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LJ70 Build Thread!
- Thread starter Ben
- Start date
Paddler Ed
Well-Known Member
Right move for your sanity Ben, that's worth a lot.
One of guys I work is a gruff old farmer at times, but when you've done a good job you know about it in the same way if you're not pulling your weight you know about it... I really enjoy working for that company - it's got all sorts going on there that keeps me occupied and interested.
Is there no way of getting the tent pegs into one of the bags so they don't get lost?!
One of guys I work is a gruff old farmer at times, but when you've done a good job you know about it in the same way if you're not pulling your weight you know about it... I really enjoy working for that company - it's got all sorts going on there that keeps me occupied and interested.
Is there no way of getting the tent pegs into one of the bags so they don't get lost?!
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Great to see more Lexi pics. Have a great trip
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk
Thanks Andy, I got lots more Lexi pics on the trip.
Thanks Ed.
I'm gutted really as I thought I'd finally found an awesome job that I might enjoy as much as Piranha.
I guess it just wasnt meant to be!
Oh well...............................
Just had an amazing weekend away 4wding and camping, it was sensational!!!!!
Trip report to follow.
Shame about the job Ben, I must have known (see my earlier congrats post). You made the right move and you are clearly worth more. Lexi is growing up a treat. Looking forward to the trip report. [emoji4]
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Obviously i don't know your location Ben but something about your work situation provokes echos in my memory of leaving school into a building boom , the influx of transient workers (mostly from Ireland) lent a pervasive lean to everything , nobody was valued , the attitude was if you don't do it someone else will , sack everyone a week before Christmas and give them their jobs back a week after to avoid paying holidays and that sort of thing . Just wondering if your place is suffering in a similar way due to those leaving the mines and seeking alternative employment .
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Thanks guys.
Very interesting Shayne. The Gold Coast does have a large transient population as a lot of people come here on holiday all year round for the perfect weather and lifestyle.
Were giving it till the end of the year and if things havent improved we will look at moving North to atleast the Sunshine Coast if not further.
I read an article yesterday that I found interesting that says my generation, generation Y, will be the first generation for 80 years to do worse than their parents!
http://www.news.com.au/finance/work...SF&utm_source=News.com.au&utm_medium=Facebook
Very interesting Shayne. The Gold Coast does have a large transient population as a lot of people come here on holiday all year round for the perfect weather and lifestyle.
Were giving it till the end of the year and if things havent improved we will look at moving North to atleast the Sunshine Coast if not further.
I read an article yesterday that I found interesting that says my generation, generation Y, will be the first generation for 80 years to do worse than their parents!
http://www.news.com.au/finance/work...SF&utm_source=News.com.au&utm_medium=Facebook
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A Weekend @ The Springs 4WD Park.
So early Saturday morning it was trip time!
This is Lexi's harness that we bought her to ensure shes safely anchored in place.
She traveled to the the 4WD park sat on her bed in the back.
Anchored to the roof storage cage.
She spent a lot of time looking out of her various windows.
Family selfie.
3 uneventful hours later and we were at the 4WD park and the tent was soon up.
We went for a drive around the park and drove up onto both of the 2 hills that boast stunning 360 degree views.
Lexi had a run around.
Then decided she preferred the shade of the LandCruiser.
Lots of cactus up on the hills.
Some of the tracks were really badly washed out from water erosion.
We went back to camp and relaxed under the shade of the tree with a cold one and read our magazines for a few hours.
Opposite our camp was a track which the park owners only allow people to drive on a Saturday afternoon, under their supervision, called Beer O Clock track. It was very steep and the owner was telling me he only lets short wheel base 4wd's drive it if they have a roll cage!
I got the fire going nice and early.
While Lexi was flat out in the tent!
I cooked dinner.
And Lexi relaxed next to the tent.
I went for a drive to get more fire wood and saw lots of wildlife. There was kangaroos and wallabies every where!
While Bec dished the veggies up I cooked the steak.
Steak, mash and carrots!
We had a lovely evening sat round the fire relaxing!
The following morning I was up nice and early and easily got the fire going by putting some more wood in the hot ashes and blowing.
I soon had some tasty sausage, egg, tomato and cheese sandwiches!
I sat around with another cup of tea for a bit.
And as Lexi was getting restless.
Decided to leave the camp.
And take Lexi for a walk.
We saw lots more wildlife.
Just out of the camp I had spotted a dry creek bed that is part of a course that they use for competitions that I wanted to have a look at.
Pics dont do it justice for how steep, rocky and off camber it was in place.
I had to drive it!
So we walked back to camp and got LJ.
Got little Lexi strapped into the co-pilot seat and off we went!
She did a great job at reading the track ahead but she needs to improve her communication skills a little!
