tow beddie project

[eddy]

arrived home last Thursday night  all butts and pieces accounted for, except I believe we left the sun behind us somewhere near Port Macquarie, left Kirra Friday morning after brekky and a great farewell from 6 elderly (well older than us anyway) couples from Vic, I know, I know, yes I said I don't want to become a grey nomad but they were all genuine good folk and always on for a yak I think we added a little more to their lives as much as I learnt to respect theirs, we travelled  in good spirits as they occasionally sent us texts asking where we were and if we were doing all rite.

Stopped overnite at a roadhouse between Coffs Harbour and Port Mac and got a free loaf of raisin toast from the bread delivery truck, not many dinkum blokes around much now so was grateful when the driver smiled and offered the loaf as we crawled out of the caravan in the early morning to visit the shitters. Then thru Sydney,

stopped in Canberra, pulled up at the Firies station in Fyswhick and asked if we could park in their drive way, which they kindly obliged, excepting we were parked on an angle so we slept with our feet higher than our heads, next day had a look around the Capital, just as cold as i remember when we lived there about 22 years ago, then stopped in Gundagai overnight and in the driving cold rain I ran across the main bridge over the Murrinbingee river, something I've always wanted to do trouble is i went too far and ended up running on the freeway in dark with no reflective clothing. anyways we were stopped overnite at the Gundagai riverside caravan park (needing a shower and battery charge ups) when the power to the van kept going off, missus went and asked the manager if he could help and he told her that there was nothing wrong with the van park power pole and to pack our van and piss off. needless to say that wasn't gunna happen at 9.30 p.m. and its a good thing he spoke to her instead of me (because I may have teared up and got sulky .... not)     so wrote a letter of complaint and called into the Council Info Centre ... sorry dude but if your gunna piss off the missus then expect sumthing back,

Lunch at the at the Hume weir in Albury and thought about an overniter at the Glen Rowan roadhouse but was too bitchin COLD so drove onto the outlaws in Shepparton for a few days, went MTB riding in the Barmah and got two flat tires so was a fair walk back to the house. Friday was unpack day and already planning the next trip. Back to work Monday 

[eddy]

Did manage to get a beddie fix over the weekend, used metal studs to frame in the rear walls and refitted the rear panelling, looks much better and all panels are soid backed. even managed to frame around the rear window. the roadtrip has made us more determined to get the beddie tow project completed before the next trip to Nagambie in December, although the pressure is off us for a few months so might start stripping and painting the undercarriage next  keep vannin brothers ... by the way anyone driving the grey undercoat windowless beddie van in Echuca in Wednesday last week ? that was the only van we saw on the whole trip, I asked the missus for the camera and we very quickly walked over to where it was parked, got half way and the bugger drove off right past us !! bummer man, I think I got  a pic of the rear only. uh sorry we also saw a brown van in a garage on the Pacific Hwy near the northern rivers in NSW ... was that yours ? sorry couldn't turn around and visit cause we were towing a village behind us 

[eddy]

juz relalised something, which shows that I must be a real beddie nutter ...... we're into our second week of being home from the roadtrip and the experience is fading into memories .... but ..... the first weekend back home spent two days on the beddie relining the side panels ...... then this weekend I sez to the missus that I was not gunna work on the van and spend some time with her ..... so ...... Saturday spent all day fitting a flash rear vision mirror and framing the side door latch and planning to carve a door handle, then Sunday ...... spent the morning fiddling with a radiator hose before she dragged me away to do a day trip to Nagambie ...... whats all this mean you may say ...... weeellllll ... I still haven't unpacked the caravan !!!     

[eddy]

haven't had much time on the beddie, but have managed to frame and refit the rear interior panel, wire up an internal light and fit the flare kit, came up a treat all shiny and nice fitting 'cepting I used satin black instead of matt black and they are glossier than the rest of the van. Not much happening with the project as this month and next month I will be working weekends with minimal time off, hopefully get into her agin in November in time to have her tow the caravan up to Nagambie over Xmas hollies, I'll post some pics when I get mojovated.

I have twin thermos on the radiator and there is a thingy ma jingy temp sender that comprises a copper wire with a cigar shaped senser on the end that sits in the top radiator hose and goes to a switchy thingy that isin turn wired to the relay that switches the thermo fans on. I cannot tighten the radiator hose clip enough to stop it leaking, the other thing is that the fans come on anyway when the ignition is switched on. I have disconnected the fans to save the battery upon starting then when the temp gauge shows warm I open the bonnett and reconnect the fans, I would like to get rid of the copper sensor altogether but what should I replace it with that is external of the radiator hose so I dont have the leaking problem yet maintain the sensor to switch the thermos on, I don't want to add a manual switch coz I know tha one day I'll forget to turn the fans on after Ive started her up   

[Warren]

eddy you could try the temp gauge sender, but your better off to find something to assist with the sealing of the correct sender, I used to have some "rubber" tape, like a thick isulation tape, thant you could work into any shape you like and it would bond with itself and anything it came into contact with, cant remeber the name off it Engineers and plumbers use it.

Warren
   

[Rogue Trooper]

The switchey thingy that sits between the sensor and the relay should be the manually adjusted thermostat. It's probably not set right yet and that is why the fans are coming on when you start the van assuming your relay wiring is correct. Turn the knob or shaft of the thermostat right round in the opposite direction and that will stop the fans starting then when the engine gets to the temperature that you want the cooling fans to engage at slowly turn the the thermostat shaft back till you hear a click and the fans start. Watch your fingers during this process. if you start getting nuisance switching with the fans constantly turning on and off at operating temperature just set the thermostat a little higher.

When I had this setup with the old 186 I used some urethane sealer similar to the stuff the auto glass guys use to help seal the hose. I put the sender in position and then coated the surrounding area with the urethane sealer. Then I eased the hose over the top and tightened up the hose clip. You will need to leave it overnight to allow the sealer to set and then you should be good as gold. Makes it a bit of a sod to remove the hose later on but it fixes the sealing problem.

[eddy]

thanx guys that is ace advice' I'll give it a try this Saturday (gotta work Sunday  ) thanx again