240z rebuild / restoration right down to the shell

[grannyknot]

I didn't want to start a rebuild thread until I had done enough so there was something to see, so here goes.
1970 240z, 4 owners before me and apparently none of them were mechanically inclined as I have hundreds of bills and receipts going back to 1978 for the simplest of jobs. The car also has had some
really poor body work done on it that will have to be removed and repaired.
Here she is the day I brought her home last March, it looks pretty good but there are all sorts of sins being hidden by roof tar and under coat.


Pulling the engine, mechanically the car is in excellent condition with only one wheel bearing and the slave cylinder needing replacement (I'll be doing all four wheels though)


Here is yesterday, finally got it up on the rotisserie a month later then planned but there is no rush.


There is probably a month of spare time needed just to clean the layers of undercoat, waxoyl, tar, oil spray and all the sand that has been picked up over the years.
Here are some pics of the layers of patches on top of patches with tar in between,





This one is the drivers footwell, you can see that the first patch was actually riveted over top of the horse hair insulation.

I have a set of Z Findings floor pans and a set of Baddog rails are on the way. I was kinda hoping I would get all this done this winter but not sure now.
Anyways, I love a challenge.
Chris

[madkaw]

You have a challenge if you are looking for one-
The floors are a big job and you will have to work them new floors to get them to fit.
PM me if you want any helpful hints - if you need any. I have lots of pics of what I went thru

[GregP]

I will be following you restoratiom with interest, thanks for posting the start. Do you have any photos of the rotisserie and how you attached it? What kind are you using? I am thinking of using one when I start my resto.
Greg

[grannyknot]

My rotisserie is quite crude but does work well, my Z is an early car so is the lightest of the series. I found a couple of sources that put the shell at about 700lbs. Once I get all the patches, tar, sand, crude and 6 layers of paint off it should be a 100lbs lighter.



The cast iron plumbers flanges and nipple are 1.25" seem plenty strong to hold 350lbs and if they are not...... well I'll have even more body work to do :]

This is my assistant Ted, he's very good at helping when I don't need it.


I was removing the brake lines this morning am wondering why they used two distribution blocks,
the one on the right doesn't seem to do anything. Anyone know?

[jonathanrussell]

The "one in - one out" is a proportioning valve. The "one in - two out" is a distribution block.

Very interesting rotisserie. Never seen one made with wood. Is it sturdy? Does it rotate easily?

[grannyknot]

The "one in - one out" is a proportioning valve. The "one in - two out" is a distribution block.

Very interesting rotisserie. Never seen one made with wood. Is it sturdy? Does it rotate easily?

That makes sense, yeah it is sturdy and takes one hand to rotate. I didn't know where the centre of gravity was so just guessed, as it turns out the front bar needs to be mounted 4-6 inches higher to get it neutral. Mine is a bit top heavy but not enough to make me want to re-posistion it.

[fuzze]

Granny knot , r u from the west coast a few years back , Pitt Meadows to be precise ?
Chris

[grannyknot]

Granny knot , r u from the west coast a few years back , Pitt Meadows to be precise ?
Chris

Well I was born and raised in Van but haven't lived there in 23 years and haven't been to Pitt Meadows since scout camp in 74.

[Reverend]

Good thread! Ted looks like he could not care less

[grannyknot]

Good thread! Ted looks like he could not care less

He's kind of pissed at me right now cause with the car on its side he can sleep on the roof anymore, his favorite spot.

[grannyknot]

double post

[grannyknot]

Here is some more rust porn, I got bored of cleaning off tar so treated myself to tearing into it.



This pic shows five layers, four patches and the original steel, the pinkish panel to the right covered them all from the bottom,

This is about ten hours scraping, I know it still looks a mess but this I can wash down with solvent.
Very little rust back here, something to be said about leaky engines.

[grannyknot]

Well I got some good work done this week Most of the tar and undercoat is off now, I have a 40lb box of it sofar but still have a couple of days of washing everything down with solvent. The scraping didn't take as long as I thought it would.




After four days of scraping I headed back into the patches,
Here is the car I really bought.




