althemusicwizard
New Member
- Messages
- 5
Hi,
I've ended up on this site by a rather convoluted journey...let me explain.
I recently bought over the summer my third motorhome. In the past I've owned a Hymer Camp 55, then a Hymer 564 and now a Hymer 694. It's the oldest (and biggest) Hymer I've owned, being a 1991 version. In the short months I've owned it a few things have become very apparent.
1. The van needed more work doing than I first thought
2. If I want to keep the van on the road and enjoying motorhoming (rather than forever fixing it) I need to plan a scheme of works that will address some of the issues through previous owners' neglect. I've already got the habitation side pretty much sorted and the van is really nice inside.
3. I need to acquire some new skills like welding because of the lack of availibility of spares for a vehicle over ten years old. A garage owner told me the other day that they can't get spares for Mondeos anymore, so my Hymer is going to prove difficult.
Hence me looking around at welding videos and forums.
My front pipe (exhaust) dropped off last Tuesday when I was taking the van for a pre-holiday test.....isn't it just the way.
Anyway, after deciding that this was a project that I might get my hands dirty on, rather than taking it into the garage (I'd already managed to successfully get all the van's electrics sorted out, fitted a macerator and a waste tank, re-wired the habitation side to include four leisure batteries and solar panel) I managed to get the exhaust's front pipe manifold off the van without shearing off any of the studs. Pleased with myself, I trotted down to my local Andrew Page thinking that I'd have the replacement pipe on the van by the end of play......Hmmm...not so easy. After two to three days of scouring Ebay, ringing suppliers, it appears that no-one makes my front pipe anymore. The two options open were either send the remaining bits to an exhaust fabricator who would make a new pipe, or buy some exhaust bits from Ebay (mandrel, gasket material, flexible exhaust hose) and have a go at making something. I was going to wait for the 90 degree mandrel to arrive and then take it to a garage I know to have it welded onto the remaining manifold.
All this can be seen here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/33383402@N06/sets/72157631841720051/show/
The mandrel that I've ordered is here:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121001357019?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
The flexible pipe is here:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180990084543?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
I was in Aldi today and noticed the Arc welder they have in there (it is an arc welder isn't it) and thought rather than impulse buying the thing, I'd contact a forum and see what people with experience thought of them. After reading the not so complimnetary remarks (and 'you get what you pay for' springs to mind), I've spent the afternoon watching YouTube videos on the difference between mig welding and arc welding. It may be that I could just take the bits to the local garage and have them welded, but I can think of a chimniere stand that needs fixing and Lord knows what the future of the van will be......well I can guess that something is going to need to be welded and it might be a handy thing to have in the garage.
Any thoughts on where I should start? I know of two people (one a retired technology teacher who built his own car and a neighbour who used to work in the aerospace inductry) who I'll contact to see what they know, but thought I'd introduce myself here and pick your brains.
Cheers,
Al
I've ended up on this site by a rather convoluted journey...let me explain.
I recently bought over the summer my third motorhome. In the past I've owned a Hymer Camp 55, then a Hymer 564 and now a Hymer 694. It's the oldest (and biggest) Hymer I've owned, being a 1991 version. In the short months I've owned it a few things have become very apparent.
1. The van needed more work doing than I first thought
2. If I want to keep the van on the road and enjoying motorhoming (rather than forever fixing it) I need to plan a scheme of works that will address some of the issues through previous owners' neglect. I've already got the habitation side pretty much sorted and the van is really nice inside.
3. I need to acquire some new skills like welding because of the lack of availibility of spares for a vehicle over ten years old. A garage owner told me the other day that they can't get spares for Mondeos anymore, so my Hymer is going to prove difficult.
Hence me looking around at welding videos and forums.
My front pipe (exhaust) dropped off last Tuesday when I was taking the van for a pre-holiday test.....isn't it just the way.
Anyway, after deciding that this was a project that I might get my hands dirty on, rather than taking it into the garage (I'd already managed to successfully get all the van's electrics sorted out, fitted a macerator and a waste tank, re-wired the habitation side to include four leisure batteries and solar panel) I managed to get the exhaust's front pipe manifold off the van without shearing off any of the studs. Pleased with myself, I trotted down to my local Andrew Page thinking that I'd have the replacement pipe on the van by the end of play......Hmmm...not so easy. After two to three days of scouring Ebay, ringing suppliers, it appears that no-one makes my front pipe anymore. The two options open were either send the remaining bits to an exhaust fabricator who would make a new pipe, or buy some exhaust bits from Ebay (mandrel, gasket material, flexible exhaust hose) and have a go at making something. I was going to wait for the 90 degree mandrel to arrive and then take it to a garage I know to have it welded onto the remaining manifold.
All this can be seen here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/33383402@N06/sets/72157631841720051/show/
The mandrel that I've ordered is here:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/121001357019?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
The flexible pipe is here:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/180990084543?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
I was in Aldi today and noticed the Arc welder they have in there (it is an arc welder isn't it) and thought rather than impulse buying the thing, I'd contact a forum and see what people with experience thought of them. After reading the not so complimnetary remarks (and 'you get what you pay for' springs to mind), I've spent the afternoon watching YouTube videos on the difference between mig welding and arc welding. It may be that I could just take the bits to the local garage and have them welded, but I can think of a chimniere stand that needs fixing and Lord knows what the future of the van will be......well I can guess that something is going to need to be welded and it might be a handy thing to have in the garage.
Any thoughts on where I should start? I know of two people (one a retired technology teacher who built his own car and a neighbour who used to work in the aerospace inductry) who I'll contact to see what they know, but thought I'd introduce myself here and pick your brains.
Cheers,
Al
