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| Tiger Member Since: 06 Jul 2012 Location: Wales Posts: 2265  
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Loving the work
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12th Aug 2018 4:48pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324 
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So, after what seems like an age and many, many hours in a hot garage, I've finally finished my box of electronic tricks for switching on a few lights
 And it works, mostly. More of that later though - here's how it came together:
Much fiddly wiring, head scratching and scribbling notes on wiring diagrams went into completing the panel itself, which also got upholstered in the process.  Click image to enlarge The eagle-eyed will have spotted a second connector that wasn't in earlier pictures. This was necessary as I realised that attaching the switch box and taking it apart again if I ever needed to, would be a nightmare without it. The other end looks like this: Click image to enlarge There are still a couple of wires that are simply connected via a small scotch block, which is because the switch they're connected to is supposed to be mounted in the dash and will eventually be moved. On the vehicle itself, I fitted an adapter to the stop/tail light to tee off a feed from each that will drive relays as part of the automatic function for the rear work lights. Click image to enlarge Along with that, the main power feeds from the bus were installed and the various earths connected, completing the wiring behind the rear speaker: Click image to enlarge With all of that in place, all of the wires from the various lights and other feeds were brought together to create an umbilical finished with the matching connector, that would enable the panel to be easily removed: Click image to enlarge And with the trim back in place, this is all that’s visible: Click image to enlarge The final bit of wiring was the main connection to the second battery, which made the bus bar permanently live: Click image to enlarge And so with everything live, the panel was plugged in and fixed in place with black nylon set screws: Click image to enlarge And here’s a close-up of the finished control box: Click image to enlarge Top left is a push-to-make switch for the voltmeter, i.e. the meter is only active when the button is pressed. It didn’t seem worth having it powered all of the time. Top right is the momentary switch for the USB socket, which is the larger of the two on the front face of the control box. Middle left is the momentary switch for the rear work lights and middle right is the automatic function isolator, which as mentioned above, will eventually be re-located to the dash. The automatic function is one that I originally dreamt up for my old 90 and uses two relays and feeds from the side and reverse lights. It means that the work lights only turn on automatically when I select reverse and the side lights are on, i.e. when it’s dark. Unfortunately however, that arrangement isn’t road legal despite being really useful, so this incarnation includes an isolator that allows me to disable it. The isolator switch started out as a regular ON/OFF switch as used for the heated rear screen and spotlights but has been modified to provide an ON/ON function. The reason for this is that I wanted a switch that would effectively turn off a relay whilst turning on a warning light to remind me that it was isolated. With an ON/ON switch, I could connect the common to earth, one input to the earth of the aforementioned relay and the other input to an ignition live feed serving the warning light. I'll explain the switch modification elsewhere. The momentary switch for the work lights is really what started the whole process for this design. By using that type of switch to drive a latching relay, I can have more than one switch performing the same function in different locations. Basically, I can fit a duplicate switch on the dash that will enable me to switch the lights on from the rear and then turn them off from the front, or visa versa, without having to worry about the switches being either ‘on’ or ‘off’. The circuit includes a relay driven by the brake lights that cuts the power to the latching relay when the brake pedal is pressed. This re-sets that relay and turns the lights off, meaning it’s all but impossible to drive any distance with the work lights left on. The lights themselves work really well, although I’ve aimed them down slightly since I took this picture: Click image to enlarge Back to the control box, bottom left is the momentary switch for the LED load space light shown earlier in the thread. Bottom right is another momentary switch for the Hella socket, also on the front face of the control box. So, essentially, it all does exactly what I intended. There are, however, a couple of problems. As mentioned above, the use of momentary switches and latching relays was driven by the specific control requirement for the work lights. That, coupled with picking up some momentary fog light switches for 7p each is the reason why I’ve used the same arrangement for the other functions. What I didn’t predict though, is that the LR switches don’t actually work very well as momentary switches. They’re really ‘passing contact’ and the sensitivity of the latching relays that they’re connected to means they sometimes ‘double-click’ and don’t turn off. Some are better than others – the USB switch works all of the time whilst the work light switch works about 1 in 3 times, for example. As the work light function is the only one that really needs to be momentary, the solution is to swap that one for a reliable body and change the others to regular ON/OFF switches, dispensing with the latching relays. I’ll have to live with it for a little while though, as I’m off on holiday in it next week. The other minor issue concerns the backlighting for the switches. I’d taken a feed from the interior lights automatic function with the idea that the switches would light up for a few minutes when the door was open. However, I completely forgot that that feed is a switched earth rather than power and so it doesn’t work. I’ll have to come up with a different cunning plan for that another time Darren
110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia Last edited by LandRoverAnorak on 14th Aug 2018 7:20am. Edited 2 times in total |
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13th Aug 2018 3:10pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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Last week I had my 110’s chassis Dinitrolled by Zagato of this parish, which I’m really pleased with.
