[SuperSelect]

Anjan, good luck to you.. but do you really think it'll work effectively ?
Being an Architect, the cardinal rule we're taught (in dealing with leaks) is, that any leak is best stopped at the source end, and not at the result end.
How about trying to use some silicone based sealant from the outside ? The kind we use in sealing gaps between sliding window tracks and walls in a home.. This is available in an easy to use tube. Check it out if the M seal doesn't work !

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by SuperSelect

Anjan, good luck to you.. but do you really think it'll work effectively ?
Being an Architect, the cardinal rule we're taught (in dealing with leaks) is, that any leak is best stopped at the source end, and not at the result end.
How about trying to use some silicone based sealant from the outside ? The kind we use in sealing gaps between sliding window tracks and walls in a home.. This is available in an easy to use tube. Check it out if the M seal doesn't work !

Thanks a lot Ravi. I will apply that next week if this one does not work.The right one is well sealed now and no water dares (at least for now)to trespass inside. However the left one is not well cured-will have to watch out after today's treatment.

[dmaheshkumar]

Hi,
This problem will exist in all amby's.Some will have the Glass beeding problem for the water leak,I think you are not facing that problem.

For this,Remove your wiper and whole set on one side where its leaking and put paste over there both inside and outside.One rubber will be there available for this type leaks in wiper areas.

Fit that before fixing your whole set.Surely it will stop the leak in long term.I have tried many things and finally stopped with this type idea only.

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by dmaheshkumar

Hi,
This problem will exist in all amby's.Some will have the Glass beeding problem for the water leak,I think you are not facing that problem.

For this,Remove your wiper and whole set on one side where its leaking and put paste over there both inside and outside.One rubber will be there available for this type leaks in wiper areas.

Fit that before fixing your whole set.Surely it will stop the leak in long term.I have tried many things and finally stopped with this type idea only.

Thanks. I will follow your suggestion.Since the car is covered and I did not move out with it, being out of station most of the time,the treatment done last time could'nt be checked for its effectiveness.I will do that now.

[anjan_c2007]

I attended to some finer details of "My Lady In Black" during the last weekend.The fuel pump was again changed and this one (some local brand GMB) works just fine and is much better in doing its job viz. fuel supply as compared to the UCAL pump (TVS group make) which conked off after a few days of use and had cost me double the price.

The 4 plasticky strips on the body floor below the doors, fitted sometime back as an after market fitment were replaced with 4 new aluminium ones to get that classic touch.The newer Ambassadors sport these plasticky ones as OE.


The old plasticky ones


The new aluminium ones

And the leaky front left wiper housing that allowed water to percolate in (please notice the crack thats enough for monsoon to create havoc within the car) has been hopefully

[anjan_c2007]

The CIVAA run (photo feature in the Vintage and Classic Car Section CIVAA thread )of today made me proud of my Lady in Black.Her engine was roaring like a lioness right from the morning and I was sure that she will do today's run very well.
She entered the CIVAA run venue majestically and teambhpians agspins and VR/46_Chet were there to greet me. We exchanged pleasantries. Most of all Mr Anand Kamathikar, son of the late Mr Balamukund Kamathikar (the first owner of my car for 48 years) was there at the venue and was extremely happy to see his father's car arrive for the run.The photo clicking of the Lady in Black by enthusiasts never stopped.
She endured the run very well with the engine so lively even after 55 years! The traffic was unusually dense in the Orange City, being Independence Day.The brakes did their job only too well and the start stop traffic was tackled with ease.The fuel pump troubles are now really passe! (touchwood)
I am proud of My Lady in Black for doing its job so well.

There she is at the end of the day.

[SuperSelect]

Good going Anjan.. It's the ultimate pleasure to have such smooth runs in the car one loves - almost gives one a mental "high" !!
I'm sure you felt like driving on forever.
And I'm sure she would've gone on forever !!

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by SuperSelect

Good going Anjan.. It's the ultimate pleasure to have such smooth runs in the car one loves - almost gives one a mental "high" !!
I'm sure you felt like driving on forever.
And I'm sure she would've gone on forever !!

