Oka owners group newsletter
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I understand that a great time was had by all at Terry & Debbie Morris place for the WA get together. This was also a farewell to Susi & Ruedi Schoensleben who we are told are now touring in Africa. We are sure their Oka will turn a few heads there too, and when their travelling is done, we hope to see them back again here in Oz. It is excellent when people get together to compare Okas. There are no two the same, and the owners are always trying new ideas. The weather has been pretty extreme during the last 12 months, with cyclones and huge amounts of rain in many areas, especially in Queensland. We really feel for those who have been affected by floods. I am sure this has affected those trying to travel in their Okas – we were cut off from town for about a week, and then took the Oka through the remaining metre of water when it receded just to do some shopping. The Website continues to be particularly well used, and specially the forum. You will find there discussion about many aspects of your Okas, and if you have a problem that puzzles you, post a question here and you will be sure to have an answer. The website address is: www.oka4wd.com . I have taken some of the material for the newsletter from the website (with Hal’s permission) for those who don’t surf the net, but it would be impossible to include the bulk of it. Thank you too to David and Janet Ribbans for another of their articles. In this edition I have concentrated on Safety and Maintenance. Don’t forget that you need to balance the weight of spares and tools with the capacity of you vehicle. Sometimes less is better. I will be sending out to everyone a list of members and would appreciate it if you could check your details. People change their phones, their email addresses and even sometimes their place of abode and forget to pass on the details, and we are left to try to send them a newsletter through whatever means we can. If you have made any changes, could you please let me know. Email is the preferred way to send out information, as it is quick, labour free and very cost effective. And don’t forget that subscriptions are now due. A form is attached with the details. Good travelling to you all, and a happy and prosperous New Year. Marj Parsons (editor) WA Police Academy Bushcraft and Survival Guide Michael Hession sent me the link to this booklet, which is used by WA Police in their training. This booklet is published in full on the internet using the following link; www.vks737.on.net/pdfs/ survival.pdf . It is freely available for anyone to use in whole or in part, so for those who don’t have computers, I am including the following excerpts, but the whole booklet is full of down-to-earth and invaluable information. If you use the internet, I suggest you to look at the whole booklet, or it is available free of charge from the Western Australian Police Academy. VEHICLE CHECK LIST The following items should be checked at the end of each day. This procedure should be conducted as part of your everyday routine and should never be neglected. 1. Check engine drive belts 2. Check engine oil levels 3. Check coolant levels 4. Check fuel filter [if possible] 5. Clean air cleaner 6. Clean radiator fins 7. Check brake fluid levels 8. Check clutch fluid levels 9. Check power steering fluid level 10. Check engine for oil leaks 11. Check engine for coolant leaks 12. Check transmission for oil leaks 13. Check differential for oil leaks 14. Check all steering rods for wear and cracking 15. Check all joints for wear and cracking 16. Check all tyre pressures 17. Check all tyres for damage 18. Check battery levels 19. Check chassis rails for cracks 20. Tighten all mounting bolts, etc. VEHICLE TOOL KITS A comprehensive tool kit should be carried and should be suited specifically to your vehicle. Suggested items include - Vehicle Tool Kit Screwdriver, 200mm Screwdriver, Phillips Pliers, general purpose Pliers, long nose Spanner, adjustable 200mm Tyre pressure gauge Set metric spanners and sockets Small hammer, hacksaw and blades Spark plug socket * Set of radiator and heater hoses Tyre pump, hand or foot operated Condenser and Coil * Funnel
Can of aerosol de-wetting agent Brake fluid, 500ml Engine oil, 5L and Gear oil, 500ml Trouble light Araldite fixative Bead-breaker & tyre re-fitting tool Note: ! Diesel vehicles do not require these items. VEHICLE RECOVERY EQUIPMENT Oil Filter Insulating tape, roll Alligator clips, electrical Electrical wire, roll 3mm Tyre levers and wheel brace Wheel brace Feeler gauges, set ! Fan belt and Power steering belt Contact points* and Spark plugs* Jumper leads Grease, 500gms and Epoxy resin Fuel filter Masking tape Rubber vulcanising tape Plastic tubing, 8mm Paint brush Magnet