Previous owner left some stuff in the car, maybe I'll box it up and ship it back to him


Had to cut out the rear seat mounts cause I couldn't find any other way to get through the layers
and I already removed the bottom layer before I cut out this section,


Here I've started to prep for floor pan fitment, I was hoping that I could keep the forward seat mount in place and fit from underneath but I'm not sure I'm going to be able to do that.
Parts of the rockers need work too but if the floor is out at the same time as the rocker I'll have to take it off the rotis and block it up horizontal to keep proper spacing.
When I'm I going to learn, VISIBLE RUST IS ONLY 10% OF WHAT IS THERE!



Madkaw, I'll pm you, pics would be very good right now.

[EuroDat]

Hi,
Love that rotisserie you made. Very inventive.
Its heartbreaking when you start digging all the gunk off and find rust underneath. Thats the problem with a half fix and then covering it up. The rust just keep going ever so slowly, but it doesnt stop. Your going about it the right way. Rust wont be a problem when your finished and Ted will be proud of you

[bartsscooterservice]

Good luck on this ! Been there done that..

Personally I would just bring the shell to a sandblast company or use a mobile blaster, to get it really clean and ready for cutting and welding in new sections. I would not think myself of doing all this labour pain ever again on hand cleaning the shell

Hey, but anyhow, this looks amazing allready!, keep us updated on your project

[grannyknot]

Personally I would just bring the shell to a sandblast company or use a mobile blaster, to get it really clean and ready for cutting and welding in new sections. I would not think myself of doing all this labour pain ever again on hand cleaning the shell

Bart I agree completely but the quotes I got for sand blasting and chemical dipping started at $3600 and went up depending on how long it took. That is an awful lot of money to me, I can buy all kinds of speed and handling with that kind of scratch. So considering I work for free... it was an easy decision.

Started work on the Passenger side inner rocker, it's in bad shape but no one makes these pieces yet so I'll have to fab them out of panel.


The second panel in is actually the inner panel above that goes up to the dash support and down to the bottom of the rocker,


Here I have cut off the rusty bits off the inner panel, now I can clean everything inside before building it back up. The inner panel is 20 gauge and the next one out (or in depending on how you see it) is 16 gauge. All I could find is 18 ga so I'll use that for both and should end up with the same strength.
Before I do that, can anyone tell me if two layers of 18 ga equal one of 20 ga and one of 16 ga ?
You can also see the what is left of the original rocker, still not sure if I'm going to cut all of that out yet or not. It does add strength but is also a source of rust, maybe I'll flood it with phosphoric acid to convert the rust then flood it with POR15


And I got what I ordered just 2 days ago, Murder Max, I've read a couple of reviews and both were glowing.
Multi layer, reflective aluminum foil inside and the price beats everyone else for sound deading.

[madkaw]

You should be fine with 18 gauge. I'm not even sure where they used 16 except the frame rails.
Don't envy your workload. I started a thread for floor replacements, hopefully you will find what you need on there as well as anyone else.

[Casey_z]

Chris

You would never have known the trouble you would find when you were parked next to me in August.

A job like that you work one step at a time.

Ted must be thinking "silly humans"

Casey

[grannyknot]

Chris

You would never have known the trouble you would find when you were parked next to me in August.

A job like that you work one step at a time.

Ted must be thinking "silly humans"

Casey

Hi Casey, Oh I knew I had some work ahead of me just didn't think it would be this bad.

Well just plugging away at it, starting to fit the passenger side pan and create a template for the forward foot panel.
I know these pans are normally installed from inside but I really don't want to remove the seat mount/brace. I'm just afraid of the rocker sagging away and so far I can't see any draw backs to mounting from underneath.
If anyone knows of any I would like to hear them.






Got my Technoversions R/T mount and Tachadapter today,


And of course if there is a new box in the garage no matter how small, it has to be checked out.
Ted's a box man,

[madkaw]

I don't think there is a set way of putting in floors -either from the bottom or the top-just get er done
If i could have flipped my car over I think I would have gone your route. If you were also able to save the seat rails, then good for you, less work for later.

Looks like your tension boxes have seen better days.

I also had to repair inner rocker stuff which i will be psoting pics of shortly

Looking Good!

[grannyknot]

Looks like your tension boxes have seen better days.



Looking Good!

Steve, yeah the T/C boxes are a mess and I was just going to crush them in and weld the Baddog rails over top of them but just saw how you did it, Brilliant! Cut the bottoms out, clean everything and slide the new rails up and weld in. The Baddogs will then fit over top of that and give terrific strength. Can't wait to get to it.

