Starter Dog removal and mysterious van spotted

This charming J (or JB) was spotted driving on a Melbourne freeway (M1, Bourke Rd exit) early today, a cold wet morning. Thanks for the shot James, apparently the van is immaculate, no registration details. Does anyone know anything about it?

To remove a the starter dog - crank nut - balance pulley nut (whatever it is called) with the engine in the car, try this tip - put a big wrench on the nut, support the handle on the chassis (this spanner has a rubber handle, but a block of wood will do to protect the body) and crank the starter over for half a second. This takes the hard work out of removing the nut! Not my idea, but it does work very well.

Nuffield Metal Products

Under the grill on a plate behind the bumper bar was this rusted tag. It seems to say that it is a Nuffield Metal Product

Birmingham England

NMP

Not sure if that is a serial or what underneath. I wonder how many of these plates are left on UK vans, with the rust issues there?

I have taken the radiator out to solve the steering box leak and the harmoic balancer oil leak. Slowly, slowly...

Van shots...

I was spotted by Uncle Howard while taking the old girl out for a test drive in bayside Seaford, Melbourne.

U Joint challenge

Wobbly universal joints on the propshaft meant it was time to replace them. The nice new parts are assembled above.

I have never done this before, so some videos online were very useful
After extracting the "spiders" it is possible to see the wear - these should be smooth.

Using the money saved doing this myself, I picked up a couple of tools - a large vice and circlip extractor pliers.
The right tools made the job a lot easier. My only advice to anyone is to check out the videos linked to above, they say it all, very well. I stuffed up one of the U Joints when one of the needles fell into the cup when assembling the unit (It crumbled inside while pounding the cup in, rendering it useless - I had to pick up a replacement. Lucky they are only $17 AUD ( 8 UK Pounds) each.

Replacing gearbox mounts

A fairly easy job, a bit fiddly under the car. The mounts are the same as A series engine mounts from a Morris Minor or a Austin Healey Sprite (thanks for the tip Mr Magpie). My tip would be, use a hydraulic jack to let you support the rear of the gearbox so you can make fine adjustments while fitting. It seems easier to remove the supports and stabilizer bar from the chassis/ gearbox, then strip the supports of the rubbers off the van.

The old ones were soggy and spongy, offering little support. So, just some leaks from the gearbox and head, and I will be ready to get the van back on the road.