Series 109 2a 5 Door

[bossman429]

Well, i guess I'll kick this thing off with a build thread. I have no anticipation of this job taking any less than 5 years. So if you're looking for a quick resto thread to skim through, this aint it.

After selling my 90 a few years ago, i have to admit, i miss the fun and joy of driving an old landy for the most mundane of task. I bought a 100 series land cruiser to take on camping trips, mountain biking, hiking, hunting etc... but it isn't exactly full of character. (but damn is it comfortable and capable!).

so after pondering for awhile i finally took the plunge back into the land of the green oval, and picked up this 1967 Series 2A 109. It is an ex Canadian Military truck, in need of ALOT of work. No drivetrain, frame falling apart. The body panels are all in decent shape so to me, it was the perfect truck for what i plan on doing. A safari Roof and Galvy rack that came along with it were bonus points.


The plan (subject to change at whim with no reason or justification)

Think of this build as a resto-mod. A few modern touches and levels of refinement (and reliability) but unmistakably a land rover and true to its heritage. It will be a soup to nuts rebuild, and while i wouldn't say time and money aren't an issue, I'm not about to cut corners just to finish a few weeks earlier or save a few pennies.

Body:
Take everything apart, repair whats needed, galvanize all the steel components, and obviously a professional paint job. Good news here is everything is in good starting condition.

Chassis:
New 109 Coiler Galvanized chassis from designa

Suspension/Axles
Probably going to go with a ~3" lift here, coil springs all around. I would like to fit a [skinny] 35 or 36" tire. I would also LIKE to put in disco axles but I'm not sure i want the added width, really like the look of keeping the wheels flush with the body panel and not adding flares. Will have to see about this. Disc brakes and power steering are pretty high on the list of improvements i want to include. suggestions welcome for ideas on this (and everything)

Interior:
I plan on refinishing the whole interior, newer style seats up front (may keep the bench for the rear. will have a local upholster do most of the work, clean and understated yet functional and comfortable is the goal here. also, some added sound proof/insulation will be on the list.

Drivetrain:
Ahhh this is my great dilemma. Everything in my body is yelling 200tdi/LT77/LT230. Both for simplistic reasons and to keep things in the land rover family. However, part of me is saying, go for something domestic that will start everytime, easy to get parts for, cheap and reliable. (i.e. small block chevy or the likes). I'm 99% sure I'm not going the latter route but its still hanging out there in my mind. Good news is I'm a far cry from having to worry about this


Sooo... with that out of the way, today was clean out day, sucked up about 20lbs of dirt, paint flakes, ant colonies, and mouse nest. Starting breaking down the seats and seat box. A few pics to show how we're sitting in the beginning, but next pictures will be broken down.

[o2batsea]

Read my build thread and do everything I did. I already made all the mistakes.
I will have a 200 tdi for you in about a year or so.

[don]

Nice.

Are you keeping it the green? That could look really nice with galvanized pieces to contrast.

If your plan is 35 or 36" tires you might want the Disco axles so you can have some turning radius. Even skinny 35/36 are pretty wide in Series terms.

The 200/77/230 combo will work and you are very familiar with it so the hardest part of that might be just sourcing one. There are some guys that have used the Merc OM617 for the Series so that might be an option. You can try mine out when it is done (whenever that may be).

------ Follow up post added July 21st, 2015 07:47 AM ------

Originally Posted by o2batsea

Read my build thread and do everything I did. I already made all the mistakes. I will have a 200 tdi for you in about a year or so.

I was going to say he should use your build as a guide especially with the coiler swap.

Are you swapping out your 200?

[phoenix37]

or if you want a major head start clean it up, sell it and buy Wildboars 109...already sitting on a designa chassis with disco axles.

[o2batsea]

Originally Posted by don

Are you swapping out your 200?

Embarrassing, but I failed to do the basic checks before putting it into service. Turns out it has a lot of blow-by and is down on power. Needs bottom end done. I will be rebuilding the 300 tdi I have in the barn, and once that's done. I will do a switcheroo.
I will then put out out for someone else to own.

[bossman429]

Originally Posted by o2batsea

Read my build thread and do everything I did. I already made all the mistakes.
I will have a 200 tdi for you in about a year or so.

Will do thanks!


I can only hope Im ready for an engine in a year lol! Although Winters seem to be good for getting progress made on things like this!

------ Follow up post added July 21st, 2015 09:28 AM ------

[QUOTE=don;657189]Nice.

Are you keeping it the green? That could look really nice with galvanized pieces to contrast.

If your plan is 35 or 36" tires you might want the Disco axles so you can have some turning radius. Even skinny 35/36 are pretty wide in Series terms.

The 200/77/230 combo will work and you are very familiar with it so the hardest part of that might be just sourcing one. There are some guys that have used the Merc OM617 for the Series so that might be an option. You can try mine out when it is done (whenever that may be).
[QUOTE]



Yea - the turning radius on the truck now is about the length of California..... so I think I may sacrifice the wheels sticking out a little for usability and function.


I've looked at a bunch of pictures and for the most part the wheels only stick out a hair. 1" on each side is what I've read so that's really barely noticeable unless your looking dead straight down the side of the truck


As for color - im 99% sure it will be some shade of green, probably a light/pastel green. Not a huge fan of the bold/dark green

------ Follow up post added July 21st, 2015 09:33 AM ------

Originally Posted by phoenix37

or if you want a major head start clean it up, sell it and buy Wildboars 109...already sitting on a designa chassis with disco axles.

Wheres the fun in that? Looking to challenge myself with this resto as much as get the finished product.

