, then resealed and mounted the non vented calipers on the back with solid discs. a great trick of the trade to get the pots out of the calipers is to screw a grease nipple into the caliper brake line hole and pump the caliper with grease to get the pistons out. one or pistons will usually go sooner than the others so after the move out half way put g-clamps over them so that they are no longer the path of least resistance and the others will start moving
anyway, the half shaft flange needed skimming down a couple of mm but was certainly the best option for a disc conversion without too much hastle imo.
as i was replacing the wheel bearings it made it easier to make a template for the disc conversion
caliper mounts
end result
after the disc conversion i had 'fun' on the dual carriage way when a radiator hose burst on my dads TD5 on the way to deliver my range rover classic to it's new owner... even more incentive to get my truck on the road!! __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
Last edited by RL12 on Tue Aug 20, 2013 11:58 am; edited 1 time in total
extending the arches..
did this both sides, welded filled and sanded. was sanding down for an absolute age to get a good finish but i didn't get any pictures of it which i'm really regretting as it turned out to be a really good job (even if i do say so myself! ) more underseal in the wheelarches to protect it all and jobs a good-un.
quick articulation check
starter motor wasn't engaging quite like it should as the adapter plate was flexing slighty so i had to wipp out the engine and brace the adapter plate
whilst the engine was out i swapped the fourtrak turbo for a 3.0 litre (Isuzu?) turbo whilst was pretty much the same sort of IHI turbo but needed to be water cooled, not too much trouble. also tapped out the compressor housing to accept a T piece for the boost gauge
making the winch tray
'keyed in' the old paint ready for a respray
primer on the filler and bare metal __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
Joined: 13 Feb 2009 Odometer: 7480 Location: bradford on avon (wiltshire)
Posted: Wed Aug 21, 2013 8:22 am Post subject:
so have you tested it offroad yet?? __________________________________ http://www.bloodredoffroad.com/
Angry parrot fabrications,check me out on Facebook
taken her for a few outings but still trying to be cautious until i make an external roll cage. put a standard bumper on for now as a bit of protection though.
also put a dixon bate tow hitch on for a while to move stuff around the yard
went on a 200mile round trip to dorset -pic on route to the Great Dorset Steam Fair
then we went on it's first proper greenlaning trip around south devon. we knew some lanes were a bit tight so decided to try some alternatives (stupid idea). the lanes were so tight i had to take off the passenger mirror to get through (even though they fold back we still couldn't fit)
BODY DAMAGE INSPECTION - passed.
quickly winched a fallen tree out of the way __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
SOMEHOW i didn't bend any panels and finished in Teighmouth un scathed
the truck performed amazingly- particularly the 3 link rear axle which is awesome. simply crawled over loads of technical cross axle stuff. need to improve the dislocation cones though as the springs don't always seat smoothly as you can hear in the video!
Man RL, I missed everything. It's been a while since I've been on the forum and I've got to say, you did an excelent job on the trak. This thing is super ! It looks like minor touches to finish it up now. I'm sure you'll enjoy it for a while.
Joined: 21 Dec 2007 Odometer: 176 Location: WHANGAREI,N.Z
Posted: Fri Nov 29, 2013 2:50 am Post subject:
Looking and sounding absolutely awesome! I have some turbo manifolds for my 'trak but need to find a turbo, would you be able to give more info about the Isuzu the turbo came off? And what was involved in fitting it to the existing manifolds?
Cheers, I do like it but there's still a lot more I want to do to transform it to a proper beast before I can potentially compete with it and be really really happy with it.
The to-do list is in a roughly chronological order and is as follows
Fit intercooler - just need to work out where (or if :s) it will fit.
Rocksliders - 50% done
Rollcage - won't be for a month or two at the earliest
Snorkel - fit after cage
Decals - fit after cage
Spotlights - need to order some d44 ones
35's - deep dish rims already bought but foul n/s/f. (Trying to work out if trail gear hilux steering arm would fit)
Rear spots - fit after cage
Custom Bumper......
Air locker(s) if I have any money left!
Interior storage/organisation/false floor
But first I need to Swap the radiator as it's started weeping through a hairline crack.
In response to the IHI turbo question-
I'm afraid I know nothing about the isuzu. In fact, it might not even be an isuzu! When I first got hold of it i asked around on here if anyone could identify it and I think that's the conclusion we came to.
if you're swapping it for an existing FT turbo it's pretty much plug&play as in the flanges and ports are all the same as a Fourtrak turbo, but the turbines inside are a little bigger. This engines original turbo was an earlier non cooled turbo though, so I plumbed in the later turbo cooling feed pipes from a later engine.
