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You would be surprised. There is so much ballast in some boats. Narrowboat soften have bricks in the bilge to get them lower. Mine has got that much stuff on it these days, genny for wife's straighteners, engel fridge box, Jenga ha ha, I'm am surprised it moves!
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MiataMark
Club Retro Rides Member
Posts: 2,971
Club RR Member Number: 29
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You would be surprised. There is so much ballast in some boats. Narrowboat soften have bricks in the bilge to get them lower. Mine has got that much stuff on it these days, genny for wife's straighteners, engel fridge box, Jenga ha ha, I'm am surprised it moves! Isn't that more a question of where the weight is though, weight low down (bilges) aids stability weight up top decreases it. |
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1990 Mazda MX-52012 BMW 118i (170bhp) - white appliance 2011 Land Rover Freelander 2 TD4 2003 Land Rover Discovery II TD52007 Alfa Romeo 159 Sportwagon JTDm
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You would be surprised. There is so much ballast in some boats. Narrowboat soften have bricks in the bilge to get them lower. Mine has got that much stuff on it these days, genny for wife's straighteners, engel fridge box, Jenga ha ha, I'm am surprised it moves! My bad. Excuse my boating ignorance  |
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Jan 25, 2015 18:10:04 GMT
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MORE fibre-glassing, of some cosmetic panels. So there's been more prep in the moulds and I've used gel-coat. Everything in the wall of the kitchen needs to be wipe-able which is why I went with GRP again. For the first attempt with gel-coat, a flat panel moulded off an old desk top. Then a box frame thing. Both came out really well. I had a few voids in the tight corners of the box frame, but a bit of filler repaired those easily.  Here they are in place  and mostly hidden by the wall panel.   The other bit of 'glassery is a sealing panel for the gas bottle locker, as access to the bottles is inside the van. Mould (lots of time in this)  The part as it came off the mould was a bit messy, pulling some of the paint I used to help smooth the mould.  but it cleaned up OK. Next, I need to see if it fits after all that effort!  These have been time-consuming, pretty much all I've achieved since the last update, but hopefully that's a couple of tricky items ticked off the list. |
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Jan 30, 2015 18:47:54 GMT
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I finally got the seats back from the trimmer this afternoon. Lovely bit of work, and I think he's stiffed himself on the price. I spent the afternoon inside in the warm cleaning the plastics and building them up again. Well pleased.  |
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Feb 14, 2015 18:09:21 GMT
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The gas locker seal panel went in a couple of weeks ago. The cupboard door seals against a bit of boot-lip seal on the GRP panel. I'm glad to have that awkward job out of the way. It's not exciting, but worthwhile doing for safety!  The seats are in, though I need some extra fittings to bolt them down properly. The Renault seat-belt bits fitted to the Ford Galaxy seats pretty well.  The seat for the living area transforms into the bed. I copied the same idea I used in the first van. Hopefully the pics explain it.   Then to make it 3D.   The doors will hinge down for access to under-seat storage. |
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Feb 14, 2015 21:38:47 GMT
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Been looking out for the updates! Brill as always. Bed is very clever!
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Sorry to once again dilute this fine forum with modern, but I'm nearly finished Final gas connection, and connecting the electrical system to the hard-to-access alternator remain. Save some cosmetic jobs, visually it's complete and could be pressed into service in short order. One back window fitted and trimmed. I was going to fit a window in t'other door, but I drilled a pilot hole to find part of the door structure behind. D'oh. I decided not to fit it. The windows wouldn't be symmetrical and the second one won't help rear visibility. I didn't think it through enough, but at least it's only a pilot hole I have to repair.  Nicely trimmed seat, professionally done, Expensive foam, plus fabric, plus labour comes to a price that would buy you a quality bed for the house!  ...and converted to bed.  Now I'm ready to request Swansea to re-classify the panel van as a motorcaravan. I'll get the letter away this week. Once that's done the old van can be sold. We did a lot of work to tidy up the old van this weekend, ready for that. The schedule is coming together nicely. |
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Does look really really professional and factory . The bed looks good but I know what you mean about price. Was a grand for a dinette and v berth in 5 inch foam for my boat. You will really get pleasure out of using it knowing you did it all. You need another project now ! Best wishes. Jed
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I've been following this project with interest as it's something I'd love to do (along with a horsebox)
I'm glad to see how well it's turned out; it's a credit to you, fantastic.