Thanks Ravi.Would like to say "aapne hamari muh ki baat chhin li".(for non-hindi friends this means "you have taken away the words that were to come from me", a compliment when thoughts match)

Originally Posted by anjan_c2007

The CIVAA run (photo feature in the Vintage and Classic Car Section CIVAA thread )of today made me proud of my Lady in Black.Her engine was roaring like a lioness right from the morning and I was sure that she will do today's run very well.
I am proud of My Lady in Black for doing its job so well.

Two pictures clicked on 15th August by fellow teambhpians agspins and VR/46_Chet here:

[anjan_c2007]

Since the past two weeks I have been struggling to put the Landmaster back on road.Its self starter was posing some problems as the armature was not moving freely.
I dismantled it, handing the starter unit over for repairs. Serviced, it was fitted back by me.Soon the starter activator under the battery conked off. The starter was again getting jammed and was creating problems for the activator.
The starter armature has a copper bush fitted on the aft side just near the flywheel.This is beyond the self bendix on the armature.I checked this bush and it was OK. Just had some hits on its front side but overall it was OK.I am told that though this bush is tight fitting, in the event of its breakage or its dropping the entire engine chamber would have to be opened to retrieve it.
Another fact was that after the self was dismantled I had washed the car and some water droplets had settled on the flywheel upon entry through the front grille.Upon enquiry, I was told that this has an independent chamber and is sealed from the engine sump. So there was no cause for any worry as entry of water in the engine chamber would have been destructive.
Back to the starter, the starter was completely overhauled now and refitted. It gets activated with the direct current supply. The activator had conked off so the normal self starting was passe.
I have given the sealed self activator for repairs and hope to get it back tomorrow when the car is again expected to move normally.

With he self dismantled -the flywheel can be seen and so can the armature copper bush (not very clearly seen) on the aft side.

The self starter

The self activator

The new battery - a tower of strength and a ray of hope in the wilderness!

[anjan_c2007]

Last Sunday, my Lady Love was driven for nearly 90 kms (45+45) .We started the onward journey to a friend's farmhouse.
The 36 km stretch was on the state highway leading to Katol from Nagpur. Beyond Kalmeshwar town, there was a detour and the drive was through rural roads for about 7 kms.Of this about 3 to 4 kms was on cart tracks with lots of ups and downs suitable only for jeeps.
I was on my Landmaster and had never driven it on such rough, rural stretches.The car performed the run with ease and I took utmost care to manoeuvre it through in lower gears only.
Starting at around 10.00 am we were there by about 12.15 pm. Had a lovely time going around and viewing mother nature.
And by 5.00 pm in the evening we were back.
Must say that Landmasters are to be addressed as HE and not SHE as someone had told me earlier on this thread. After driving through the rough and tough conditions I believe the Landmaster was not made only for metalled roads.
Again today as my preparations for the Rally scheduled for 13th Feb started, I gave a lot of time to the Landmaster. The car had become very, very dusty and needed a thorough cleaning job.
As my camera is under repairs I could not click. I opened both the door upholstery covers on the drivers side, unscrewing the whole thing out. The front one can be dismantled easily but the rear armrest bolted to the door takes time.
I found rubber paint lined on the inside and portions showing rust. I scraped all accessible portions that had rust and applied metal primer.Rubber paint is not a very perfect way to prevent rust, I find.
I also applied 3M rubber protection on all the 4 tyres. Cleaned the engine bay thoroughly and painted the engine, starter, alternator and many other portions in black.Hope to complete the paint job of the whole engine bay by next weekend.
Must say that the Landmaster is very, very DIY friendly.Once you learn to do things, it never lets you down.

[anjan_c2007]

The lady in Black has been giving me trouble free drives since the past few months. Touchwood! It did very well at the recent The Hitavada and JCI organised Vintage Car Rally on 13/02/2011.The pictures have been posted in the Nagpur Rally thread.The only thing I did not like about the rally this time was that it was routed along a bypass Ring Road for several (may be 6kms or so) kms of the total 40 km run. We passed several trucks and trailers.Rallies normally criss-cross through city thorough fares so that people are able to see the beauties.
Thereafter the CIVAA static display of vintage and classic cars was organised on 20/02/2011 during the Rotary walkathon. The pictures are again posted on the CIVAA thread.
As I had stated, the self starter activator had given me lots of worries just a few months back. I could get a new one from Kolkata which is of original Lucas make. The self starter is now doing its job well.
The one fitted to the car is also an original piece but has been badly handled by an electrician. This guy told me to get rid of this complicated self starting system and install the Ambassador's. I told him that this is there doing its duty since 55 plus years and it is simple to change it over to the Ambys within a few hours. No way but!
I have now handed over this one for repairs to CIVAA founder member and Guinness Record holder Mr Iqbal Ahmed a few days back.Incidentally, Mr Iqbal has made the miniature working model of the Benz 1886.
The activator as it was before handing over to Iqbalbhai with all the Mseal stuff:

I will post the repaired activator's picture very soon after I get it from Iqbalbhai.

[anjan_c2007]

Today I got back the Landmaster's self activator from Guinness Record Holder Mr Iqbal Ahmed's workshop. It was a small job for them and had been completed the next day. I was able to go to their workshop today to get it.
What a fine job they have done! The pictures can do the talking:

[glomus123]

It has been done so nicely and precisely. I always admire the craftmen who work with machines and the way they even make parts. We had a good old "saint" mechanic, whom, I was seeing from my childhood. I have seen him making unavailable parts even, but takes little more time. Hope he is still healthy, though must be in his late 80's.
With thanks and regards

[inderpalgill]

Originally Posted by anjan_c2007

Last Sunday, my Lady Love was driven for nearly 90 kms (45+45) .We started the onward journey to a friend's farmhouse.
The 36 km stretch was on the state highway leading to Katol from Nagpur. Beyond Kalmeshwar town, there was a detour and the drive was through rural roads for about 7 kms.Of this about 3 to 4 kms was on cart tracks with lots of ups and downs suitable only for jeeps.
I was on my Landmaster and had never driven it on such rough, rural stretches.The car performed the run with ease and I took utmost care to manoeuvre it through in lower gears only.
Starting at around 10.00 am we were there by about 12.15 pm. Had a lovely time going around and viewing mother nature.
And by 5.00 pm in the evening we were back.
Must say that Landmasters are to be addressed as HE and not SHE as someone had told me earlier on this thread. After driving through the rough and tough conditions I believe the Landmaster was not made only for metalled roads.
Again today as my preparations for the Rally scheduled for 13th Feb started, I gave a lot of time to the Landmaster. The car had become very, very dusty and needed a thorough cleaning job.
As my camera is under repairs I could not click. I opened both the door upholstery covers on the drivers side, unscrewing the whole thing out. The front one can be dismantled easily but the rear armrest bolted to the door takes time.
I found rubber paint lined on the inside and portions showing rust. I scraped all accessible portions that had rust and applied metal primer.Rubber paint is not a very perfect way to prevent rust, I find.
I also applied 3M rubber protection on all the 4 tyres. Cleaned the engine bay thoroughly and painted the engine, starter, alternator and many other portions in black.Hope to complete the paint job of the whole engine bay by next weekend.
Must say that the Landmaster is very, very DIY friendly.Once you learn to do things, it never lets you down.

Sir,
we are going to be better friends now,as the fellow friend of you landmaster the BYJ 4083, has landed up in my garage and is nowadays enjoying Punjab,she came till gurgaon in a maruti trailer and was driven 45kms till ludhiana,trouble free,so we can now be termed Landmaster-Mates

[anjan_c2007]

Originally Posted by inderpalgill

Sir,
we are going to be better friends now,as the fellow friend of you landmaster the BYJ 4083, has landed up in my garage and is nowadays enjoying Punjab,she came till gurgaon in a maruti trailer and was driven 45kms till ludhiana,trouble free,so we can now be termed Landmaster-Mates

Thats a surprise Inderji! Did the owner who was keeping it as his prized possession part company?The last I saw this car was on 13/02/2011. these were the pictures taken then.





This car was originally turquoise blue (with the metallic tint)in colour- factory paint. It was very gorgeous looking in its halcyon days. Later on the owner painted it cream. It was grounded for many years and was almost in a junked state when the present owner bought it.He did a hell of a job and got it restored, but the restoration level needs a lot of touches even now.It has an Amby OHV engine.The steering is from the later Ambys.
Hope to see a new thread and your impressions with constant updates.