Click image to enlarge To make the most of the protection, over the last couple of days I’ve fitted a complete set of Gwyn Lewis mud shields to protect the front outriggers, the rear crossmember and the front of rear wheels centre crossmember. These kits are great – well engineered and with nice, clear instructions unlike a lot of aftermarket accessories. I’d previously ordered and fitted these shields to my old 90 but as an added bonus this time, I arranged to collect them from the man himself: Click image to enlarge The kit to protect the front outriggers is quite straightforward and obviously universal with regards to wheelbase: Click image to enlarge In standard trim, this outrigger and the bulkhead footwell are exposed to everything thrown up by the front wheel, with the mud flap being fitted to the bottom face: Click image to enlarge The new shields use three existing holes that are occupied by two screws and a plastic rivet, all of which are replaced with stainless speed screws. They are positioned behind the lower edge of the wheel arch liner, like so: Click image to enlarge Fitting these ones is quite easy and is best done with the front wheels on full lock pointing away from the side being worked on. Compared to a 90, the rear shields for a 110 are quite a lot more involved. The kit to protect the centre crossmember comprises four panels and more speed screws but there are no existing holes to use this time, with everything needing new ones drilled. Click image to enlarge In addition, if fitting to a Puma or TD5, one of the panels has to be cut down to clear the fuel filter housing. To make this easy, the shield has a cut line milled into the rear face: Click image to enlarge After offering the shields up, all of the holes can be drilled and I gave them all a squirt of Dinitrol before final fitting: Click image to enlarge And with both pieces fitted: Click image to enlarge The kit to protect the rear crossmember is more complicated again and includes various pieces of steel hardware. All of those parts are galvanised and all of the fixings are stainless: Click image to enlarge The kit includes replacement, much more substantial, diagonal body stays along with replacement mud flap brackets, which are designed to be removeable. The original brackets are removed and discarded as part of the installation. The kit also includes a reinforcement piece for the bottom edge of the outer bodywork. I bought this particular kit from a member on here, who'd already painted the mud flap brackets black so they didn't stand out so much. I just gave them a clean up and another couple of coats before fitting. The two large brackets at the top of that picture get bolted to the underside of the tub and so I made some rubber gaskets to separate them from the aluminium: Click image to enlarge I also made some gaskets for where the diagonal body stay fixes to the edge of the tub but forgot to take photos. As the supplied instructions are so clear, I won’t go into a lot of detail about the fitting process. Suffice to say that it’s necessary to drill two holes in the tub to fix the bracket mentioned above. The kit includes some M6 hex head stainless bolts for this purpose but I replaced them with button head versions as they were less intrusive on the surface of the tub. I cut small circles out of the sound insulation and incorporated some nylon washers to separate the fixing from the aluminium body. Eventually, I expect them to be hidden under carpet: Click image to enlarge This is the fixed guard in place, which on the off side also protects the fuel filler: Click image to enlarge And the mudflap on its’ new bracket below: Click image to enlarge The original mud flaps are re-used but cut down to suit the new brackets: Click image to enlarge I fixed some sticky back closed cell foam to the bracket where it is mounted on the uprated diagonal body stay, partly to make the anti luce pins a better fit and partly to stop it rattling: Click image to enlarge Which fits like so: Click image to enlarge On the near side, the process is exactly the same except that the fixed guard is shaped to fit around the exhaust. I also had to trim the inner edge of this guard slightly, to accommodate a pair of large electrical conduits that pass through this area: Click image to enlarge It’s also necessary to trim the mud flap to clear the exhaust: Click image to enlarge On their new brackets, the mud flaps are about 4-5 inches further forward than their original position and also slightly further out. I was initially a bit concerned about the latter but, in fact, they end up pretty much in line with the wheel arches and are better placed to cover the tyres: Click image to enlarge I’m now confident that the chassis and various other components are about as protected as it’s practical to do. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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4th Sep 2018 8:52pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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Whilst I had the wheels off to fit the mud shields, I also took the opportunity to fit my recently acquired one piece rear half shafts:
Click image to enlarge Click image to enlarge I gave the end caps several coats of paint to protect them from the elements and they were fitted with galvanised, 12.9 cap head bolts and matching spring washers, all torqued to 65Nm. Initial impressions after a short test drive is that they've definitely reduced driveline play, despite only recently fitting new drive members to the original shafts. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia Last edited by LandRoverAnorak on 6th Feb 2020 6:48pm. Edited 1 time in total |
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4th Sep 2018 9:03pm |
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| seriesonenut Member Since: 19 Nov 2014 Location: Essex Posts: 1224
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Hi
I have just fitted a set of the rear crossmember guards but mine are set almost up against the rear crossmember Click image to enlargemud guard by Richard Holmes, on Flickr I like the guards you have fitted which sit much closer to the rear wheels. Looking at the Gwyn Lewis web site I cant see the type you fitted listed. Is that where they originally came from? 1984 One-Ten CSW
2010 XS USW (sold) 1957 Series One 88 diesel 1958 Series One 88 4x2 |
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4th Sep 2018 9:16pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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I'm guessing you've fitted the GL1012 kit? The one I've fitted is GL1003, described as 'Defender 110 Rear Mud Flap Mounting Kit and Shields, Stepped Tub'.
https://gwynlewis4x4.co.uk/product/defende...ub-gl1003/ Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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4th Sep 2018 9:34pm |
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| seriesonenut Member Since: 19 Nov 2014 Location: Essex Posts: 1224
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Thanks. I thought this was just the mud flap kit but now I see it includes the shields. Looks like I'll end up with double protection!