I really enjoyed the rock crawling and with LJ being a shorty, wheel placement is extremely important as if you dont drive it just right you start lifting wheels and getting very tippy!
It certainly means you need to concentrate a lot more and theres a lot of times when the adrenaline is pumping which you simply wouldnt get in driving this course in a long wheel base 4wd, which would probably never lift a wheel or get tippy.
She was impeccably well behaved and didnt stress at all with the constant crazy angles we were going on or me getting out a lot to pick a line and take more pics.
Most of it was driven with the rear diff lock in but there were a few occasions where forward motion ceased and the front locker switch was flicked for instant traction where there was non!
I was pretty blown away by how calm and completely unfazed Lexi was by it all!
Some of the tracks we saw looked insane! Certainly ones I'd love to drive in my Jimny, when I build it!
We went back to camp and picked Bec up and ventured deeper into the park to drive some more tracks.
I wanted to drive "Bens Cracker" which is marked on the map as being a difficult track.
The first bit wasnt too bad.
But then it quickly got very steep and very loose and rocky.
I got out and had a walk up and chose a line.
My biggest concern was the fact we were on our own, so if we ran into difficulty we would have no one to help us. I found some comfort in the fact we had a working winch on the front of the vehicle, or so I thought..............
So I decided to go for it!
It was a tense climb to the top as I could feel that the front wheels were so close to lifting with the steepness of the climb. But with both diff locks engaged we roared to the top and it was all over within 30 seconds!
Beautiful views from the top again.
Lexi had by this point been promoted to Bec's lap to avoid her being thrown around too much in the back on the rough tracks.
We carried on with our drive.
And saw lots more wildlife.
And some insane looking tracks that I would love to come back and drive in a more suitable vehicle.
We headed back to camp and I pulled the front panel out on the tent to create more shade.
We had some lunch and a cold one.
And then headed back out on to the tracks.
I drove the rock crawling track I drove first thing in the morning with Lexi, again, so I could show Bec it.
After stopping at the office to get some ice creams we decided to have a drive around the test track at the front of the park.
All was going well until I got to the big concrete pipes.
Got over the first 2 ok.
Then I got completely high centered on the final one.
Not a problem I thought....................the tricked up Warn 8274 High Mount will soon have us free!
Turned the winch on in the cab............walked round to the front of the vehicle to pull the rope out......flicked the out switch and all I got was click click click click!
Bugger! Winch isnt working!
Now I could have gone and asked the park owner to come and recover me as thats a service they offer, but I was keen to get us out of this mess myself!
So I decided to try the waffle boards.
I dropped one in front of each back wheels, but even with both diff locks in we still wernt moving!
So then I decided to do it properly!
Out with the High Lift jack and wheel mate.
To lift the wheel off the ground so I could position the waffle board under the wheel properly.
Other side.
And we drove straight off!
Put the waffles away.
So after carrying the waffle boards around with me for the last 3 years and the wheel mate for the past 1.5 years I finally got to use them!!!!
After all that excitement we returned to camp for more reading and relaxing.
While Lexi did more sleeping.
Got the fire going, again just by adding fresh wood and blowing over the hot ashes.
It was a stunning day, again!
Cooked dinner.
The new fire plate works a treat!
Perfect!
Beautiful marinaded chicken steaks, mash, carrots and a cold one!
I didnt like the look of all the wildlife, in particular this spider that decided to crawl on me, with its yellow spots all over its back!
We spent the evening relaxing around the fire.
We had had problems keeping Lexi contained on the first night, in the front section of the tent.
Despite being tied up on a rope, she had managed to get out under the side panel once and I then had to tie her up on a much shorter rope going between the 2 corners of the tent which wasnt ideal as she didnt have much room to move.
What we really needed and will get is one of those dog anchor points that screw into the ground, that I could have screwed into the ground in the middle of the front enclosed section.
But I had to improvise.....................
So what do you do when you need an anchor point to winch off and there arnt any trees etc..............
You use the spare!
Obviously I didnt need to bury it like in a winch situation, as a big 35" tyre is more than enough to anchor little Lexi still.
That kept her safely in the tent overnight.
The next morning I was up nice and early again.
The fire was a lot harder to get going on this occasion though and took a lot of blowing to get the embers to ignite the fresh wood.
While I cooked breaky, Lexi was more interested in the birds!
Again, sausage, egg, tomato and cheese sandwiches with a mug of tea!
I let Bec get some more sleep and me and my little co-pilot set off to explore more tracks.
I was keen to explore this difficult track.
I got to a point where I could still reverse out if I needed to and set off on foot to see if I could drive it.
It was very steep and rocky.