[madkaw]

It worked out well, but if i remember correctly you lose a little length of the rail in the back if you try and cover the whole tension box. Maybe someone can measure for you or give you a reference point for where the stock frame rails sit-exactly. is it going to make a big difference strength wise if they are scooted forward a bit-doubtful, but you should measure.
I will try and remember when i get back in town to look at the pristine 71 in my garage right now that has original floors.

[grannyknot]

Here I'm almost finished welding in the passenger floor, I forgot to take a pic of the finished inside rocker but you can see it here.


The ragged edge is from the first guy 30 yrs ago, hard to make this kind of patch look good,


Fitting new patch,


and this side almost done just need to add the rails, so I've started on the driver side floor.



The clutch pedal pivot wash elongated from so many years of wear so added a bit of weld that I'll file round again.

Clutch M/C connecting piece was the same way,


All together with no slop.

[grannyknot]

I have been lucky that all but one of the seat mounts were restoreable but not this one, too far gone,

so made a template,

and welded the new one up this morning, once it's in I'll add some bracing.

[ksechler]

Very impressive. I'm going to be referring to this thread when I repair my passenger floor.

[grannyknot]

I needed to repair a few things before I could start fitting the D/S pan, transmission mount was looking punky,
this is from the inside looking down sort of where the corner of the seat would be,


So got most of the rust off and treated with phosphoric acid, I'll prime that now and add the patch




A couple of days ago our temp shot up to 14*C or 57F and all our snow melted, I was working in a T shirt so took the opportunity to open the garage door and get most of the solvent washing done.


More patches,

I know some of those welds are pretty ugly, sometimes it's hard to get a good bead going on the old metal.
All of those patches will have matching ones on the inside as well.

Floors are almost done, just waiting for the rails to arrive. I'll start on the back tomorrow, hatch deck needs some work,

[ksechler]

Wow! The difference between where you were and where you are now is incredible. I'm not sure I would have had the resolve to tackle that job. You have pulled it off nicely. Well done.

[grannyknot]

Wow! The difference between where you were and where you are now is incredible. I'm not sure I would have had the resolve to tackle that job. You have pulled it off nicely. Well done.

Thank you, I appreciate it. I know what you mean about resolve, I walk into the shop sometimes, stop and shake my head.
"why do I keep buying these projects" The only way to get myself going again is to grab a small project that needs doing and just focus on that. I also printed out a couple of inspirational photos,


I love these both, not really sure what mine is going to look like when It's done but it sure won't be orange.

[madkaw]

Maybe you should nick name your car Patches-
Nice work

[grannyknot]

Maybe you should nick name your car Patches-
Nice work

Cute, but I was thinking of my Japanese Quilt.
I was lucky that I got it just in time, a few more years and it would have been a parts car.

[grannyknot]

Here is a job I have been avoiding. If the passenger side rear panel was off this would be a breeze and I didn't want to have to remove a perfect panel so I cheated a bit, the angle of the new panel is almost the same as the mounting area of the flange on the tank filler hose but the rest is different. Real hard to get in there and work with a welding helmet on.


here the rear hatch deck is rusted in the usual places,


I can't believe it, I deleted the image before I saved it, what a twit. I'll try and insert the finished deck next time.

Here is a little improvement on the original design, I got this idea from a recently posted thread that I can't find at the moment. Basicly the drip rail in the hatch area dumps rain and wash water right into the spot where it always rusts...I wonder why, so after reading this thread (sorry guys I have tried twice to find it now, it was just a couple of days ago) I decided that now is the perfect time to weld in 4" of new chanel.

[grannyknot]

Here is the thread I was referring to, http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/b...7-what-do.html

[grannyknot]

The Bad Dog rails arrived last night! These things are beautiful, 11ga metal, 17lbs total and very well made.
I see why john has such a good reputation.


So here is the stock rails installed,


and the B/D rail slip over top,


Now it's not like you can just take them out of the box and install them, they need a bit of "massaging."
Quite a bit in certain areas but for me it is worth the trouble,
and the rear piece,

and I think that is about all the welding that needs doing, I'm certainly not going to be able to keep the same pace as I have done up to now, from here on in is the POR15 and then... sanding, filling, sanding...
I'm not a bodyman, and I have great respect them. You need zen like patience to be good at body work.
That's not me, can't say I'm looking forward to it.

