Author Topic: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon  (Read 4095 times)

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Offline PCB93

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #75 on: February 16, 2022, 08:57:35 pm »
Evening all,

Thought I'd try getting the updates rolling again.  I was hoping 2021 would be the year I could finally get stuck in to the Carawagon, but I ended up working down south for several months, so very little happened with it... again.  I'll lob some photos of the odds and sods that did occur on in the coming days.

I've been allocated closer to home for a while, so there's an opportunity for some movement.  I 'took the plunge' and got the Richards Chassis order in last week, so had better get some bits rebuilt to bolt to it when it arrives!

Phil
1979 Series III 88" Hard-top - daily drive
1968 Series IIA 109" Carawagon - project

Offline PCB93

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #76 on: February 26, 2022, 03:13:53 am »
Having finally got the Carawagon running in November 2020, it took me until the following April to get round to working on it again.  I'd removed its Fairey overdrive back in 2018 and trialled it in the 88" (while its own was being rebuilt).  It generally behaved okay, but sounded very 'bearing-y.'  After the 88" got its own overdrive back, the Carawagon's ended up sat in the garage for a few months.  I came across it when having a bit of a sort out, and decided to get working on it.  This post covers its disassembly.

Here it is having just been removed from the Carawagon in May 2018, with the standard issue coating of oily sludge:


As it was in April 2021, following a cleaning session and some service in the 88":


When working on Fairey/Superwinch overdrives, I use the repair and service manual written by Ulrico Becker, which is available in 'PDF' form on the Series I Club website.  As well as providing step-by-step rebuilding instructions, it lists all the bearing and seal sizes required, so is helpful in sourcing parts.

Once the top cover has been removed, the first thing to come out is the selector mechanism.  The detent spring and ball are retained by a pair of grub screws (top only shown here), which are best removed with 'Allen' keys:


With the detent grub screws out, removing the pinch bolt from the selector fork allows the selector shaft to be pulled out; the fork with its brass slipper pads can then be lifted out through the top of the unit:


Removal of the rear cover exposes the large input gear bearing, through which the mainshaft protrudes.  There are a couple of circlips to remove from the end of the mainshaft:


Behind the circlips is the first of the many thrust bearing packs that these units contain.  This one has had a bit of a hard time and lost one of its rollers.  Also shown are the shims used for setting the mainshaft end-float - a little mangled, in this particular unit:


With the first thrust bearing out, the input gear and its bearing can be removed.  The bearing isn't a press fit, so should slide out, or at most require some gentle leverage from inside the casing.  The synchromesh hub is now visible, further along the mainshaft.  At this point, the mainshaft easily pushes out through the front of the unit:


After mainshaft removal, the synchromesh hub can be lifted through the top of the casing.  Here you can see how it sits with the previously removed input gear:


View inside the casing following mainshaft and synchromesh hub removal.  To the right, the rear of the output gear shaft is exposed; to the left is the laygear, which has thrust bearing packs at both ends (rear pack just visible):


The layshaft is quite easily pulled out from the rear of the casing, and once the laygear has been moved aside, the output gear shaft will slide out through the front.  Inside are numerous roller bearings, spacers and thrust bearings - these often come out with the mainshaft, but if not, can now be slid out through the front of the output gear shaft:


Output gear shaft seal and roller bearing removed from the casing.  With the output shaft removed, these can be tapped out from behind:


Input gear with its bearing removed.  This does require a press, unless you're willing to risk brute force.  There's also a circlip that has to come off first:


All the components of the main unit laid out at the end of disassembly.  Keeping everything lined up in the order it needs to go back is good for sanity protection, I find.  The column roughly in the centre has all the bearings, spacers and shims for the mainshaft; bottom right is a similar arrangement for the layshaft.  Everything else, you can't really mix up!:


That just leaves the coupling sleeve.  The teeth are in good condition, so it's fine for reuse.  Just the bearing to replace, which slides off once either of the snap rings at each end has been removed:


Bearing removed.  Behind each snap ring is a metal spacer - these need to be retained, as they aren't provided with replacement bearing kits:


In contrast to the overdrive from the 88", all the important components in the Carawagon's turned out to be in very nice nick, so all I had to order were the things I'd change as a matter of course - bearings, seals, etc.  Quite a relief, as these units can quickly become rather expensive to restore, otherwise!  The lever linkage is still in place on the Carawagon for now, if anyone's wondering why it's been omitted from this write up.

Things ended up staying at this point until January this year, as within a couple of days of stripping the overdrive, I found myself allocated to work down in Hertfordshire for the rest of 2021.  On the odd brief visit home, I just sprayed all the components with oil, to avoid any corrosion while they were sat out on the bench.  It's all back together now though, so that procedure will be the topic of my next 'essay!'

