Oka owners group newsletter

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!We have had DVD’s from Peter & Margaret Wright and also the Wermerlin- gers of thieir adventures last year that are great viewing – I wish we could in- clude them in a newsletter. I think you will find the travels of the Wermerlin- gers on the net. We hear of both couples from time to time from various friends and acquaintances and people we meet on the track, as well asfrom other Oka Owners.

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Rowena passed on the details of Bob Richards, who has been in the Maldives for a couple of years and now lives in Hedland, W.A., and I note that he re- fers to his Oka a “she”.! I have noticed that Lloyd also refers to our Oka as “the old girl”. I was wondering if this is common amongst Oka Owners. To me, the Oka is pretty rugged and presents as very masculine, so it must be just a term of endearment used by our menfolk. By the way, Bob would be happy to see Oka Owners passing through Hedland.

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We have included some more Oka for sale. This isn’t the only place where you will find some. The Oka Owners Group Website has a For Sale section with a number listed, and I think Robin Wade and Paul Nott, for just a couple, know where you can find one and Chris Mosedale had his advertised for sale on Ebay. We! heard from the Rowlinsons that their Oka is sold, but I an sure that Gordon is still happy to pass on his extensive knowledge of Okas. We wish them well with their caravan.

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Don’t forget that I am looking for more information and news for the news- letter. I hope that the next nerwsletter is more timely than this one.

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Lloyd & Marj Parsons

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How to lose 50kg of unsprung weight!

Alloy wheels and real off-road tyres for XT and LT OKAs

A little history first: our LT OKA was purchased with the standard 19.5” wheels, fitted with Michelin XZY 285/70s. This was a fairly popular setup on late 90s OKAs, and while they serve the purpose, they are really nothing special. The steel wheels are diabolically heavy, and looked dead ordinary. We had them sandblasted and powdercoated a few years back, which made them look better and clean easier, but nothing was going to make them lighter.

However, the real problem was the tyres. The 19.5” size is uncommon, and while not unobtainable, the choice is very limited. Picking one up when you need one at short notice is unlikely to happen. Worse still, they’re not designed for off- roading; reducing tyre pressure to get flotation over sand required some pretty low pressures at times, and 19.5” truck tyres were never designed to be trundling around at 40psi, let alone 14psi. We tried to stick to 65psi on the highway and 25psi on sand, but it was a telling tale as we destroyed tyres one after another – almost one every serious trip, a nerve-wracking scenario when you know you have no chance of finding a 19.5” tyre anywhere within 3000km.

The final straw was having yet another tyre disintegrate on the highway, and try- ing to get it replaced back in Perth only to be presented with a ‘new’ tyre that, by the date code, was already two years old; so to all intents, 1/3 of its way through its useful life, and of course at full quid.

So, after an inordinate amount of measuring, internet trawling, saving up and fi- nally committing, I handed F Trucks in Welshpool an order for a set of 16 x 10 Pro Comp forged alloy wheels, and Pro Comp Xtreme A/T 38.5/14.50R16 tyres.

A lot of the internet research was to do with finding wheels that were appropriate to the load-carrying requirements. Cast alloys are out; they have to be forged. The wheels I chose arewww.procomptires.com/series607.htm ; with the required 8x6.5 stud pattern, they’re rated to carry 3500lbs a corner; or a little over three tonnes each axle. I think all the various styles have the same load rating with that stud pattern.

I chose 16 x 10 for the maximum off-road ability within the realms of not necessi- tating body or suspension modifications; there are plenty of options. The stan- dard 4.5” backspacing (very common amongst aftermarket wheels) was going to work fine with the OKA.

On to tyres, and the same company looked the goods with their Xtreme A/Ts – see www.procomptires.com/xtatapps.htm . Despite being fairly huge, this tyre has a directional tread pattern, so they should be quiet, and good in the wet. All my measuring said I could fit in the 38.5” diameter ones – just – and they should be the best off-road. Their load rating was a whisker more than the wheels, so no problem there. Once again, there are options; smaller diameter tyres give more gearing power and are more easily matched for outside diameter if you need to buy something in a remote location. But I was on a roll now.

