240z rebuild / restoration right down to the shell

[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,

Edited February 2, 2013 by grannyknot

[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.

Edited February 7, 2013 by grannyknot

[grannyknot]

Here is the thread I was referring to, http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/body-paint-s30/48317-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 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.:classic:

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.LOLLOL

Chas

[240260280z]

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.