Captain Obvious

At least I'm not the only one who heard it on the internet! I probably read it at the same place I read that you should grind your TIG tungstens on a dedicated wheel that you don't use to grind other materials so you don't contaminate them.

I heard that steel wool is often a bad idea on stainless because it embeds rust-able particles in an otherwise non-rusting surface. Doesn't hurt the overall integrity of the material, but can make it look poorly. Same with wire wheeling. Note that "I heard it on the internet", so take that for as much truth as it's worth. YMMV.

Yeah, the unbelievable part was that total no-call for pass interference against the Tide. Should have been first and goal Georgia at the spot of the foul. (Clearly stirring the pot....)

Exactly. I was like all like T-Rex arms after driving Wayne's car at Zcon. Couldn't lift my elbows off my waist. Thankfully there's still enough range of motion at the elbow to get the drink high enough to sip.

Can you point me to that thread? Would be an interesting read. And I agree... Seems counterintuitive, and would like to read that. Zed Head, My 77 manual says 18.0 ratio. Both .pdf and hard copy. Are you sure you were looking at the 77 manual?

I don't think it's tire pressure. They were all within the same general range of "general use". No severely deflated mud bog tires were used for the eval. So I was looking at the steering specs thinking that maybe I missed the most obvious answer... Maybe there was a change in the steering ratio over the years? Well it's hard to tell... The specs in the FSM's are all confused. First, the spec for the number of turns lock-to-lock in 74 is given in both meters and feet. WTF is that all about? And then in 75, they dropped the units for lock-to-lock (which is a good thing), but the number changed. And then the spec for steering ratio changed in 75, going from 18 to 15. That would surely make a difference, right. But then in 77, it went back up to 18. And I can't get any of the numbers to line up... If you have rack stroke, ratio, and turns lock-to-lock, you should be able to use any two to calculate the third. But none of them work out... In 74, they said there were seven teeth on the pinion, and from that point forward, they stopped listing that spec. I've got pics of my pinion gear from when I had my rack all pulled apart, but it's hard to determine the number of teeth. It's clearly either six or seven....

LOL, well she already knows who's naughty and who's nice. As a matter of fact, when I mentioned the welding helmet, she said that she's put in a good word for me and ask to have me put on the "nice" list. My reaction was like "Wait... What list was I on?" Haha!!

It's not tire width as the 260's tires were even wider (and stickier) than what I have on my 280. I've got 195 "touring" tires, and the 260 has 205 "summer" tires. Point is, the 260 tires should be grabbier than mine both due to the compound and the width. And I'm not sure about steering wheels... I'm running a wheel from the 1990 300ZX, but it's pretty much the same size as my original 280 steering wheel. Was there a change in wheel diameter from 240 to 280? Also, I do believe that the weight went up over the years, but it's not by that much. Couple hundred pounds maybe? Not a big change in percent.

That's fantastic. Thanks for that. I wish I'd have thought of it. Yes, that's exactly what I meant!

So my local Z buddy @GGRIII got his 74 260Z on the road and we drove that to Zcon. During the short shake down testing, one of the things we noticed was that the steering effort was significantly lighter in his 260 compared to my 77 280. And then (thanks to other forum members @Zup and @wal280z ), I got the pleasure to drive a 240 and another 77 280 at Zcon for a larger sample size. The steering effort was consistent, meaning that the 77 280 took way more steering effort than the earlier years. Now, some of this could be attributable to suspension mods and tire choice, but it's stark. Once you're moving, it's no big deal, but maneuvering in a parking lot at a crawl, the earlier years are waaaaay easier to steer than the 77. I don't know about 75 and 76 280s, but by the time they got to 77, it seems something had changed. I took a look at the specs in the FSM's and according to the documentation, the alignment specs are pretty much the same. Maybe some minor tweaks to the right of the decimal places, but certainly nothing that would explain the difference. I was expecting some large change in caster or something, but no. It's the same. Can anyone else confirm my findings? Anyone with seat time jumping back and forth between one of the late models and one of the early? And if so, does anyone have an explanation? Is it just my imagination, or did something change?

I looked at the 1840 as well, but I went with the 2450 instead. Not because of the larger window, but because of the four sensors and their locations. Of course, I'm talking about all of this like it's a done deal, but it's not. I've dropped copious hints with SWMBO Clause, but who knows.

Yeah, that's what I figured about the window. The 2450 will be an increase in window size from the HF blue that I've been using and I think I'll be satisfied with that. I could have easily asked Santa for the 3350, which was "only" fifty bucks more than the 2450, but I just don't think I need it. Even the 2450 should be a significant upgrade from what I've been using and the larger the lens, the heavier the helmet. So I believe the 2450 is a little lighter than the 3350. I want to TIG again... After my last experience, I've been avoiding it. It's really unnerving to get your face really close in there, get things working properly and be concentrating on the arc when all of a sudden.... FLASH!

That's what I figured, and I understand completely. I'm not tall, and my work surfaces are higher than average. I don't remember the height measurement, but I used the "elbow at 90 degrees height". If I rest my arm on the top, my elbow is bent at 90 degrees.

