Hi ladies and gents.

 

I'm restoring an early 01/70 240z here...

 

looking to restore the original finish on some of the parts and fasteners, etc. Since it's close to a "paint" related question, i'm posting it here, but feel free to move it if incorrectly categorized!

 

The photos I have of the tear down are not detailed enough. I'm looking for some of the following things:

 

• brake lines and brake line bracket coatings (cad, yellow zinc, silver, dark green?)
• rear brake drums coatings (black, natural finish, clear coat?)
• rear differential coatings (all black? black housing, aluminum coloured cover plate with clear?)
• hood latch and door striker coatings (cad, yellow zinc, silver???)
• essentially, i'm looking to find, or refinish the items I have in their original finish

the car is essentially a shell, restored to original paint color, very well done. and now all the parts are on the floor and I've got to sort through them and refinish what needs refinishing and send out what can't be done here.

 

is this the right place to post this?

if not, can someone please steer me in the right direction?

if there are any historians that have access to some photos of certain items, I would love to speak to them, and compensate them for their time.

 

Thank you!

 

 

 

 

Greetings,

First I want to ask what you consider the difference between cad and yellow zinc.  Most of my recommendations are going to fall into the 'light yellow / gold / silver' range for describing the finish.  I have seen many attempts to replicate this finish.  Some are way too yellow / gold.  So for conversational purposes, 'zinc' is silver in color, 'cad' is that yellow / golden / silvery color.

 

Brake lines and mounting hardware are cad.

 

Rear brake drums are unfinished natural aluminum.

 

The differential is painted semi-gloss black - all of it.

 

The hood latch mechanism is cad.  The door latches are zinc.

 

Most all of the suspension hardware including the drivetrain mounting hardware is cad.  The compression rod washers are zinc.  Originally, the inspected , torqued, mounting hardware for the suspension and drivetrain was brushed in yellow paint however the compression rod hardware was red paint

Is there a resource outside of talking with Z historians about this information? Are the "how to rebuild your datsun z car" books any good at describing the OE finish on most of these items?

Nix240z can probably tell you the stock finish on every fastener on the car...he has replated everything on his car from the headlamp buckets and window regulators to the hardware in the heater box...

Charles

Is he a regular on here?

I guess a better question regarding the plating/coating of certain fasteners is whether or not it makes more sense to just buy them from the dealership. I have the electronic catalog and can just hand off a QTY number and the part number and just wait for them to come in... It will probably end up being the same price anyways.

 

That's for the fasteners at least... There are other items that were not documented by the person who did the tear-down.

Yes Steve contributes fairly regularly. He just posted yesterday in the "What did you do today" thread. Fresh hardware is not cheap. I don't know if it is cheaper to order new or get replated Norm who's website escapes me I believe has almost all of it available...

Thanks for all your help, fellas!

 

I understand it would be possibly cheaper to plate everything, but the car is undergoing a full resto, and there are tons of parts here that have been previously purchased for a car of a different year that cannot be used, so those will be auctioned/sold to cover the cost of the new hardware.

 

The problem I've had with plate/coating suppliers is that they tend to "lose" stuff at the bottom of the bin, or their plating is spotty at best. Some are really good, but i've got the entire front and rear suspension here on the floor awaiting hardware and installation. If I were to send it out for plating, that pushes the restoration back considerably as far as my weekly schedule that I have outlined for such items.

At least if a portion of the hardware comes direct from Nissan, I can install the components as laid out, and swap out the remainder of the bolts once they get here from the dealer or from the plating facility. 

 

Is it taboo to just message someone out of the blue for such help. frowned upon on this forum in any way/shape/form, or should I wait for said individual to notice my thread?

 

PM him...maybe point him to the thread so it can be documented for all.

C

Hi everyone,

 

So I've been wire wrapping some items and I found that for the brake lines, the best course of action is to take an M10 x 1.0 Female Union (Part #3059 at your local parts place, as it's the most common supplier part number), and take a 1/8 NPT plug bushing. I then chucked it in the vice very gently, lined one side with flux, tightened the 1/8NPT plug bushing down, and applied LEAD solder (not silver) to the bushing and union fitting.This generates a good seal and will prevent any of the zinc or cad plating from getting inside the lines, as I was advised by the plater to do so- removing a coating from the inside is near impossible to do easy.

 

Which brings me to my next problem... I have gently rounded the fuel lines along their longest/straightest potion because the tank is a max of 7 feet long. The fuel lines are over that, so I gently curved them to about 6 feet lenght. 

But now I have to cap off the lines. How does one do so with no fittings to tighten against? Can I use rubber injection hose and some worm clamps and plugs to cap them off? I know that plastic is safe for the the coating tank, but is rubber?

And it looks like I have a new Intake/Carb plenum that is waaaaay off on the orange colour. Anyone know the ideal restoration colour or where to get it? Datsun Parts LLC does not have the paint, but I will be ordering the engine block colour from them tonight.

And it looks like I have a new Intake/Carb plenum that is waaaaay off on the orange colour. Anyone know the ideal restoration colour or where to get it? Datsun Parts LLC does not have the paint, but I will be ordering the engine block colour from them tonight.

 

I got the powder coat match for the intake filter plenum and cover, as well as the cream-coloured metal radiator fan.

If anyone is interested, I can see about ordering a larger volume of powder and selling it to anyone who has a local powder coater. 

The match I have for the orange is an exact match, the radiator fan color is extremely close if not perfect as well.

 

I can post photos once I get this one done.