Exdamyankee

Mine is in the shop right now being stripped to bare metal and painted. The job was quoted to me for a shade over $3500, which I think is a steal considering the scope of the work: Remove glass & trim Strip to bare metal Repair a half dozen dings and imperfections Prime Block Sand & fill (repeat as necessary) Paint in DuPont Chroma-Base (2 colors, metallic gray for the stripes, titanium silver for the rest of the car) Paint & mount MSA Type II body kit. I shopped for a while before settling on this bid. I'd been quoted as much as twice that amount for the job. As the work progresses I'm dropping in on the shop and inspecting the job--I am pleased so far. Good luck, I think you can get what you want, it's just a matter of finding a shop that does good work and is hungry for the business.

Wild looking ride!!! It's kind of like the visual equivalent of a two-by-four to the forehead. A little "over the top" for my taste, but that's what makes the world go round :-) That bad boy must get some serious attention, wherever it goes!

I tried to avoid using the thick spacers because I heard that they don't allow the proper flat washer-lock washer-nut, although I did not try it. I am sure that lots of people have had this exact problem. But, I didn't find much info on it searching. So, hopefully the next person will find the two solutions: use thick spacers, or experiment with a combination linkage setup. Yes, you need to use the longer studs as well. And I was a dumbazz for not figuring that out until after I already had the carbs on. Had a bear of a time pulling the studs from the old manifold, there were a couple that would just not let go. So, I went down to the local Screwz-R-Us and found a bin with the correct length studs. All is well now, I'm pleased to report!

I had the same problem when I switched from flats to roundtops. You need to use the thick spacers from the old roundtop setup, it won't line up right with the flattop spacers.

Actually, we all HAVEN'T stolen things from a junkyard, and what you choose to give away to others has no bearing on the discussion of what someone DIDN'T give permission for you to take. You don't have the money for it? Well isn't that the reason most petty thieves steal anything? You don't get a pass because just you have a need and no money-and if that yard "charges crazy" you need to be visiting a different yard. DAMN, I mean, really! If I've got a cracked dizzy cap and have no money can I walk into Discount Auto Parts and pocket one? It's the same thing. If you go into a man's business and take walk out with product without paying for it, it's theft, pure and simple. It may not be as clean and pretty as the new parts in the store, but it's the JY is a business nonetheless, and the stuff there is merchandise nonetheless. It isn't alright, and frankly the attitude that it is or that "others do it" disgusts me.

Not a chance, Dave. Not enough oxygen=no boom. Believe it or not, liquid gasoline is not easy to combust. I've put cigarettes out in gasoline before. It is the VAPOR that ignites, and only in the presence of enough oxygen for the reaction to take place. You most certainly can "drown" a cylinder with too much fuel and not have it fire. Spark a 100,000 volts if you want in a cyinder full of raw fuel--without enough O2 all you'll have is...spark.

I like the rear panel body color, but only *prefer* it on a car with an integrated bumper body kit, like the MSA Type 2 I'm going to be putting on this summer. With the chrome bumpers, I definitely like the factory "suede" finish dark gray.

I just swapped out a broken stud last month, and it coudn't have been simpler. Knocked the old one out with the trusty BFH, then slipped the new one in from the back, set it in place by screwing a lugnut on a few turns until it started to seat, then backed off the nut, mounted up the wheel, and just torqued the new stud into place with the lug nut using nothing more than the stock lug wrench. Worked perfectly. No special tools or anything.

I'm no expert on motor builds, but I suspect a number of factors could be in play. If your engine's clearances were marginal to begin with, thermal expansion & rod stretch at 8000 rpm could create a contact issue where there may be none at idle. Crank deflection at high RPM might be a possibility too. We're only talking a couple thousandths, but like I said, if it was borderline to begin with it may be the case. You pull the head yet?

You are using the wide carb spacers for the roundtops, not the skinny ones from the flattops, right? Otherwise, your linkage will be too long and not let the carbs return all the way down to zero throttle. I learned this the hard way when I swapped out my flattops!

Concur with 240ZGL. A 3.1 stroker can run 50s. A stroked L24 still won't have more than the displacement of a stock L28, and the biggest thing I would put on an L28 for normal street use would probably be 45's, with 38mm chokes. 3.1 strokers are expensive motors! Go with 40's if you want trips on your L24, kcoke.

A little confused, you say "stock engine" and then add "racing cam" & headers. News flash, you're not "stock" anymore! Depending on the cam, and how well the head flows on your motor, I'd say the 50's are either way too big or borderline too big. Overcarburetion doesn't help performance, it hurts it. If you try to jet down the big 50's you'll most likely have abysmal part throttle and low rpm performance. Best to match the carb size to the engine airflow, which will be a computation involving cubic displacement, peak power RPM and volumetric efficiency (VE). For an L24 in a racing application, you could use something in the 48-50mm size, but that would be based on max power at 7000+ RPM and an engine living in the high rev zone most of the time. For flexibility for the street on an engine that will have peak power in the 5500 RPM range, 50's are major overkill. I don't know a lot about the Mikunis, but they seem pretty similar to Webers and Dellortos. If I were sizing Webers for the car I'd probably start calculating around 40DCOEs with 35mm chokes. There's what looks to be a nice set of Mikuni 40's on eBay right now (no, I have no financial interst in them): http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=004&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=140125706942&rd=1,1

I've never tried it before, but you CAN chrome plate the plastic fan, if you apply something called "Silvaspray" first. Silvaspray is a conductive substrate that is sprayed onto plastic that makes the surface conductive, and therefore, electroplate-able. Caswell sells the stuff, as well as plating kits for all metals: Chrome, copper, nickel, silver, gold, bronze, etc. Link is HERE: http://www.caswellplating.com/kits/silvaspray.html

Also, check your fuel pressure going to the carbs. It should be about 4psi.