[EuroDat]

Chris,
This is an awesome project. You have done so much work on it. Definitly something to be proud of when its finished.

I get the feeling your next project will have a tittle like: When down to the sheet metal shop, and picked out my new datsun.

Chas

[Blue]

The Bad Dog rails arrived last night! These things are beautiful, 11ga metal, 17lbs total and very well made.
I see why john has such a good reputation.

John is a wonderful guy. His heart is in Z's, he knows so much about them. He is a fair and honest business man with a customer first attitude who stands behind his product. He also has a fab Z club with a core of great friends around him. Lot's of great output from that bunch! Hopefully you will get to meet him some time.

[grannyknot]

Well I've got a few things done since the last entry, all new metal and rust prone areas have been coated with POR15,

then all seams were filled with seam sealer and a coat of rocker guard over everything,


I have read few things in the archives about making your own "Lizard Skin" and considering what they are asking for it I thought I'd give it a try, I started with half a gallon on white Tremclad and1lb of micro spheres that I bought on ebay for $15. I mixed in almost the whole pound until it was difficult to stir.
Sort of like the consistantcey of sloppy drywall mud and applied it to the interior,




A few days later after everything had cured I was trying to find the best way to remove the many layers of paint from the roof and tried a heat stripping gun. It didn't work very well but while the roof paint was bubbling I put my hand on the other side, inside the roof and it was just warm so it seems to be doing its job.

Here is one of the new front quarter panels just before test fitting,


While the car was still on the rotis I got the roof stripped,


and once that was done I could bring it back down on to the ground, it's sitting on a dolly I made up in order to roll it onto the flat bed to be taken for paint.


And now I'm sanding, my favourite pastime.

[madkaw]

I'm tired just reading this thread-good work

[EuroDat]

It looked good just welded, now its painted black its WOW
Great job your doing.
Cheers
Chas

[bartsscooterservice]

wow pretty fast !

[grannyknot]

Thanks, I have to go back to work in six weeks so I'm hustling a bit, I want to drive this thing this summer!

[grannyknot]

The shop in sanding mode


Underneath 2 layers of orange then blue, then yellow, then orange again then brown primer.
That's what you can see here under that was 1/4" of body filler and when I got down to the steel there was 3 smallish dents and a 1 ground out area where some rust was taken care of.


I have had a nice piece of stainless steel kicking around the shop for 5-6 years now, it was a 3rd shelf from a BBQ that I didn't need so I kept it figuring it would come in handy at some point,


Thought it might make a good heat shield for under the triple carbs, this is it in rough. Still have to clean up the edges and polish.


Sand, fill, sand, fill, primmer,




NO MORE ORANGE!


Just have to do one more coat of primmer, sand with 460 and it's ready for sealer, then paint!

[EhlersRS]

Chris,

I finally had time to read your thread. Great job on your Z! Like you, I'm the 5th owner of my car. The 3rd and 4th owners planned to restore the car, but circumstances kept them from working on it. I also have a stack of receipts from the first 2 owners, but thankfully no major body work was done that I'll have to redo. The car was repainted in the late 70's and of course it has lots of rust. Thanks for the photos of your work and I look forward to the finished product!


Robert S.

[e-tek]

Fantastic work - and exactly the same as what I just went through! Not sure who's was worse!

Not to hijack your awesome thread, but here's what I mean:





I spent too much time on my rotisserie!



Did you not have to do the quarters?



At the rate you're going you'll be done way sooner than I will!!

[grannyknot]

Don't worry about hijacking, not at all. Yeah there is nothing as satisfying as cutting out rust, my quarters were in good shape, some previous work had been done on the wheel wells and it was good work so I left it alone.
I would kill for your shop, all that space.

Whoa, Ed, I just went to your site and found your resto thread http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/c...car-resto.html fantastic work.
I think your car was in worst shape, I was very glad not to have to get into the dog legs.
But I don't have any sympathy for you considering you have a dream shop, a dream job and a hot babe racing wife! Can I come work for you?

[Notorious Nerd]

This is a fantastic thread Grannyknot! Youve done an amazing job. That shell is bulletproof!