 1984 One-Ten CSW
2010 XS USW (sold) 1957 Series One 88 diesel 1958 Series One 88 4x2 |
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4th Sep 2018 9:42pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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The shields that you've got work really well on a 90 so I expect you'd be able to sell them on. Darren
110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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4th Sep 2018 9:44pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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Just a quick update on the half shafts: I've now done a few more miles and can honestly say they have transformed the way it drives. The first clue was the absence of a small metallic 'clonk' - like somebody gently tapping the axle casing with a small hammer - when changing from first to reverse. On the road though, particularly after it had warmed up, it's lost virtually all of the driveline shunt that was previously evident when changing down a gear and applying power, so I'm very pleased indeed.
I replaced the rear axle drive members about 2000 miles ago and whilst they did improve things, the difference was no where near as great as this time. There's no obvious, visible wear to the old half shaft splines but there clearly must be enough to cause such noticeable symptoms. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia Last edited by LandRoverAnorak on 6th Sep 2018 12:14pm. Edited 1 time in total |
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6th Sep 2018 7:27am |
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| Rkcorry Member Since: 23 Jan 2017 Location: Northern Ireland Posts: 226 |
Excellent work Darren, Im now reading this thread backways, but thats nothing new.
Can i ask you were you sourced the single piece shafts. Do keep up the good work. |
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6th Sep 2018 12:06pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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Thanks
I struck very lucky on eBay for the half shafts - I think I paid about £150 for something that's around £6-700, new. Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia |
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6th Sep 2018 12:13pm |
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| LandRoverAnorak Member Since: 17 Jul 2011 Location: Surrey Posts: 11324
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The final step in my 'protect the underside from the elements' saga was replacing the front mud flap brackets with galvanised versions, which I completed today. Actually, that's not the last step as I also plan to replace the suspension hardware with galv. components, but that's a job for the future!
Anyway, I recently bought a set of galv. brackets from good old eBay, which turned up in a blue bag. The galv. coating is a bit rough but otherwise they're absolutely fine, though: Click image to enlarge The first task to prepare them for use was a coat of T wash: Click image to enlarge And then primer and top coat. I'd usually go with Smoothrite for something like this but I found some nice acrylic paint in my local motor factors that seems to give a decent finish: Click image to enlarge I separated the original brackets from the mud flaps by drilling out three rivets. This revealed quite a build up of crud between the flap and the bracket: Click image to enlarge To try and avoid this in the future, I cut some thick rubber disks from some offcuts of matting that I had lying around, to form spacers on the fixing bolts: Click image to enlarge Hopefully, the resulting gap will allow crud to fall out easier. The flaps and brackets were then re-assembled using stainless nuts and bolts: Click image to enlarge They were then re-attached to the outrigger using more stainless fixings. I did re-use the metal spacers that are fitted as standard and I also took the opportunity to give the mounting points a coat of Dinitrol before they were covered up again. With the Gwyn Lewis guards in place, the brackets are now quite well protected, so they should last a good, long time. Click image to enlarge Darren 110 USW BUILD THREAD - EXPEDITION TRAILER - 200tdi 90 BUILD THREAD - SANKEY TRAILER - IG@landroveranorak "You came in that thing? You're braver than I thought!" - Princess Leia Last edited by LandRoverAnorak on 2nd Oct 2018 2:07pm. Edited 1 time in total |
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9th Sep 2018 1:40pm |
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| ozzie1989 Member Since: 25 Feb 2009 Location: Wales Posts: 282  
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How about a timer relay? You could rig it up so that it's earthed through the light and then you could have it stay on for say 10 minutes after activation. Alternatively you could just provide a permanent feed to your backlights and earth them through the light feed? Now: 2010 2.4 TDCi 110 Utility Wagon Then: 2004 2.5 TD5 90 Hard Top (X-Tech Edition) |
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10th Sep 2018 7:14pm |
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| L110CDL Member Since: 31 Oct 2015 Location: Devon Posts: 10784 
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Good idea with the spacer's for the mud flaps
1996 Golf Blue 300Tdi 110 Pick up.
Keeper. Clayton. |
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10th Sep 2018 7:52pm |
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