Sounds like a good deal if she's solid. I paid more than twice that for mine, with 80K on the clock. What I got was a solid car with no rust other than minor surface stuff and a car that was 99% complete and functional. If there is no major rust and it runs fair, I'd jump on it.

If you don't plan on having the car judged in the "Stock" class (the ONLY reason I would ever consider keeping them on a driver), do yourself a favor and get rid of the flat-tops. Buy a set of used round-tops and be done with it. Or, if you really want to do the job right buy a set of used round-tops and send them off to Z-Therapy for a first class rebuild. Then you're set for good. Good Luck, Fred Tampa, FL '74 260Z 2+2

Chris- Interesting. How did you manage to trace the valvetrain damage to the oil, Chris? Anyway, here's a relevant article all might find interesting: http://www.dctra.org/?p=79 Fred Tampa, FL '74 260Z 2+2

I'm using Shell Rotella-T 15W-40 Diesel oil. I've seen a lot of discussion in several forums about the merits of using diesel oil in our older engines, especially when it comes to camshaft wear etc. Most diesel oils have zinc compounds that are no longer included in modern automotive oils. I've read that Schneider cams and Comp Cams also recommend Diesel oils too. Diesel oils have more antiwear compounds and are designed to work well at higher pressures, so I've elected to go with it for my Z. Fred Tampa, FL '74 260Z 2+2

The 810 handle is red, that won't work. Too bad though! I think I'm going to try to find a decent 280ZX handle from a pick 'n pull somewhere. Thanks again! Fred Tampa, FL '74 260Z 2+2

Hey guys, the automatic shifter T-handle on my 260Z is pretty grim looking, and has a crack. I'd like to replace it and was wondering if any later Nissans (or other) used the same handle or something really close. Neither MSA nor Black Dragon lists these as available either, can they be bought new from anyone? Thanks Fred Tampa, FL '74 260Z 2+2

You'll need the balance tube from the earlier SUs, and while you're at it you'll want to pull most of the the emissions crap that is defiling the engine. Not sure what emissions issues you'll face in California, but I'd clean up the air pump (easy) and the EGR (and then plug up the bung in the exhaust manifold-pretty simple too) for sure. Mind too, that you may not NEED to rebuild the SUs you pick up if they came off a running car. I didn't re-do mine, but they probably would benefit from it. I am saving up for a set of newly-rebuilt, shiny, roller-bearing shaft Z-Therapy carbs, but for now my car is very driveable, which it was not with the flatties. Check eBay, not much there today, but you want something like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Datsun-72-240Z-SU-Carbs-intake-air-filter-fuel-line_W0QQitemZ250109705498QQihZ015QQcategoryZ6763QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem Fred Tampa '74 260Z 2+2

What? And lose that signature Z-fan sound??? Whirrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr! , I figure I'll go electric eventually. The Black Dragon kit is not cheap though, and I was thinking there's got to be a close fit in the local pick 'n pull I could massage into place. Ever hear of anyone using a different elec fan setup? Fred Tampa, FL '74 260Z 2+2

It's not the damper oil causing your problems, it certainly sounds linkage related. Now I'm not sure I'd go as far as the Z-Therapy guys did about insulting the flat-tops, but I gotta tell you, ditching those things was the single most important factor in making a reliable daily driver out of my 1974. Those carbs were not optimized for street performance, they were a stopgap measure on Nissan's part to meet federally mandated emissions regs until the 280Z fuel injection was green-lighted. I have not personally met a Z-wrench that would touch them with the proverbial ten-foot driveshaft (race folks excepted, but that is a totally different story). You'll pay $100-$200 for a decent pair of serviceable SU round-tops, and spend a couple hours getting them on the car and set up. You will NOT regret it. Buy them now, and eBay them when you put your new engine in, you'll get your money back, I'll wager. Fred '74 260Z 2+2

If you decide that your fan clutch is indeed bad, do yourself a favor and avoid the Autozone cheapie replacements, they seem to have a 3 out of 4 failure rate right out of the box, according to several z-pundits. Get the Nissan factory unit, about $100. Now me, being the cheap son-of-a-gun that I am, followed the directions in this link and successfully rebuilt my fan clutch. http://www.hammondsplains.com/newtechtips/cooling/index.htm 5000 miles on my backyard rebuild and no issues.

Larry- Confirmed, they hooked onto the heat shield over the exhaust manifold. Is your shield intact? If not you may need to acquire one if you're running the stock manifold OR tack-weld a couple of eyes on your aftermarket header, if that's what you have. Fred Tampa, FL '74 260Z 2+2