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All: Here are a few photos of my recent gas tank restoration. My tank was a real wreck with severe rust pitting where the mounting straps went. You could see daylight when looking through the filler neck. Try as I might I couldn't find a suitable replacement. That left me no choice but to weld on patches. Welding on a gas tank isn't exactly a good idea so you can imagine I was pretty nervous. To prepare the tank I cleaned it up, rinsed it several times, blew a lot of compressed air through it and then filled it with argon. Everything went well and I didn't blow up. I will be lining the tank prior to installation. Enjoy the pictures!

Thank you all for the ideas/ information! I think I'm going to try a machine shop to clean it up and repair it.

That looks great! I've sealed 2 with Red-Kote, it's much easier and cheaper than the Por-15 sealer. $30 at local auto parts store, O'Reilly's, or you can get off e-bay.

Why a ZX motor? Because "they" say that the later ZX motors are a little better than the previous years. Basically, I turned up a running ZX motor that has the P79 head with the F54 block and the flat top pistons. A combo which is desirable. I figured that if I was going to be swapping motors, I may as well try to find one of those. So about a year ago I bought an 83 280ZX for the motor and it's been sitting in the driveway since. I haven't yet had the proper opportunity yet to move the motor over to my 77. It's on the list for this off season. So at this point, the short answer is... Because that's what I have?

The calipers, pads and front rotors are almost done. The wheel cylinders/ drums look in good condition but it had no pedal pressure when I bought it... so I'm thinking start with bleeding the brakes ( I read up on the proper 'fart method' in the forum) and if that doesn't work I'll replace the booster and master cylinder. I found a suprise when I removed the drivers front rotor- the threads on the end of the spindle that attaches to the strut assembly are chewed up and I'm having a terrible time trying to source that. I have the original gas tank- previous owner said there was a lot of sludge in it and there is rust all through the inside of it, so he put a small gas tank in the hatch. I'm sending the original out to be cleaned professionally and then I'll reinstall it with with new hoses. The fumes in the hatch are killing me slowly so I'm not running it til then.

Welcome, been to a lot of Central Ohio Z Club events, Nice people.

Welcome! Funny how many people's dream car is a 72 240Z. Mine too!

It is a spindle. I didn't see any on ebay right now. You could buy it from ZCarSource.com, some other used parts place, or post on Facebook in Datsun parts & needs or 240Z 260Z 280Z lovers. Just be sure you get one for a 240Z or early 260Z.

Welcome to Classic Zs. One of the best tricks I've learned from this forum, mix half Acetone and half ATF in a spray bottle for frozen bolts. It works great and is cheaper than anything you'll find. I'm so impatient I usually just wait 10 minutes or so and they'll break free but the best thing is to spray whatever the night before.