motorman7

Hi Frankie, Just finished doing the timing chain, crank and cam, on my L26 and posted them on this thread with a number of pics. http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?threadid=35670 Hopefully that helps a bit. The fact that you got a couple pops seems somewhat promising. I am wondering if your oil pump/distributor timing was 180 out. As the slotted tab is offset, at 11:25, the key needs to be more on the 7 to 8 o'clock side than the 2 to 3 o'clock side. I hope that makes sense. see pic. Be careful moving a couple links. If you are off, you can bend valves.

I got the block cleaned up and now need to attack the engine bay as you can see in the background. This is really a challenge. I have been using steel wool and laquer thinner for most of the clean. The plan here is to keep this low budget as this is not truly an original car. After engine bay clean-up, I will tape off the exposed parts and paint the engine bay with the 901 silver paint. I plan to eventually do some of the body work and repaint the exterior in the next year of two. That is about the extent of what I plan to do on this car

Step 5: Align 2nd shiney link with mark on crankshaft as shown in pic. This should align fairly easily if the first steps will follow. Make minor adjustments if needed. Next, install the chain tensioner. Step 6: While pressing in chain tensioner, reinstall cam sprocket with hole one on the cam alignment key. Install cam bolt and torque per spec.

Step 3: Temporarily attach crank sprocket to cam as shown in pic, with sprocket hole 1 over the cam key at 12 O'clock. Step 4: pick up cam chain and locate the two shiney links. They are 42 links apart. Holding chain vertical with one shiney link at 12 oclock, ensure that 2nd link is on the right hand side. Feed chain through head and insert shiney link on cam sprocket as shown in pick. Remove cam sprocket from cam and set on head as shown.

Since I just finished this, I thought I would take pics and document the install for those doing this in the future. 6 months ago, I had no idea how to do this and ended up on another site to get full details with pics. Now the info will be here for those who need. First step: Put number 1 cylinder at TDC. The alignment key on the crankshaft will be at 12 O'clock as shown in pic. This assumes that the head is not installed. Never turn crank or cam independant of eachother as this will bend valves or break things. Step two: On the head, ensure the cam alignment pin is at 12 o'clock as shown in the pic. Install head with gasket (I prefer the gasket well coated with copper gasket spray) and torque per spec.

Funny, I ran into the same problem when timing mine, only to find out that the dial on the back of the timing light was set to 10 degrees advanced. When I set it back to 0, the adjustment tab was right on the center line-perfect. Of course, that was after I had removed the screw facing up to the dizzy so I could go beyond the adjustment limits. When i did that, the car ran much worse, that how I figured something was wrong So, the car must be running if you can check timing?

Have you confirmed that you are getting spark from the distributor? Pull one of the plugs and turn engine over and look for spark)

When the motor is at #1 cylinder TDC, the offset blade that turns the distributor (looking down into the distributor mounting hole) should be at 11:25 O'clock.

Really looking forward to the activities during this week. Will most likely have 2 Z's in the show. Now I have to work on getting some pictures out. Thanks, Rich

I would keep the bright links lined up with the timing marks.

I enjoyed the engine bay refresh on my 70 Z so much that I have decided to do it again, only this time on my newly acquired 71Z with the L26 motor. Seeing as how the motor is not original, I will not be as careful about sticking to the originality of the motor and engine bay detail. I would like to keep it somewhat close however. The two glaring things I want to fix here is the block color:sick: and 'Silver Overspray'. Actually, we're not talkin' silver overspray, we're talkin' silver spray paint gone wild. I will clean up the block and paint it the nissan blue, clean all of the aluminum to its original non-silver condition, and clean or replace the silver grommets. I ran a compression check and the cylinders ranged from 190 to 205 psi.:classic: Also, no leaks from the head gasket so I will just re-check torque on the head bolts. I will then clean, tape and paint the block with the head in place. I will do the same with the oil pan. After that, I will attack the engine bay. That will require the most work. Here are some pics at the start of the project.

http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=34777&highlight=refresh&page=3 Check about 3/4th of the way down this page and you will see the cam timing marks and the crank timing marks along with the link marks (They are both offset by one link in the pics). Mine is a 240 also. The chain should have two marks (0's in the pics), 42 links apart. They should correspond with the cam and crank marks as shown in the pics. I believe in this configuration that the spline on the crank is facing up at 12 o'clock.

