JDMjunkies.ch

I Decided to visit my Bodyshop and talk to my Panelbeater Yves about the progress of my car. Remember it was more than 15 months since he last worked on it, because it's still a side-project. Lucky me he just began working on the car today. Not a lot to show you but i hope for some updates soon. And i'm more than happy with any progress As you can see he just started work on the floorpans. And the good thing is i already have another apointment with him for the next week. so pretty sure there are some nice news

Got a bit bored from all the reading an investigation in front of the computer, so decided for my own pleasure to test-assembly my rebuild steering colum together with the HKB Steering boss kit and the RS-watanabe falcon steering wheel (Horn button not installed). Nothing big, but enjoyed how it ended up. Now trying to figure out how i can clean the multifunctional steering wheel switches to get them back on the column

The 240Z Project has been really cooking on a low flame last year. I was too busy with my Job and travelling. Luckily this year started out smoother and i'm really working to get back on the Z-Project. I Ordered one expensive part which will show up in a few months but so far i started reading a lot about the Z, because i forgot most of the things i knew maybe two years ago since i never used them However im starting to make plans for the next small projects of the Project and i'm super excited about it. However before i started to work on car bits, i had to get rid of the mess in my home-workshop (aside from my garage i have a little hobby-room for small work and parts-storage at home). So i bought some new shelves, moved everything and this is how it ended up. I'm super happy with it I can finally work without searching for the right parts and tools for half of the time Then it was time to complete a simple but not-so-simple job i've started a while ago. Before i had the Door locks replated a while ago i removed the old damper rubbers and after i never figured out how to get them back in, i never did it. Today i decided it was time to complete the job So took an old toothbrush and scalpel to remove old glue from the rubber. then washed it in the sink with some warm water and dishwashing soap. worked fine Then took me quite a while to figure out how to get the Rubber back in without damaging it, but finally got it after 30mins of fiddling around. Added some of the Super glue like it was from factory, but the rubber sits so tight, i doubt the glue is really needed. Just a small job, but one more box ticked on the 2-do list

After i was on a long vacation and visited tokyo auto salon as well (see tons of pictures on www.JDMjunkies.ch) im finally back at the project.. Good news guys. I thought it's about time to get the project rolling a bit faster again. that's why i'm currently preparing a few things. However thanks to my buddy stev (big thank you again, buddy!) i was able to get hands on another NOS piece: A New-Old-Stock Datsun Front lower center valance Panel thingy. Probably the last Bodypanel which was missing. Well i had one but it was rustend and totally crushed so this came in handy With partnumber and everything Oh and last week i got this picture from my bodyshop, letting me know that the car is back at the main workspace and ready to crank work up again. Hope to get some updates from him soon :)IMG-

Thanks for the kind words and feedback. Indeed i wish i had a bigger and better equipped garage. But that's a future project i guess Regarding your questions. let me explain. I used to have an JDM-parts import company 10-7 years ago as a side-business, but due to lack of time i decided to stop that. I still have my old business-partner in Japan which collects and ships the parts for me for a small fee. For new parts i buy them directly from t he japanese manufacturer through my Partner in Japan. For used parts i usually check Yahoo auctions every now and then and ask my partner in Japan to bid on them to my max price. He will have the parts shipped to his place and then send them to my place... I speak a few sentences japanese and i can read some basic car-related information but normally i use google translator to understand the rough information. If i need better translation my japanese partner will help me out. So regarding that i'm in a very comfortable position. Now before you ask me i don't do import business anymore to strangers. I help my old customers and good friends every now and then getting some parts into switzerland but due to lack of time i will not help people around the world getting hands on the niec stuff. there's enough other companies specialized in that, i'm sorry

Yeah i know - the pace is quite slow lately, but im still working on the project silently in the background. But today is the day i have som GREAT news for you. I got a Package delivered from Japan with some parts i've been looking for over two years now until i recently stumbled across them finally I'm talking about the Sumitomo MK63 brakes. But what's so rare about them you might ask? they pop up every now and then on the internet. But this is not your standard MK63 for vented disk, but the very rare first gen. version for OEM Nissan disks, which are FIA homologated and were used in various ex works racing cars. I've even been told that nissan asked them back after the races from their teams.. wow Here's a comparison between the standard brake (Also sumitomo manufactured) and the MK63: I plan to restore / rebuild the new brakes before they go in. And here's some specs from the NISMO homepage and the old Datsun performance catalogue: Later NISMO offered the same brakes under their brand but they're obsolete since a few years.. Oh and while ordering parts from japan anyway i decided to order all available maintenance and refurbishing parts for the brakes from the NISMO / Nissan catalogue and got them delivered from a local Nissan dealership from Yokohama

