NickJ

I now have an empty hole! Initial plan to remove the engine has gone overboard, figuring it was too hard a job by myself and much easier with the gearbox out I crawled underneath, once underneath the gearbox was going to be an easier job with the transfer case out...... So new seals and maybe bearings for the transfer case, along with a tidy up. Also she's been running a 4 speed box so i'll take the opportunity to close up the 5 speed i've had waiting around and throw that in too. Carefull removal of the sump shows where the oil has been escaping through the gasket from beside the oil pump This coincides with where a small corner was removed and obviously removed a bit too much stiffness, bugger. Removing the crank gave a surprise, bearings were just lightly scoured, I was expecting much worse due to oil surge issues encountered due to poor design of the fist sump I made, these really are tough wee motors! This is where the phone battery died and you'll just have to trust me that the pistons and crank are healthy, just well worn rings all round and one broken on #4. With my cheap verniers I get an 80.0 bore but i'll sneak it all into work this week and double check with decent measuring gear, fingers crossed for a quick hone and back togetherness!

Niva has been having a long rest while I sort out the rocky transition to the working world. After the last big push the lack of compression has bugged me so out the engine comes again for a bottom end rebuild. My fix to the terrible placement of the bottom hose and no drain. (Just cut the bottom corner to prevent coolant going everywhere!) Engine bay is now mostly empty, head is on the workbench, just the rain came in earlier than I expected damping my enthusiasm to climb under and release the lower bell housing bolts. Once the block is out i'll strip it down and assess what parts are required, hopefully just rings and bearings and no major machining! I've also ordered a 14point7 SLC Free unit with the aim of tuning the carbs to better fuel economy, digital times ahead.

Just before christmas I fitted the radiator claimed from the wagon, for the first time since my ownership the electric fan switched and I had pressure in the cooling system, this joyous moment however was short lived, components used to a leisurely low pressure life suddenly had a job to do resulting in the waterpump seal letting go and the poor girl stuck in the driveway over the break, while up north seeing family I raided the waterpump from the original Niva engine (neglecting it has sat idle since the Niva's twin cam conversion 7-8 years ago....) Set about replacing the bits this morning in what should have been a 5 min job Someone previous had used a very sticky gasket that resisted everything I tried even shrugging off a linbide scraper! this required removal of the radiator allowing wire wheel access. Looking at the picture it seems to have some kind of fibre reinforcement? 2 hours of cursing later and on the road again! now to switch attention to the Niva lurking in the shed behind...

I'm back on town from the 4th, keen for a bbq if its not too late

Thats feaken rad, but I can't help think its too big to really be able to drag anywhere fun, small and nimble would be the way wouldn't it? 1600kg could become 2400kg in quite a hurry. Since borrowing the teardrop off felixx the missus has been pestering me to build one, i've been looking at making a modular trailer that can take on or off road wheels for hunting trips. On the practical side, a mate uses a pop top as he reakons it has better vision for reversing in shit places

Last week Yoeddynz informed me of a 2104 wagon at the wreckers up his way that I really should rescue, the price was right only I was not in any ability able to perform such a mission, I did however call another Lada frother here in Chch to see if he was keen, turns out he was already in the process of organising the logistics and within a few days had it safely back in the big city. With much disappointment the wrecker had already stacked another car on top, while the roof could be pushed out, the A pillar had already suffered, then to add further insult, the wrecker handed the plates in resigning the poor thing to assisting other soviets to live on. Having a good look over the vehicle, it was in a good state before suffering a suspected broken timing chain, little rust, and very low ks. underneath two layers of floor mats was very new looking carpet along with unfaded interior, such a shame! through our digging, many trinkets were found, 3 brand new sets of points, cd's, coins, original manual and map of NZ fused to the door card and the best find, the original owners cheat sheet for the impossible to decipher heater controls! Accepting she was toast, i've helped myself to a few bits and pieces already, will be a fun few weeks ahead!

Have a couple of leads going for truck driving, hopefully have something to do by the end of the week. Fingers crossed anyway

You don't happen to know who is the main contractor for that stretch? could be an interesting project to get in on

I just finished my final year of uni, had a job lined up and at the 11th hour they pulled the plug, so until I work out were i'm off to next i'm looking for some work to keep things ticking over, i'm keen, capable and have quite a varied CV but preferably looking for machinery/truck driving if possible, i'm licenced to class 4 + wtr with experience in civil (water cart/digger/roller/shovel stand) and agricultural (baling/stacking/wrapping/rolling ect). Anyone need an over qualified operator to fill in some gaps?

There is always the threat of extended time in the gulag for failure to perform, but I'm beginning to think hard labour to a Lada is like holiday from actual meaningful work.