Electrical fuses, set If you travel in the outback "off road" at some stage you are going to encounter sand dunes, claypans, salt lakes and rocky creek beds. You are eventually going to become stuck and a complete vehicle recovery kit should be carried. Vehicle Recovery Kit Recovery equipment carry bag, Ground sheet, Leather gloves, Long handled and short handled shovels, Axe [medium size]. Winch [hand or fully fitted electric]. Snatch strap 9m based on 4WD size 8,000kg – 11,000kg – 15,000kg. Tree trunk protector 3m [12,000kg], Recovery bridle, Drag chain 8mm diameter, 5m long [8,500kg]. Bow shackle 2.35T. Bow shackle 4.75T. Marlin spike, Snatch block, Centre pull recovery adaptor for fitting to tow bar, Vehicle jack with base plate [300x300 recessed marine ply], Hi-lift jack [remember to fit jack lift points]. Air jack [Bull bag], Air compressor. OFF-ROAD DRIVING TIPS Whether you intend travelling to the Pilbara, the Kimberly or out to the Bight the locations may be vastly different but the off road driving principles remain the same. Your trip can be safer and free from costly damage to your vehicle by following these driving tips - • First of all find out the overhang distance of your vehicle. This is the distance from the front of your vehicle to the first point you see on the road in front of the vehicle. The point in front of the vehicle is calculated with you seated normally in the driver’s seat. You will be surprised at how far this overhang distance extends to the front. • As the road is constantly changing you must learn to search ground quickly and make decisions on wheel placement early. Search the ground in a rectangular pattern looking from the front as far out as possible on the driver’s side wheel track and then back in towards the vehicle along the passenger-side wheel track. • Lower your radio aerial to prevent damage or fit one with a spring base. • Identify and avoid any object that can damage the tyres or under-body components of the vehicle such as stumps, sharp rocks, or deep potholes. At times it may be better to drive a wheel over a large rock rather than have the vehicle straddle it. By doing this you raise the vehicle’s differential ground clearance and you prevent possible under body damage by hitting rocks. Assist with this by learning the location of the front and rear differentials in relation to where you as the driver sit. • Remember where applicable to lock your free wheeling hubs or central differential. • It is a good idea to lower your tyre pressure to around 80% of your highway running pressure. This will give the tyres a little more flex and grip to mould over rocks and loose gravel rather than causing the wheels to spin and lose traction, which would occur if the tyres were left at the hard highway running pressure. • When driving in soft or sandy conditions the lowering of tyre pressures can prevent bogging. Tyres can be lowered to a minimum pressure of 16psi in both split and safety rims. Tyres must be re-inflated immediately after traversing the obstacle, failure to do so will lead to tyre damage. • Where you are going up or down a steep hill always engage low range on the transfer case. For those vehicles that don’t have a low range capability be very careful to assess the terrain so that you may safely negotiate it. • For those auto transmission 4WD vehicles select low range and lock the gear lever in low gear whenever descending a steep off-road track. • Drivers of manual 4WD vehicles should remember that depressing or riding the clutch off-road is fraught with danger. If you stall or stop the vehicle on a descent you can restart in low range with the vehicle in gear. Simply turn the key on and do not depress the clutch. Cover the brake pedal and be ready to apply brake pressure if the vehicle surges forward [common with fuel-injected vehicles]. This ensures you are under control at all times with the engine running and gears engaged. Don’t ride the brakes but feather them as required to slow the rate of descent. OUTBACK TRAVEL CODE OF ETHICS Outback travellers should consider themselves as caretakers of the land and ensure that their actions do not add to the degradation of the landscape. • Do make sure your vehicle is in sound mechanical condition and equipped with all necessary fuel, food, water and spares needed to complete the journey. • Do have the ability to communicate with the outside world either by radio, satellite phone or global positioning system