F Trucks got the nod because they were well priced; I could have imported them myself for a bit less, but it wasn’t worth the stress. In early 2007 I paid $11K for eight of (three extras for a trailer sometime). They took six or eight weeks to get them in, and I received them fitted and balanced, with 32 chrome wheel nuts. Real easy. Now the big test: were my measurements right, and was it going to be driveable?

The wheels clear the brakes by about 2mm. Scary close, but no problem. The backspacing was good, and the rears clear all around the outside with room to spare. The fronts just brush the LT’s splash panels in front of the tyres (XTs don’t have those panels) at full lock, just enough to take the paint off, nothing to bother about really; but eventually, we will have a sheet metal maestro modify them just

to keep it absolutely legal. Remember these tyres are much bigger than stan- dard; most would not go to this extreme.

Width-wise, I was keen on flotation, and certainly pushed the limits. After nearly two years of contentedly driving around with them poking out the sides a bit (and they really did look cool like that!), I thought I should do the right thing, so we bought four new flares from OKA (to save the panel beater a bit of work) and got them fitted up 30mm further out than the originals. The rears already had enough ‘extra’ to do that with, and fortunately for me OKA had a set of wider-than- standard cab flares in stock, so it was an easy job on the front too.

While the spare could still be squeezed under the rear at this size, it was a squeeze; touching the springs both sides. So that went up on the roof, with a little removable winch & derrick setup to get it on and off. So far, it hasn’t had to come off. On big trips we still stick one of the old 19.5s under the rear for a second spare.

Driving: no problem. They have been powder-balanced (powder within the as- sembly, no external weights), something I had never come across before, and the balance is perfect. They’re quiet, soft-riding (I’ve been using 45psi as a high- way pressure) and great off road. On sand at below 15psi, they’re at home, bag- ging down beautifully.

There’s a pic hereabouts of the originals and the new. The new make the 19.5s look like they’re running low profiles! The weight difference is significant: the original 19.5 steel wheel with a well-worn 285 tyre weighs 67kg; the alloy 16 with the 355 tyre and twice as much tread depth weighs 55kg.

We’ve had one puncture so far; a massive steel nail (used for pinning down a traffic-counting strip) that went straight through the tread, and resulted in a slow enough leak to allow a prompt drive to the nearest tyre repairer; where it was easily fixed.

We’ve also fitted up a wireless Tyre Pressure Monitoring System, which seems to be a good thing; but I’ll save that for another newsletter.

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Hal Harvey

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Lloyd & Marj,

I met a guy last night who used to work at OKA as a welder. He asked me if I know how the XT – LT – NT designations were arrived at, which I didn’t. He said – and he said he wasn’t kidding – that they stood for Xtra Trouble, Less Trouble and No Trouble.

Best regards Hal

REPORT FROM Rowena: Hi Guys,

I was passed out today as a solo operator of a 777 Haul truck at KCGM (Kalgoor- lie Consolidated Gold Mine). I have had 2 solid weeks of training, so very happy to be driving on my own, mainly around the crusher area under loaders and diggers.

I really love my job, still have lots of learn.

I have also attached a photo of my other job, stickpicking, removing all the old metal and wood bits from the rock before it enters the crusher.

See ya!

Rowena

EMAIL FROM THE BURROWS

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Hi everyone,

Just a short hi to all for xmas and new year. We have been busy do- ing lots of things and dont know how we ever had time to work. We have been catching up to Chayne Sharon and grandies as we are at the moment in Manjimup at Joh and Ians for about a week. Lorrae is here as well so should be great. Weather maybe better here than the city. We have bought the Oka down and may leave it hereas Joh is going to extend the house so Rob will help. Darren hopes to start early Feb so we may be back and forth for a few months. Gwen my sister has a big B'day late May and then Rob and I will set off up to Canarvon to see Auntie Nell and then head to the east coast across the centre somewhere. We are really looking forward to this. Rob has just fitted new front springs,shock absorbers also. We will just do small bits and pieces to the Oka so its aok to head off.

By now some of you we would of caught up too. If not we shall try too. Yes we had a fabulous trip in the USA and Europe. All that is over now. Rob has worked on some of the photos but we need to find time to fin- ish them off. Rob is busy finishing off some marri boards to make into a book case or two. Just trying to fit in a swim at the pool and some prawning is difficult as its hard to find enough time.

