1974 Daimler Double-Six VDP (higher axle stands)

I look forward to seeing it smoking round the Whirlies!

Can't believe I'm having another mounting bush saga after the business with the IRS mounts

The new small radius arm bushes aren't going in. They aren't very expensive so will need to try another supplier but there is the fear that they'll all be the same.

It's hard to tell without accurate measuring tools (which I don't have) but I reckon they are a fraction bigger than the old ones as I can't even get their noses in despite chamfering the edge and using grease etc.

Being at the garage tonight and last night but not being able to do anything useful I did a somewhat pointless job of rubbing all the paint off one of the metal pieces that will be re-trimmed shortly. It has some surface rust so I'll probably end up dipping it and painting it.

If nothing else it gives me the chance to try out my new epoxy primer 'system' which will be used everywhere on my next project (Hillman Imp pick-up) but for this car arrived too late and will probabaly only be used on the doors/wings (which are really the only parts left of the body to deal with).



this rear window part is trimmed with cloth so will therefore never be seen but inevitably will be re-painted



looks pretty clean....




but really needs dipped to get rid of light rusting




new small radius arm bushes are same length as old ones




and look same diameter but won't fit in arm




probably optical illusion but old one looks smaller side by side and when placed on top



Glasurit EP system. bought too late to use on main body of VDP but will try it out on odds and ends

Ok. I've been working away on the VDP most week nights and again am building up a backlog of little updates. I've not got the inclination to do a mammoth post just now so will just deal with one thing and tomorrow do the rest as I'm not going to the barn (have started a boxing class on Thursday for some reason).

I got this little filter kit for £1 off Ebay I'd had a look at the parts list and saw there were various seals etc and expected to only get the filter but there was a little bag full of seals in the box which was a nice surprise and I think I've got everything I need.

I had a go at putting everything in the right order tonight without the parts book to hand and when I got home a few things that puzzled me dropped into place




£1 kit off Ebay next to filter assy it should service




contents laid out for comparison. couple of extra bits in kit



fuel filter end casings differed




these seals seemed obvious. central one was missing from my bowl but one in kit had to go here




I figured bolt/spring/washer were used to support filter up against top housing. putting filter in bowl itself shows this would be required



not sure which way up this plate goes




filter sitting loosley on plate spring etc shows it sits about right for installing




screwed down finger tight everything seems ok with no unnecessary strain



So that was how I left it. There was one big seal left over which I wasn't worried about and I wondered about the plate and why there needed to be a 2nd small seal. When I got the parts book open there was no mention of the plate which was strange but not really. It is obviously to centre the original filter element - which has a large hole both ends. The new part has a metal endplate which mirrors the plate I'm talking about. I've therefore put the plate in upside down but don't actually need it at all with the new filter element. Perhaps the plate I have was intrinsic with the original filter so there was no need to list it as a separate part. Finally, I dug out some parts last week that I bought for the project years ago and found I'd actually bought a fuel filter but it turns out it was the wrong type so quite pleased I found the Ebay one



no dished plate on parts list drawing. classed as part of the filter element?



transpires filter kit I forgot I bought years ago is wrong anyway. might get a £1 for it on Ebay

Well I can't say I've ever seen anyone use that approach before. Reasoning is sound though I can't help thinking there must be an easier way, though what that is I couldn't say.

Hi guys. I suppose I could've bought one of them (didn't think of it tbh) but I just spent £20 on a new nozzle for my own set up and have a few bits to do under the car before I put the IRS back in and I've had good results before with my blast pot so will press on with it.

The metal screen only took me a few hours to knock together and I had the steel anyway so I'm quite happy with that approach even tho it's a bit unconventional.

On the subject of the blast pot. It can drive you almost crazy when it won't blast and you can find no reason for it. When it's working it's great.

The last time I used it was one of the frustrating times: The guy I rent the barn off asked me to replace some parts on his trailer so I got the gear out to clean up all the corroded nuts thinking I'd be done in an hour and I spent more than that disassembling the kit to find non-existent blockages. The thing just kept blocking up.