Phil
1979 Series III 88" Hard-top - daily drive
1968 Series IIA 109" Carawagon - project

Online birdsnest55

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #77 on: February 26, 2022, 09:10:09 am »
Very Useful. Thank You

Paul
Many Regards

Paul

Offline Sunny Jim

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #78 on: February 26, 2022, 06:57:15 pm »
When I did a Fairey Overdrive a few years ago, I swapped over the two synchro rings as one was more worn than the other (I assumed that changing down tends to wear more than changing up). This would even up the wear, and prolong the life of the overdrive.

Sunny Jim

Offline PCB93

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #79 on: February 27, 2022, 10:11:45 pm »
Paul:  Thanks, I do appreciate that comment.  Though this thread is mostly written just to keep everyone posted on progress with the Carawagon, I hope the content may also be of use to people working on the same operations in future.

Sunny Jim:  From my experience, you're correct in assuming that changing down causes more wear.  The overdrive in my 88" was at the point of requiring double de-clutching to down-shift, whereas it was still smooth changing up.  It was worn to the extent that I chose to replace the entire synchromesh hub when rebuilding it; the teeth on the 'down' side of the hub were rounded off.  It still isn't perfect now, as the synchro teeth on the output gear shaft itself are a little worn, however this component is no longer available new.

This overdrive, from the Carawagon, actually shows very few signs of use; I don't think it's done many miles.  It shifted smoothly in both directions when tested in the 88", so I've put things back as they were (barring new detent springs).  The only issue was bearing noise.  I wonder if that was simply down to corrosion while it was sat idle for thirteen years.

Phil
1979 Series III 88" Hard-top - daily drive
1968 Series IIA 109" Carawagon - project

Offline PCB93

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #80 on: March 01, 2022, 06:40:42 am »
'Fast-forward' to January this year (2022), when I finally had some clear time at home to get working again, and got the Carawagon's overdrive built back up.

I'd managed to get all the new parts needed for the overdrive ordered before heading down south, so these were on hand to get cracking:


Not everything for Fairey overdrives is listed on the regular Land-Rover parts websites, but most parts can be found elsewhere without too much effort.  These units are fully metric and use mostly generic bearing sizes, etc. - all still manufactured today.  I may well post a list of the suppliers I used in the relevant section on this forum.

I've invested in a small blast cabinet recently - the overdrive top cover served as something of a test piece.  It's a very satisfying process:


The main casing received similar treatment, with gentler glass beads rather than aluminium oxide.  Not absolutely spotless, but pretty close:


The coupling sleeve was the first component to go back together, with a new bearing:


As everything had been sat out on the bench for nine months, I made sure to thoroughly clean and degrease all parts for reuse, to clear any accumulated dust etc.:


New bearing and circlip fitted to the input gear:


The original synchromesh hub was retained, with just the detents replaced.  This can be a troublesome process, so the job was done inside a small box, to limit the possibility of steel balls being launched across the garage.  On this occasion, it all went together first time, with no issues:


New output gear shaft bearing and seal fitted to the front of the casing:


Replacement mainshaft bearings in place.  There's a thrust bearing pack below the lower radial bearing:


Output gear shaft positioned over the mainshaft.  The end of the mainshaft is supported by a steel cylinder of slightly smaller diameter, allowing both components to sit in their service positions.  My choice of garage ale should be familiar to those who 'inspected' the local pub during the 2018 Christmas Do in Herefordshire:


Laygear with its bearings and shims roughly in place.  The layshaft itself cannot be inserted until the output gear shaft is in position, so a socket extender bar is here used to keep everything roughly located:


With the synchromesh hub held roughly in position inside (until it engages with the mainshaft splines), the casing can be brought into position over the output gear shaft (with the first synchromesh cone in place) and mainshaft.  The two metal supports keep all components in their approximate service positions; they are not properly connected at this point:


The laygear can now be brought into mesh with the rear output gear, and the layshaft tapped in.  This has to be done with care so as to avoid damage to the layshaft thrust bearings or shims - it can take a few attempts to get everything lined up:


Radial and thrust bearings being built up behind the synchromesh hub - these sit inside the input gear.  The second synchromesh cone should also be fitted at this point:


Input gear and bearing in place.  As stated in the disassembly post, the bearing isn't a press fit, so should slide in fairly easily.  For reasons unknown, however, I always find it rather reluctant to line up.  Got there in the end, though:


The original mainshaft shims were a bit battered, so I measured their combined thickness at intact points and found equivalent replacements - easy enough, with them being metric.  The required thickness here was 0.35 mm, though this does vary between units:


Once the shims are in place on the mainshaft, the final thrust bearing pack can be positioned, leaving just the two circlips to fit to the mainshaft (there is a second, thicker circlip under the spacer visible here).  All the internals are finally held together once this is done:


The rear cover is now back in place (with a new o-ring).  All that remains to fit before replacing the top cover is the selector mechanism: fork, shaft, detents and dust cover:


One complete main Fairey overdrive unit.  Isn't it pretty?:


The only extra thing I'll do to this is fit a more substantial breather - I find the standard 'hole with split-pin' affair allows the unit to spit oil once warmed up on a decent run.  I've stored a small tub of the correct 'Rocol' anti-scuff paste with the overdrive, to be applied to the mainshaft splines before fitting.  It's crucial to use the right stuff there, as the splines and coupling sleeve teeth wear incredibly quickly otherwise.