Well thats all for now but all have a very very merry Xmas and a great New Year.

Lots of Love Rob Shirl.

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Hi Marj,

Could you please put in the newsletter (and John, on the site if you would please); We have for sale a pair of original OKA front seats, dark blue fabric, in reasonable condition considering they have 200,000km on them. The one that was under the driver has broken base wires but it still feels perfectly fine to sit on for a long time. If any paid-up member of the OKA Owners Group would like them, they will be free to whoever takes both! Contact Hal Harvey on 0417 322 722 or [e-mail] . The runners will go with them but not the bases. I can box them up and freight them if required, recipient to cover the freight cost.

John, the ‘Wheel Lift’ link under Parts & Extras no longer works. Actually... ditto for Sat-Trak24, Ezi-Trak, PerformaFuel, LPG Injection, Hitch-N-Go, and Track- stick.

Best regards Hal

FOR SALE – OKA 124

Details: The motorhome was manufactured to a 4 x 4 standard for the Owner Director of a Marine fabrication Business. No expense was spared (receipts available). The motorhome has been a great reliable ve- hicle for the last eight (8) years. The cab has direct access to the “home” of the OKA which has full headroom (6ft plus). Allround windows are opening for maximum ventilation. The walk in toilet/shower cubicle, lots of floor space, large water tank, solar panels, hot water off the en- gine with 4 x 4 freedom is a great combination for many adventures. The interior, to reduce weight and be durable for 4 x 4 driving is of marine grade powder coated aluminium.

New Engine approx. 60,000klm, New shocks (double @ rear), Full front and rear air suspension, Springs re-set (Front & rear), Rear diff over- hauled, All good tyres on galvanised rims + 3 spares, CD Player with four speakers, TV with built-in DVD Player, Inverter, 4 x Spotlights, 2 x roof mounted solar panels, 4 x batteries in two bank with isolator switch, Hot & Cold pressure water, Stainless fresh water tank filtered drinking water (approx 120ltr), 2 x aluminium sullage tanks to discharge valve, Full size walk in shower (new), Thetford cassette toilet (new), Fridge/ Freezer tray, 2 x burner stove and grill, Storage for kitchen utensils etc, Rear of cabin reinforced (certified 045WA) to accommodate walk thru, 2 x gas bottles in lockable aluminium storage box, Rear platform with electric winch for motorbike/bicycles, Aluminium storage platform over cab, Fold out locking railings to “roof top deck” access from inside, Anti theft plates over fuel tanks, 1 x fixed double bed (new posterpedic mat- tress), 1 x fold out double bed (macrosuede), Full size under bed storage, Overhead storage, 4 x approved (compliance plated) seat belts, Stainless

sink, Second outside hot and cold pressure shower, Fully insulated, 2 x opening roof vents, reversing camera, Heavy duty fixed towing hitch, Hot water system thru engine heat exchanger, 2 x diesel tanks, plus lots of other practical additions.

Motorhome valued by OKA and insured for $100,000.00. Vehicle has always being maintained to a !immaculate condition throughout.

Realistically priced @ $ 76,800.00 (to a good home) can deliver the ve- hicle anywhere in OZ.

George Chesters

Telephone: [phone]!!!!!! Fax: [phone] !!!!! Mobile No: 0417 949 939

Email address: [e-mail] Website address: www.alutechwatercraft.com.au

FOR SALE from Wilderness Challenge

Registration: 748 - KWM

OKA

Model LT Safari Bus

Comments

Engine No: VIN:

BUILT: Odometer: Colour:

Seats:

Sound System:

Fuel Tanks:

Batteries:

Alternator:

Free-wheeling Hubs:

Wheels:

Tyres:

Bull Bar:

Winch:

Roof Rack & Lad- der:

2nd Spare wheel carrier:

Air-conditioning: A/C refrigerant:

QE50000174

6N544B3M4VA220415

04/97

421,272 kms

OKA White

13+1 Coach Seats

AM/FM radio plus Cas- sette

Dual Dual

85 Amp Yes

OKA 16 inch split rim Dunlop SP 280

Yes – standard OKA 12,000 lb Warn Electric Yes - standard OKA

Yes - standard OKA

Front and Rear Cabins R134A

$35,000 + GST

Wilderness Challenge Pty Ltd Phone: [phone]

Perkins 110 Phaser

at 15 December 2008 Clean skin Holdsworth Fabric Hands-free PA system

110 litres each

6 wheels & tyres 8.25R16

Recently refurbished Full-length roof rack

PRICE:

Email: [e-mail] Website: www.wilderness-challenge.com.au

PO Box 254 Cairns Qld 4870 Fax: [phone]

2009 SUBSCRIPTION RENEWALS

Please note renewals for the 2009 subscriptions are now due.

