Hardway's 1971 240z #8011 - Build and Repair Thread

[Hardway]

Thank you for all the compliments guys!  Everyone's encouragement is what helps keeps the cars going and projects moving forward.

 

 

I must admit, it was a huge bummer to have to pull the head.  When I bought the car last year I paid a premium for it based on the fact the engine had been rebuilt.  I honestly don't know if the previous owner knew what method the shop used to rebuild the head so I don't hold it against him.  He owns a large garage and I am sure does business with a number of shops for work like this but I am considering bringing this to his attention as I know he is already working on another Z.

 

 

On the head gasket, I am planning to use a Fel-Pro with a light coating of copper coat on each side.  My machinist said I should not have any issues with it. I could go Cometic if I wanted and they do offer the ability to be re-used.  Since I staying stock he felt confident that with the right prep and torque procedure I should be just fine.

 

 

The valves are from Manley I believe, I would have to double check the paper work.  The combustion chamber might be a little smaller but probably not much to make a difference.  I talked about this with the machinist and he said my CR might go up a hair but nothing to warrant any modifications and probably would not notice any change in power.  All of this work was for increasing reliability and the longevity of the motor.  I guess that is another hard part to get over. Anytime I spend over $1,000 on a component of a car I usually expect it to go faster, stop quicker, or look better.  In this case, all of the beauty will be hidden but I will sleep better at night knowing it is "right" and will provide many miles of trouble-free service.

 

 

On the large number of "Today" posts.  I actually type up everything in a Word document first and paste all the links to my pictures.  This way I can work on it and come back to it as I please, make changes, check spelling, etc.  I could have posted up stuff a few weeks ago but I like sharing milestones and accomplishments.  Statuses are always nice but accomplishments are much more interesting, even if someone else did all the work. This weekend should be productive so I will have more to share next week.

Edited June 5, 2015 by Hardway

[rossiz]

Anytime I spend over $1,000 on a component of a car I usually expect it to go faster, stop quicker, or look better.  In this case, all of the beauty will be hidden but I will sleep better at night knowing it "right" and will provide many miles of trouble-free service.

 

some jobs are like that.

 

my buddy spent $25K replacing his old galvanized steel plumbing w/copper, and would always bemoan the fact that nobody every noticed or seemed to care that water came out of the faucet since it was simply expected, yet if he'd spent $25 on a gallon of paint for the front hallway everyone would say "wow!" as soon as they walked in...

 

but YOU will know 

[siteunseen]

some jobs are like that.

 

my buddy spent $25K replacing his old galvanized steel plumbing w/copper, and would always bemoan the fact that nobody every noticed or seemed to care that water came out of the faucet since it was simply expected, yet if he'd spent $25 on a gallon of paint for the front hallway everyone would say "wow!" as soon as they walked in...

 

but YOU will know 

That's my life!  I've got a $7,500 lawn mower and my yard looks just like my neighbors. 

[Captain Obvious]

Yeah, that's my life too. I spent untold hours this past off season putting in headlight relays, a starter relay, and converting over to the internally regulated alternator. My Z's headlights work, it starts when you turn the key, and the alternator charges the battery.

 

Just like before I did all that work.

 

But I know....

[Hardway]

Last weekend I set about the task of getting the repaired cylinder head back on.  Part of me had put this off for a week as I waited for a new manifold stud set from MSA.  As I was chasing out the threads and installing the old studs I realized the ones that came out were not in best of shape and some were pretty galled from re-use.  Needless to say the new stud set is worth every penny and the ease at which they went in to the head made the time chasing all the threads well worth it.

 

 

 

 

Based on the advice from my machinist and others here are the forums I applied several thin coats of Copper Coat spray to the head gasket.  The gasket is a regular Fel-Pro piece and is exactly what came off the car when I pulled the head.  Since I had not experienced any issues with it and based on the copper residue from before I figured why not try for a repeat success.

 

[Hardway]

With a helping hand from my wife we got the head back on and I went through a torque sequence of 30-45-60.  The turbo bolts indicate you can go to 65 but my machinist said there is no need to go beyond the factory 60 ft pounds.  I waited 30 minutes in between torque sequences and spent the time mounting up the various components such as the exhaust manifold, cooling lines, etc.

 

 

 

With everything going back together and the cam sprocket back on I was feeling good about my progress.  Then as I tried to remove the wedge from in between the timing chain the reality started to sink in that it is not going to come out before the string breaks.  It was at this time I walked away and took a break to re-evaluate my options.

 

 

I knew I needed something more substantial to pull on and I just happen to have a scrap piece of red wire on my bench.  Using near surgical precision and patience I got the wire threaded through the hole in the wedge.  After a few brisk pulls it finally came out.  Crisis averted, back to Defcon 5.

 

[Hardway]

With the wedge drama over everything else went back together at a good pace.  I did an initial valve adjustment, .008 on the intake and .010 on the exhaust, got the valve cover back on, and proceeded to turn the key.

 

 

 

The car started with almost no hesitation but I quickly noticed a problem, more like heard a problem.  The valve train was tapping rather loud with no sign of going away.  Doing a quick check to ensure nothing was leaking out I turned it off and called it a day.  At this point I had about 6 hours in the garage, the humidity was at 95%, and I was done.  I figured I either missed a valve or didn’t do something right from being fatigued. 

 

Fast forward to this morning and with a slightly lower temp and humidity from last weekend I planned to perform a more thorough valve adjustment.  Before I got started I took 10 minutes to make some handles for my feeler gauges.  I got tired of just using the gauges by themselves as I never fail to drop one during a valve adjustment or once they have some oil on them they stick to my fender mat.  You can buy nicer handles for $10 - $20 online but using some scrap wood trim and hardware from my on hand inventory I might have $1 in both of these.  They quickly proved to be TOTALLY WORTH IT and I high recommend everyone make themselves a pair.

 

 

As I went through the valve adjustment sure enough, I missed one of the exhaust valves, it had no clearance at all.  I easily got it in to spec and double checked all the others.  With the valve cover back on everything buttoned up I turned the key.  Just like last time it started with no hesitation but unfortunately the tapping persists. 

 

I started a separate thread below over in the Engine section and posted some videos.  For now I am going to see what other owners say and will call my machinist on Monday to get his thoughts on it.   

 

http://www.classiczcars.com/topic/51743-240z-valve-train-tapping-after-head-work-videos-inside/

 

[Travel'n Man]

Great thread - it takes passion and patience to bring a car back to this level.  Most of us have battled the battle at one point or another with our dedication to our cars.  Keep up the great work and pics.

[Captain Obvious]

Using the template found on Californiaparts.net I made my own timing chain wedge using a piece of 3/4 inch scrap wood.  I made sure to sand all the edges so it would not splinter in the engine.

 

 

Hardway, Have you got a link to the template you used to make your timing chain wedge? I looked for Californiaparts.net and came up blank.

 

Better yet, have you got a copy of the drawing template you used that you could post here?

[siteunseen]

[siteunseen]

Hard to beat this one though at $13, http://www.amazon.com/Alltrade-648831-Nissan-Timing-Holding/dp/B0002Q8TV4

 

I used a long screwdriver handle the first time I took on off, damn near couldn't get it out.  Bought one of these, slick as butter going in and coming back out. 

Edited July 3, 2015 by siteunseen

[Captain Obvious]

Excellent. Thanks for the pic and the tip to that one on Amazon.