[grannyknot]

Hey Thomas, I hope it will be bulletproof but stiffer is all I'm hoping for. I have been following your thread on OntZcar for a while now. The extent of your rust is very similar to what mine was when I started and as you know anything is do-able
just depends on how much money or in my case labour you want to throw at it. Is it okay if I include a link to your thread with in this one?
Chris

[grannyknot]

And she is off for paint, this is my buddy Tubo's paint shop. I know it looks kinda rough but he consistently puts out great work.


Hopefully we'll get a primmer/sealer done tomorrow and colour by the end of the week.

[EuroDat]

Hi Chris,

Cant wait to see photos of the car painted. Awesome project btw

Chas

[bartsscooterservice]

awesome !

[andres14oj]

So much metal work in this thread, i know for sure i would have passed on such a big project. I respect what u are doing here man. And i didnt know about the hatch frame draining solution, will have to do the same to mine, thanks for the tip. Im also impressed at how fast you're progressing with it, really wish i could move just as fast.
Let me guess, you dont drink? Or at least not very often? Haha
Anyway, looking good man!

[ZohanIsBack]

You simply must go down and get pics of how it's coming along and post them!

Where's Ted been lately? His furry face is strangely absent. :P My wife and I have three cats. They're awesome.

[EuroDat]

I think Ted is disgusted with Chris because he spends al his time on the car and none on him

[grannyknot]

Let me guess, you dont drink? Or at least not very often? Haha
Anyway, looking good man!

Are you kidding? I've been off the wagon for years, I just don't drink until after dinner that way I get a whole day in before I become useless. I have arranged my work so I get 4 months off in the winter and 14 hours a day the rest of the year. It works for me. Thanks for the complement Andreas and all the other kind words from everyone who stumbles onto this thread. A small truth, I have to admit to doing better more complete work knowing that everyones eagle eyes are looking at it. I sometimes cut a few corners like we all do but documenting the rebuild like this really keeps me honest.
I like it.

[grannyknot]

Zohan, Chas, Bart, and all, I really do appreciate your encouragement. Primmer is done and I think we will do paint on Mon. or Tues., depends on the weather, it's still quite cold here in southern Ont.The paint shop is heated of course but being an old reused barn the winds play havoc blowing dust in through the panels in the ceiling and walls so we have to pick a day with little or no wind before we soak the floor wall and ceiling . I will have some updated pics on this coming Monday.
The colour I have chosen is Jaguar JUC56 (grey/green) single stage. I have to admit that I don't care much for metallic
colours anymore, I still think they can be very beautiful but they are everywhere these days and I love a single stage paint for the advantage of being able to colour sand it and polish without fear of breaking through the clear coat.
Chris

[gowman]

My old cinder block garage was freezing this winter.Same for me waiting for calm weather to paint my z.Shop is right on the ocean very windy really blows thru it.Grannyknot this is absolutely amazing work it will be such a beauty

[ZohanIsBack]

Sweet! I think it will look very classic with the Jaguar paint. As you said, a lot of people go with flashier colors/tones (me included!), so to see someone doing a really nice classic color is great!

[Torby]

Great work, man! You don't cut any corners, which is great! Looking forward to see it painted!

[grannyknot]

Just realized I haven't told you guys about the engine, don't mind the valve cover that is going to be refinished


And here are the carbs with just finished heat shield,
The engine was built by Whitehead Performance here in Ont. and although expensive these guys are the best around here. About all they do Z's, races cars and street cars. The engine has 15,000
kms on it so it's just broken in and I bought it for about a 1/3 the cost of what the same engine would have cost me to build.
F54 block/N42 head, hardened seats, port and polish, unshrouded valves, flat top pistons, C/R of 9.93:1. Mild grind camshaft. Cast aluminum oil pan, lightened alum. flywheel, dual friction clutch, Triples carbs are SK/OER's basically weber clones with a couple of improvements, the most important being an external float level adjustment. I heard the engine and drove in the car that it was in before I bought it and was impressed. Also have a close ratio 5spd tranny and a R200
3.9:1 Diff.
And for those who are interested, Ted had a infected paw for a couples of weeks but he's okay now and back to being the emperor of all he sees,

[grannyknot]

This what we got done before a late winter storm desended,
final primmer,


Getting ready to shoot colour,


All dust has been sucked out, floor has been soaked, shop is warm


And here we go,


Wait til you see this colour in the sun! I know it looks kinda bland in this pic but if we get some sun in the next few days I'll take a piece of body work outside and take some pics. So far I'm really happy with the colour, it's a single stage poly urethane
understated grey with just a hint of green,


With any luck we will be shooting the body tomorrow and the shell back into my shop by Thursday.