Could you please make a $25 cheque payment payable to "The OKA Owners Group" and forward to:

Secretary, OKA Owners Group

Rowena Paterson

PO Box 230

KALGOORLIE WA 6430

For Direct banking use: BSB No. 063547 Account No. 10131505

If you have recently joined the group (during the 2nd half of 2008) please disregard this notice.

I have OKA Owners Group stickers available. Please contact me if you would like some posted to you.

Thanks Rowena

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!!!!!!!!!!!!!! OKA OWNERS GROUP

(PUTTING PEOPLE AND THE ENVIRONMENT FIRST)

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NEWSLETTER !Autumn 2010

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Hi Everyone,

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Many of you will have found the new website, as John Hendriks has posted the details on the old website. Details are to be found below. I find the new site to be very easy to navigate around, and the forum has been set up to be used by any of our members. Many thanks go

to Hal Harvey for taking on this huge project, and thank you also to John Hendriks who has been webmaster for the past years. The website is an in- stant source of information for all our members, and is also a place where in- tending purchasers of Okas can go to find out about them.

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It is getting on towards that time when Oka Owners travel in the kinds of ter- rain that aren’t available to any but Off-roaders and certainly not in the heat of summer. We are planning to travel along the Madigan Line, pioneered by Cecil Madigan in 1939 when he crossed the North Simpson Desert on cam- els. We have permits from the Aboriginal people who own a section of land we need to transit, and have also applied to travel through the Queensland Simpson Desert National Park on the eastern part of the journey. We will be travelling with 3 other Okas and 2 Toyotas and have no doubt that it will be a challenge. We need to make careful preparation as there is little access to this

country if things go wrong, although we will carry Satellite Phones and GPS units.

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I am at present putting together a list of subjects that were published in the Newsletters from the time the Oka Owners Group began. This list I will also pass on to Hal for insertion in the website, as they are still relevant in most cases. The newsletter is made up of articles, letters and emails sent to me by other members, and many of them relate their own experiences and in some cases tell of their breakdowns and how they overcame them. We would ap- preciate it is you could let us know of your own experiences so that we can pass the information on in the Newsletter and the website.

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Thank you to Rowena for her account of the get-together at Glen Mervyn Dam. A great time was had by all, and I am sure that each owner found some- thing new to look at in each vehicle. As each vehicle that Oka produces is custom made for many various applications, they are all a little different, and of course the owners modify them to suit themselves as well. This is what makes them so fascinating. I am sure we have all had the experience of see- ing complete strangers peering under the cab to see what goes on.

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Thank you also to David Ribbans for his tech notes complete with clear pho- tos to illustrate them. This month tells of how he fixed his door catches. Most will have had the experience of the doors coming unlatched. I did hear of one Oka that had an ockey strap hooked in the door pulls of each front door to keep them shut! I know that the click as they open is very frustrating – we eventually replaced our door catches, but maybe one of David’s remedies would have worked.

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Happy motoring to you all.

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Marj Parsons

OKA OWNERS GROUP - New Website -

Please note that we now have a new website! - www.oka4wd.com. Our old web- site www.okaownersgroup.info will remain open until the end of the year, as

we are transfering all the information to our new website. Hal Harvey is our new

webmaster, so if you have any questions please feel free to ask Hal. Hals email address is [e-mail]. Hal has done a great job in creating this web- site, it looks fantastic. Thanks also to John Hendriks for the last 7 years. John has also done a great job in creating and maintaining our old website. If you haven't already done so, please jump onto the new website and register. It is very easy to use. It already has a great amount of information, photos, videos etc.. for everybody to enjoy!

Rowena

Dear all,

I am not really sure how to post this, so I will just send

it as an

email and hope you can put it on the site please.

