1970 Z Refresh...biting the bullet

[motorman7]

I need to replace the rubber cowl seal under the hood. Any tricks to getting this off without disturbing the paint? Any recommended glue for putting the new one on?

Thanks,

Rich

[g9m3c]

I need to replace the rubber cowl seal under the hood. Any tricks to getting this off without disturbing the paint? Any recommended glue for putting the new one on?

Thanks,

Rich

3M weatherstrip adhesive. Should be in a little black tube at your local parts store. As far as getting the old one off, you might try to peel the rubber off of one side of the cowl flange at a time. Slowly. Peel it off like you would tape from a paint job; at an upwards angle. Hopefully it'll just peel off. I'd think anything you would use to soften the glue wouldn't be friends with your paint. Maybe use a little heat from a hair dryer.

[motorman7]

3M weatherstrip adhesive. Should be in a little black tube at your local parts store. As far as getting the old one off, you might try to peel the rubber off of one side of the cowl flange at a time. Slowly. Peel it off like you would tape from a paint job; at an upwards angle. Hopefully it'll just peel off. I'd think anything you would use to soften the glue wouldn't be friends with your paint. Maybe use a little heat from a hair dryer.

Thanks for the help there. The adhesive works great but is very hard to use. It drys fast and is very rubbery. Fun to peel off your fingers if you have the time.

I replaced some of the electrical connectors at both the coil and the firewall. The originals had turned yellow and looked bad. I replaced them with some new ones from Banzai motor works. Looks a bit nicer and closer to original. Now I just need to get that battery ground cable corrected.

Also, sent the valve cover out to get glass bead blasted. I look forward to getting that. the motor should look pretty sweet once that is done. The only question on that is how to protect the finish.

And, I have really gone off the deep end here. I just put down a $200 deposit on a modified 71 240 Z. The body is silver and in decent shape. Black spook in front, small black rear spoiler. The motor is a 260Z motor hooked up to a 5 speed; Tokico shocks, limited slip defferential, MSA header and exhaust. I will pick it up Monday and attach photos. The plan is to clean it up a bit and use it as my daily driver.

Rich

[=Enigma=]

To protect the finish on the freshly blasted valve cover, spray it with a very light coat of clear enamel to seal the pores. Don't go too heavy or it will be glossy and eventually it will yellow and peel from expansion and contraction. Note that this could hilight color or texture inconsistencies in the material but there's not much you can do about that aside from polishing the whole thing to an even shine.

Edited August 16, 2009 by =Enigma=

[motorman7]

The engine refresh is now complete. The valve cover was bead blasted and a light coat of clear enamel sprayed over top. Battery ground cable has been replaced.

The only outstanding issue at this point is the air galley. It discolored due to engine temp. I spoke with an expert in plating and he said that once above 150 deg C, the yellow chromate will discolor. He said this will happen on both cad or zinc base. He recommended a clear coat after the plating to help reduce the effects of the heat. I will send him one of my extra air galleys and see how this goes. Also, will close off the ends of the tubes feeding the galley. Hopefully this reduces the discoloration. I am not running the smog pump which is probably part of the problem.

[five&dime]

Exquisite!!! Such a well executed job!!

[Zedyone_kenobi]

That is just simply magnificent. Its the one big project for my Z I need to do. The engine bay refresh will be the last mountain I have to climb.

[g9m3c]

It looks amazing!

[d240zx2]

You've done a tremendous job, Motorman7. Beautiful!!

Frank

[Travel'n Man]

Stunning...........amazing job and well done.

[motorman7]

I have finally come to resolution on the Air Galley. I ordered a new one from MSA and replaced the discolored one (which also had a small dent/fold in it because I tried to remove the smog checkvalve(?) without putting a wrench on the air galley flats. This was a tough decision as it is the only non-original part on the car that has been replaced that is not rubber). I also decided to run my smog pump in order to keep the tubes cooler. I know it is a sacrifice to the perfomance, but I have a suped up '71Z to fill that void. I ran the motor for 5 minutes with no noticeable discoloration. This was a really good sign. So, the plan is to keep it this way as I like the results. So, the engine refresh is now complete.

Next Item on the agenda is to restore the steering wheel.

[JohnnyO]

Is the finish on the air gallery still holding up?

John