Dirty deeds done dirt cheap

Great track, shame to soil it like this but needs must..... it has become apparent that the fix is in.

Great lyrics on this track, perfect.

Training with Toddies again

So now my training is back on schedule i have started training with Todmorden Harriers again, they have a "bat" run on Wednesday evenings starting from a different pub each month. Non members are welcome and there is no charge for the privilege.

The "bat" runs are named so because they are night runs with a head torch, they usually involve running over the moors around Calderdale for about an hour before retiring to the pub for food and beer. Wednesday this week was an hour and a half with very boggy trails and some great ascents, its been such a long time since i trained with Toddies and i don't know why, they are a great bunch of people, very friendly and welcoming. I will definitely be renewing my membership this year.

I used my La Sportiva trainers which have absolutely no cushioning in the soles and had also forgotten my orthotics, so it was a rough ride but the grip on the soles is bloody awesome so they were probably ideal.

Eska (my Welsh Collie dog) came with me as the club welcomes dog as well as humans, although they do prefer dogs to be joined by their human. She was absolutely caked in mud at the end but i'm sure she felt it was worth it.

My fitness is improving in leaps and bounds now i have given it some focus and it is possible to imagine getting fit enough to take on a couple of big challenges this year. I have the Howarth Hobble in a couple of weeks, if that goes well enter the Fellsman.

Who knows, i may even get fit enough to do some serious challenges.

Good question

Good training weekend

So i have a race in a couple of weeks, can't remember which one it is but my occasional running partner Chris and i are doing it as a team, its 32 miles off road so i have stepped up the training a little.

Saturday i ran 24 miles, mostly trails with about 2,000 feet of ascent, so more miles than ascent but i ran well for the most part with an average speed of 11.51 minutes per mile. I had plenty of aches and pains after but that's down to a lack of strength work and stretching.

Sunday i ran 8 miles, only 700 feet of ascent but about half of the distance was off road on very boggy ground in fading light. Average speed was 9.28 minutes per mile and i felt pretty strong once warmed up. i feel that this pace marks a turning point in my fitness as i have not managed anything close for a couple of years.

Now i have to lose some weight, 14 stone is way too heavy for a fell runner, i would like to get down to 12 stone but i just can see that happening. Unfortunately Sertraline does tend to promote weight gain so its a real up hill battle.

What i need is a plan, instead of reaching for the chocolate to eat i must instead eat something healthy, but what though? 

Building (Converting) a Camper van part 4 - The electrics

I started the electrics pretty early in the build as I had to decide where the lights were going before I started the insulation. So I ran wiring from approximately where I guessed the fuse box should be, to approximately where I guessed the lights and other electrics would be, leaving plenty of extra at either end to allow for changes. Admittedly not an ideal way to start but, as it happens, I got it something like.

There is quite a lot involved in wiring both 12volt and mains systems into a camper and the costs can easily spiral out of control if you don’t keep a close eye on it. When I worked out a plan and priced all of the required parts I discovered it is much more economical to buy a kit.

eBay is the answer of course, I found a company that makes bespoke wiring kits based on your chosen vehicle and desired specifications. You buy the kit, they phone you and ask loads of questions, build the kit (Very quickly) and before the week was out I had my parts. Great service and I am very happy with the quality of all the parts.

However, I had no idea where the components were going to live and did not really have a plan, this is the first time I have converted a van into a Camper van. So this was the first job, decide where the parts were going.

As usual I did some research on Youtube, spent many evening sat in the van thinking and re-thinking, planning and re-planning. Eventually I settled on a plan which placed the control panel in the side of the kitchen unit, in easy reach for daily use and close to the battery and fuse box which were to be placed in the storage box next to the kitchen (Under the bed extensions).

I had placed wiring for 8 ceiling lights, reading lights and USB socket for either side at the back, this allows phone and tablet charging whilst in bed. The storage compartment above the cockpit wanted a light and also above the sink unit.

Control Panel

The control panel was first and this brought up a weakness in the kit, the USB socket was a cigar lighter socket with an adaptor installed and this proved to be unreliable, while replacing this I broke the voltage display and decided the panel did not have enough switches for all the lights and components I had in mind, so I ordered a 30cm x 15cm piece of black Perspex, cut it to the required size and made another panel. Then I broke that while installing the new voltage display and made another.

I mounted the control panel in the side of the kitchen unit, without the work surface and sink unit installed I had easy access for cutting the hole and plenty of space to mount the components. I had installed wood between the cupboards tops and the work surface, leaving about 8” of free space to ensure the gas fittings under the hob had lots of space and protection against damage.

The switches in the control panel are illuminated when switched hence there are 3 wires per switch, a live in, live out and the earth/neutral. I added 3 extra switches so I can have the power points switched off which will stop the standby lights from draining the leisure battery when the camper is not in use.

Leisure battery

The leisure battery is located in one of the boxes that run on either side of the van (These are the extensions that make the bed full width) it is charged via a split charge relay. The battery compartment also houses the fuse box and power inverter.

The vehicle battery is located under the floor in the cab space which made the battery wiring a challenge. The split charge relay is wired to an ignition live directly behind the ignition switch. I would advise soldering any such joints.

Lights

I have 8 LED ceiling lights which are switched in fours, split front and rear, 2 reading lights mounted on the boxes which cover the rear door check straps, 5 blue LED lights in the bottom of the kitchen unit front panel, 1 LED strip light above the sink unit and 1 LED strip light in the bulkhead compartment, these lights are switched individually, although the strip light switches are mounted near the side door so they can be switched from the door way. All other switches are in the control panel.