I walked up and took a pic of the view back down, you can just see LJ in the middle right.
I decided it was too risky to try and drive it now, as a solo vehicle and without a working winch.
So we carried on to explore some other tracks.
I was keen to check out the one red track on the whole map which is marked as extreme!
More wildlife on the way.
I got out to walk the next section of track as it was very steep with lots of loose rocks.
With the rear diff lock in we roared up the hill in a cloud of dust and safely made it to the top.
We soon stopped again while I got out to walk ahead and pick the best track to take as we were on the junction of 5 tracks.
I almost turned right as it looked awesome! It was nice rocky climb.
I believe we would have made it up, but I decided to give it a miss just encase.
The left turn was really extreme with a hug drop down a rock face if you got it even slightly wrong.
So that left 2 choices, straight ahead and right or straight ahead and left.
The left track re-joined the main track just at the top of the hill, so I opted for that one.
Walked it to make sure I could safely get up.
And we made it!
All the excitment had been far too much for Lexi and she was now fast asleep, I'm not sure how as we were bouncing along the bumpy tracks!
We headed up and over one of the exposed hills with the 360 degree views.
And down the other side which was badly washed out in places.
We got to the start of the Extreme track and got out to walk it.
Pics really dont do it justice!
It follows a dry creek bed and is basically a gorge dropping off the side of the mountain! So think 3-4ft rock steps the whole way down!
We headed back to LJ.
And continued on to drive some new tracks and have a play.
This track was also badly washed out but it felt a lot safer than some of the tracks as there was no nasty side slope or steepness.
I couldnt quite make it up and out of this section with just the rear diff lock in.
My drivers side rear wheel was just spinning on a tree root.
Even the front locker wasnt enough to drag us up, but a slight change of line and we were up!
Tried to take a few arty shots!
Lexi had had enough!
So we headed back to camp.
Had another brew.
Cooked Bec breakfast on the fire and then packed up camp.
Thanked the lovely park owners, grabbed another ice cream and signed out.
And we were on our way!
We drove the 20mins to Warwich, where we put some air in the tyres.
And then set off on the 200km journey home!
Little Lexi slept most of the way!
Until waking up just as we got home!
So that was our weekend away in the new tent and Lexi's first camping trip!
It was a truely amazing weekend, I loved every minute of it!
Lexi pleasantly surprised us with just how good she behaved and how much fun she was!
We look forward to going back to the Springs 4WD Park again and I would thoroughly recommend it!
So early Saturday morning it was trip time!
This is Lexi's harness that we bought her to ensure shes safely anchored in place.
She traveled to the the 4WD park sat on her bed in the back.
Anchored to the roof storage cage.
She spent a lot of time looking out of her various windows.
Family selfie.
3 uneventful hours later and we were at the 4WD park and the tent was soon up.
We went for a drive around the park and drove up onto both of the 2 hills that boast stunning 360 degree views.
Lexi had a run around.
Then decided she preferred the shade of the LandCruiser.
Lots of cactus up on the hills.
Some of the tracks were really badly washed out from water erosion.
We went back to camp and relaxed under the shade of the tree with a cold one and read our magazines for a few hours.
Opposite our camp was a track which the park owners only allow people to drive on a Saturday afternoon, under their supervision, called Beer O Clock track. It was very steep and the owner was telling me he only lets short wheel base 4wd's drive it if they have a roll cage!
I got the fire going nice and early.
While Lexi was flat out in the tent!
I cooked dinner.
And Lexi relaxed next to the tent.
I went for a drive to get more fire wood and saw lots of wildlife. There was kangaroos and wallabies every where!
While Bec dished the veggies up I cooked the steak.
Steak, mash and carrots!
We had a lovely evening sat round the fire relaxing!
The following morning I was up nice and early and easily got the fire going by putting some more wood in the hot ashes and blowing.
I soon had some tasty sausage, egg, tomato and cheese sandwiches!
I sat around with another cup of tea for a bit.
And as Lexi was getting restless.
Decided to leave the camp.
And take Lexi for a walk.
We saw lots more wildlife.
Just out of the camp I had spotted a dry creek bed that is part of a course that they use for competitions that I wanted to have a look at.
Pics dont do it justice for how steep, rocky and off camber it was in place.
I had to drive it!
So we walked back to camp and got LJ.
Got little Lexi strapped into the co-pilot seat and off we went!
She did a great job at reading the track ahead but she needs to improve her communication skills a little!
I really enjoyed the rock crawling and with LJ being a shorty, wheel placement is extremely important as if you dont drive it just right you start lifting wheels and getting very tippy!
It certainly means you need to concentrate a lot more and theres a lot of times when the adrenaline is pumping which you simply wouldnt get in driving this course in a long wheel base 4wd, which would probably never lift a wheel or get tippy.