[EuroDat]

Chris, Goodluck with it. Its looking good on the photo. It will be nice to see it all go back together.

[bartsscooterservice]

moving along pretty well !!

[pacemkr]

sweet.
cant wait to see that colour. the hint of green sounds interesting.

[ksechler]

Awesome. I can't wait to see the finished product.

[e-tek]

Painted!!! You LUCKY guy!!! There`s no better part of a build than putting the parts back on a painted shell. Its what keeps me going through each builds metal work, filler work and weeks of sanding....

The color looks great - even without the sun! I love a Z in grey or silver and there`s lots of tints available like yours with the green. I chose a Silver-blue from Mercedes for mine.

Looking forward to seeing it come together.

[Travel'n Man]

Chris -
You and Ted are knocking this project out - just saw your thread - fantastic job!

One thing I'll bring to your attention on the R200 3:90 diff. I just changed to a ZX 5 speed last year and found a R180 out of a truck (front diff) and that is what I am currently running. On the original 4 speeds they came with a standard diff. A popular upgrade was to go to the 3:54 diff with the 4 speed......a little faster off the line but a little higher on the RPM side at 60MPH. Same gear ratio is true with the ZX (Closed Ratio) 5 speed paired with a 3:9 - a little slower off the line. If you are looking for faster off the line you may want to look for a 4:11 before you do your install - I guess it really depends on how much 60-70 MPH interstate time you are spending vs in town cruising.............at this point I wish I would have moved on the 4:11 initially and not the 3.9 (most of my driving is on two lanes mountain roads and not interstates).

Again, great looking progress on your project......keep rock'n on!

[grannyknot]

Just about to spray the body

toxic mist

she comes home! Still can't see the green tint, might be this camera
Back in the shop


got some stuff installed, brake and gas lines,parking brake and R/T mount, wiring harness

Working on the rear end today and tomorrow.
Travel'n Man, I will be mostly driving highway so the 3.9:1 will work for me.

[EuroDat]

Hi Chris, I suppose at the rate you are going you will be driving it in a couple of days

The colour is awesome. It gives it that classic look. Exactly what it is.
Can't believe how quick the rebuild is going. Its really mind boggling.

Oh and good to see Ted back keeping an eye on things.

[bartsscooterservice]

Yeah at his rate he will be done next week lol ! Paintjob looks neat !

[grannyknot]

Good morning Z


Got the entire drivers side rear suspension and halfshaft in by 10am and was feeling good and then realized I forgot to install the bump stop on the shock...and that it all had to come apart again, the parking brake, the brake lines, the spindle pin, the halfshaft and spring, head in hands.
Ted left quickly as things started flying across the shop, now I'm short a trouble light as it took the brunt of the anger.
So I tore it all down, shoved the bump stop in and started the re-assembly. Trying to get the shock tower bolts into the holes for the second time was very frustrating and I guess I was banging the shock/ spring around too much and came within a couple of inches of toppling the whole car into my lap, just managed to push it back onto the stands before it went too far. The car is still quite light and unstable, got a good reminder of that today. So I wasted 4-5 hrs but I got it done.

[EuroDat]

Chris,

Good to hear you and the car are still in one piece after a frustrating day. We all go through now and again.
Its happens to me when Im focusing on the end result and not the task at hand.

The rear end looks good.

Chas

[Hardway]

Your progress is very motivating Chris. Don't feel bad about the bump stop, we have all been there and tools have become victims of frustration in the process. Keep up the good work and great pictures as you move along. We all love your thread!

[ksechler]

I have been through the assemble, disassemble, assemble again routine. I know exactly how you feel. Just keep your focus. It's part of the drill. It wouldn't do for things to be any less than perfect with all of the effort you have invested so far. One piece of advice I can give you, though is to use your floor jack when aligning the strut towers with the three mounting holes. You've already done the back but it might help with the front. I used my jack to take the struts weight. I aligned the bolts with my hands and then used my foot to pump the jack up until the bolts were through. It's an ambidextirous little dance but much easier than trying to lift and align the strut at the same time. Good luck!