Fridge/Cool box

We decided against a fridge for financial reasons and instead use a 12v cool box which is located in the centre cupboard in the kitchen unit and has its own 12v power socket. This socket is not switched separately and is the only change I would make so far.

Water pump

We have only cold water and the tap has a switch which powers the water pump, everything relating to this is in a cupboard under the sink. The switch was simple to wire and the power to the tap can be switched off from the control panel.

Mains electric

The mains consumer unit is mounted in a cupboard above the sink with a double socket next to the control panel, a single socket in the battery box for the power inverter and a single socket at the rear of the camper to give access to the mains electric  from the rear doors. All are wired directly to the fuse box with the power hook up mounted in the side of the camper behind the kitchen unit. The mains power is yet to be tested.

So that’s the electrics, the most difficult part of this was perhaps my limited and much outdated understanding of automotive electrics. There were many issues along the way as i only guessed when having the loom made, i have also added much more that I originally intended, however it all works, all joints are soldered and insulated with heat shrink. Everything is fused and I am 100% happy that it is all safe.

There were no special tools required which was a bonus as i usually have to spend money buying tools with each new part of the project. I already own a soldering iron, various hole cutters, glue guns and heat guns etc. I did have to buy some electrical connectors, a couple of rolls of 12v cable and various 12v sockets and switches. I'm not sure of the total cost but i have saved every receipt so may work it out in the future.

So whats next?

The next job is installing a table in the centre of the camper and another on the back of the passenger seats.

Buying on eBay

A completely bias opinion base solely on my buying experience

There is some proper shite for sale on eBay and it’s imperative to buy carefully, unfortunately eBay works in such a way that sellers are forced to compete with each other based solely on price, when you continuously drive down price you have to improve your own purchase costs and quality tends to suffer. So the downward spiral endures and the race to the bottom is on. Anyone can win, you just have to work hard enough to corrupt the brands that used to be a sign of quality.

This means that quality products can often be hard to find, fortunately there are still businesses around who are able to supply great quality at reasonable prices. Finding these businesses has used up many of my evenings and i have not always been lucky in my choices, i have, on occasion bought some top shite and promptly returned it for a refund. Ebay, for all of its bad points, does have very good support for buyers and will refund items directly and then reimburse them selves from the sellers account.

I spend a lot of time reading feedback and won't buy from any seller with less than 99.7% positive feedback, no one is perfect but some are less perfect than others (much less).

Here are but a few who I have had the pleasure to deal with so far on this build. The crap companies won’t be named and shamed - yet.

http://stores.ebay.co.uk/jacksonsleisuresuppliesltd/

Bought some LED lights from Jackson leisure and one of the lights became faulty after installation, they sent a replacement overnight, no fuss, no hassle. Bloody great service.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/wudwurx.joinery

Wudwork Joinery, I bought plastic trim for the furniture board I used on the kitchen, great quality products and excellent service, really good advice and guidance over the phone.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/upholstery-diy123

Upholstry diy 123, I bought 4 way stretch carpet and found it a fantastic product that is easy to use and a great way to carpet line you van. Although it does require vast amounts of contact adhesive. (Which is solvent free to no getting high as you work)

http://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/southdevoncampervans

South Devon campervans sold me the Smev sink and hob unit with all the required fittings, top quality kit and very easy to fit. A “router” (wood working tool not network device) is apparently essential to cut out the work surface as some area’s need to be lower than others but I managed without and still achieved a better result that I could have hoped for.

http://www.ebay.co.uk/usr/busboyk

Rayne Automotive supplied the wiring kit, very good quality and number one for service.

And that’s it, I have spent (the wife’s money) roughly £4000 pounds on parts for this conversion, including £500 on a Rock and Roll bed (nothing to see here) and bought the vast majority from eBay businesses.

 The van is now a camper van and ready to roll, although there are still many jobs left to complete and perhaps some features i would like to add, the camper van is complete enough to be usable and has running water, gas hob and a 6 foot square bed. 

I have plenty of spares and leftovers from my many eBay purchases which I hope to use as I gradually finish off all the jobs and when I come to purchase any remaining parts, I will probably buy on eBay, however I have learnt so much and have confidence in my ability to spot the wankers out there... Practice makes perfect apparently.

Chasing sheep

Eska, our dog, likes to chase sheep, its an issue we are working on and have seen great progress.

Update - 08/02/2016

So, i have decided to update the sheep saga as its pretty significant for a fell runners dog, chasing sheep is likely to get her shot by angry farmers and that's not what we want.

When we first got Eska from Bleakholt Animal Sanctuary http://www.bleakholt.org/

last year she was almost uncontrollable around sheep, certainly she had to be kept on a lead, but over the months we have slowly brought the negative behaviour under better control. She still chases sheep occasionally and only when she thinks i am not watching, but as soon as i recall her, she stops and returns to my side.

Often she looks at the sheep then at me and decides if she thinks she can get away with it, so its still a work in progress but i am confident that she will eventually get there. Many sheep will be pregnant now so Eska stays on her lead when we are likely to come across them and i often plan my running to avoid routes where we usually find them.

She is a Welsh Collie so i guess its in her breeding, her instincts even, but we'll keep working.