And you don't ever need to apologise for posting up workmanship as good as this!
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Al.
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Much appreciated, chaps. You can't beat a good night's kip in your leisure vehicle, Jed. Once this is done, I'll be returning to the Scimitar. Cheers, BF  |
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Mar 15, 2015 17:11:18 GMT
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Remember I said the alternator was difficult to access?
This devastation allowed me to rock the radiator forward a couple of inches to route that blue wire.
The small wire from the alternator controls the charging warning light on the dashboard. Motorhomes use the signal to run the fridge and leisure battery charger from the van battery while the van engine is running.
I've been unable to test the new connection as the van battery is now flat 
I'm a little nervous about whether I've made the right connection. The charging warning light on the dash doesn't seem to behave like any other vehicle. When I turn the key to 'ignition' position without starting it, the battery icon lights up, then after a few seconds goes out. Answers on a postcard, please, if you're an auto electrician. The van battery is on the charger now, so I'll have to wait for more testing. |
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THE_Liam
Yorkshire and The Humber
If at first you don't succeed... HAMMERS.
Posts: 1,363
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Mar 15, 2015 18:45:37 GMT
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Great work gone it to that. I have a caravan and I keep being tempted to gut it and fit all the gear in a van.
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envoycdx
North East
I need my Mojo back!
Posts: 245 
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Mar 15, 2015 19:23:38 GMT
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That is a very nice conversion you're working on there. Credit where credit is due.
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Mar 15, 2015 19:28:32 GMT
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Thanks. Fitting caravan gear into a van is a clever enough way to go. You just have to be careful you can fit it all in and maximise the space. Even in a big van you want to make use of every cubic inch. So I've been reading up on motorhome electrics. Apparently modern vans have 'smart' alternators, making it tricky to do the spilt-charging relay type circuit I've fitted.  The modern way to do it as with Voltage Sensing Relays, which mean you don't have to go near the alternator. I still don't fully understand it. All I do understand is it won't be easy to convert what I have. I'm considering a manual switch on the dashboard to operate when I start and stop the van running. It's low tech, and not what I wanted from this van. More thinking to be done, but I'm a bit p'd off right now. |
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colnerov
Posted a lot
Posts: 2,879
Member is Online
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Mar 15, 2015 19:59:06 GMT
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Hi, Have you thought about fitting a second alternator just for camper electrics?
Colin
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Mar 15, 2015 20:45:33 GMT
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Hi. I have the durite volt sensing relay. I have one start battery and two leisure. When above 12.5 volts the three batteries are connected which is when the engine is running. When I turn the engine off the the voltage drops and the relay isolates the starter battery. Can't believe you have had to take so much off the van to get near the alternator. What a nightmare. Best wishes. Jed
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Mar 16, 2015 12:52:18 GMT
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Interesting bit of lateral thinking, Colnerov. Dunno how I'd drive that, though. Thanks, Jed. The rest of the electrical system is OK, so my easiest plan is to adapt what I have. The volt sensing relay would definitely have been the way to go at the start had I known. I went with this system as I used it on the old van and it worked. I've done some digging and it turns out CBE have an alternative part for this sort of thing. My battery separator unit is this thing, with number 9 connection going to the alternator.  They have a similar one called a CSB96-P, with exactly the same connections, but number 9 connector goes to an ignition-switched +ve. That seems the best fix. I'm not annoyed at the time to strip the van to access the alternator. I'm annoyed I've needlessly spliced into the van loom. |
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Mar 16, 2015 14:14:21 GMT
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All a bit too clever for me mate ha ha. Ready for spring though!
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Mar 16, 2015 14:26:15 GMT
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The system is clever, not me. I just need to wire it up. My head hurts when I look at circuit diagrams. |
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