Hardway's Red Rocket 1972 240z Build Thread

[Hardway]

Last night I resolved something that has bothered me ever since I started working in the engine bay... the absolute sorry state of the brake booster vacuum hose.  Every time I touched it or breathed hard near it, more of the deteriorating braided fabric would crumble off or leave some part of my skin or clothing dirty.  This is no surprise since it is the original hose and I am sure many others are dealing with the same issue. 

Leaning on the replacement hose experience that AZ-240z made me for my series-1 240z, I knew I could make a new one on my own.  I pulled out some solid copper wire I had laying around and straightened a 16" piece of it with my bench vise.

I inserted the copper wire in to some 3/8 inch fuel vapor hose and started bending.  After about 10 minutes I was pretty happy with the overall shape. I left both ends a little long so I could trim them to fit once they were on the car.

I did the same for the smaller hose and used a piece of 4" copper wire at each end to accomplish the bends.  With the hoses on the car I did some trimming and adjusting so they fit right.  While I was at it I installed some freshly yellow zinc plated original style hose clamps to add a little bling.  The end result is not factory or restoration accurate but it is worlds better than what was on the car and fully functional.

A few things to note from my personal experience.  This was actually the second booster hose I made.  When I did the first I used 24 inches 1/4" copper tubing which is much easier to bend and I recommend it over the solid copper wire.  However, 24 inches was too much and I had no way to cut it down or push it out once I had formed the hose.  When pushing the copper in to the hose, make sure you push it in far enough so it does not interfere with the ports that each end will go on to.  That is why you really only need 16 inches of copper.   Of course this makes bending the curves on the ends a little challenging but it is do-able.  The best part of this project is if you completely mess up, the cost to try again is minimal.  Additionally, you are saving yourself a lot of money over buying some pre-molded hose unless you truly need restoration caliber hoses, in that case be prepared to pony up.

Next up is my modified choke cable project.  Stay tuned and Merry Christmas everyone!

Edited December 22, 2017 by Hardway

[240260280]

Carbs look great too!

[Hardway]

1 hour ago, 240260280 said:

Carbs look great too!

Thank you Phil!  Couldn't have done it without the work you did on the books and articles.

[Hardway]

The Red Rocket Z is finally getting some attention after many months of my 1988 560SEC (the German Mistress) getting all of my time and money.  Last weekend I started digging into the engine to replace the timing chain.  I had originally thought about pulling the engine to do this but I knew that once I did my case of "while I am at it-itis" would kick in and the car would be torn down for a complete restoration.  As I started removing components it became evident someone has been here before as two water pump bolts were missing.  Further investigation revealed that one was truly missing and the other is broken off in the timing cover.  A few questions have also come up around the position of the oil pump distributor rod.  I know the position of this is critical but the car ran with it at this position so I will likely re-install it at this position too.  The engine is a 280z block and I am running a Mallory distributor.  The engine is at TDC and the rotor is pointing to plug #1.  The sprocket is pictured the way I found it and the silver chain link is no where to be found.  The original chain has diamonds on every link.  My new Cloyes timing chain is blank.  With everything apart I compared the old timing chain to the new and they are the exact same length so the chain was not stretched like I thought.  The plunger was intact but with everything removed I could see the rails are toast. When I re-assemble everything, should I move the sprocket so the alignment dowel is in the #1 hole?  From what I have read, the different holes are utilized to correct the timing due to timing stretch.  I took Phil's advise and bought a new timing cover bolt kit and have also discovered I need to buy a new harmonic balancer.  The rubber seal on my is starting to show its age and needs to be replaced.

 

[zeeboost]

If you want to verify true TDC, use a piston stop and make your own marks on the crank pulley. Then once you have it lined up at TDC on the crank, line up the cam notch with the #1 slot. There's a certain number of links between the cam/crank marks, but I forget how many (instead of just going by the shiny links). But instead you can just assemble all the timing components together, rotate the crankshaft two revolutions (clockwise) and make sure the cam/crank line up in the same spots. 

Also i must be looking at the distributor picture wrong because it doesn't look like the rotor is facing #1 on the cap, that should be towards the radiator. 

Edited July 29, 2018 by zeeboost

[Hardway]

11 minutes ago, zeeboost said:

Also i must be looking at the distributor picture wrong because it doesn't look like the rotor is facing #1 on the cap, that should be towards the radiator. 

That is where I thought it should be pointing too but I double checked it on the cap and the #1 wire is located there.  I guess I could install the the oil pump rod so it allows the rotor to point at 8 to 9 o'clock position and just move the wires.  However, the car ran like this so I plan to reassemble it the way it came apart unless someone provide an overwhelming reason not to.

[zeeboost]

If it was a tooth or so off on the distributor drive / worm gear, somebody may have just shifted the distributor or wires around to get the ignition timing back in range. And judging by the broken / missing bolts in the timing cover, I wouldn't put it past them.

I vote that since you have everything apart and will be properly re-assembling it, that you put everything back where you know is supposed to go and then see what happens. 