[grannyknot]

Got the engine and tranny bolted together on the floor under the engine bay and was going to lift it up into place before dinner and thought I better get the transmission oil in first while the fill plug is easy to get at.


In a recent thread Blue posted an article on how to remove the old yellow look from plastics using Hydrogen peroxide, Oxi Clean and sunshine, so I though I would give it a try,

Prior to treatment

"You're soaking in it"


After 2 days continuous soaking in the sun,

Didn't do much that I can see, but then I'm sure the Canadian government has removed the good chemicals from the Oxi Clean in an effort to make all products as safe and useless as possible. I'll have to smuggle some of the good stuff back with me next time I go down
to the states.

[bartsscooterservice]

Ted left quickly as things started flying across the shop, now I'm short a trouble light as it took the brunt of the anger.
I was banging the shock/ spring around too much and came within a couple of inches of toppling the whole car into my lap, just managed to push it back onto the stands before it went too far. The car is still quite light and unstable, got a good reminder of that today.

Be carefull ! Ted is a real boss

[pacemkr]

Really enjoying this thread.
not sure why i dont stop reading and drive over for a visit since your only ten minutes away.lol
anyways, dont feel bad about the rear bump stop issue. I actually did the very same thing two days ago.
I had finished the complete front and back suspension and realized i still had two rear bump stops in the box.
luckily, with the eibach springs you don't need a spring compressor to remove or install them, so i just disconnected the park brake cable and the half shafts, and dropped each strut down while still connected to the spindle pin location. a little "fidgetty" but went pretty quick.

that's it, I'm coming over. call ya later today maybe.

[Dr. 240Z]

Got the engine and tranny bolted together on the floor under the engine bay and was going to lift it up into place before dinner and thought I better get the transmission oil in first while the fill plug is easy to get at.


In a recent thread Blue posted an article on how to remove the old yellow look from plastics using Hydrogen peroxide, Oxi Clean and sunshine, so I though I would give it a try,

Prior to treatment

"You're soaking in it"


After 2 days continuous soaking in the sun,

Didn't do much that I can see, but then I'm sure the Canadian government has removed the good chemicals from the Oxi Clean in an effort to make all products as safe and useless as possible. I'll have to smuggle some of the good stuff back with me next time I go down
to the states.

Try bathing (submerging) it in straight Javex or Chlorox bleach for 24 hours

Cheers,

George

[grannyknot]

George, have you tried soaking in straight bleach?

Not sure how I ended up with different driveshafts but I wasn't going to clean any of them until I found the one that fit the best, as it turned out the center one
was the best fit with R200 diff.


got some stuff done,

Did enough Murder mat to allow me to get the firewall insulation up

slave cylinder in, starter and steering rack in.

and got the engine and tranny up where they belong.


I have 5 more days before I go back to work so I'm pushing hard. Once work starts it goes back to being a weekend project.

[Dr. 240Z]

NO, to answer your question. So I just Googled it:

How to Whiten Yellowed Plastic | Cleaning Guides

Cheers,

George

[Travel'n Man]

Great progress!

[grannyknot]

After reading more than a few posts in the archives extolling how well the stock exhaust manifold breathes I thought I would work up my 1970 manifold. Ground out lots of metal and semi polished it to match the head.

Heated it to 300F then sprayed 3 coats of header paint then back in the oven at 500 for 20min.


Gas tank before install,


Carbs are now in as are the gas tank, fuel pump, regulator,
driveshaft, and exhaust.


Nothing sexy at all about the heater/blower but after removing,
restoring and installing I think I have spent 40+ hrs on this thing.

[Dr. 240Z]

Just curious as to how well your yellowed tank responded to the treatment as suggested by the method offered on Google

Cheers,

George

[e-tek]

I soak my plastics for restoration in Spray Nine overnight, then scrub well, then 50-50 Bleach overnight - works VERY well.

GREAT progress - tho even if I had as much time as you have while off work I wouldn't rush it - this is the payoff for all the hard work you did!

[grannyknot]

Just curious as to how well your yellowed tank responded to the treatment as suggested by the method offered on Google

Cheers,

George

I haven't tried it yet, I'm concerned that the bleach may weaken the material.
There is a local Z swap meet coming up soon, if I can find a second washer bottle then I'll give it a try and post the results.
Chris

[cbuczesk]

You might want to go with a braided fuel hose for behind the engine. My friend wrecked his Z and it pushed the engine into the firewall causing the fuel line to be cut. Fuel sprayed on the hot engine and...