Honestly i cleaned all the dirt before i made the pic. Afterwards it was mainly cleaning the mess in the parts disorder

I have a truckload of parts on my way from Japan, but other than that i don't have too much news. Im going to be out of country most of the time of the rest of the year for some business trips and some long-needed vacation. However i wanted to get some stuff done before i leave and mainly it was about cleaning up the mess in the garage. I've collect parts from two chassis and the internet and put them in various boxes but somehow i lost the overview over time so i wanted to have that fixed. this is what it looked like before i started cleaning yesterday: So i started sorting all parts from various boxes to other ones and marking everything nicely to find the parts whenever i need them And while in the garage anyway i decided to remove the old brake calipers from the front struts And out they are And then also removed the moustage bar from the rear diff and figoured out everything was covered in a thick layer ouf some rubber-stuff. Probably the diff was leaking at one point and they putt this nasty stuff on it to get it fixed cheaply. Anyhow the diff will get a full rebuild or R200 swap (haven't made any desicion yet). so that won't be a problem

A while ago i started the assembly of the Pedalbox. While i still wait for some small components like the flasher unit and the Brake light switch i couldn't resist assembling all the shiny new zinc-plated and powdercoated parts After putting the new rubber to the pedals i installed them to the box with the fresh plated bolts. Then the stopper bolts and springs came in. Looks brilliant, doesn't it? here's a comparison between the old crappy one (right side) and the completely rebuilt one, left. Oh and while at it i did the throttle pedal as well Oh and then i have some good news from Japan again soon

thanks for the input, i'll check that Yeah why not? i'm just working according to the manual, i don't want to redo anything at the end

A while ago i wrote about different intake Manifolds and that i probably want to go for a FET (Better known as "Far East Trading" Japan) Manifold. But as i have other priorities at the moment i wasn't really looking for one. Well untill my Friend Stefan remembered my Post when he scanned the Internet for some Kenmeri parts and stumblet upon one. He immediately sent me the link and because it was a Steal of a deal i had to get it. Today i had something in the mail Thanks to the finned or striped design i think it perfectly fits the Kakimoto intake once it's painted in the same wrinkle-paint colour. And yeah i know the balancer tube might make everything a bit mor difficult to adjust, but i'm sure there's a way to work around it (like plugging the holes going to the tube or so...) And because it's too expensive to only send one single part from Japan to here i ordered my self a set of Projectu Drumbrake shoes which will go nicely together with the hayashi racing drums The other set is for stefan's Kenmeri Project. Thanks again, mate!

While i'm waiting for some parts from japan and for some answers from USA i realized i never showed you some pictures i made a few months ago (Only a teaser shot for my FB-followers was published). I made a mock-up of the Front axle and steering setup to see how everything fits together and get the idea. So first i adjusted the steering rack according to the manual: And then mounted it the the front subframe: Next was the stabilizer bar, steering knuckles, tierod endlinks and new bushings allround And then while at it i decided to add the Doglegs. Seems like everything fits as it should. perfect What you see here is: - Nagisa NAMS adjustable tierod endlinks - Kameari engine mounts - Rocky auto adjustable doglegs - 555 Ball Joints - Autorefine ARC stabilizer bar - Datsun competition short steering knuckles - Rebuilt steering rack - All new energy PU bushings - All other parts have been sandblasted and powdercoated - All new OEM Nissan Screws, bolts and nuts used whenever available, otherwise replated original bolts! oh, and then this:

Nothing big, just spent another two hours at the garage compling the sanding down of the wing. Before: and done there are a few damages in the FRP surface like it's normal for a 40 year old FRP-item, but no problem. i know a good FRP-specialist and will bring it to him for repair. Also needs new studs in the bottom end as well as a new foam-sealing

Long-time readers might remember i already sanded down a 240Z Rear wing in the past, but after i bought my second car i figured out the wing which came with that chassis is in much better overall condition. So i sold the first wing and decided to prepare th e second one as well. And thats what i did yesterday. Started like this: The wing had terrible multiple paintjobs from the past Started with a drill-mounetd CSD-Disk and after a while the wing looked like this. You can see the first layer was a gray primer, then golden paint. then another layer of red primer and on top the horrible black paintjob. Sanded it down as much as possible. but as soon as the disk hit the plastik i figured out the plastik is too weak for the disk. Ath this point i continued with 400grit Sandpaper and manual sanding. Wing looked like this before i ran out of sand-paper. And i looked like this will continue next week until the surface is smooth and all old primer and paint is completely gone