If you want to put this (or any) turbo on a N/A Fourtrak which i have done in the past you will need to Change the exhaust manifold & tailpipe, injector pump & injectors, and provide an oil feed & return for the turbo lubrication. And cooling if necessary. __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
Cheers, I do like it but there's still a lot more I want to do to transform it to a proper beast before I can potentially compete with it and be really really happy with it.
The to-do list is in a roughly chronological order and is as follows
Fit intercooler - just need to work out where (or if :s) it will fit.
Rocksliders - 50% done
Rollcage - won't be for a month or two at the earliest
Snorkel - fit after cage
Decals - fit after cage
Spotlights - need to order some d44 ones
35's - deep dish rims already bought but foul n/s/f. (Trying to work out if trail gear hilux steering arm would fit)
Rear spots - fit after cage
Custom Bumper......
Air locker(s) if I have any money left!
Interior storage/organisation/false floor
But first I need to Swap the radiator as it's started weeping through a hairline crack.
In response to the IHI turbo question-
I'm afraid I know nothing about the isuzu. In fact, it might not even be an isuzu! When I first got hold of it i asked around on here if anyone could identify it and I think that's the conclusion we came to.
if you're swapping it for an existing FT turbo it's pretty much plug&play as in the flanges and ports are all the same as a Fourtrak turbo, but the turbines inside are a little bigger. This engines original turbo was an earlier non cooled turbo though, so I plumbed in the later turbo cooling feed pipes from a later engine.
If you want to put this (or any) turbo on a N/A Fourtrak which i have done in the past you will need to Change the exhaust manifold & tailpipe, injector pump & injectors, and provide an oil feed & return for the turbo lubrication. And cooling if necessary.
Your IHI looks almost identical to the IHI turbo on my Trooper. So, it probably is one off an Isuzu. However, at the same time, I'm sure IHI sold turbos to more than just Isuzu. So, without pulling it off yourself, or getting it directly from the guy who pulled it off yesterday, it's a guess at best.
Joined: 06 Apr 2010 Odometer: 85 Location: Heathfield, East Sussex
Posted: Sun Feb 02, 2014 9:33 pm Post subject:
Spot on work!!
I'm never going so extreme, but love the sound you get from it. How is the exhaust set-up? And would you know if there is a worthwhile increase in power from the standard 'Track turbo to the one you've fitted...I'm intrigued at a plug 'n' play upgrade... __________________________________ '96/'97 F78 Fourtrak
I'm never going so extreme, but love the sound you get from it. How is the exhaust set-up? And would you know if there is a worthwhile increase in power from the standard 'Track turbo to the one you've fitted...I'm intrigued at a plug 'n' play upgrade...
The exhaust is a mix of stainless pipe front section bolted to a standard tailpipe from Milner that weaves over the axle and out the back, with a stainless tip welded to the end to get it past the rear bumper.
I might put a box in the middle to quieten it for long journeys one day though.
With the bigger turbo you need to make sure its spooled up if you want to go somewhere, otherwise it will bog down if you suddenly want more torque.
But when it's spooled up... lets just hill climbs are awesome!!
I can defiantly feel the wait of all the landrcuiser parts on my truck compared to a standard Fourtrak so it would certainly give yours more poke!
Joined: 18 Feb 2014 Odometer: 1 Location: The Land Down Under
Posted: Tue Apr 08, 2014 2:08 pm Post subject:
Mate, awesome buildup.
I have an F78, and dont plan to do much to it. They wouldnt let you on the roads over here in Australia, but its bloody fantastic anyway.
No updates for a while due to a various reasons, you all know how it is sometimes.
There's a couples of improvements I want to make so I'll be doing them in the next four weeks, as well as helping a friend with his Indy Fourtrak trayback project.
Over the last few days I've made some side steps/rocksliders and bumperettes, all with sleeved tubes to allow me to bolt a roll cage on with M16 bolts.
I'm a bit confused with MSA specs for the rollcage though, as I think the bottoms of the hoops might have to be on square plates?
This is as far as I've got at the moment.
Making the bottom inserts for the roll cage
__________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
As far as the cage mounts go. I thought that the cage had to be mounted with square base plates and had to be permanent. Not bolt in or removable. THen again though, I don't know the MSA spokes.
Hope you get it where you want it without a lot of double work.
as well as helping a friend with his Indy Fourtrak trayback project.
Any pics? Just got a F78 myself.
Hi, this is the only pic I have at the moment.
It's a P Reg F78 Riviera, with typical rust for age. Personally I would have just patched it up but he doesnt want or need the back anyway because he also has a pickup. So he's cut off the back and wants me to sort it out...
+2" blood red springs and shocks, he's got some MTs for it too. Watch this space. __________________________________ Fourtrak/LJ70 project
Youtube: FourtrakRich
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