Thank you for the website that has served so many of us so

well, and for

the newsletters and the contact it has provided between

owners. It is a

sad day that this resource is ending - maintaining it has

surely been a

lot of work, work that has probably never received the

thanks it deserves.

Thanks also Hal for the new site. It looks good so far and

can only get

better as more owners hook up to the new site.

There is a vast amount of great info on the old site - is

this to be

transferred to the new site? It would be a great shame if

the work of

the various contributors should be lost forever.

Again, thanks to all for the richly appreciated resource.

Regards, Paul Scherek (Oka 059)

GLEN MERVYN DAM, near Collie WA – 24^TH – 26^TH April 2010

Written by Rowena Paterson

Attendance: Richard & Beverly House, Terry & Debbie Morris, Alan Bajada & Jo- Anne Allchin, John & Nell Blencowe, Kim Blyth, Robert & Cherry Williamson, Hal & Liza Harvey (with Elizabeth & Jack), David & Pauline Gray, Rob Thomas (with Richard), Rowena Paterson, Ruedi & Susi Schoensleben, Robert & Shirley Bur- rows & Dave & Angelika (in their caravan).

It was great to see 11 OKAs plus visitors camping along the shores of Glen Mervyn Dam. Glen Mervyn Dam near Collie is a storage used for irrigation and recreational purposes.

Hal brought along their boat and the kids had a great time on knee boards, I would imagine the water would have been alittle cold but the kids didn’t seem to mind.

On Sunday afternoon/evening we had Ruedi’s 60^th birthday. Ruedi and Susi or- ganised all the food and it was great! Spaghetti bolognaise with lots of mud cake. Afterwards we had a camp fire and Ruedi entertained us with his guitar.

Beverly House had a slight fall on loose gravel and did some damage to her ankle. Beverly ended up having an operation on her ankle after arriving home. I have since heard she is doing well after the operation.

It was great for me to finally meet all the Western Australian members and see alittle of the countryside.

I had a few weeks holiday from work, so after leaving Glen Mervyn Dam I headed towards Esperance and spent a few days camping on the beach before heading back to Kalgoorlie.

Thanks to everybody for coming along and to Ruedi & Susi for the awesome birthday party!

EFOY FUEL CELL

I’ve been having a few 12V shortages lately, running fridges & lights and what have you in ex- cess of my ability to generate current. Now I know there are various ways of fixing this, but I haven’t got around to the multi-belted nuclear alternator, or the solar panels, or the generator... well I do actually have the generator, but they’re not always ideal.

Things reached crisis point when I drove from Perth to Kalbarri, arrived well after dark (so solar wouldn’t have cut it anyway), parked up and said the g’days, and then went to move the Oka; flat

battery. After driving it for hours. Things are crook. I got out the little red key, did the deed and she started just like a bought one; but really, I was obviously asking too much of the batteries. Even if I’d had a u-beaut alternator, it was becoming evident that my power demands were get- ting a little high. And the kids hadn’t even watched the widescreen TV for the last hour.

If I hadn’t been parked alongside mains power, things would have been a bit tougher, but on that trip it was no problem. For the next trip, the Oka Owners Group rally to Glen Mervyn Dam three weeks later, it wasn’t going to be so easy; no mains power, no guarantee that solar would make the grade, no input from the alternator some days, and no desire to run the generator. What’s left?

The secret weapon: an Efoy fuel cell. It lobbed through the door on the Wednesday, and on Thursday night was running the Harvey family show at Glen Mervyn Dam; pumping out nearly seven amps, nearly silently, with zero emissions. And it did it for four more days just like it was meant to, consuming three litres of fuel in that time. A beaut.

If you’ve never heard of an Efoy, or even a fuel cell for that matter, you’re not alone; most haven’t. I could explain how it works, but it’s kind of irrelevant. The bottom line is that an Efoy is an office-computer-sized box that behaves like a smart battery charger, and runs on methanol. It meets zero-emission specifications, so you can run it indoors, and is so quiet that noise is not a consideration; it’s about as noisy as an office computer too. It’s lightweight, can be portable or fixed, and runs completely automatically. The initial cost is the only downside; whether or not you can justify it is as always, up to the individual. There are five sizes available, and they go in some fairly large cost increments; I got the largest, the 2200 size, and it was $8400 (2010).