I was using a newly purchased bag of J-Blast Supafine which worked for me before but this time was different. I suspect the media was slightly bigger despite being the same grade on the bag so, rather than buy another bag in the hope that I'd get 'small stuff', I bought a bigger nozzle. It's 3.5mm instead of 3mm so hopefully it will work.

If it doesn't I'll need to order another product. I've used 'olivine' before which is more like sand and aluminium oxide which is aggressive and expensive.

Gonna give the J-Blast one last try.

Top stuff. I don't know about you, but I find getting paint on things usually makes me feel a lot better about them, it's like you're on the home stretch.

Back in entry #223 (Jan 23rd) I was going on about the small radius-arm bushes being the wrong size.

Well, I got another bush which seemed to be a pukka Jaguar one (seller only had one unfortunately). It was around £17 all in which was dearer than the pair of ill-fitting ones put together.

I measured it with a micrometer and compared the measurments several times to the other ones and it is smaller but not as small as the ones that came out

The ones that came out are now a bit mangled so I don't think I can say the measurements on those are accurate but the 'new' one has went in ....well almost .

It's a very tight fit and there is still roughly 1 cm to push home. I have been using a very large vice with a large pole for leverage. Surely they shouldn't be so tight. The other problem is that the centre sleeve is longer than the outer so it butts up against the vice jaws before the outer sleeve is fully home. I ended up drilling out a relief in the wooden packing block to accommodate the centre sleeve and this helped but we're not home yet.

Now that I'm satisfied the ones supplied were too wide I have contacted the Ebay seller to say so. I know the seller sold them in good faith and they weren't expensive so not worth making a fuss but I often find if you are up front and fair about these things a resolution can be found. So I'll maybe get some feedback or a refund.



newly purchased bush 46.65+mm




Christmas present bush 46.86+mm



original bush 46.23mm



pushing home with thick metal plate on one end and wooden block on other side



inner sleeve reaches wooden block quite a bit before outer sleeve in fully home....




......so hole drilled out with wood brace to accommodate it and recommence pushing


NB. The micrometer is a 25-50mm one so you add 25mm to the reading on the scale. It's a bit confusing

So, to summarise, they are all greater than 46mm but less than 47mm and a mm difference is never gonna work.

The ones that won't consider going in are are approx 0.2mm wider than one that is going in - with a struggle - but the original is approx 0.4mm smaller than that. I'd be happier if they were all the same size. Has got me wondering what the tolerances on these things are......

I'm talking in metric here because the micrometer is metric but the car is Imperial so makes more sense to talk in that language and the variance from smallest to largest is approx .025"

In fractions the range is about 1 13/16" to 1 27/32". You'd assume the bush would be some sort of recognised fractional size like 1 7/8" which would be about right but it could be more specific than that. Who knows but I'll get there eventually

Hi tony21tq. Someone else suggested freezing the bush but by the time I got it from home to garage it would have heated up again lol. Having said that it has been below zero many nights at the barn recently.

When I bought this car I never envisaged I'd be sandblasting the hidden bits behind the IRS. I didn't even envisage having the IRS off. Whilst I was doing the very first repairs, to the driver's-side sill/radius arm box-section, I saw lots of pipes and mechanicals there that I hoped I would never have to disturb.

Now that I am in the closing stages of the project and doing just that I feel like I should have took the IRS off at the start. In fact if I was to rebuild another XJ that's the first thing I would do. It gives you much more room to work in and you could refurb the whole unit gradually as a side project while doing the main job - the body.

Anyway. Back to the subject of this post. I've been blasting all the very light rust off areas that don't actually need welding and coating them in Rustbusters Epoxy Mastic 121.

A couple more nights should have it done. The bits on the rear screen channel are done too.




driver's side rear pilar blasted and epoxied




same with passenger side channel




and forward face of boot-floor/spare wheel well




some blasting done on passenger side wheel tub




and chassis leg