Get ready for a lot of words... Let me first explain why I'm looking for a new helmet in the first place. My current helmet (Horror Freight blue design) works pretty well with the MIG, but won't stay dark with the TIG. I'm assuming that the TIG currents are just too low and it won't pick up the arc. Either that, or I'm shadowing the sensor with my work position. In any event, it flashes me with the TIG. And just recently, I was doing some under-car exhaust work on the family Truckster, and my HF blue flashed me even with the MIG. Something about the working position again... Must have blocked the sensor or something. Once I finished the tack welds under the car, I pulled the parts out and finished the job on easels in the driveway and it was fine. Just something about the position under the car. So I've had it... I busted my balls on that car job and saved over a thousand bucks by throwing labor at it instead of new parts. With the money saved (think "unrealized expense"), I think I deserve a new tool so I can do a better job next time. I figure even if I spend a couple hundred of that saved thousand, I'm still way ahead in the end AND I've got a new helmet! Right? I deserve that, right? Who's with me?? Anyway, that's where I'm coming from. I wanted something more reliable with more sensors and rated for lower TIG current. So I did a bunch of investigation into helmets and came to multiple conclusions. First of which is that asking people what is the best helmet is like asking someone "What is the best brand of tools." and is likely to start a religious war. Beyond that, I did some reading of on-line reviews. Here's a couple examples: https://welderportal.com/ http://weldinghelmetexpert.com/ https://weldinghelmetpros.com/ And here's one that talks about the EU's relatively new rating system being used as an attempt to provide some objectivity to the highly subjective topic of viewing quality: https://www.thefabricator.com/article/safety/1-1-1-1-clarity All the top of the line helmets seem to be great. Optrel 684, Speedglas 9100, Miller Elite, Jackson BH3, Lincoln 3350. All fantastic, and even with the unrealized expense, they're still all more money than I can justify spending. However, there is also one lower priced contender that just kept popping up... The Antra AH6-260-0000. This one seems to be very highly rated despite the costs. It's seemed to be at the very top of everyone's "Best helmet for the money" category. So, I was just about ready to pull the trigger on the Antra AH6-260-0000 when I noticed that all the sensors are in a line across the top of the window. I can picture welding positions where all of these sensors get blocked. Might be very unlikely, but I think it's possible. In the end, I went with the Lincoln 2450, and here's why. It's got the same optical technology as the very highly rated 3540, but has a smaller viewing window, and hence a lower price tag. But the biggest reason I went with the Lincoln over the Antra is that it has four sensors as well, but they are in the four corners of the lens. I cannot come up with an easy way to shadow all of them at once. And it's TIG rated down to 2A or so. I went with the cheapest "Name brand" helmet I could find with four sensors in the corners of the lens. If you think the four sensors in a line aren't an issue, then the Antra sounds like a great alternative for a lot less money. Keep in mind that I'm no welder. I know just enough to make myself dangerous. And light stuff on fire.

Speaking of such related things... I just asked Santa for a new auto-darkening welding helmet to replace my current one. I'm tired of getting flashed. (No Cliff... Not that kind of flashed. )

The vampire hunter, right?

Putting in pallet cutouts is a really neat idea. Just because you CAN move them around with a pallet jack doesn't mean you HAFF to. Do you have a pallet jack? And out of curiosity... Why are you raising them up in the first place? Because you're so darn tall?

Haha!!! I feel better knowing it's not just me!

Ewwww... Are you sure you didn't forget to turn on the gas?

Not just your shop. Mine's like that too. And so is Granny's! And I had a vise just like yours. Loved it, and I ruined it. Broke it pressing ball joints into my Fiero control arms. Cracked the jaws right off the center tube. That's why I have a hydraulic press now. I've also got a replacement vise similar to the original one, and it's just OK. Sloppier than my first one.

Smells like a Z to me.

Haha!! From the Zcon thread:

Nice work. Makes you wonder how you managed to live all those years without a lathe, right?

I haven't personally confirmed, but my understanding was that the 77-78 sender unit could be removed through the access hole in the rear hatch. I don't know about other years, but I believe 77 on you don't have to drop the tank (or even drain it) to do that kind of work. Thanks bud, and you too!! Yes, it got way colder way quicker than it's supposed to be here. In fact, we got a bunch of snow middle of last week, and it ended my Z driving season with very little warning. I thought I was going to get a couple more weeks, but they salted the roads. I guess there's still a possibility that if we get a couple non-freezing rainy days it could clean off the roads enough to at least take it out and get some gas so I can circulate some stabilizer. As it sits now, it was a big surprise... Tank is pretty much empty and there's no stabilizer in it. We were supposed to get just a dusting of snow followed by an inch of rain that would have washed away any salt they put down. But that's not what happened. Instead, we got four inches of snow and very little rain at the end of the storm. Roads are covered with salt and I got kinda stuck behind the eight ball.

Av8ferg, Your 77 uses a different style lock. Looks like this: After you have removed the hinge screws underneath, there should (might? probably?) be enough of a gap to get in there with a hand or a screwdriver and pull the latch tab down and get the door off the dash. Use a long hooked pick maybe? You want to pull the latching hook downwards to unlatch it. And yes... Even with the lock in the latched position, the hook will still pull down. It's spring loaded, but it pulls down easy. You won't be able to get the lock off the door, but you can send me the whole door with the lock still on it and I'll open it for ya.