My Discovery 2 - Time Capsule Edition

donniefitz2

Well-known member
Sep 15, 2020
138
56
Scottsdale, AZ
fitzventure.com
Before purchasing my '03 Discovery in July, I sold my 2004 Jaguar XJR that I drove for 4 years. Since I already had experience with unreliable English vehicles, I figured what the hell, why not build an offroader. I've always loved the Discovery.

I found one located in Parker, AZ (about 200 miles from my home in Scottsdale, AZ). The big red flag with the Facebook Marketplace listing for this Disco was that it said there were 64k miles on it. I had to call the seller to make sure he didn't leave off a 1 before that number.

He didn't. It really only had 63,993 original miles on it. He told me it was a drug seizure vehicle from 2010. It sat in a Sheriff department warehouse for 7 years, then in the blistering AZ sun for another 3. I immediately called in sick to work, loaded up the family and drove to Parker. The exterior was sun rotted and oxidized, but the interior was in excellent shape. It ran great because the seller installed new fluids, tires, battery, fuel pump, etc.

Best of all, no leaks. You read that right, no leaks (yet).

I forked over $4,500 dollars and it was mine. The truck did great on the 200 mile drive home, except the A/C didn't work (does now) and it was July and 115 degrees outside. That was a long hot ride.

I did the 60k mile service on it, replaced the front drive shaft, rear rotoflex, 180 degree thermostat, and new radiator (it was weeping a bit). I also confirmed it's way outside of the oil pump failure VIN range.

Next was addressing the exterior. Chalky Alveston Red is not a good look. Now, it's a budget build so I wasn't going to spend 5k to paint it, I didn't want a Macco crap paint job and Plastidip probably wouldn't last long. So, I Raptor Lined the whole truck Sarge Green in my garage. I was skeptical, but it turned out great. I'm not a fan of typical bed liner texture, so figured out a way to make it really fine and I'm happy with it. Still have to paint the door jambs but that'll come later.

Of course, I wanted to address the wheels and tires and get a lift, along with a huge list of other things (bumpers, rock sliders, etc, etc). Then @Blue listed his Disco for sale, which had everything I needed and he lives about a mile away. He's a great guy and we worked out a deal. Now I have 2 Discos. I did buy a front bumper before the deal, which I really like and will be keeping.

I'm almost done transferring the parts and it's really coming together. I have a few more days of work to go (probably more like weeks to have time for the CDL).

Anyway, that's the story of my '03 Disco so far.
 

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Aug 20, 2007
2,727
45
Nashville TN
That bed liner looks surprisingly good in the photos. I’d be curious to see it in person. Usually not a fan but it does look nicer than before.
 

donniefitz2

Well-known member
Sep 15, 2020
138
56
Scottsdale, AZ
fitzventure.com
That bed liner looks surprisingly good in the photos. I’d be curious to see it in person. Usually not a fan but it does look nicer than before.
Yeah, I wasn't sure I'd like it, but I actually love it now. It looks a lot better in person then in the photos. The trick is to get the right texture. Mine is really fine instead of looking like wall spackle. The trick was to use the more expensive Raptor Liner gun and to make the second coat a "drop coat". Which means, spray it from about 2 feet back. That gave it the fine texture.
 
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donniefitz2

Well-known member
Sep 15, 2020
138
56
Scottsdale, AZ
fitzventure.com
Thanks. It's coming along. I blacked out the wheels last night with Plastidip. All I have left to do is install the CDL. Not looking forward to that.
 

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Blue

Well-known member
Mar 26, 2004
10,043
856
AZ
Looks good!

The green Raptor Liner exterior looks amazingly good in person. I can't believe you applied it yourself in your garage. I am generally not a fan at all of bed liner finishes, but this really looks great.
 

DiscoHasBeen

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2016
1,171
262
Indy
Agreed, looks really, really good. Are you worried about UV degradation or does the Raptor product come with protection? I was thinking about doing something like that to my tractor and looking around products with UV protection was considerably more expensive.
 

DiscoHasBeen

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2016
1,171
262
Indy
Thanks. I was a little freaked out while spraying it because it's really, really hard to take it off.

So looking at a couple of vids I assume you did proper prep. Roughed up everything and sprayed the bonder onto critical spots? I watched a vid where a kid didn't do such and the liner wasn't so hard to get off his chrome bumper.

Like I said, was thinking of doing something like this to the tractor. Somehow hadn't run across the Raptor product. Thanks for posting.
 

donniefitz2

Well-known member
Sep 15, 2020
138
56
Scottsdale, AZ
fitzventure.com
Yeah, proper prep is key. I sanded the entire truck with a DA sander and 120 grit. Red Scotch Bright for the hard to reach areas and adhesive promotor for the impossible to sand areas. Removing trim is also better than taping it off. The only hard tape line I couldn't avoid was the rear window trim. Didn't want to risk breaking that window taking it out so I taped it. The windshield top trim can be roped (stick some rope behind it so it stands off the body).
 

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DiscoHasBeen

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2016
1,171
262
Indy
Yeah, proper prep is key. I sanded the entire truck with a DA sander and 120 grit. Red Scotch Bright for the hard to reach areas and adhesive promotor for the impossible to sand areas. Removing trim is also better than taping it off. The only hard tape line I couldn't avoid was the rear window trim. Didn't want to risk breaking that window taking it out so I taped it. The windshield top trim can be roped (stick some rope behind it so it stands off the body).

Hey, a question. Once you mix in the hardener how long is the product sprayable? Getting ready to do the tractor this weekend and that's the only question I can't seem to find an answer for. Thanks
 

JohnnoK

Well-known member
Mar 19, 2017
190
19
Cape Town, South Africa
Hey, a question. Once you mix in the hardener how long is the product sprayable? Getting ready to do the tractor this weekend and that's the only question I can't seem to find an answer for. Thanks
It depends on the brand and how much thinner is in it, but you can go to around 30 minutes without worry for most 2K mixes, unless it's REALLY hot outside.
 

donniefitz2

Well-known member
Sep 15, 2020
138
56
Scottsdale, AZ
fitzventure.com
Very nice. I researched using that purple gun too and trying to get a less textured look. Everything I saw that didn't have texture looked like primer. Without the texture at all, it just looks bad.

In a former life, I did body work professionally and I'd say you did a nice job on the dent repair.
 

DiscoHasBeen

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Aug 7, 2016
1,171
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Indy