Kirkynut's Jimny (aka Daddy's Tractor) - The Evolution continues...

kirkynut wrote: Oil and filter changed today for Castrol Edge 5w30 fully synthetic, which was half price in Tescos the other week.

Oooh, I hope it still is cos I could do with some of that!!
Nice looking motor my friend.

Sorry John, it's not been on offer for a while now!

MOT passed with flying colours!

The Mrs Beemer only just passed due to rust the other month, so we planned to scrap it before next year's MOT, however the rear nearside brake calliper is seizing and I don't want to put a new one on a car I'm about to scrap!

So I think the Jimjam might get pressed into daily use soon, at which point these tyres are going to annoy me I think! They're great for the mud plugging I bought them for but now I'm using it on the road more and only on lanes, they're a bit unnecessary.

I'm quite into driving it at the moment, regardless of the noisy tyres.

I have kingpin bearings to replace on the mother in law's best friends Jimjam tomorrow morning. I think it's the first time the kingpins will have been out since they were put in at the factory in 2004, so it's going to be a bit of a job getting the top one out I'm sure!

Kirkynut

We'll the Kingpin bearing change went well on the mother in law's best friends Jimjam. They must have recently been changed but by an incompetent.

Firstly I found that the wheel bearing nut was barely tight. It should be a million NM. Then when I pulled the half shaft out the oil seal came out on it, so had not been pushed into the axle properly, if at all.

I know my step father in law filled the front axle with oil a week before but I'd rather he didn't. I think he thought it rotates all the time. There was little left in the axle as it had all pissed out of that end of the axle with no seal in it. It gets messy enough when the seal leaks but take it out and it's messy on another level.

It had SKF bearings in, indicating they're not original and the dust seal seemed new.

Nonetheless, I had a set of Koyo bearings from the Big Jimny shop in stock and fitted them as I don't know the history of the old ones and was doing this for free, so the £25 she owes me for them is nothing to what a garage would have charged.

I then threw a spare radio in it as the one that came with it didn't work but the cage in the car is a mess, so I've got to fit it properly at some point and replace the nearside speaker which doesn't work.

I managed to do this job whilst maintaining working vacuum hubs and without inducing death wobble.

I had to check the same incompetent had not been at the other side too but they'd not!

I suspect I have gained responsibility for maintaining a second Jimny!

Standard ones drive nicely though I've found! It's a long time since I drove a standard Jimny before this.


Kirkynut

I've had a metallic clicking/pinging noise when I take up drive for a while now and was not sure what it was. You can get this is the radius arm mount bolt holes have ovalised, leading to the bolt moving in the hole. I'm one for overtightening nuts and bolts though, so albeit I've had to nip them up before, unlikely.

The next likely culprit I thought might be the prop uj's on the rear prop. I've been checking them for play for a while though and there's not been any, until now.

So one night last week, after I got our 2 year old to sleep, I whipped off the rear prop. The uj on the diff end was binding. It was knackered and clearly the source of the noise.

Now I wanted to do these myself as it is one job I've never done. I have a vice and now a 12T press so thought I'd take the old ones out to measure and order the correct ones that night. Or so I thought.

I couldn't get the buggers out. So I took it to a mate at a local garage who has one of those Land Rover things, so he'd know how to shift a stuck uj. I have no heat either.

The issue I had was I have a Samurai front prop on the rear, due to my Rockwatt Rocklobster transfer box. I had to do some reasearch as to what uj's I needed. They are standard Jimny ones if you are in the same boat.

I got them locally as I wasn't sure what I needed but I have the same part as Martin sells in the Big Jimny shop, with the grease nipple this time. So I can try to save these from the same fate as the old ones, which incidentally needed cutting out as even heat wouldn't work.



Here we go, all done and now fitted.

I haven't posted a picture of my X Lights on the back, acting as work lights and manually operated reversing lights, so here they are:



Kirkynut

After about 8 years of loyal service, my Numax battery has died. They have stopped making the one I have but there seems to be a few companies that have them still in stock online.

I heartily recommend Numax as a joint starting and winching battery. My Jimny sits for over 10 days minimum without use, often more. Then it has always started and winched when needed. I mean 8 years when treated like that!

Kirkynut

Those lights are REALLY neat.