Preparation - 3
EXPEDITION ITEMS (continued)
Spare tyres
We carry two ready to use spare tyres: one on the bonnet and one in a rear body bracket obtained from Paddock in the UK (www.paddockspares.com). Since we want to be able to repair tyres ourselves without damaging our costly wheel rims, we looked for manual tyre changing equipment and found it in Australia (www.tyrepliers.com.au). The set comes in a handy canvas bag and is not too heavy. Apart from our standard jack, we also have a high lift jack which is mounted on the front bumper (www.hi-lift.com).
Spare parts
Initially we overhauled some of the parts we exchanged for new ones (e.g. the water and fuel pumps). The rest of the spares are sponsored by our Land Rover garage (Jansen Range Rover Parts in Oosterwijk). All together, and including front and rear half shafts, we carry some 70 kg of spares. If you are really interested, we can mail a spare part list to you.
Refrigerator
After due consideration we decided against a compressor cool box because of the exorbitant costs. In stead we bought an ordinary Electrolux adsorption box. Later we regretted this decision and managed to lay our hands on a second hand 40l Engel compressor box.
Cooking utensils
We have a small custom made kitchen on board (www.topsleeper.nl). With a steel bracket this kitchen can also be attached to ladder leading to the roof rack. As the occasion demands, we can cook either inside or outside.
Connections for electrical appliances
Despite its obvious advantages, the 24V electrical system of our Series III is somewhat of a pain in the ass with respect to appliances. In our case these concern a cool box, laptop, satellite and ordinary mobile phone and the chargers for our photographic equipment and carrying lights. The car standard carries two connected and maintenance free deep cycle batteries. They are expensive but worth the extra money. We equipped the car with a 24-220V transformer, a 24-12V transformer and two additional 24V sockets. There is no split charge system, but if necessary we can crank the engine!.
Car lights
In addition to its normal lights, the car is equipped with moveable 75W front search lights, a fixed 50W rear working light, a rechargeable portable light and a map reading light. All operated on 24V.
Photo equipment
We take three camera’s:
· our 35 year old mirror reflex Nikkormat EL with various lenses, including 350 and 600 mm ones;
· a digital Nikon Coolpix 8800 VR with additional power pack and continuous charger;
· a digital Minolta Z3 as a back-up.
From more than three decades of experience we know the Nikkormat EL to be an extremely reliable camera, ideally suited for wildlife photography. With a revolver grip we can even keep the 400 mm lens steady! How the digital cameras will behave in a dusty environment we don’t know, but we have our doubts. We are far from being video enthusiasts, so no video camera!
Continued on next page...
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