She was impeccably well behaved and didnt stress at all with the constant crazy angles we were going on or me getting out a lot to pick a line and take more pics.
Most of it was driven with the rear diff lock in but there were a few occasions where forward motion ceased and the front locker switch was flicked for instant traction where there was non!
I was pretty blown away by how calm and completely unfazed Lexi was by it all!
Some of the tracks we saw looked insane! Certainly ones I'd love to drive in my Jimny, when I build it!
We went back to camp and picked Bec up and ventured deeper into the park to drive some more tracks.
I wanted to drive "Bens Cracker" which is marked on the map as being a difficult track.
The first bit wasnt too bad.
But then it quickly got very steep and very loose and rocky.
I got out and had a walk up and chose a line.
My biggest concern was the fact we were on our own, so if we ran into difficulty we would have no one to help us. I found some comfort in the fact we had a working winch on the front of the vehicle, or so I thought..............
So I decided to go for it!
It was a tense climb to the top as I could feel that the front wheels were so close to lifting with the steepness of the climb. But with both diff locks engaged we roared to the top and it was all over within 30 seconds!
Beautiful views from the top again.
Lexi had by this point been promoted to Bec's lap to avoid her being thrown around too much in the back on the rough tracks.
We carried on with our drive.
And saw lots more wildlife.
And some insane looking tracks that I would love to come back and drive in a more suitable vehicle.
We headed back to camp and I pulled the front panel out on the tent to create more shade.
We had some lunch and a cold one.
And then headed back out on to the tracks.
I drove the rock crawling track I drove first thing in the morning with Lexi, again, so I could show Bec it.
After stopping at the office to get some ice creams we decided to have a drive around the test track at the front of the park.
All was going well until I got to the big concrete pipes.
Got over the first 2 ok.
Then I got completely high centered on the final one.
Not a problem I thought....................the tricked up Warn 8274 High Mount will soon have us free!
Turned the winch on in the cab............walked round to the front of the vehicle to pull the rope out......flicked the out switch and all I got was click click click click!
Bugger! Winch isnt working!
Now I could have gone and asked the park owner to come and recover me as thats a service they offer, but I was keen to get us out of this mess myself!
So I decided to try the waffle boards.
I dropped one in front of each back wheels, but even with both diff locks in we still wernt moving!
So then I decided to do it properly!
Out with the High Lift jack and wheel mate.
To lift the wheel off the ground so I could position the waffle board under the wheel properly.
Other side.
And we drove straight off!
Put the waffles away.
So after carrying the waffle boards around with me for the last 3 years and the wheel mate for the past 1.5 years I finally got to use them!!!!
After all that excitement we returned to camp for more reading and relaxing.
While Lexi did more sleeping.
Got the fire going, again just by adding fresh wood and blowing over the hot ashes.
It was a stunning day, again!
Cooked dinner.
The new fire plate works a treat!
Perfect!
Beautiful marinaded chicken steaks, mash, carrots and a cold one!
I didnt like the look of all the wildlife, in particular this spider that decided to crawl on me, with its yellow spots all over its back!
We spent the evening relaxing around the fire.
We had had problems keeping Lexi contained on the first night, in the front section of the tent.
Despite being tied up on a rope, she had managed to get out under the side panel once and I then had to tie her up on a much shorter rope going between the 2 corners of the tent which wasnt ideal as she didnt have much room to move.
What we really needed and will get is one of those dog anchor points that screw into the ground, that I could have screwed into the ground in the middle of the front enclosed section.
But I had to improvise.....................
So what do you do when you need an anchor point to winch off and there arnt any trees etc..............
You use the spare!
Obviously I didnt need to bury it like in a winch situation, as a big 35" tyre is more than enough to anchor little Lexi still.
That kept her safely in the tent overnight.
The next morning I was up nice and early again.
The fire was a lot harder to get going on this occasion though and took a lot of blowing to get the embers to ignite the fresh wood.
While I cooked breaky, Lexi was more interested in the birds!
Again, sausage, egg, tomato and cheese sandwiches with a mug of tea!
I let Bec get some more sleep and me and my little co-pilot set off to explore more tracks.
I was keen to explore this difficult track.
I got to a point where I could still reverse out if I needed to and set off on foot to see if I could drive it.
It was very steep and rocky.
I walked up and took a pic of the view back down, you can just see LJ in the middle right.
I decided it was too risky to try and drive it now, as a solo vehicle and without a working winch.
So we carried on to explore some other tracks.
I was keen to check out the one red track on the whole map which is marked as extreme!
More wildlife on the way.
I got out to walk the next section of track as it was very steep with lots of loose rocks.
