timhypo

So, I took the two screws out that connect the advance module to the distributor body and when I pull the module away, the inside of the distributor swivels easily. I didn't disconnect the arm, but I think that this confirms that the issue is indeed the module itself, not the distributor. Would you guys agree? If so, is there a way I can free this thing up? I've searched and searched, but can't find anywhere on the internet that shows how this thing works...

WITH THE RIGHT TIP <- Key phrase there, a gas welder can be used on extremely thin metals without issue. I can weld an aluminum pop can together with my jeweler's torch that I couldn't touch with my MIG. An added bonus of using a gas-welder vs a MIG is that the metal is heated more slowly leaving less work-hardening and allowing you to hammer and dolly it easily when you're done. The most common way to do this nowadays is with a MIG, but I didn't wanna discount the gas torch. If you wanna try your hand, buy a 00 tip and practice on a spare body panel of the same thickness. Also, look up hammer-welding for an explanation of the process that created all of the great custom cars of the 50s and 60s...

Reading his post, I think he wanted to know if there was a way to plug a multimeter into the sender and determine his oil pressure, not a way to test his guage/sender...

I bought my Unisyn from Z Therapy...

Thanks for the info. I've been thinking about it and I think I'm gonna hit the junkyard this weekend and see if I can get a ZX dizzy/ignition module, alternator/regulator, voltmeter, tach, and locate a 3.90 R200 and a 5-speed. I might even pull the motor itself. There's no replacement for displacement!

So, I've been messing with tuneup-type stuff on my '72 240z after receiving my 240Z tuneup guide from Z Therapy and awaiting payday so I can buy a wheel cylinder and figured out today that my vacuum advance module is frozen solid. No matter how hard I suck on the hose going into the dashpot, the advance arm doesn't move. I've checked the usual suspects (roackauto, msa, black dragon) and don't see anyone selling one for a '72. While I realize this should probably prompt me to hit the junkyard and upgrade to the ZX model as is my longer-term plans for this car, I might be inclined to just buy one if they're reasonably enough priced. So, who sells one?

If you want to test your fuel system to see if a dirty tank/lines are causing your issue, it's relatively simple to hook up a gas can upside down with a line running from it directly into your mechanical fuel pump on the right side of the motor (on carbed cars) and drive it around the block. Make good and sure you're not leaking any gas, though, and keep a fire extinguisher handy. This worked well enough for me to determine that the electric fuel pump the PO had installed in my car was pumping garbage. How does the POR-15 work with the baffles in the Z tanks? They do have baffles, right? I think I remember seeing them in one...

Ok, got back to this and discovered that the only wheel cylinder that I didn't replace is leaking. Also, since I put the new one in the passenger side last year, apparently the shoe has disintegrated - I guess that's where the weird pulsation in the brake pedal was coming from. When I get some more cash I'll replace the wheel cylinder and shoes and HOPEFULLY be rolling in my 240z with reliable brakes for the first time since I bought it 10 years ago. In other news, I got the 240z tuneup video and a unisyn from Z-Therapy. This video is worth every penny. It's extremely rare messing with old cars to have that amount of real information available and it being on DVD and demonstrated makes it better than any manual...

On a side note, has anyone made their own power-bleeder? I have a chunk of 1/4" plate that could be combined with some rubber, a c-clamp, and a few air fittings to make a universal-fit power bleeder when combined with my compressor/air drier. Why pump brakes if you can push the bubbles out with the compressor? If I decide to build one and it works well, I'll document it in a separate thread. I'm postponed working on the brakes for a few days as the city is doing work on the only flat area I have to work on it - the street. My wife's Olds and my in-process chopper-build are eating up my garage space, so it's on my steeply sloped driveway, which is no good for brake bleeding.

Doh, misread. You're saying that my 12/71-built '72 should have the reservoir in the rear. Makes sense.

That's what my Clymer says as well. Unfortunately, what I have is what's available and, since mine's 7/8 just like the original, it shouldn't matter. It might though, and if I continue to have issues, I'll look into finding an original, but they might be just as bad as mine. I managed to get a hard pedal last year with an identical master that came with the car, but it went away after a few days. I still think I have something wrong in the system. The plan for tonight is to get my wife to help me bleed them again, with the opposite master's bleed valve open and feeding into it's own reservoir and, if that doesn't work, I'll replace the remainder of the hard lines on the assumption I have a leak somewhere I don't know about. If that doesn't work, I'll replace the final wheel cylinder. If that doesn't work, I'll roll it down the hill and set it on fire. In other news, I ordered a Unisyn and the Z Therapy 240z TuneUp video today...