Looking at the cost of a new exhaust and the possibility of more $$ to reach the wof I cobbled the piepwork back together and dropped her in to VTNZ before committing the funds. After the usual picking and poking she popped out the other side needed only rear brake balance and the old lpg stickers and fittings removed! the inspector also noted the rear wheel bearing needed replacement but somehow that didn't make it onto the computer. With luck a large order of brake bits turned up from Russia the next morning and with a new wheel bearing from Gee Motors repairs were made resulting in a new WOF. Having a week off I took the chance to head back to central for a week hunting, she ran no fuss the whole way there gaining a little over 10km/L, the way back however was a more traditional Lada adventure, heading to town to fill up she ran rough, finally dropping to one cylinder at the top of the main road, coasting down to the lake front. Without options a quick check up showed the plugs were terribly fouled so I reset the timing and cleaned them up with instant results.......... until Tarras, same deal, this continued a couple of times over the Lindis until I was forced to fill up in Omarama from excessive fuel consumption. Checking everything over again I set off accepting I just needed to get home, which she did, flawlessly! My best guess now is I overfilled the oil that morning and once it burned off happiness returned. Last weekend I drove to Timaru without issue or using any oil so thats the story i'll go with! Lesson learned, max oil on this engine means max oil! Now with University over and done hopefully I can find some time to get her looking a bit nicer and fit all the new engine gaskets that came with the brake bits from Russia.

VW spec tampering? I take it to VTNZ, turns out one of the guys there did his apprenticeship on Ladas and gives me shit for it but doesn't hate so i'll go back for that alone, actually i've always found them to be fair with no BS

2105 is sorting the brake balance away from wof®, fingers crossed for the next meet!

Sorted out the issues with my MIG and borrowed some gas to weld up the muffler only to find the nozzle was awol..... Yeah/Nah Also after a closer look the pipe is pretty rotten, also the whole lot has been fizzed up and there is no way to separate the bits to repair off the car, new plan is to rip the whole exhaust out and repair fresh. Brought a new nozzle and a handfull of tips ready for the wind to die this weekend so I can get it done

Good move, don't listen to baxter, twin cam all the way! As for the distributor, they are archaic technology, if you're not shy, sort out a cam position sensor and/or crank sensor and use electronic ignition, so much better in so many ways, especially if you're going to go to FI it might be easier to stretch to the likes of megasquirt but that depends on how deep into the tech side you feel comfortable with. Any more info on the FI set up that bolts to the standard weber bolt pattern (pics?) that has me interested! If not for the cert plate I would have FI on mine in a heartbeat

How have the monthly meets been? i've had too much on to join in the fun this year

Its been so long I can't recall if I got to the bottom of the fuel issues, won't take long to once its driving to check though! From memory I didn't replace the valves in the fuel pump when rebuilding it which serves me right, but i'll have a nosey in the tank & lines just to cross it off the list. As the Niva runs a standard Fiat pump and the twins have never shown signs of leaning out (opposite to the writings of the internet), I wouldn't be surprised if there was a seperate issue. Stack of bits coming from Russia, hopefully wof status once they are here

i'll be deep in the hills of Southwestland the first week of November, but put me down for the next

The poor 2105 has been parked up for a few months as I just haven't had the time to do anything but with a new job starting in a few weeks i'm going to need a handy run about. Filled 20L from a jerry can, checked the points, gave the carb a prime and crossed my fingers, amazingly the battery was still fresh and she popped into life. Engine runs so a quick pre-wof checklist: Bleed and adjust brakes Replace shock bushings ( they look a bit worn) Fix horn button Weld muffler back on (the reason for it being parked up) Find some 175-70-13 tyres for the rear to match the front Find a spare wheel (yeah not wof, but its turned out to be quite a mission to find a spare locally!) And any other little jobs that I find on the way, such as fitting the Niva springs for some low. Finally moving away from student life I may even sort the panel work, but i've got my eyes on another project so time will tell... Actually this might be an excuse for an order from the motherland too!

Bloody near perfect wouldn't ya say?

I can make a shopping list or you're welcome to pop over and run a few through it to see how they go, all up about $60-70 just need a power supply

Good fun catching up tonight, hopefully our sacrifice to Lord Lucas will keep the electron gods satisfied

I'm keen, Uni schedule is tight but i'll bring some toys if I can make it

Other than Russian engineering i'm a keen long range shooter, a big part of this is reloading ammunition due to the accuracy gained from tailoring for the rifle, as brass work hardens with every shot, annealing is required every few cycles to keep everything ticking along nicely. Traditionally a gas cooker was used to heat the brass just before red hot, but as the process must be repeatable case to case it is arguable whether doing this by hand is beneficial. (There is a bit more detail than this, better suited to other forums) The solution to me was induction annealing, using a micro processor to control the time removes the human element and is repeatable even with days between sessions. Using an induction coil off ali express I experimented with coil size until I found a diameter that worked with brass, then coded an arduino to take care of timing, a few components later on a block of ply and I had a crude electron powered annealer. Only thing to add is a servo to drop the case out the bottom at the end of the cycle ready for the next Just like a new one

I have so much on my plate right now but if I could make it work a few beers and yarns about electrons would go down well