With the rear diff lock in we roared up the hill in a cloud of dust and safely made it to the top.
We soon stopped again while I got out to walk ahead and pick the best track to take as we were on the junction of 5 tracks.
I almost turned right as it looked awesome! It was nice rocky climb.
I believe we would have made it up, but I decided to give it a miss just encase.
The left turn was really extreme with a hug drop down a rock face if you got it even slightly wrong.
So that left 2 choices, straight ahead and right or straight ahead and left.
The left track re-joined the main track just at the top of the hill, so I opted for that one.
Walked it to make sure I could safely get up.
And we made it!
All the excitment had been far too much for Lexi and she was now fast asleep, I'm not sure how as we were bouncing along the bumpy tracks!
We headed up and over one of the exposed hills with the 360 degree views.
And down the other side which was badly washed out in places.
We got to the start of the Extreme track and got out to walk it.
Pics really dont do it justice!
It follows a dry creek bed and is basically a gorge dropping off the side of the mountain! So think 3-4ft rock steps the whole way down!
We headed back to LJ.
And continued on to drive some new tracks and have a play.
This track was also badly washed out but it felt a lot safer than some of the tracks as there was no nasty side slope or steepness.
I couldnt quite make it up and out of this section with just the rear diff lock in.
My drivers side rear wheel was just spinning on a tree root.
Even the front locker wasnt enough to drag us up, but a slight change of line and we were up!
Tried to take a few arty shots!
Lexi had had enough!
So we headed back to camp.
Had another brew.
Cooked Bec breakfast on the fire and then packed up camp.
Thanked the lovely park owners, grabbed another ice cream and signed out.
And we were on our way!
We drove the 20mins to Warwich, where we put some air in the tyres.
And then set off on the 200km journey home!
Little Lexi slept most of the way!
Until waking up just as we got home!
So that was our weekend away in the new tent and Lexi's first camping trip!
It was a truely amazing weekend, I loved every minute of it!
Lexi pleasantly surprised us with just how good she behaved and how much fun she was!
We look forward to going back to the Springs 4WD Park again and I would thoroughly recommend it!
Last edited:
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- Jul 26, 2012
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Great report as ever! shame about the job though why not start your own company up? small at first, little workshop, grow big earn lots retire at 40.............
why not start your own company up? small at first, little workshop, grow big earn lots retire at 40.............
AndyCook
Well-Known Member
That looks like a great weekend away. The place looked very spacious and quiet - no other people camping or driving the trails ?
Trails looked pretty good too - and no hassles searching for a camping spot
lucky to have places like that and not the mud pit pay-and-play they have in UK!
the photos of Lexi remind me of when we took Jet first time greenlining and camping
Trails looked pretty good too - and no hassles searching for a camping spot
lucky to have places like that and not the mud pit pay-and-play they have in UK!
the photos of Lexi remind me of when we took Jet first time greenlining and camping
Paddler Ed
Well-Known Member
I've seen some good dog stakes that are a bit of threaded bar with a nut + washer locked off on it, a collar of straight pipe/tube that spins with a D-shackle on that is then held in place with another nut and washer locked off on the top... The dog is tied to the D-shackle and it can run round in circles without a problem
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Ed I like the idea of the dog anchor point being able to spin so the dog doesnt get tangled up.
Thanks guys.
Its tempting and its a route I may look at going down, but what puts me off is all the hassle that goes with having your own business.
Having no work was starting to get to me a little bit the last few days but then today things started looking up!
Had a phone interview for a job I applied for which went well, so I'm hoping I will get a call to go in for a proper interview!
Then one of the agents called to say they've got some form work, work for me starting Friday.
Which is good as I've got to get LJ registered on QLD plates this week!
Thanks Andy. It was a great weekend!
It was reasonably quiet as it was the weekend after Easter and Easter is traditionally a weekend when many Aussies go away camping.
There was one other, very noisy group camping the first night, they left and then on the Sunday night 2 other groups arrived but they were much better behaved and didn't keep us awake.
In hindsight we should have camped on one of the other camping areas as then we could have had complete isolation and that is what we will do next time, as we really didnt need to be on the main camping area with the facilities.
There were a few groups of 4wd's driving around on the Saturday who were just day visitors, apart from bumping into one of those groups we didnt see anyone on the tracks.
The park owners were telling me over the Easter weekend they had 90 4wds in!
It was a great place though and certainly nothing like a pay n destroy in the UK.
For 2 nights camping and 2 days 4wding it was $80 (so like £40) which we thought was pretty reasonable considering how big the place was, how good the tracks were, the huge amount of wildlife we saw and the clean and well maintained facilities.
Only downside for me was that I couldnt take the bike.