[don]

Originally Posted by o2batsea

Embarrassing, but I failed to do the basic checks before putting it into service. Turns out it has a lot of blow-by and is down on power. Needs bottom end done. I will be rebuilding the 300 tdi I have in the barn, and once that's done. I will do a switcheroo. I will then put out out for someone else to own.

Not at all embarrassing. There are some things I am sure I will have to go back on with the Merc om617. But when doing a build there is so many other little things that you want to get done. My Stage 2 list is getting quite long!

[ini88]

This will be fun!

[bossman429]

Had a great day of wrenching on the truck. Wife had the baby at a friends so that means I got to spend the day in garage.

Goal was to get all the doors off and de-skinned. Mission accomplished, got the hood done as well.

No major surprises, door frames need some repair here and there but all very usable. Starting to get my pile together to have media blasted so I can see what I'm working with. Then I can repair and have galvanized.

I have to say the patina on the skins is pretty cool, kinda looks like the truck grew out of an English garden.

What has everyone done to get the skins ready for paint. I'm thinking sand blasting is too harsh, maybe soda blasting?

Next on the list is seat box and wings, eventually getting to the top and rear tub. Dismantling phase is going to take awhile... Just wish I had more room to put this stuff. Already have parts in the basement!

[Antichrist]

When you're contemplating tires/axles/width keep in mind the 109 1 Ton (and the IIb FC) came stock with 9.00x16 which are about 36" OD.
On the gearbox, do you like the LT77 better than the R380?

[bossman429]

Originally Posted by Antichrist

When you're contemplating tires/axles/width keep in mind the 109 1 Ton (and the IIb FC) came stock with 9.00x16 which are about 36" OD. On the gearbox, do you like the LT77 better than the R380?

I'm impartial. Both gears boxes will work fine for the application. Probably depends what engine I go with and what fits better

Will keep in mind about the axles but I'm concerned about parts availability down the road. God knows there will be a million discovery parts for years to come.

[Antichrist]

Originally Posted by bossman429

Will keep in mind about the axles but I'm concerned about parts availability down the road. God knows there will be a million discovery parts for years to come.

I forgot to also mention that the FC started out with Rover axles but switched to ENV because of complaints about failures.
I was mainly thinking about the width concerns.

[rwollschlager]

Originally Posted by bossman429

What has everyone done to get the skins ready for paint. I'm thinking sand blasting is too harsh, maybe soda blasting?

Sand blasting is too harsh on the aluminum and will cause your panels to warp. Soda blasting is the way to go for birmabright.

[Z.G]

Originally Posted by rwollschlager

Sand blasting is too harsh on the aluminum and will cause your panels to warp. Soda blasting is the way to go for birmabright.

No, it's fine. Ask Mike from NA Overland

[bossman429]

Originally Posted by Antichrist

I forgot to also mention that the FC started out with Rover axles but switched to ENV because of complaints about failures. I was mainly thinking about the width concerns.

Ok. Will turning radius be similar to that of a disco set up with the FC axles?

Looking for a few things:
Coil springs
Disc brakes
Upgraded/available axles and components
Improved turning radius.

[Antichrist]

Originally Posted by bossman429

Ok. Will turning radius be similar to that of a disco set up with the FC axles?

I'm not sure exactly what you're asking, but the IIa FC that used Rover axles and 9.00x16 tires has almost a 52' turning circle vs. the 109 5-door with 7.50x16 at 47' turning circle.
The track was a couple inches wider on the FC because of deeper off-set wheels.
The IIb with ENV axles had a wider track yet, but I'm not sure what it was or the turning circle. I haven't found a IIb owners manual and the online references contradict the owners manual for the IIa FC, so I don't really trust them.
I'm sure your turning circle will be better with disco axles, especially if you get some IIb FC wheels, PN 569203

[bossman429]

Originally Posted by Antichrist

I'm not sure exactly what you're asking, but the IIa FC that used Rover axles and 9.00x16 tires has almost a 52' turning circle vs. the 109 5-door with 7.50x16 at 47' turning circle. The track was a couple inches wider on the FC because of deeper off-set wheels. The IIb with ENV axles had a wider track yet, but I'm not sure what it was or the turning circle. I haven't found a IIb owners manual and the online references contradict the owners manual for the IIa FC, so I don't really trust them. I'm sure your turning circle will be better with disco axles, especially if you get some IIb FC wheels, PN 569203

For not understanding the question you answered it perfectly lol. Thanks. Think I'll stick with disco axles and look into the wheels as well

[WildBoar]

Exactly!!!!

Originally Posted by phoenix37

or if you want a major head start clean it up, sell it and buy Wildboars 109...already sitting on a designa chassis with disco axles.

[bossman429]

Little more progress today, got the seat box out. Also got the Kodak heater our and hooked it up to a battery to test it out, To my surprised it worked great. Wasn't planning on keeping it but I'm hard press not to now. I'm sure the added heat will be appreciated in the winter. I may even route it to blow on the feet of the rear passengers. I was panning on a Webasto but I'm thinking no need now.


As for the seat box, well it's all in great shape save for the one bottom made of steel. I'm thinking I'll just bend up some thicker gauge aluminum and replace it with that. Any idea why they made this part out of steel?

On a side note- I purchased a hypertherm 25 plasma cutter earlier this year. The technology in these little powerhouses is amazing. This thing blows through a rusted out 7/16 bolt head with just a tap of the trigger. It made my life so much easier on by few rusted bolts that were of course impossible to reach with a cutting wheel. Also the accuracy is pretty amazing as well, blew through a few bolts without touching the surrounding metal. Best $1300 I've spent yet in my tool arsenal

[o2batsea]

Battery tray doesn't look that bad. Have it dipped to derust and galvanize it. Or, yrm has a very nice one of aluminum.