Moke strip down tips needed

[Brum]

I will shortly be dismantling my moke to enable sand blast and respray. I know my way around a spanner (aircon tech) but never stripped a car down before and wanted some top tips to enable me to put it all back together again afterwards.

I will probally go down the replacement wiring loom route but im sure theres much more to consider I will obviously take lots of pics but if I can learn from others mistakes that will help.

[seamoke]

A BIG cheque book!!!!

Seamoke

[Brum]

ive got one of those
but looking for something more useful

[Terry]

Hi,

if the Moke is going and you can drive it on the road, then the best thing you can do is drive the Moke for a few days at least to find out what issues it may have, in how the motor runs, does it crunch gears on the change, particularly between 3rd and 2nd and note all the issues small or otherwise. If you can find someone local to you to help you go over the Moke before you strip it down you will save a lot of problems later if you have a report/list of all the issues you found.

I think too many people strip a Moke, or any car, down too quickly before they really find out what is right and what is wrong about the vehicle beforehand and this comes back to bite you later on when the budget is near busting and you need to know what you can delay or rebuild later. A common mistake is rebuilding an engine/gearbox that didn't really need it or when the budget is tight not knowing really how good or bad the engine was before you started the strip down so you take a gamble and refit an engine that may be ready to die.

The other advice I like to share is not to skimp on the body, get it professionally done if you can afford it, but a good body repair and paint is most important as just about everything else can be done later or redone if it is not up to scratch but to do the body properly later on means another total strip down so not something you really want to do if you can avoid.

And get decent storage boxes and bag and label things and keep it all together and don't leave bits tucked into nook and crannies on the shelves as it may be a year or two before you go looking for that part again. Depending on your schedule, try taking a part off, restore/repair/rebuld/replace it, and tuck it away for when you start putting it back together. It will keep the motivation up and is a lot less depressing than looking at a big pile of parts all needing attention and the most efficient way to store a Moke and its parts is when it is assembled so by taking things off slowly means less chance for bits to get lost or the rebuild space becomes occupied by something else.

Terry

[.]

Yep what Terry said is right on the mark.
Lots and lots of photos. Coz you may think you can remember, but you can't.
Take small steps at a time. Big boxes with big names on it so you can write on it what it is and if it is done.
Then try to have a picture in your head what you think it will look like once it done and try and stick to it, what colour, what wheels , and so on.
Have a budget and a time frame in mind. And the... Double them both.
Because doing it with in a year is all most imposible and doing it under $10K the same.
And the most important tip. Buy all new nuts and bolts. Don't use the old stuff.

Good luck.


Mavro

[Newie]

Have a budget and a time frame in mind. And the... Double them both.

Double, triple, quadruple...................whatever works   

All good, sound advice Brum, so I don't think I should add anything as I don't think my methods are to be recommended............. 

Newie

EDIT: Actually, one thought is that if you're going down the replacement loom track (another good practise which I never did) It may be easier to visualise while the Moke's still together what extras you want included in the loom such as gauges, stereo etc. The standard looms are very basic and it would be a shame to hack into a new one.

[Brum]

appreciate all the advice I think more haste less speed is going to be the order of the day something im not familar with.
Well here goes im just going to take some pics and get stuck in (slowly of course)
Im sure ill be on from time to time with a few questions onlong the way

Cheers

[Halfpint]

Hi,
Just my 2 cents worth
First, Ensure the Mrs is on board, it helps heaps! So don't neglect other important bits.

Terrys advice (As is all the others) is very sound if you have the opportunity to drive around.

Have lots of box's and smaller containers handy.
For example, if you remove the rear trailing arms,
- put the drivers side in one box and when dismantling the brakes and backing plate, put these bits into a smaller box/container and make sure its all kept in the same main box.
When rebuilding, clean bits in the reverse order(backing plate, brake bits and bolts etc) and put them in a clean bag and back into the box ready for when the main arm is complete.
Reassemble it all one bit at a time.

And most importantly, smile as you go, enjoy it......., it will be so much better to drive after all the hard work and time your about to dedicate to it!

Ask all the questions you need, the only dumb one will be the one you wish had asked but didnt

Halfpint.

[spider]

There has been some excellent advice here.

About the only thing I would add, is goes down the supermarket and grab yourself some boxes of medium and large zip-lock bags and some small cards (business cards work well). Then with all the smaller parts, load them for each section in to a bag and write where they came from on the card and throw it in the bag. Don't throw anything away until you are done, even old grommets, rusted bolts etc. You may need these for reference at a later stage.

It can also be helpful to make a log of every nut, bolt and washer (it does take a LOT of time) as you remove each.

[Pete Power]

Take a photo of everything before you pull it apart. Especially where your wiring routing, if yours is unmolested it makes it easier to re run. i'm lucky that I have a computer in m y shed so whenever I was putting something back together I could refer to my manuals but also to my photos as well.
The plastic zip bags as Spidey suggested are excellent. Masking tape on the end of wires with a simple note of what they attached to is also helpful i.e. coil +..


Good luck with the rebuild

[Benjamin]

Go and buy some Yeild, it saved me plenty of time.  http://www.chemsearch.net.au/pages/productdetails_au.aspx?cat=Chemsearch%20Catalog&category=&pid=5068

Avoid doing what I have done and move house twice during the rebuild. Removalists do not really care about the order things are packed. Also be prepared to find something that needs repairs, that you did not know existed despite doing the best checks before hand.

I think HPs advice about having the Significant other on side it will help. I know Shan has been a huge hand achieved a lot more with her help and prodding too.