Zed Head

I have three different levers, not including the one n my 76. A straight lever with the spring-loaded pivot, from an 83 ZX 5 speed I believe, a straight lever with no spring-loaded pivot, from an 80 ZX 5 speed, and a bent lever, from a 78 5 speed. They all have the notch marks, but the Zx levers both have long scrapes in addition. A person could probably spend some time fine tuning their shift mechanism. I'm surprised at the variations. The middle lever is the 280Z lever.

No, I just wasn't clear on what the real problem was. That's why I said it was weird. As I noted, the real issue isn't the throw, it's how deep the longer arm (of the "shorter-stroke" shifter) sits in the hole. So grinding the top of the hole away is the correct solution. Edit - actually, I think that it's just too wide at the base of the shaft of the actuating portion. Because, assuming the same diameters up to the pivot point, the one with the longer actuating arm should end up farther away from the edge of the hole. That is the heart of all of my confusion. Edit again - actually it won't end up farther away at that point. It's an interesting exercise. Since the bottom of the actuator is moving the top of the striking rod cylinder closer to the top of the actuator, it makes sense that it would bind in that spot, since the bottom of the actuator moves the whole cylinder farther before the top of the actuator can get out of the way. Probably clear to many, I just didn't get it. It may be why, though the later ZX shifters have a spring loaded moveable pivot point. When you press down on a ZX lever you get a long actuator, then if you release the downward force the spring pushes the whole shift lever back up. That would give the benefits of a short-stroke (long actuator) lever without the binding problem described here. Sorry for cluttering up the thread. I did figure out some new things though. I might try a ZX shifter in my Z to see what happens. We're all in agreement on short-stroke shifters, and how they work.

What I would really like to know though, is where the shifter with the longer actuator below the pivot point came from. All of the ones I've seen have about the same length. I'd like to have one that gives a shorter lever throw. Another edit - I'm going to guess that the rod on the left is a 240Z rod, and the one on the right is 280Z. I already have several of those. So no luck for me.

My mistake in not being clear. I should have stopped with - what lever are you using?

My apologies. I mixed up my terminologies, using throw for the actuating portion below the pivot, and for the lever itself. What I said wasn't backward in whole, it was internally inconsistent.

Edited my error away. Just causing confusion. The reason there is a problem is because the actuating lever (what should that thing be called?) of the rod on the right sits too deep in the hole.

I have to disagree. For the same angle and throw distance above the shift lever pivot point, the one with the longer arm beneath the pivot point will move the striking rod farther. It's the movement of the striking rod that determines how far the top will move. Or, in different terms, for the necessary movement of the striking rod, the lever with the longer throw will end up at a smaller angle. Anyway, glad you shared a solution. Still odd, since those parts were designed to work together. It implies that there are significant differences in striking rods, or something else, among the various transmissions.

The spraying of the carb cleaner is most effective on EFI systems. With carbs, you would spray at any connection points between the carbs and the head. The gasket surfaces and any vacuum hoses, like the big one for the brake booster.

What's wrong with the one that you have? I have some spares but they require a potentiometer on the cooling circuit to work right. Sorry, I'm not offering them, just proposing a fix.

Why Nissan over Exedy? Exedy is pretty well established. I have an old Rhinopac brand clutch kit and it works great. But I don't think that they're available any more. If yours is stock, it will be a 225 mm clutch and flywheel. Hope that your flywheel has survived the heat of slipping, because the 225 mm flyhweels are getting hard to find. If you find a 225 mm flywheel in a local wrecking yard or CL, you might buy that, and get it resurfaced and ready to go, before you do the job. The aftermarket performance fly wheels are really expensive. Some of the performance clutches, and some of the lower quality clutches, have a higher pedal force required. I had a Zoom Perfection clutch, that could be used to chirp the tires, but it had a higher pedal force. The Rhinopac is much smoother, but has a softer engagement point. No chirps. The Centerforce centrifugal weight system is designed to give more holding pressure at high RPM. Racing technology that's made it to the street. Might be overkill.

So this a DatsunParts LLC engine? I don't think that you've mentioned that in any other posts. Interesting that he used a cam from a company that went out of business. Your best option would probably be to buy a complete kit from one of the well-known suppliers, like MSA or Schneider. It will be expensive, you'll need the cam, 12 rocker arms, and 12 lash pads. Might be cheaper to just buy a whole head.

This is a weird problem. Which lever are you using? The one on the right looks like it has a longer throw, and would be less likely to have the problem.