We want to go to Manor Park next which does allow bikes, but its a good 4.5 hours drive away.
http://www.manar.com.au/
Great report as ever! shame about the job though
Thanks guys.
Its tempting and its a route I may look at going down, but what puts me off is all the hassle that goes with having your own business.
Having no work was starting to get to me a little bit the last few days but then today things started looking up!
Had a phone interview for a job I applied for which went well, so I'm hoping I will get a call to go in for a proper interview!
Then one of the agents called to say they've got some form work, work for me starting Friday.
Which is good as I've got to get LJ registered on QLD plates this week!
Thanks Andy. It was a great weekend!
It was reasonably quiet as it was the weekend after Easter and Easter is traditionally a weekend when many Aussies go away camping.
There was one other, very noisy group camping the first night, they left and then on the Sunday night 2 other groups arrived but they were much better behaved and didn't keep us awake.
In hindsight we should have camped on one of the other camping areas as then we could have had complete isolation and that is what we will do next time, as we really didnt need to be on the main camping area with the facilities.
There were a few groups of 4wd's driving around on the Saturday who were just day visitors, apart from bumping into one of those groups we didnt see anyone on the tracks.
The park owners were telling me over the Easter weekend they had 90 4wds in!
It was a great place though and certainly nothing like a pay n destroy in the UK.
For 2 nights camping and 2 days 4wding it was $80 (so like £40) which we thought was pretty reasonable considering how big the place was, how good the tracks were, the huge amount of wildlife we saw and the clean and well maintained facilities.
Only downside for me was that I couldnt take the bike.
We want to go to Manor Park next which does allow bikes, but its a good 4.5 hours drive away.
http://www.manar.com.au/
Last edited:
Paddler Ed
Well-Known Member
These are sort of what I meant, some of them are nicer than others (search dog stake - just make sure you get the e in the right place )
The way that a lot of those seem to be is a bit of tube, angled at the bottom (and barbed in some cases) and then a swiveling section at the top - I actually think the one I saw may have been perhaps 15mm diameter, with a 17mm bolt welded to the top and then a bolt screwed down into it and double nutted/welded to stop it undoing but with a washer and collar set up to spin round and round with the dog tied to it.
I really don't like this style; the swivel never spins round it easily enough...
)The way that a lot of those seem to be is a bit of tube, angled at the bottom (and barbed in some cases) and then a swiveling section at the top - I actually think the one I saw may have been perhaps 15mm diameter, with a 17mm bolt welded to the top and then a bolt screwed down into it and double nutted/welded to stop it undoing but with a washer and collar set up to spin round and round with the dog tied to it.
I really don't like this style; the swivel never spins round it easily enough...
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- Messages
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Little Update With Some Exciting News.
LJ.
I realised the other day why the winch solenoid just went click click click and the winch wouldnt work.
Its been that long since I last used the winch I had forgotten that I keep the main power feed disconnected under the bonnet and thats why it wouldnt work!
I picked up LJ's new number plates today!
A bit different to the old Victorian ones.
The front one got tec screwed to the bull bar, where as the rear one got stuck on with 3M double sided foam tape.
Trailer.
I've bought the old trailer I used to borrow off my neighbor as hes now got a much bigger one.
Nothing special, but it was cheap and is a useful thing to have.
I'm going to give it a good clean up and do a few modifications and repairs on it before giving it a good paint in LJ blue, seen as I've got loads of paint left.
Deck Garden.
The fruit and veg garden is looking great!
Despite the fact I didnt get to water all the plants for a few days when I was doing the long days at the unimog place and lost a lot of the leaves on the tomato plants, as they all turned brown and fell off. I'm hoping they will still come good as theres a lot of big tomatoes on them.
The rose is doing good.
As are all the strawberry and capsicum plants.
The capsicums (or peppers if your in Europe) are looking awesome!
As are the pinapples and carrots.
I planted some more lettuce and rocket seeds a few weeks ago and they've all started sprouting already.
The tomatoes over the other side are also looking good, but like the other side they lost a lot of foliage.
I'm thinking next time I plant tomatoes I'm going to plant them much further apart and use better quality soil.
Work.
I havent worked this week, although I've had a few offers of work which I turned down as I've been waiting to see what would happen with a job I applied for.
I got an unexpected phone call yesterday from a recruitment agency about the job I had applied for and she did a phone interview with me.
That went well and then she called me back and invited me to go in for an interview with the company, which I did this morning.
It was a long interview, lasting almost an hour and I got asked some really tough questions!
But it went really well and shortly afterwards I got the call to say I had got the job!
I've got to do a medical on Monday with a drug and alcohol test and I've had to apply for a police check certificate. Once I get those back I can go in and sign the contract and get started.