Edited July 29, 2018 by zeeboost

[Namerow]

10 hours ago, Hardway said:

Further investigation revealed that one was truly missing and the other is broken off in the timing cover.

I wonder how many thousands of Z's suffered from this particular affliction.  The problem bolt is the 10mm (M6) item located at the 10:30 position...

x

I think that innocent-looking bolt head probably fools a lot of first-timers because it conceals the fact that the hole in the timing cover is just a pass-through, with the bolt actually threading into the front face of the engine block.  That means there's an inch or so of freestanding length sitting proud of the block face -- permitting just enough wind-up under wrenching torque to trick you into thinking that the threaded part is starting to move.  And then.... 'SNAP'.

Just for fun, I simulated the set-up by locking a 10mm bolt (6mm shank) in my bench vise and then using an old-style torque wrench to see how much torque it would take to snap the bolt. I located the start of the threaded section right at the face of the vise jaws, with the 1-1/2" unthreaded length sitting about the jaws.  IIRC, the bolt broke at under 10 lb-ft! .   I was just using a hardware store bolt, but I don't expect that the Nissan OE bolt would offer much more than double the strength.  So the threshold between, 'I think it's moving' and 'uh-oh' is about 15 to 20 lb-ft.  If the bolt was infinitely strong, I'll bet it would take 30 - 40 lb-ft to break the frozen threads free.  So it looks like a losing proposition if your only solution consists of leaning on the wrench just a little harder. 

Just for comparison's sake, the bolt torque reference chart for ISO fasteners that's included in Wick Humble's 'How to Restore Your Datsun Z-Car' indicates that the recommended tightening torque for a Grade 4 (per the OE Nissan item) M6 bolt is just 2.5 lb-ft!  (and only 6 - 8 lb-ft for the heavy-duty, Gr. 9 version).  The L-Series FSM is notably silent on recommended tightening torques for these types of secondary fasteners.  What a contrast!  Install = finger-tight.  Remove = beyond snapping point..  

The two other 10mm bolts have their own problems.  Just like certain other bolts on the L-Series engine, you have a steel bolt threaded into an aluminum casting, so internal corrosion sets up because of the dissimilar metals.  

I've had good luck with these timing cover bolts on two different engines by using a small, handheld impact driver and a medium-size mechanic's hammer.  Just takes a bit of patience (along with removing the radiator). 

[Hardway]

Some more progress and some more discoveries.  I captured a picture of the cover with the bolts pointing to their home for a reference.  I had already labeled the others on my bench.  Much like all others it was covered in grime.  An initial cleaning got a lot off but a final cleaning it still needed.  On a good note, there are no broken bolts in the timing cover or the block including the 10mm at the 10:30 position as referenced above.  I cleaned out the one hole in the block that I thought had a broken bolt in it.  Turned out it was packed with orange gasket sealant.  A sharp pick got most of it out and all threads will receive a good clean out with a tap before everything is reassembled.  Unfortunately one of the water neck bolts snapped off.  I currently have some ATF and Acetone sitting on it and had fed it a few times this evening.  I will feed it some more in the morning before heading to work and try to get it out with some heat tomorrow evening.   Any thoughts on my harmonic balancer?  My search has uncovered that no one makes an original style balancer and the aftermarket stuff from MSA and Z Car Depot do not accept stock Datsun pulleys should I ever decide to install A/C in the car.

[240260280]

Tap the bolt with a small hammer to shock it.

Heat the aluminum around the stuck bolt with a propane torch (not MAP that will melt the aluminum). ~ 2min.

Wire brush the margin where the alu and the bolt threads meet then spray penetrating oil on the margin.

Repeat twice.

It should come out easy

 

[Hardway]

I was one step ahead of you 240260280 as that was my prescription for removing it.  Some heat and a little counter-clock wise pressure with some vise grips and the bolt saw things my way.  I did not hit it with a hammer as the heat and penetrating fluid did its job.  It actually came out easier than I expected.  Nice to have it crossed off the list so I can do a final clean up on it before laying down some paint.

[Hardway]

A quick update.  I got the engine out yesterday with the help of my friend's 13 year old son.  He is in to all kinds of car and jumped at the chance to work on something old and interesting.   It took us a few hours but it came out with little drama.  Next up is to remove the carbs, intake, exhaust manifold, and anything else that Kevin at the Z Clinic does not need.  Once it is down to just the the block and head I am going to clean it up really good so it is not so nasty to transport.  I am going to have him get the timing chain and cam geometry corrected as well as install an Isky Stage-2 cam that I purchased from a good friend now that he has gone to a Stage-3.  

With the engine out I plan to do a lot of clean up, replace the steering rack bushings, and decide just how much I want to remove to paint the engine bay.  Still need to pick a color too.  Seeing that the paint on the body is a 4 at best I may just satin black it for now.  The original color of the car is silver which one day it may return to that but even in its sad state the red looks really sporty.