The results will be very interesting. People have built MAF conversion kits for other brands, like BMW, but nobody has really quantified the benefits. It seems like the MAF should have better resolution at the high flow end, allowing better fuel supply control. I get the impression that the vane-type systems just add lots of extra fuel at the high end because when the vane is pushed open large air volume changes only cause small vane movements. If you could compare that between the two, and response rate to opening the throttle, that would be very cool. Pulsing of the signal would seem likely with the vane system also, something I believe the weight and the balance chamber were intended to damp.

The eBay seller has other cars for sale, including a GNose Z. If you search his phone number on Google you'll find his shop downn Califormia. It's a Google world we live in now. harmony01 | eBay Another "Collectors Dream!". Giant open cowl hood, but no giant motor. Maybe a past V8 car? Wide rear fender flairs also. Datsun Z Series 240Z G Nose | eBay

How about the TC rod? The wheel would move more forward and backward, rather than rotating, or both at the same time. Maybe you damaged a TC rod bushing or the rod is broken.

The hood is a different color also. Not primer, but gray/silver with pinstripes. Looks like an accident. replacement parts purchased, and still being assembled. No mention of the bottom corner fender pieces and the center section either. Straight stories are hard to find with these old collectibles. The guy actually wrote the sentence below in the ad. "Body is straight with almost no rust and no collision damage that I can see. " Seems like when I ever see one of these I end up bashing the seller but they all seem to stretch the truth.

There's a two party battle happening but the reserve is still not met.

I sent the seller a question and he/she actually responded. Looks like a texter. "I don't see any pictures of the grill and lower front end. Is there damage there? " "no damage... grille and front bumper are in the car... Thx"

Any idea what it sold for?

Good point. I just noticed that the eBay ad takes pains to not show the grill and front end of the car. Deceptive.

I wonder if the guys that write the sales pitch for the eBay ad know how sleazy they sound, or if they just can't resist? The more exclamation points and capital letters, the more suspicious things look. "I am going to offer this car in as is condition one time..." then what? Hurry, hurry, hurry, one time only, get your Z car here, one time....

Your getting deeper in to the morass. Here's one that people seem to like. The main difficulty is that there may be some trial and error involved to get it where you want it. People start high and work their way down. http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/suspension-steering-s30/48249-using-chevette-springs-re-gain-original-ride-height.html It looks like there may be some original spring stock still out there at the Nissan warehouses. They shows up as available but you don't know until they try to get them. Datsun 240Z/260Z/280Z Front Suspension (Strut & Shock Absorber) SPRING FRO :: Nissan Parts, NISMO and Nissan Accessories - Courtesyparts.com There is a new option, using Vogtland springs and Stagg shocks, but it's a lowered setup. Your geometry will only change if you lower it a bunch. It's common to lower these cars about 1 - 1.5" with no problems. This shop might be your best bet, considering everything. He really knows the cars and has used parts that don't show on his web page. He restores cars. Worth a phone call. 240Z, 260Z, & 280Z #'s 1,2,&3 - 70-73 240 Z=1 - Steering and Suspension 1 - Suspension 1 - Z Specialties Online Store - If we don't have it in stock, we can get it! And, although you feel like you've been burned by KYB, they do make a good product for stock height applications. You're just hurting your own cause by avoiding them.

Never said which oil you chose. As far as synchro help goes I would grade them Valvoline 75-90 plain old gear oil < Redline MT90 < blend of Swepco 201 with ATF. I run Swepco and ATF now and it's great stuff. I'll never use plain old gear oil again. Credit JMortensen for the Swepco advice.

Carb cleaner does work if there's a leak. Idle speed will change when you spray it on the leak.

No offense, but you might have some misconceptions about the shocks and other parts. The gas in the shocks is there to keep a dry, inert head over the fluid to help keep the oil from foaming. They're called gas "charged". Any lifting the pressurized gas does is secondary to its main purpose. All of the shocks are hydraulic. Not sure what you're saying about the KYB's. Brand new KYB's can be compressed by hand. There's not much pressure in them. And who wants to take back three year old inventory? erectorset's point about the urethane bushings is probably true, but for a reason a performance oriented person might not appreciate. The rubber bushings will let the body sway out away from the tire more in a turn. Urethane might hold it where it should be and that could allow a rub during compression. I think that the only decent bolt-in shock available these days is the KYB. You might be able to get Tokico's but you'll need to buy extra parts or fabricate spacers and/or gland nuts. The others all seem to require some fabrication.