- Thread starter mylesdw
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colnerov
Member
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- Nr Gatwick UK
Hi, For tanker use it should have, as you say, front exhaust, closing panel to fully enclose the engine bay and a 'fuel safe' sealed battery isolator switch. That's only the extras I can remember off the top of my head.
Colin
The only TL we have left. It would have been sold off like the others if it hadn't been so boxed in. It had plenty of rust, now it has plenty of squared off gaping voids where rot used to be. Considering it has been used in such a harsh industry, it's remarkably sound.
I'm pretty sure the tankers aren't allowed to use the body as an earth too. It has a closing panel. just never put it back.
OK, so its not pretty but considering 6 years ago it was so rotten that the drivers seat had dropped through the floor down its left side and the wings were adrift because there was only air to bolt them into, oh and you had to ask the passenger to climb the wheel as the steps were 'only for show', it's pretty ok. Not many 22 year old leylands knocking around!
The paint was dirt cheap so I suppose it fading to this extent is acceptable. Its not like we ever wash it!
The darker paint is actually the original colour that the TK came in. Peacock blue. Very reminiscent of mylesdw TK.
We did have a 1989 leyland. We were, as a company that bought a new truck every 4 years, forced to leave the loyalty of bedford because they no longer supplied the wheelbase we required. The leyland was a good truck and at the time felt like a leap forward from the TL but by 1994, the year of this one, quality had taken a real step back. From a drivers point of view it had a nicer clutch, air suspension drivers seat, lighter steering and a smoother engine but from a business point of view they are poorly put together with corner cutting parts. The quality of the steel used for the chassis is very poor and all sorts of components would fall off if they hadn't rusted on so impossibly tight!
At just 9 months old the 1989 leyland had already developed worn suspension shackles. At 2 years old the first rust had already begun to show. A few more years and the leyland had overtaken the TL for rust.
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mylesdw
Member
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- 794
I needed to fit a switch for the electric fan so I bought one of these
from Car Builder Solutions who have a great range of bits and pieces like this.
It's a plain metric thread with a crush washer to do the sealing. The top radiator pipe had a boss which seemed almost made for the job so Richard at R&D Motorsport ran a mill across it (for sealing washer) then drilled and tapped it.
Then all in place with new hoses and clamps.
from Car Builder Solutions who have a great range of bits and pieces like this.
It's a plain metric thread with a crush washer to do the sealing. The top radiator pipe had a boss which seemed almost made for the job so Richard at R&D Motorsport ran a mill across it (for sealing washer) then drilled and tapped it.
Then all in place with new hoses and clamps.
As you will be working from below with the cab on in the future, do what I do and rotate all the jubilee clips so they point down. Then from below check theres no obstruction preventing your screw driver from locating. In this instance trial and error will decide where to rotate it to. I also use a touch up brush or pen to mark hard to see bolt heads, dipstick tube entry hole, timing marks and write the date and mileage on the oil and air filters.
If you can't get a screwdriver in then try welding a bar with a screw slot, bolt head or handle onto the screw head of the clip.
If you can't get a screwdriver in then try welding a bar with a screw slot, bolt head or handle onto the screw head of the clip.
DAPPH
as dyslexik as I'm daft
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- Near to Cross Hands Llanelli SouthWales GB
Similar .... As well as positioning the head end is to also use all brand new stainless steel clips that have socket heads as well . For it's usually much easier to loosen /take out a difficult bolt head with a mini hexagonal socket , ratchet & extensions etc rather than try it with a Phillips or a flat screw driver blade . Being quality stainless means they don't corrode like zinc plated steel ones do .
Cobbler
Codger bodger
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- 7,765
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- Gloucestershire UK
Good advice Dapph, if any jubilee clips have the hex as well as the slot, I use a socket on it, either with one of the screwdriver handles that fit a socket or preferably, if there room a T bar & an extension & socket. I've stabbed myself too many times in the hand with a screwdriver when the clip moves round & don't want to do it again. I don't like the sight of blood, not mine anyway.
I'm another one that used to drive a TK in the past, on occasions I used to drive a 1968 petrol one, & later on a 1972 4 cylinder diesel. (that was gutless). You were wondering why yours was petrol, it could have been to get it under a weight limit.
I'm another one that used to drive a TK in the past, on occasions I used to drive a 1968 petrol one, & later on a 1972 4 cylinder diesel. (that was gutless). You were wondering why yours was petrol, it could have been to get it under a weight limit.
mylesdw
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I tried my best to rotate the clips so that they will be easy to get at but obviously my brain went to sleep when I fitted those last two on the radiator top. I will change those. It's just brilliant having forum folk overlooking my rookie mistakes; thanks guys.
The clips are stainless and have hex heads. I agree, I hate using slotted or pozi types. Have stabbed myself a few times over the years just as you describe!
Just waiting for wiring, heater hose and cab bolts now.
The clips are stainless and have hex heads. I agree, I hate using slotted or pozi types. Have stabbed myself a few times over the years just as you describe!
Just waiting for wiring, heater hose and cab bolts now.
The petrol engines were still available in the TL in 5.6ton and 7.5ton right through the 80s! As you may expect, they didn't sell many so late on. There was however a niche market for certain applications. The Vauxhall car plant used petrol trucks inside the factory where diesel soot particles would otherwise reek havoc. Grounds keepers in the botanical gardens wouldn't want to spoil the tranquillity when driving a rattly diesel down the footpath and similarly any situation where noise is an issue such as night shunting in a residential area or perhaps a cherry picker used in pedestrian areas. Im sure some of you will remember the days when not all garages sold diesel. If you had a 10 mile drive for fuel you had already used the best part of a gallon just getting there! The petrol engine developed maximum torque at just 1200 rpm so not only was it quiet but it could work at very low revs. This is made a little TL an essential piece of kit if you only went stealing after dark!
