Help. Need feedback on builders.

[FlyersFan76]

I think a nice refreshed truck from Neil, Johan or River House Mini is a good start. Or a base truck to build what you want. I bought a truck from Johan that was in a dry climate in Italy. Frame was pretty solid. Neil made a few needed upgrades after I owned it for 5 years.

River House makes really nice trucks that are factory original so they can be imported into the the US if that is needed.


On a side note I have never heard of Molasses as a street coating. Interesting thing to learn about. Are you a time traveler in early 20th century Boston?

 

[javelinadave]

I think a nice refreshed truck from Neil, Johan or River House Mini is a good start. Or a base truck to build what you want. I bought a truck from Johan that was in a dry climate in Italy. Frame was pretty solid. Neil made a few needed upgrades after I owned it for 5 years.

River House makes really nice trucks that are factory original so they can be imported into the the US if that is needed.


On a side note I have never heard of Molasses as a street coating. Interesting thing to learn about. Are you a time traveler in early 20th century Boston?

Several years a go I flew out from Phoenix to Grand Rapids to buy a "rust free" truck. In the first 5 minutes of inspecting it I stuck my finger thru the frame and the price was instantly cut in half. It was a complete waste of a trip and I was not very happy. Just because somebody had a good experience doesn't guarantee you will. As the mutual fund folks say, "Past Performance Is No Guarantee of Future Results".
This is also why you should always spend the time and money to personally lay hands on a potential purchase.

As for the original poster I applaud you coming here and for doing your research. Keep researching but unless you are really mechanically inclined or have a huge stack of money a Defender on 37s might be just a dream.

 

[jymmiejamz]

I’ve seen a couple of trucks from Riverbouse Mini. They are okay. They are clearly resprayed without disassembly, which is fine if that’s what you’re going for, but definitely not restored. The price probably reflects that.

I think there are horror stories for most shops that do defender rebuilds, especially the ones that spend more on marketing than they do building defenders.

 

[chuckc4]

At least one of the "rebuilders" on the list above is a retired automotive marketer...

 

[D901560]

I think a nice refreshed truck from Neil, Johan or River House Mini is a good start. Or a base truck to build what you want. I bought a truck from Johan that was in a dry climate in Italy. Frame was pretty solid. Neil made a few needed upgrades after I owned it for 5 years.

River House makes really nice trucks that are factory original so they can be imported into the the US if that is needed.


On a side note I have never heard of Molasses as a street coating. Interesting thing to learn about. Are you a time traveler in early 20th century Boston?

I've never heard of this either so I had to look it up. Apparently molasses is sometimes used in two situations.

In snow / ice areas it may be mixed with a brine solution to reduce the amount of salt used and acts to prevent the ice from binding to the road surface. I can only image the devastation this cocktail would cause to a defender frame.

The second use case is to reduce dust from dirt roads. Not sure its a thing in the US but apparently it is in Costa Rica.

 

[1of40]

I was in Colorado this summer for the National Rally and there were places where the dirt roads were being sprayed with magnesium chloride to keep the dust down. This will destroy a chassis so we had to avoid these roads. Nowhere’s safe it seems these days.

 

[rocky]

Sounds as bad as places like NJ that pre treat their roads with liquid salt or whatever.

 

[blueboy]

Good tires, lockers, and a winch are much more useful than 37in tires for getting though things.

Especially with a Diesel engine connected to a snorkel for going through deep water. The 110 with 300 Tdi we had in Brasil had 235/85-16 Pirelli mud Scorpions and cruised nicely at 135 kph on highways fully loaded. With a winch and lockers it really was a little tank and you felt very confident driving it.

 

[blueboy]

Sounds as bad as places like NJ that pre treat their roads with liquid salt or whatever.

Here in W. PA. the DOT uses beet juice in the liquid salt brine to make it stick to the bare road surface before the snow/ice. Each day after a trip to local ski area pressure wash with hot water the crap off. Real mess.

 

[FlyersFan76]

Sounds as bad as places like NJ that pre treat their roads with liquid salt or whatever.

Pennsylvania also. Its great when they call for a foot of snow and the brine is useless. Better than salt or cinders in that situation I guess. Salt melts the snow and becomes ice.

 

[galen216]

Speaking of Neil and Red Door, I've known him for 20 years and he is a great guy. It amazes me every time I visit his shop because he spend $0 on marketing and he is so busy. I can't imagine what he'd do if he did advertise.

 

[LazyRabbit]

Not sure what kind of town needs 37" tires. Maybe a war ravaged town in the middle east or a village beyond the Darien gap. 32" tires have taken militaries, NGOs, expeditions, etc across the globe for ages. The Spectre build is basically a Jeep look, for Defenders. You can spend a fortune on all the modifications it takes to setup a Defender for huge tires, posh interior, and all the accessories, but it'll still be a modified farm truck. Unless you're really a LR nut, I think the practical move is to first consider something like a newer Land Cruiser, Gladiator, LR4, Gwagon, etc that will take you anywhere you want to go for far less money and in far more comfort.

war torn areas we go stock tires, because it's easy to find spares. Tall and skinny tires are the order of the day for wet season in africa with lots winching and skinny pedal action. Or we just use unimogs and grizzly atvs and wait the wet out.

 

[vw007]

Again, thanks for all the feedback. I may have found something. Is there anyone in New Jersey that can take a look at a 110 for me?

Can anyone recommend a good shop in NJ for a PPI?

Thanks in advance!