e-mail. • Do tell someone of your intentions. Notification of your time of departure, intended route, campsites and estimated time of arrival at your destination may be posted at local police stations. • Do camp in designated campsites or in natural clearings if none are available. • Do observe fire restrictions, clear around fire areas and extinguish all fires. • Don’t break or cut live branches from trees and shrubs for fires or campsites. • Don’t leave garbage in the bush. Carry garbage bags with you and remove your waste. • Do stay on existing tracks and endeavour not to create new tracks or short cuts. • Do clear fallen trees or logs if possible rather than driving around them. • Don’t camp near stock troughs or in water catchments. • Do carry maps, information on terrain, track and weather conditions, navigation equipment and set escape routes. • Don’t travel off-road at night. If you must travel at night use only 50% of the speed you would use during the day and do not attempt rocky ground, mud patches or deep water crossings. • Do know your vehicle controls so you know where they are in an emergency. • Do know the length and width of your vehicle for negotiating difficult terrain. • Don’t infringe on the privacy of aboriginal people or any settlement and be aware that permission must be obtained to cross aboriginal reserves and communities. • Don’t carry firearms on pastoral leases without permission from the lessees. • Travellers from outside Western Australia must obtain a temporary firearms permit from the nearest Police Station on entering the state. Friday, 24 December 2010 (More good advice from David and Janet Ribbans) Recovery and Maintenance Gear We carry a reasonable amount of Recovery and Maintenance Gear in/on our Oka, nearly all of which we have used at some stage, often to assist other travellers. However it is too easy to go overboard on recovery gear, most of which you hope you’ll never need. Some weight/space compromises will inevitably need to be made, i.e. non-critical domestic items used everyday, VS> rarely used but essential recovery gear and tools. We also have a separate article on our Safely and Emergency Equipment. Recovery Equipment we carry (items we wouldn’t leave home without and, apart from the fire extinguisher, we have used all of them at some time): ! Jacks: - 60 inch Hi-Lift Jack plus a thick 300x300 mm plywood base plate. We have also fitted extra high lift jacking points to the outside of our bullbars. A Hi-Lift !!jack can also be used as a winch for short distances. !!!!!!!!!!! - 3 tonne Double-Acting Screw Jack plus 4 inch hardwood timber block, to ensure adequate lift height can be achieved. Most hydraulic jacks (except double acting versions) have only a limited lift height. Also many jacks only have a small round flat tip (saddle) which can be very dangerous under a curved, dirty surface. Ensure your jack has a broad cupped tip or saddle to that it can’t slip off round axle cases. This can be a risky arrangement but the wheels are well chocked. The owners had no other options in this case and fixed their wheel problem safely. The tyre came off the wheel and went bush. · Always use 2 means of support or jam a spare wheel under the vehicle for protection before jacking. · Axle stands, 2 x 3 tonne stands for safety while undertaking suspension and axle repair and maintenance work. · Hub/Jack adaptor which allows wheels to be lifted directly using the Hi-Lift jack without the need to get under the vehicle (a Wheel Lift Strap might also be useful if you have spoked wheels). Hub Adaptor for raising wheels directly using a High Lift jack. Youʼll probably need to dig out a flat area for the base plate. Use with care on the front hubs since they are a smaller diameter and have thinner walls than the rear hubs. Make sure they fit snugly, with a ring adaptor – you donʼt want a broken hub as well. At a pinch a strap could be use around the hub instead , but would not be as strong. Maybe a tree protector would work. Winch Extension Strap, plus heavy duty “D” Shackle, for use as a tow rope and for removing obstructions from tracks (straps are much lighter then chains), also used for strapping an axle to the chassis after suspension failures, we know. Snatch Strap for recovering bogged vehicles, also useful for extending the winch strap although they do stretch of course. When joining 2 straps or ropes insert something solid (eg branch or hammer handle or rolled up magazine) between the loops so they can be undone more easily. Rope can cut through itself in a tight knot. Never allow anyone near a strap, rope or chain under tension in case