Its a different job to anything I've ever done before and I will be working for a huge international company who have just spent 330 million dollars building a huge state of the art factory 15 minutes up the road from my house.
I will get my own company van and phone and I will be going out to customers houses fitting the products. I'm really looking forward to it as it will be a good, steady, clean job with a good salary as well as bonuses and commission!
I will reveal more details next week when its all official.
Have a good weekend guys.
Its 28 and sunny here still (4.30pm) and its time to sit out on the deck with a nice cold beer!
LJ.
I realised the other day why the winch solenoid just went click click click and the winch wouldnt work.
Its been that long since I last used the winch I had forgotten that I keep the main power feed disconnected under the bonnet and thats why it wouldnt work!
I picked up LJ's new number plates today!
A bit different to the old Victorian ones.
The front one got tec screwed to the bull bar, where as the rear one got stuck on with 3M double sided foam tape.
Trailer.
I've bought the old trailer I used to borrow off my neighbor as hes now got a much bigger one.
Nothing special, but it was cheap and is a useful thing to have.
I'm going to give it a good clean up and do a few modifications and repairs on it before giving it a good paint in LJ blue, seen as I've got loads of paint left.
Deck Garden.
The fruit and veg garden is looking great!
Despite the fact I didnt get to water all the plants for a few days when I was doing the long days at the unimog place and lost a lot of the leaves on the tomato plants, as they all turned brown and fell off. I'm hoping they will still come good as theres a lot of big tomatoes on them.
The rose is doing good.
As are all the strawberry and capsicum plants.
The capsicums (or peppers if your in Europe) are looking awesome!
As are the pinapples and carrots.
I planted some more lettuce and rocket seeds a few weeks ago and they've all started sprouting already.
The tomatoes over the other side are also looking good, but like the other side they lost a lot of foliage.
I'm thinking next time I plant tomatoes I'm going to plant them much further apart and use better quality soil.
Work.
I havent worked this week, although I've had a few offers of work which I turned down as I've been waiting to see what would happen with a job I applied for.
I got an unexpected phone call yesterday from a recruitment agency about the job I had applied for and she did a phone interview with me.
That went well and then she called me back and invited me to go in for an interview with the company, which I did this morning.
It was a long interview, lasting almost an hour and I got asked some really tough questions!
But it went really well and shortly afterwards I got the call to say I had got the job!
I've got to do a medical on Monday with a drug and alcohol test and I've had to apply for a police check certificate. Once I get those back I can go in and sign the contract and get started.
Its a different job to anything I've ever done before and I will be working for a huge international company who have just spent 330 million dollars building a huge state of the art factory 15 minutes up the road from my house.
I will get my own company van and phone and I will be going out to customers houses fitting the products. I'm really looking forward to it as it will be a good, steady, clean job with a good salary as well as bonuses and commission!
I will reveal more details next week when its all official.
Have a good weekend guys.
Its 28 and sunny here still (4.30pm) and its time to sit out on the deck with a nice cold beer!
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- Joined
- Oct 13, 2010
- Messages
- 6,055
- Country Flag
Thanks Gary.
LJ's Replacement Body.
I went on a 4 hour round trip yesterday to look at a soft top RJ70 for sale, which I thought could one day provide a replacement body for LJ.
Its not a bad price, but I think its got a bit too much rust, as it had 2 areas where the rust had developed into rot.
I know some rust is inevitable when were talking about a 30 year old car, but I'm thinking surface rust is OK but once its developed into rot, thats when I should walk away. If I'm going to do a complete body swap and restoration I need a really straight body to start with.
I guess the search continues...........................
I've got at least another year, probably 2-3 until I want to do the body swap, so plenty of time to find a suitable donor.
LJ's Replacement Body.
I went on a 4 hour round trip yesterday to look at a soft top RJ70 for sale, which I thought could one day provide a replacement body for LJ.
Its not a bad price, but I think its got a bit too much rust, as it had 2 areas where the rust had developed into rot.
I know some rust is inevitable when were talking about a 30 year old car, but I'm thinking surface rust is OK but once its developed into rot, thats when I should walk away. If I'm going to do a complete body swap and restoration I need a really straight body to start with.
I guess the search continues...........................
I've got at least another year, probably 2-3 until I want to do the body swap, so plenty of time to find a suitable donor.
- Joined
- Oct 13, 2010
- Messages
- 6,055
- Country Flag
Dont tempt me! 
I love 40's but I really want to keep it as a 70! Maybe I could do that with the remains of the donor car.
I really like the look of Wayne's (Crushers) red soft top 70 over in Canada.
What I Went To Look At.