After i've done the Kakimoto valve cover a while a go and started several things i'm happy to announce i finally completed another (well at least a small) part of the car. The JDM 240Z fender mirrors. This was quite a story. Because it's quite difficult to find the obsolete long-base mirrors, while the short base Datsun 510 mirrors still are available in new condition. Well i wanted to have it authentic so i went the extra mile for a detail most people probably even wouldn't notice Started with a set of crappy long base mirrors i found on ebay a while ago. But sadly a lot of parts where missing and the mounts in the bottom where all rusted away... So i bought a set of new 510 short base mirrors for spareparts. then stripped the paint of the old long-bases Disassembled and Test-fitted everything and had it painted at the paintshop in the original charcoal black. Special thanks goes out to my Fellow datsun enthusiast Stefan who once again showed incredible support with his magic metal skills and was able to move the base mounts from the new 510 mirrors to the old long base version. Perfect work once again. So finally i was able to assemble the mirrors back to what is now a completed genuine set of long-base JDM Fairlady 240Z Mirrors. Couldn't be happier. One less point on the 2do-list to care about More soon...

To make a long story short, it seems like the horrible stressful summer is over for me and i finally have some time to think about private stuff like my cars. And i've really been waiting to come back to the garage... So that's exactly what i did this week. I spent several evenings over there. Unfortunately not directly ON the car but more some preparation work. Because a fellow local Datsun Z Enthusiast asked me if he could buy my sparechassis and some parts. so i had to prepare it. Here's what the rear axle looked in the beginning: and a few days later this was leftover and ready for sale along with some small other bits. then i had to prepare the chassis, mainly just cleaning it a bit, because it already was a bare shell with no single bolt left on it. (the fenders are just hung there for easy storage). Yesterday Krisztian came and picked up the shell. I'm happy for more than one reason. First and mainly i know it's in good hands and that every usable parts (and there are not many on this shell!) will be reaused and transplanted into it's new owner. So none of the usable parts will be scrapped. Second i don't have to deal with the old chassis anymore and have a lot of storage space back in the garage now And last but not least i got some money for it which will be used to bring the second chassis, which is currently at the bodyshop back to life. This is how the garage looks now. Plenty of space to clean and sort all my spareparts which currently are a bit in a messy order So plans for the next weeks are cleaning the garage and going through all my parts stored in there and get them organized better. Second i have some news regarding the mirrors which i sent for repair a while ago (will make a separate post on that topic soon) and Then i bought some parts in Japan again which should arrive here soon. So stay tuned

Picked up the three missing parts from the rust-and paint stripping company today and put the parts together on the car just to remember how the car looks when it's completed and give me a bit of motivation Of course nothing is aligned or bolted on at the moment, i just hung the parts on the car for fun Here you clearle can see previous damage, rust, welds and old Bondo on the front lower valance. i think this is the only part worth replacing. just too much damage

Haha Meier is the name of the company owner and Rafz is the city where it's locatet. Oberflächenbehandlung means "Surface treatment" so basically: " Meier's Surface treatment in Rafz" nothing complicated here Yeah i hope so, now just need to forcy my bodyshop to get some work done it's been a few months since he worked on my particular car as these big projects always seem to be side-projects for small bodyshops.I hope work continues soon and of course i still have a lot of other stuff to adress like brakes and the Engine and stuff

I try my best and i need a lot of time, but i'm happy that all the metal parts (except maybe the rear lower panel) now either have a replacement or the original parts have been prepared for minor tweaks at the bodyshop. So Metalwork (or preparation thereof) is now almost completed from my side and in the hands of my bodyshop. Now i can concentrate on the greasy bits, interieur and other stuff. but this will be fun too

Few days ago i brought my Z-Bodypanels to the Company "Meier Oberflächenbehandlung Rafz" which is specialized in rust and paint removal with an alcoholic / adhesive mix. They did a very nice job and the Doltan 2K primer let's you see damage, old welds and problematic areas while preventing from new rust. Perfect. Only mistake they made was they forgot to complete thre pieces of my delivery so this friday i will go there, pick up the rest of the panels and then make the complete layout shot again. The gold colour you see is actually the Doltan 2k Primer The roof was in mint condition with no damage, old welds and most important - it never had a sunroof installed: Doors have some minor surface damage but nothing problematic: The smaller bits all were in great shape: Had to put all the parts on the car just for fun Finally looks a bit like a car again:

I've been working for my job like crazy lately and now i have a lot of overtime. So i decided to take one day off and spend some long overdue time in the garage I've saved some money lately for bringing parts for Chemical dipping (See details below). However i had to spend two hours yesterday preparing everything. removing small bolts and bits like the chrome trim on the taillight panels: And removed: Then i collected all t he parts from My garage and my second workshop at home and somehow felt i need to make one of these cool "exploded view" pictures. Always wanted to so this was a great opportunity So i collected the parts from my two chassis and some more i bought. therefore a lot of different colours What we have is in total 23 pieces: 2x Doors 1x Roof 1x Front center valance 2x Front coner valances 2x Metal Headlight surroundings 1x Hood 1x Trunk 2x Taillight covers 1x Taillight center cover 2x Fenders 2x Access-flaps 2x Toolbox flaps 1x Hood cowl 1x Dashboard cowl 2x Mudflap metal pieces And another pic: Finally loaded and today i brought them to the specal company: Compared to most of the companies they don't use Acid for dipping but a own mixture of Solvents. Different kinds of alcohol (Rum, Tequila and Whiskey maybe? ) and they're quite famous. The advantage is that this solvend is 100% neutralized when cleaned with water at the end. so no corrosive leftovers are there at the end. The friendly staff was quite nice and told me a bit of their process. they are like 4o people and a big part of their business they're dipping complete cars and a lot of big parts. My car will get a Complete paint- and rust removal, a rust passivating as well as a cleaning and then a be primered with Doltan 2k Washprimer to prepare from new rust while waiting to be worked on / painted. I managed to take a shot from outside where you see a dipped Chassis from a different customer. It's not cleaned or primered yet. Should be able to pick up my parts within a month. This brings me a big step towareds the completed project, while this is still many years away...

Yeah i know, progress is really slow tue to the fact i'm leading a training for engineers since three weeks and that means im working all day long. however it's done soon so i hope i find time to work on the lady again. And it's also very hot these days. exceptional hot so i prefer swimming istead of working However, got a package from japan today with some nice goodies: 1) M.Speed japan Water pump pulley: 2) Aftermarket waterpump from M-speed: 3) And a nice set of corner-lights including the pigtails and seals. great deal

As regular reader, you might know i plan to bring a few panels and stuff to professional paint stripping soon so i'm preparing a few things. Talked to my bodyshop guy yves, about this and he recommanded me to open the fold at the bottom of the door to get all the rust removed and see how it looks inside. As he's the professional and i'm not i do whatever he says. First i needed some special tools. An Unfolding plier for bodyshops and a spotweld-romver drill. So this is how i started. Rusty buttom of the door but otherwise nice (note pictures are mixed up from two different doors, so don't be confused, one is a lot better then the other door is..) First removed the rubber sealing above the seal / fold with a small spatula. Then it looked like this: Then decided to remove old rust, debris and paint with a scotch and brite CSD disk. This are brilliant for that kind of work: This was the result: Next i removed all the spotwelds with the drill (sorry, forgot to make pics) and then started to unfold the fold with the special pliers: Worked out really great and after only 30 minutes the door looked like this (after another cleaning with the CSD Disk). So the doors are ready for paintstripping now

Ah how i like to read other's build threads as well Thanks for the nice feedback mate, allways appreciate some kind words No Big news since works keeps me occupied like crazy at the moment and a lot of other stuff going on. like for example got my new daily ride home: And then got a package from japan with the seatrail for the bride histrix seat into the 240Z: Next update this saturday i hope

Not a big update, but an important one: Today i got a FedEx delivery from USA, bringing me a nice set of Tabco Repair panels: I decided to buy them directly at Tabco because they're the main manfucturer of these. All the companies like zcarsource and MSA only sell tabco parts so why not get them directly at the source? Service was fine after a few mails and superfast shipping i had them at the door today. They may not be OEM-quality but i guess it's the next best thing you can buy at the moment. because i tried to source OEM rear quarters first but they seem a) impossible to find and if you find them super expsensive. so i'm happy with this solution and i'm sure my bodyshop guy will make them look like OEM panels when installed More to come soon