That brings this thread essentially up to date with Carawagon progress.  I'm aiming to have plenty more to write about over the coming weeks and months, though - it's about time.

Phil
« Last Edit: March 01, 2022, 09:00:15 am by PCB93 »
1979 Series III 88" Hard-top - daily drive
1968 Series IIA 109" Carawagon - project

Online birdsnest55

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #81 on: March 01, 2022, 08:22:29 am »
Yet again brilliant, it's easy when you know how.
Paul
Many Regards

Paul

Offline PCB93

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #82 on: August 02, 2022, 01:13:24 am »
Morning all,

Life has once again rather got in the way of the Carawagon lately; I unexpectedly ended up doing another few months' work in Hertfordshire, so have been 200 miles from the garage.  Home until early September now though, so things will begin to roll again.  I do have one update from back in March, to bring things up to their present state.

With the engine already running happily, the final thing I wanted to have a go at sorting before bringing the vehicle home was renewing the clutch hydraulics to have it driveable.  Loading it up for the journey home and moving it around when stripping down would be much easier that way, as it takes four people to push!

I made the process longer than perhaps necessary by partially reconstructing the clutch pedal box.  I'd given it a going over previously, but ultimately decided it didn't meet 'standards' due to a number of pitted areas, so decided to redo the job far more thoroughly.

Beginning the process by making a simple wooden jig to ensure everything lines up at the end:


Top 'braces' cut off, and the worst area of corrosion revealed with a spot of sand-blasting:


Pedal box cut into four parts and sand-blasted along with the top plate and pedal itself:


In any particularly pitted areas, such as here, I built up a layer of weld before grinding back to the original profile:


Reassembly begins, checking all lines up with the jig and top plate before welding:


Fully reassembled and sand-blasted again, ready for painting:


Painted and good to go again, this time rust free:


New clutch cylinders.  These were stripped out and the seals coated with red rubber grease prior to fitting:


Clutch pedal ready to fit:


In it goes.  Must admit, it felt a little daft refitting it to such a shonky bulkhead, but needs must, for now:


The old, seized slave cylinder needed removing next.  Access involved rather a battle with the gearbox tunnel fixings, which may or may not have involved an angle grinder.  Anyone know what the crystalline growth on the cylinder is?:


New slave cylinder in place:


All clutch hydraulics roughly 'plumbed in:'


With the overdrive out, I fitted a spare standard transfer gear and rear cover to provide drive in the interim:


Once the system was bled up, I had a go at running the engine and driving out of the garage.  Though I could feel the 'bite' point, there was initially quite a bit of resistance - made harder to overcome by the seized accelerator linkage; currently the choke cable has to be used as a rudimentary throttle.  After much creaking, it did get there, and I was able to edge out of the garage, then reverse back in.  Only about fifteen yards all told, but as far as I know the first the Carawagon had done under its own power in seventeen years.  A satisfying day.

Three days later I brought some reinforcements over to help roughly refit the Carawagon's roof, before driving it onto a recovery truck to finally return home after five years in storage:


Back home and having a bit of a sort-out.  I had to rearrange the garage to take a longer vehicle (previously my 88" was in there), but it's all back in and finally ready for the recommissioning it deserves:


August will be a busy month!

Phil
1979 Series III 88" Hard-top - daily drive
1968 Series IIA 109" Carawagon - project

Offline PCB93

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Re: 1968 Series IIA Carawagon
« Reply #83 on: August 03, 2022, 02:17:17 am »
Very minor update - front bumper removal.  A story of corrosion!  I already have a new galvanised chassis waiting in the wings, so despite the apparent horrors, there's nothing of much concern here.

Chequer-plate 'engine inspection step' fitted in place of the original front valance.  All bolts offered only limited resistance:


Away it goes; grille off too.  I reinstated one bolt to hold the radiator panel in place at the bottom.  With no evident welds, it appears to be in remarkably good condition; the lower section tends to rot:


Bumper bolts removed.  They snapped under minimal torque - easier than dealing with fused threads, I suppose!:


Off-side front dumb iron, or what's left of it:


Near-side.  Similar affair.  The bumper needed a bit of persuasion with a crow-bar in order to come free from this side:


Front bumper off, following moderate exertion:


The standard front valance panel is with the vehicle; I intend to reinstate that.  Front bumper will be replaced with a new one, as it's more beaten up than these pictures may suggest.  I've yet to make a decision on the spot lamps - they're unfortunately not in great nick.

If anyone would like the chequer-plate 'engine inspection step,' let me know.  It's solidly built, but not to my taste.  Same applies to the battered bumper.  Can bring them to t'Pit at the end of the month if needed.

Phil
1979 Series III 88" Hard-top - daily drive
1968 Series IIA 109" Carawagon - project