A little update on progress. I nipped past the machine shop today to drop off the correct exhaust valves. The guys were pleased with the sleeved repair on the corroded cyclinder. The sleeve is in place and it and the other three are being bored out to +40. The crank has been polished, but is still standard, it and the big ends will see new bearings. A new oil pump and timing gear should see it almost as new.

I drained the gearbox yesterday and found a couple of bits of what may be a synchro ring or locking tab. I’d hoped the gearbox would be ok, but now I’m sceptical and am thinking of having it stripped and checked. There’s a good Land Rover independent in Walkerburn near Innerleithen who may either be able to rebuild the box, or supply me with another one. We will see what the survey says.

The axles and springs came back from blasting. When pressing in new spring bushes, we spotted a couple of leaf springs had broken. The cracks weren’t visible before the blasting. I opens the door to a parabolic spring upgrade which should improve the ride.

I’ve press fitted the shackle bushes to the chassis. Despite making a special tool to press the old ones out, I had to resort to hacksawing and chiselling them out. I’d left them in during the galvanising process for fear the coating would reduce the bore size making refitting the bushes without a reamer, impossible

Hopefully the engine rebuild will go ok, I’ll need to give it a thorough clean internally and I’ll paint the outside too. It would be a shame not to. I’ve got everything to rebuild the axles, which should be straightforward. Once those bits are in place it’ll start to look like rolling chassis again. I like to feel as though things are moving, however glacially, in the right direction. Rainy weekends are the only free time I can muster at the moment

Pics on Instagram

I’ll point my nephew in this direction for inspiration. We drove up and collected a series III from Aboyne in the summer. Also a project, which the owner had stalled on. It was his daughters daily and he also used on a shoot. It has already got the galvanised chassis and came with nearly all of the parts, all cataloged on a spreadsheet! The former owner was a rig manager so was very organised. It also came with a recon gearbox, and engine and the old gearbox which jumped out of third apparently.
Nephew has lots to do. He promised to drive it back to Aboyne when he finishes. He better do a good job as it is now in Bristol.

That sounds like a more common sense project than mine. I’m trying to justify it by saying I didn’t want to pay a lot for stuff I wouldn’t be happy with, not quite realising just how much stuff there is on a Spartan series LAnd Rover.

I have a nice painting in the Fife Arms in Braemar, that I’d like to see again, a friend has a cottage near Dinnet, a mile or two from Aboyne that’s up a farm track. I think as a maiden voyage it has challenges and rewards

I’d like to see progress on your nephew’s Landy

Currently on axle stands and in boxes at the back of my work covered in tarps. If he doesn’t get on with it, he will end up having to give it to me as rent!… To be honest it was a great deal, the guy who sold it lost his daughter to cancer at a very young age and as it was her car. Will intends to keep him up to date of progress. Problem Nephew has is that his daily Defender is taking up too much of his spannering time and ££. He got so much stuff with it. We had a car trailer behind the Boxer van which was pretty much full with parts and tools. Next time I’m in Breamar I’ll go and have a look at your painting and possibly a pint..