The loss of the UK military contract was the real death nail for AWD/Bedford.
There was a vehicle demonstration day organised with all the big wigs from the government, Bedford and Leyland. Bedford unveiled their new model. A tremendously impressive and groundbreaking articulated lorry that not only had an all wheel drive tractor unit and trailer but was also able to traverse knife edge peaks without striking the ground. Bedford out performed leyland and of course they all thought it was 'in the bag' which it should have been. It was a hard decision for the government to make and it boiled down to losing 1000 jobs at Bedford or 2000 at leyland. To the voting public and to any dodgy foreign dictators it would be easy to sell as a revamp and leap forward in military capability but it was just numbers and bravado
Cobbler
Codger bodger
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- Gloucestershire UK
I never thought of the TK's as horrible to drive when you put against the other equivalent, BMC's FJ I think it was, the threepenny cab thing. I used to drive one of them on odd occasions. They were truly awful, crash box with the engine in the cab. The brakes non-existent with a full load. The one I drove was petrol, you ended up with burnt left foot in the summer off the engine cover. It's only saving grace was it went like a rocket empty, pass anything but a petrol pump. I drove a later diesel one a few times, it had the performance of a slug.
I find the worst part for distance driving is the slack in the steering and the lane wander mixed with the bouncy ride to further throw you off. Its a bit like riding a horse, you have to get into the right rhythm and not fight it.
My 5.7 7.5 and 16ton Bedfords all seemed to have the same issue of only having power assisted steering for the 1st 180 degrees of steering wheel turn. After that it is hard going and the fluid reservoirs always seem to spit fluid out if filled anywhere above minimum. I assume despite all being this way that this is not a characteristic and just a common fault or a peculiarity in the design that every mechanic cocks up.
My 5.7 7.5 and 16ton Bedfords all seemed to have the same issue of only having power assisted steering for the 1st 180 degrees of steering wheel turn. After that it is hard going and the fluid reservoirs always seem to spit fluid out if filled anywhere above minimum. I assume despite all being this way that this is not a characteristic and just a common fault or a peculiarity in the design that every mechanic cocks up.
mylesdw
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- 794
Nothing very interesting but progress nevertheless.
I made a new wiring loom for the engine & chassis.
It's very simple compared with the monster looms that come with modern vehicles. I used www.vehicle-wiring-products.eu/ to supply the cable colours to match the original. There is a British Standard (BS-AU7) for vehicle wiring looms and it is well worth following. There are various sources on the web for this standard, including here http://www.mgb-stuff.org.uk/colourcodes.htm. I guess the original loom was a common part for 12 and 24 volt applications because my new loom, sized for 24V is less that half the size and weight of the old one. You only need half the copper for 24V and I also used modern thin-wall cables which makes the whole loom very thin.
Here is where the whole loom emerges near the steering box ready to connect to the loom in the cab.
I made a new wiring loom for the engine & chassis.
It's very simple compared with the monster looms that come with modern vehicles. I used www.vehicle-wiring-products.eu/ to supply the cable colours to match the original. There is a British Standard (BS-AU7) for vehicle wiring looms and it is well worth following. There are various sources on the web for this standard, including here http://www.mgb-stuff.org.uk/colourcodes.htm. I guess the original loom was a common part for 12 and 24 volt applications because my new loom, sized for 24V is less that half the size and weight of the old one. You only need half the copper for 24V and I also used modern thin-wall cables which makes the whole loom very thin.
Here is where the whole loom emerges near the steering box ready to connect to the loom in the cab.
mylesdw
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I dragged the cab out of storage and sprayed some stone-chip inside the arches while they're not full of wheel.
I read some information on this site about the stone-chip paint having a definite shelf-life; it settles and is impossible to re-mix but this stuff -
which I have had sitting around for a year or two went on really nicely. I was expecting to have to bin it.
A lot of the roads in this part of the world are unsealed gravel and the wheel arches take a real punishing.
I read some information on this site about the stone-chip paint having a definite shelf-life; it settles and is impossible to re-mix but this stuff -
which I have had sitting around for a year or two went on really nicely. I was expecting to have to bin it.
A lot of the roads in this part of the world are unsealed gravel and the wheel arches take a real punishing.
the snooper
getting older by the day
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- 21,063
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- Hull UK
i dont like to point out the obviuos but, thats not stone chip, its schutz which cant be overpainted due to being bitumen based
If I ever get round to it, I plan to use some scrap plastic rear mudguards as liners for under the cab.
I think spacers to give an inch clearance between the liner and body will create enough airflow to prevent trapped moisture and also skim over the top of any seams or pressings. I have deduced that a lot of rot in my trucks can be attributed to condensation, forming in the roof skin and various other single skin uninsulated panels, running down inside box sections. I am considering using expanding foam and EPS in these areas. I have never heard of anybody doing this before or if it was a bad idea. Apparently austin tried this in the 60s but used a moisture absorbing rather than repelling foam. Needless to say the rot which ensued was devastating. I don't want to copy that mistake. I intend to do a test panel which I will weld, just to see if the whole thing goes BOOM !
I think spacers to give an inch clearance between the liner and body will create enough airflow to prevent trapped moisture and also skim over the top of any seams or pressings. I have deduced that a lot of rot in my trucks can be attributed to condensation, forming in the roof skin and various other single skin uninsulated panels, running down inside box sections. I am considering using expanding foam and EPS in these areas. I have never heard of anybody doing this before or if it was a bad idea. Apparently austin tried this in the 60s but used a moisture absorbing rather than repelling foam. Needless to say the rot which ensued was devastating. I don't want to copy that mistake. I intend to do a test panel which I will weld, just to see if the whole thing goes BOOM !
