Hi I am a high school senior in the US, for my senior project I am rebuilding a 1967 Series IIA with my dad. As part of the assignment, I need to interview a trained mechanic in the field, and I thought this would be a great place to start. If anyone could help answer the questions, I would really appreciate it.
1. The body is in pretty good condition, but there are some dents. Any recommendations on the best practice or tools to use to repair the dents?
2. For the chassis, there are some minor rust damage and we are looking to replace parts, can you do this yourself and what kind of welding equipment would you recommend?
3. Any recommendations on how and where to find parts for the 1967 Series IIA?
4. We have the original diesel engine, trying to give it more power, would you recommend a more modern engine? If so, which one, and do you have to replace the drive train and gear box?

As part of my report, I have to provide answers to the following questions about the person I asked.
1. What attracted you to the automotive industry and/or fixing Land Rovers?
2. What training or education did you need for this career?
3. How long have you been in the automotive industry?
4. When you are working on vehicles, what does a normal day look like for you?

 

I can't answer your questions as a professional because I'm not, but I'll PM you the address of someone who is.

I just want to say that's an awesome Series II there and wish you the best result.

What I know as an amateur:

Body work can be straightened by hammering and with spoons. The aluminum body panels are relatively soft and because they're easy to remove, they can be hammered from either side as necessary. Body filler is probably not necessary or desirable on a Series Land Rover. I would suggest just leaving the wrinkles. Tradtionally, molten lead would be used as body filler, but it's ill-advised. Bondo (fiberglass reinforced epoxy resin) does the same thing and is lighter, stronger, easier and less hazardous to work with. Personally, I wouldn't Bondo a Series, but just leave the wrinkles. If you're curious about the spoons, search on "auto body spoons and picks." It's a craft that takes skill.

To weld the frame, you need enough current to sufficiently penetrate the steel. A 140A MIG welder should do the job. Again, skill is going to be more critical than equipment. The Series frames weren't particularly thick or of any special alloy.

One of the best sources of parts would be a donor vehicle, either your own or one in the possession of a wrecker, typically a Land Rover specialist. Otherwise, I can suggest the typical US sources: Roversnorth and Atlantic British. That's where I would start, and from there you could look for other sources of NOS for more obscure parts.

For this vehicle, I would keep the original engine. It will be very, very weak by modern standards, but who cares? The originality is worth much more than entertaining the prospect of trying to go anywhere in a Series fast. This vehicle is more about enjoying the ride.

 

Welcome here Chris, and what a worthy project. Like Nathan, I’m not a professional LR mechanic, but have been playing with them for 30 years. As Nathan says, I wouldn’t bother repairing a few minor dents. They give the old LR some character. I’ve never done this, but you can use heat very sparingly to help take the dents out. There are a number of sources to look into. Here’s one: https://forums.lr4x4.com/topic/82739...f-birmabright/
Im in Canada, so I tend to order more parts straight from England rather than the US.
You can have success searching for used parts as well.
Good luck with it, and please keep us posted on your progress.

 

Thank you so much for the help Harv, I appreciate it!