Chuck

[grannyknot]

This working for pay sure gets in the way of working for fun.

Got the wheels back from the powder coaters last week, reassembled them and sent them out for new rubber and road force balancing. Here they are, the tires are Bridgestone Grid Potenza 215/60 R15 Should be a good compromise between comfort and grip. Besides, there is not much to choose from in this size.

Engine almost finished, finally got the new strut tower brace on.


Now I have to get the headliner and header vinyl in before the windshield, then the dash and then I can finally start it.

Chuck, your right about the fuel line, I had forgot that braided line is more than just bling.

[LeonV]

Looking good! That brace should tighten up the front.

[ollie]

Awesome work. Are those wheels Enkei 92s? If so, can you tell me about the center caps? Cheers!

[ollie]

Awesome work. Are those wheels Enkei 92s? If so, can you tell me about the center caps? Cheers!

[grannyknot]

Ollie, the wheels are Dyna-Lites sold by Alliance in the early 80s, the center caps came with them, I just cleaned them up, painted and put the Z stickers on them,
they are made out of fairly thin plastic.

[Rainman]

I need a strut tower brace like that for my 260Z.. Please let me know where you found that one. Thanks in advance!

[bartsscooterservice]

awesome work!

[EuroDat]

Thats a really nice strut brace. The car is starting to take shape and looking great.

[grannyknot]

I need a strut tower brace like that for my 260Z.. Please let me know where you found that one. Thanks in advance!

I made the front and rear strut bars last fall before I tore it all down so I could do all the test fitting without fear of wrecking the paint.
There is this one,Top End Datsun 240Z Front Ultimate Strut Tower Brace | eBay
It looks very strong.

[Rainman]

Nicely done! A good friend of mine is a great fabricator.. I'll let him sort it out and build one similar to yours once my car is running again.

Yours is much nicer than the one on Ebay, thanks very much for sharing!

[bartsscooterservice]

The only thing that horrifies me is what would happen with that strut tower in a frontal crash....

[EuroDat]

The only thing that horrifies me is what would happen with that strut tower in a frontal crash....

It probably wouldnt help safety much at all, but then again these cars wouldnt score well in a crash test anyway. The one I have seen that was in a front ender had the frame rails up through the floor.
I dont know if the square tubing would bend upward through the bonnet? I dont think Chris will want to put it to the test for us
Chas

[grannyknot]

Well if I ever get into a situation where I'm dodging frame rails and strut bars it's nice to know that the un-collapsible steering column will already be halfway through my chest and the rest just won't matter much.
Remember back in the 60's/70's when a NASCAR or F1 car crashed badly, the car wasn't in too bad of shape, fixable. The driver, not so good. Well the Z's we love fall right into that category.
But then I also ride motorcycles... safety is subjective.
Chris

[LeonV]

Well if I ever get into a situation where I'm dodging frame rails and strut bars it's nice to know that the un-collapsible steering column will already be halfway through my chest and the rest just won't matter much.
Remember back in the 60's/70's when a NASCAR or F1 car crashed badly, the car wasn't in too bad of shape, fixable. The driver, not so good. Well the Z's we love fall right into that category.
But then I also ride motorcycles... safety is subjective.
Chris

FWIW, the factory steering column IS collapsable.

[grannyknot]

FWIW, the factory steering column IS collapsable.

But in a 1970's version of what is collapsible. When I had my steering column apart this winter the outer column (which looks like the Micheln Man's john thomas) dropped off the work table on to the concrete floor, it rung like bell,
like a solid piece. But, even if it crushed like foam the 1/2" dia. tempered steel steering shaft will be perfectly usable after they pull me off of it.
Leon, just saw your wink. Hope you're joking.

[LeonV]

But in a 1970's version of what is collapsible. When I had my steering column apart this winter the outer column (which looks like the Micheln Man's john thomas) dropped off the work table on to the concrete floor, it rung like bell,
like a solid piece. But, even if it crushed like foam the 1/2" dia. tempered steel steering shaft will be perfectly usable after they pull me off of it.
Leon, just saw your wink. Hope you're joking.

I'm going off of the FSM:

The collapsible steering column is designed to be compressed under impact.