My bleed valves are definitely at the top of the caliper.

I also read an excellent write-up on v8-240z.com regarding this and he specifically leaves the front master bleeder open with the hose in the front reservoir while bleeding the rears to avoid fighting the front brakes in the process and avoid fighting the proportioning valve. Obviously, I'll reverse the process for the fronts. I'm gonna try that tonight. Most of my brake experience is on all-drum cars, so it makes sense that I've never had to mess with the proportioning valve.

I'm NOT confident I got the right master. The one in my Haynes notes that the 240z master has the front-brake reservoir in front and that the 260z master has the rear-brake reservoir in front specifically. The master I got had the front-brake reservoir in the front, as did my car. I chalked it up to Haynes being notoriously inaccurate and/or the P/O being a jackass. Rockauto only lists one part number for all '72 240z's and they're usually pretty accurate, correctly noting the pre-7/72 rear wheel cylinder. Shouldn't I start with the passenger-side rear? It seems like it's further away from the master. I'll look up the 'fart' method on ZCAR.com...

So, let me start off by saying I have a fair amount of brake experience for someone who's never worked on cars professionally - I adapted a later dual-channel master to my wife's '58 Olds including building my own pedal with the correct 6:1 ratio, fabricating the plate to change the mount position, building the actuating rod, etc. In the course of doing this, I did a LOT of brake bleeding. I'm now trying to fix my '72 240z. Over my tenure owning this car, the brakes have ALWAYS been the problem. In fact, the previous owner told me that they were his biggest problem and he was tired of messing with them. He did a bunch of hokey stuff, including bolting the rear wheel cylinders to the backing plates - inadvertantly defeating the self-adjustment. When I got the car, it had been sitting forever and everything was rusted together. I knew a guy who had just done a bunch of mods to his 240z front brakes for autocross and he GAVE me his stock calipers/discs, which worked fine. I swapped them in, replacing the wheel bearings, and adding braided lines. I replaced one rear wheel cylinder that was beyond repair and unbolted the p/o's jackassery with the other wheel cylinder. I also replaced MOST of the hard lines as they were rusty to the point of breaking off when I'd remove one. I've also never been able to get the brakes right. This weekend, I replaced the master, thinking that must be the root of my problems. I still cannot, for the life of me, get a firm pedal. I've bled the master, both wheel cylinders, and both calipers. I've run three BIG bottles of brake fluid through the thing. I get a semi-firm pedal, but way too squishy for my tasts. Do early Z cars get a firm pedal like every other car when they're right? What am I missing? The service manual I got online has ZERO about bleeding brakes. I hate shotgunning parts at a problem, but I've put up with it here because it's brakes and old cars should have new brakes. Does anyone sell plugs that go in brake components? My thinking is that if I plugged the rear-outlet at the master, bled the front, and got my firm pedal - I'd have started to isolate the problem - or vice versa. This is getting pretty frustrating and Cincinnati's way to hilly to even think about rolling on even remotely questionable brakes...

So, am I correct that I just need to bend up a different hard line?

So, is this really the only difference? My car was built in 12/71 and I'd like to use the cheaper wheel cyliders if it's possible. Thanks

I'm from Cincinnati and have a '72 240z. I originally dragged the car home from Northern OH with the intention of dropping a 5.0/T5 in it. However, buying a house and getting real into hot rods and bikes sidetracked me. Since I'm also building a couple choppers, a '58 Olds with a J-2, and an early caddy-powered '31 Model A, I've decided to leave my Z close to stock and get it on the road with the 6cyl/4 speed. So far, I've completely rebuilt the front brakes/wheel bearings, replaced ALL the hard lines, and replaced ONE rear wheel cylinder. The PO had bolted the wheel cylinders in place in a misguided attempt to stop them from sliding in the adjustment slots. I still have problems keeping a firm pedal for more than a day or so. I'm picking up a new master from Advance Auto today and am hoping that'll fix the brakes. If not, I'll replace the other wheel cylinder. The other issue was with overheating when I was driving it. It didn't actually overheat, as I shut it down before it got bad, but the guage was climbing. Once I get the brakes working, I'll check the timing, clean the carbs better, and do some of the other typical things to fix overheating. I also may hook up one of my mechanical guages to make sure my sender's not just bad. If worse comes to worse, I guess I'll HAVE TO swap in a good running L28 or L28T.