1976 280Z Restoration Project

[ksechler]

On 2/24/2017 at 11:07 AM, wheee! said:

I might just do that. I ordered the coil overs with camber plates already and I will be using the TTT lower control arms that are quite adjustable.
My plan for tires and wheels was a set of Rota RB 16x8 or 9 and a 225 60r16. Offset I'm not sure of. I was planning on a factory order as I will also be going 5x114.3 with the big brake kit.
Rolling the fenders might help, but might not be necessary. I would like to run about -1.2 camber in the rear and -1.7 in the front.

So...I feel like there's some urban legend associated with tire widths here.  I did a lot of research for my project and got into the rub - no rub debate.  I'm going to tell you - for sure - that 225's will rub in a 1976 280z and fender rolling might not be enough.  I rolled my fenders and the tires still rubbed.  Ultimately I added flares, but I really wish I hadn't.  If I have it to do over again I'd just run some sticky 205's.  Unless you are putting down stupid HP, 205's will give you what you need.  I drove Eiji's white 240z (Datsun Spirit) with his latest motor and that car must be over 300 HP.  It's sitting on 205's and wouldn't spin even with WOT.  There was plenty of grip for a light car.  Just some food for thought.  

[wheee!]

Camber will help. But too much is too much... I will have some adjustment room with the TTT control arms too. I can also go with 7 or 8 " wheels instead of 9. I am not trying to go as wide as possible, just trying to get the right tire diameter for the speedo after I upgrade to the 16" wheel to accommodate the big brake kit.

 

[wheee!]

Well, after a lot of soul searching and hand wringing, I think I have reached a decision regarding the wheels and brakes. I was going to go with the Arizona Z Car track brakes in 5 bolt pattern, but now I feel I will be happier with the 4 bolt pattern brakes they sell and then going with the 16x8 +4mm ET ROTA RB wheels and 225/50R16 tires. This will give me adequate clearance, no rubbing and lots of meaty tire tread.

This should look better than the 5 bolt wheels in the end too... More period correct.

[wheee!]

Rough cut for the shock towers. Looks good and the strut brace I add later will reinforce from the top too.

[Patcon]

I like the cut, very neat. No raggedness...

[wheee!]

I followed the contour of the reinforcing plate with a jigsaw, then a pencil tip grinder. I will clean it up a bit more before I am done. But yeah, I wanted to see the top of the coil overs for both practical and aesthetic reasons...
I still have 3/16" of metal above the 1/2" thick camber plate on the coil overs. I am thinking I will be good for strength. That plus a strut rod later...

[wheee!]

Completed all four corners tonight. The rear towers are a little different but still totally functional now.

Fronts:

 

Open rear hole:

 

With coil over installed.

 

[gwri8]

Baby got her first Bling!

[wheee!]

Not the first, but definitely the most expensive so far...

[wheee!]

Not much to report this week... a lot of cleanup grinding and small welds. I also started cleaning off the rest of the body filler and paint from the rear quarters etc that hadn't been touched yet. Huge mess in the shop as the bondo is so thick in places I almost need a grinder to remove it.

The metal underneath is not too bad, but someone had made small repairs a long time ago, then added bondo and paint. Then someone added more bondo and paint. Rinse and repeat four or five times.... I will be glad when it is all gone and I can clean the shop up.

Next I am hoping to start the full cleaning process of the body. Blast out the remaining dust, debris and sandblasting media that has been trapped for the last year. Wipe down all the metal surfaces with degreaser and paint prep, clean all remaining adhesive residue off of the interior metal surfaces and prep for epoxy primer. The plan is to have the entire bottom, engine compartment and interior of the shell primed with epoxy. Possibly the rest of it if I can work around the rotisserie well enough. Then I can start seam sealing and body work where needed. The bottom of the car will be painted body colour and clear coated so it needs to be nice!

[sweatybetty]

a small torch makes bondo removal easy.

[wheee!]

Yikes! Nope. I got it all off tonight with the EZ strip wheel. Down to bare metal except for a very small patch near the rear bumper that is blocked by the rotisserie.
Took a little time cleaning up the shop then looked at the wheel wells. Grabbed a body hammer and started rolling the fenders in. Did a pretty nice job of it and I think it will look and work fine with my wheel and tire choice.
Didn't get any more pics tonight so I'll have to do that later. Tomorrow night I have a little more grinding and welding to do. Small repairs and cleanup.