Now these soft top 70's are getting quite rare. They were only sold between 1984-1991 and far fewer soft tops were sold compared to the hard top models.
A lot have sadly been destroyed by young guys off road.
One of the many features I like about them is the fact that the tops of all the doors unbolt and can be removed, the windscreen also folds down and locks against the bonnet. In order for the windscreen to fold like this it has special double pivot windscreen wipers which also have a switch which is activated by folding the screen, which cuts all power to them so they cant be accidentally activated.
Ignore the faded paintwork with the lacquer pealing, as I would be getting a professional re-spray on the body while it is off and also the soft top itself as I would either run no top or modify an FRP top from a 73-74.
Also ignore the hideous bull bar and badly dented bonnet as I would be loosing everything from the A pillars forward as I would want to fit the original later LJ70 front panels, bonnet, grill etc.
The interior would also all be scrap in favor of my much nicer grey interior.
So everything in the engine bay would be surplus to my needs and need to be sold on to recover some costs. Unless I fitted a widened 40 body onto the rolling chassis.
I went over every panel with a magnet and its actually pretty straight apart from the bottom of the body right at the back below the lights, where both sides have had some filler.
Both sides were a little bit rusty but this was by far the worst. I suspect when this is stripped back and all the rot cut out it would be quite a hole.
More worrying is the rot below the windscreen. Now all of the actual windscreen surrounds rot on these and the mid wheel base models. Thats widely known and replacement fiber glass panels are readily available.
But this has started taking out the actual body/bulk head.
OK it could be cut out and repaired but unless you can get into the other side of it, which I suspect you cant, the rust will eventually come back through as it wont be properly sealed and protected on the back, inside the cavity.
Also, sadly one of the rear doors is badly dented and that could prove tricky to replace as its not a normal door, having the bolt off top section. The glass/perspex in that door has also been badly damaged by the owner writing for sale on it and some how its eaten into the perspex and ruined it.
I'm still in 2 minds but I'm swaying more towards walking away from it. Ideally I need to find one thats got a straight body but a blown engine/mechanical issues.
I love 40's but I really want to keep it as a 70! Maybe I could do that with the remains of the donor car.
I really like the look of Wayne's (Crushers) red soft top 70 over in Canada.
What I Went To Look At.
Now these soft top 70's are getting quite rare. They were only sold between 1984-1991 and far fewer soft tops were sold compared to the hard top models.
A lot have sadly been destroyed by young guys off road.
One of the many features I like about them is the fact that the tops of all the doors unbolt and can be removed, the windscreen also folds down and locks against the bonnet. In order for the windscreen to fold like this it has special double pivot windscreen wipers which also have a switch which is activated by folding the screen, which cuts all power to them so they cant be accidentally activated.
Ignore the faded paintwork with the lacquer pealing, as I would be getting a professional re-spray on the body while it is off and also the soft top itself as I would either run no top or modify an FRP top from a 73-74.
Also ignore the hideous bull bar and badly dented bonnet as I would be loosing everything from the A pillars forward as I would want to fit the original later LJ70 front panels, bonnet, grill etc.
The interior would also all be scrap in favor of my much nicer grey interior.
So everything in the engine bay would be surplus to my needs and need to be sold on to recover some costs. Unless I fitted a widened 40 body onto the rolling chassis.
I went over every panel with a magnet and its actually pretty straight apart from the bottom of the body right at the back below the lights, where both sides have had some filler.
Both sides were a little bit rusty but this was by far the worst. I suspect when this is stripped back and all the rot cut out it would be quite a hole.
More worrying is the rot below the windscreen. Now all of the actual windscreen surrounds rot on these and the mid wheel base models. Thats widely known and replacement fiber glass panels are readily available.
But this has started taking out the actual body/bulk head.
OK it could be cut out and repaired but unless you can get into the other side of it, which I suspect you cant, the rust will eventually come back through as it wont be properly sealed and protected on the back, inside the cavity.
Also, sadly one of the rear doors is badly dented and that could prove tricky to replace as its not a normal door, having the bolt off top section. The glass/perspex in that door has also been badly damaged by the owner writing for sale on it and some how its eaten into the perspex and ruined it.
I'm still in 2 minds but I'm swaying more towards walking away from it. Ideally I need to find one thats got a straight body but a blown engine/mechanical issues.
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- Joined
- Feb 2, 2013
- Messages
- 16,326
https://www.google.co.uk/search?q=A...ved=0ahUKEwigvpORg4XMAhVLbxQKHcN2Db0Q_AUIBigB
Sorry mate i just can't help thinking you could build a better truck than Toyota themselves if you put your mind to it .
Sorry mate i just can't help thinking you could build a better truck than Toyota themselves if you put your mind to it .
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