Hi Esprist, Any updates on the hose? Thanks, Rich

The engine refresh is now complete. The valve cover was bead blasted and a light coat of clear enamel sprayed over top. Battery ground cable has been replaced. The only outstanding issue at this point is the air galley. It discolored due to engine temp. I spoke with an expert in plating and he said that once above 150 deg C, the yellow chromate will discolor. He said this will happen on both cad or zinc base. He recommended a clear coat after the plating to help reduce the effects of the heat. I will send him one of my extra air galleys and see how this goes. Also, will close off the ends of the tubes feeding the galley. Hopefully this reduces the discoloration. I am not running the smog pump which is probably part of the problem.

I like your garage though! Seems nicely set up for working on the cars. I like the sand blast cabinet. Will have to get one some day. My main garage still has most of my wifes craft stuff and holiday decorations

I am still trying to figure my wife out on this one. She is a lot more accepting of my Z hobby than I had anticipated. We actually went to a local car show a couple weeks ago displaying the 70 Z (Cruising Grand in Escondido), and she really enjoyed it. Also, the thing she likes best is that my son and I work on it together. So, for now, this is a pretty good thing. Of course, with the speed and power of the new one, she did suggest that we up my insurance policy:rolleyes:

Got some bonus parts with the car also. The original seats are great. the steering wheel is decent as well. Will refinish that and put it back on.

Well, just picked up a 71 240Z for play. It will join my 70 in the garage and be my daily driver. HLS30-40147 is a 71 Z in decent shape (minor rust on panels), but has an L26 engine inside. This is quite a blast to drive. My son loves it. The L26 is hooked up to a 5 peed with short throw shifter. The suspension package is also nice as the car does a great job cornering. The interior is in great shape including the door panels which look to be original. I hate the seat and the steering wheel. Will most likely sell them on e-bay and put the original seat and steering wheel back on. The seat would be great if I was 5'8" or shorter, but I am well over 6 feet tall. The original seat, which is nicely upholstered will fit me much better. Was thinking of pulling the engine this weekend and painting the block the correct Nissan Blue. The Chevy orange:sick: block bothers me and I dont care for the black valve cover (The combo reminds me of Halloween, scarey). Here are some pics of the car.

Thanks for the help there. The adhesive works great but is very hard to use. It drys fast and is very rubbery. Fun to peel off your fingers if you have the time. I replaced some of the electrical connectors at both the coil and the firewall. The originals had turned yellow and looked bad. I replaced them with some new ones from Banzai motor works. Looks a bit nicer and closer to original. Now I just need to get that battery ground cable corrected. Also, sent the valve cover out to get glass bead blasted. I look forward to getting that. the motor should look pretty sweet once that is done. The only question on that is how to protect the finish. And, I have really gone off the deep end here. I just put down a $200 deposit on a modified 71 240 Z. The body is silver and in decent shape. Black spook in front, small black rear spoiler. The motor is a 260Z motor hooked up to a 5 speed; Tokico shocks, limited slip defferential, MSA header and exhaust. I will pick it up Monday and attach photos. The plan is to clean it up a bit and use it as my daily driver. Rich

Not really sure it's related to the sea foam. Can't see how that would effect only one cylinder. It sounds more like an electrical arc in the distributor (or between wires if they are old) that causes #2 to fire before it should.

I would check the distributor cap for a crack or carbon trace. #2 cylinder may be igniting prematurely by the ajoining plug wire in the distributor cap. Had this happen once on my Mazda 626.

I need to replace the rubber cowl seal under the hood. Any tricks to getting this off without disturbing the paint? Any recommended glue for putting the new one on? Thanks, Rich

I'd give it a sharp tap with a hammer to see if I could loosen the splined coupling. A long 3/8" socket extension and a steel hammer would do the job. First try the tap on the nut. If that does not work, try it on the wheel hub.

Those are beautiful pictures...love each and every one of them.

Hi Ron, Really I like them all. I just have a preference for the stock vehicles at this stage in my life. I think I like the simplicity and the challenge of keeping them stock (as best I can anyway). And, I am sure I would get myself in big trouble if I had a racer. Doing my best to keep a low profile here and off the police radar. Best Regards, Rich