something gives way. When pulling obstructions off tracks or towing other people out of boggings, we do it in reverse so we can watch what is happening and signal to them. People have a habit of leaving their hand brakes on while you are trying to tow them, but why, when they are bogged anyway? Spades, long and short handled. Removing the build up of sand in front of wheels is sometimes all thatʼs necessary to free a bogged vehicle. But when its not.... Sand Mats x 2. These can be any 300mm x 1 m sheets of 12mm timber, tough plastic (shop bought) or expanded metal, preferably with a rough surface. Good locally made ones (around $250-300 / pair) are available and cheaper ones are also available. But I think you could make some economically out of expanded metal sheeting (as used for security doors). Iʼve also seen milk crates cut up and linked together to do the same thing. Air Compressor and air lines: We raise and lower our tyre pressures quite regularly on outback treks. Tyre Repair Kit (ARB), plus 2 spare wheels, which can be used as chocks, anchors or support blocks. Jumper Leads, not just for flat batteries but for bypassing a faulty solenoid, connector or battery strap, and to connect batteries in series to form a welder. ! Warning Flag or Cone (or Strobe/Flare Flashlight after dark); !to warn others of your predicament, and to protect yourself and thus avoid making things worse. ! Fire Extinguisher; diesel is probably OK but gas can leak, and fire can remove “time” from your recovery options. ! Wood Saw: Some people carry an axe or even a small chain saw, but axes are heavy and dangerous in inexperienced hands, and a curved wood/pruning saw is very useful. ! HF Radio: This might seem a strange item in a list of recovery gear but communications can assist with information, advice or actual help, which might be nearby. (A Satphone might prove a useful alternative, a CB Radio less so). ! - ----------------------------------- ! Maintenance Gear We Carry: ! This includes the essential tools and safety equipment (glasses, gloves) for use of the above recovery gear. We also carry spare parts (usually only one of each type) and the tools necessary to repair or replace items which directly affect the three key areas of mobility, safety or reliability. ! 1. Mobility: wheels, wheel bearings (one of each type plus spindle lock washers), driveline (UJ and bolts, free wheeling hub components, gear linkage joint, suspension parts (U-bolt, suspension pins, bushes), engine spares (fuel lift pump, belts) and cooling (hoses, thermostat and gasket, radiator repair gunk). 2. Safety: brakes (pads, calliper keys, key bolts and spring clips), steering (tie rod ends, LH and RH). 3. Reliability: electrical parts (starter and alternator brushed, lamps, fuses and wire), lubricants, filters, oil seals (rear hub mostly since they run in diff oils), belts, cable plus small u-bolt clamps (to repair clutch, throttle, park brake cables). ! Tools used in the workshop to make repairs are pretty much the tools you’d need on the side of the road too, particularly any vehicle specific tools. Other travellers will usually have standard tool kits but few would have a 2 1/2 inch box spanner for hub spindle nuts, for example. ! - ----------------------------- ! Emergency Repair Gear (when all else fails, make use of these types of items: !!!!!!!!!!! Fencing wire, large plastic tie-wraps, rope !!!!!!!!!!! Small u-bolts to clamp wire and cables, hose clips !!!!!!!!!!! Tent pegs, aluminium, plastic and steel angle/sheet !!!!!!!!!!! Old shocker bushes (steel and rubber) !!!!!!!!!!! Switches, electrical wire and terminals, small water pump (usable for diesel transfers) !!!!!!!!!!! Welding rod holder, rods, eye guard and leads (put 2, preferably 3, car batteries in series with jumper leads to make a rudimentary welder) !!!!!!!!!!! Gas blow torch !!!!!!!!!!! Bits of metal or rubber found on the side of the road. ------------------------------ Notes:
! 1. Higher Lift Jack. For an Oka or other high clearance vehicle, a standard 48 inch high lift jack is inadequate as it can’t lift wheels clear of the ground before running out of height (except if using a Hub Adaptor or Wheel Lift Strap). You’ll need the 60 inch version. 2. No Exhaust Jack. I wouldn’t even consider an Exhaust Jack, (the blow up balloon type jack). They may appear tempting, since they are cheap and light, but they are unstable, unsafe and require a flat surface on the bottom of the vehicle, which most don’t have. Plus they need smooth flat ground and it isn’t always like that when you need to jack up a vehicle. 3. Accessibility. Ensure critical recovery gear is accessible from inside your vehicle as well as outside. In the event of a bogging or partial roll over, external access might be impossible (eg if a high lift jack or spade is carried under the rear or in a compartment blocked off or behind a stuck door. We’ve seen it done; we had to recover a ute that slid into a drain on the Bloomfield Track and his spade was trapped under the ute. 4. Does it work? It might be blindingly obvious, but ensure that all your recovery gear actually works before leaving home. We’ve met people whose jacks aren’t high enough (or low enough to get under a vehicle with a flat tyre), whose spare wheels don’t fit, without adequate jacking or towing points, or who simply don’t know how to use their (newly bought ARB/TJM) equipment. 5. Winching? We don’t have a winch. They are heavy to carry around and on the few occasions we’ve been stuck there was no suitable anchor point available anyway. If you can’t lift or dig yourself out safely (and working in the hot sun, harassed by insect pests cab be very uncomfortable), take a break and wait for inspiration, or for help to arrive as it surely will, however embarrassing that might be. If you have a winch, you also need good batteries (unless it’s a PTO model), a pulley block, tree trunk protector, a cable dampener and possibly a ground anchor. All take up more weight and space and have really only one function. 6. Manuals; and information on how to recover a vehicle can provide a range of alternative ideas on solving a recovery problem. In the 6 years we’ve been touring with our Oka (plus many years of 4WD driving before), our learned response to a crisis is to do nothing, al least initially (unless there is an urgent medical/safety situation), until we have considered all the options (and yes, spouses are often a useful source of alternative ideas). Rushing into something might make a bad situation worse, and the next morning things often don’t seem quite so bad, tracks have dried out, or help has arrived or a brilliant solution has come to mind overnight. Even if they don’t, you’ll be rested (unless you’re stuck at 45 degrees) and better able to tackle the problem. ! ! After a sudden downpour, too slippery to move... ..... and the next morning, mostly dried up. 7. Membership of motoring organisations might prove useful in urban environments or even on major highways, but on remote tracks it will prove ineffective. Even if you can contact them, it might take days to get a tow truck out your way (if at all) and towing is all they will do, they don’t carry adequate spares to fix any vehicle and the extra costs might be prohibitive anyway. Last year we helped a stranded motorist near Eromanga, a Commodore(!) with 2 shredded tyres. The RACQ eventually sent a tow truck from Thargomindah but it took several days to arrange and then would only tow him back the way he came. In 2008 a Discovery was stuck on the CSR for 3 weeks with an engine management problem. Tow trucks sent from Halls Creek by the RAC WA tried, but couldn’t reach them and eventually they were towed out very laboriously over hundreds of sand dunes by another very kind traveller who put his own vehicle at risk. ! !
* * * * * * * *** * *** * * *** * FUSES AND THE EFFECT OF OXIDISATION. (taken from the website, with thanks). ! Peter & Sand ra Jame s Me mber Post s: 44 We usually buy vehicles at about three years old and keep them forever so have come across this problem a few times on older vehicles and now the Oka. Vehicles that use the blade type fuses quite often have a problem with the fuse blades oxidizing which causes resistance which then causes heat to build up and eventually fuse and fusebox meltdown. On my old Volvo I wasn't aware of the problem until smoke and flames started issuing from behind the radio and centre console.
It is also a good idea to unplug and reinsert all the relays regularly to prevent -- Oka 374 LT Van Much better to be self sufficient, and luckily you can be in an OKA. ! ! ! !
Newsletter contact details: Marj Parsons “Eulalia” Coonamble NSW 2829 0268228323 l_mparsons@bigpond.com 2011 Renewal subscriptions Please note renewals for 2011 will be due February 2011. Please post $25 renewal fee to: Secretary, OKA Owners Group C\- Rowena Paterson PO Box 230 KALGOORLIE! WA! 6430 Email:! oka067@bigpond.com Please make payment of $25 payable to “The OKA Owners Group” For direct banking use: BSB No. 063547 Account No. 10131505 For enquires please contact Rowena Paterson on 0412 701 333 OKA Owners Group website:! www.oka4wd.com Yüklə 2,02 Mb. Dostları ilə paylaş:
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