Mark Maras

Probably a lot more than a few. Put me down for one on the list. I don't want to take inventory but I know I could combine two 71s into one good one if I could convince myself to do a Vin # change. Time will tell.

As Patcon pointed out, the parts will only retain and or gain in value as long as they stay on the shelf. The shelf labeled 401Z a$$ets.

They might make good trading material for a NOS quarter panel.

While you're adjusting the valves take a good look at the cam and rockers. Pics of the cam would be good.

I'd love it. I did notice when traveling on I-85 doing 90 mph that no one seemed to notice or care. I'm assuming that as long as there isn't too much carnage on the highway the State Patrol turns a blind eye to the speed?

Time to adjust the valves and hope the compression improves on all of them. Be sure the throttle is wide open when conducting the tests.

Among the fondest memories, I have from ZCON, was the drive to and from Saturday's show at Coolray Stadium. Jai hands me the keys to RedBird and says, "I'm going to ride with Bill (her son) and you and Kathy follow us to the show". Since it has been a good number of years since I had been back in a Z and never driven a 280, I jumped at the chance. The adventure started crossing lanes of traffic to get to I-85. Quickly discovered that RB's turn signals were intermittent. Hoping that modern drivers would recognize archaic hand signals, I found that Southern Hospitality was also in effect on the roads. Being in a beautiful bright red 280 probably helped. We managed to stay behind Bill but as we started down the ramp onto I-85 he takes off like he's being shot at. As the smile starts to spread across my face I shift into 3rd and then 4th gear and put the gas pedal to the floor just to keep up with Bill and Jai. Soon I think, OK, time for 5th gear. Slip it into neutral over to the right and up. Goes in easily, I let out the clutch and immediately realize that it was in 3rd and also realize this is a 4 speed. (trans is in excellent condition, btw, but could use some shifter bushings) Pull it back into 4th. As we gracefully weave our way through the slower traffic I look down and realize we're going 90 mph. Ah, this feels good. As I settle back in the seat the memories and feelings of driving a Z at speed come flooding back in a huge wave. Does Bill realize that the I-85 signs aren't speed limit signs? Who cares, I'm back in the 1970's when I was was bulletproof and much like back then, I just want to go faster. Much too soon we safely pull into Coolray Field and find a parking spot. When Bill gets out of his Xterra he has the biggest $hit eatin' grin on his face I've ever seen. Come to think of it, it probably matched the one on my face. After thanking him for the experience, we got to know each other better. He wants a 510 for the street and occasional track use. The apple didn't fall far from the tree. Good work Jai. The other great memories are of meeting Y'all and putting faces with names. Being able to talk with Matsuo-san, Cliff coming down for the day and providing transportation for us (thanks Cliff) and the warmth and hospitality of everyone we met in and around Atlanta. We wish we had more time to bench race with the other members but we're grateful for the memories we have. Thanks to all.

There are likely some still out there. "What's your, I don't want to sell it price?" may tempt a few to respond.

In an attempt to consolidate the help in the previous threads, Ignore (for now) all advice that doesn't pertain to a complete tune-up. We need to eliminate all the gremlins that are eliminated in a tune-up before we can get into the finer points of the carbs. You may want to review Jalexquiano's threads titled "1972 float adjustment" and "Misfiring while cruising".

How many turns down are the nozzles?

Those plugs should be near white to a light tan if it was running with the choke off. I'm going to assume a few things like; there's a good hot spark at the plugs, compression is good, the ignition timing is OK. Let's start with the easy stuff. When the choke is operated, the cables pull the nozzles down in both carbs. The nozzles are known to occasionally stick in the down (choke) position when the choke knob is pushed forward (off). You can reach under the carbs and feel the nozzles come down with the help of a friend operating the choke knob. When the choke knob is pushed forward, manually push up the nozzles to see if they're sticking in the down position. Do your round tops have 3 or 4 screws and is there a drain fitting on the float bowls? Ztherapy has a video called just SUs that explains the workings of SUs and how to tune them. SUs are really quite simple carbs IMO.

Blowing fuses as you describe is a short circuit to ground, somewhere in that circuit.

ZH is correct. The carbs should act the same. Some more tuning needed there. What were the results using the color tune? Were you able to get the proper color on all six and what color are the plugs? Pics of the plugs would be good. I'm betting at least three of them are dark. Carbon in the cylinders may be the cause of the dieseling.

It'd be fun to renew one that old. My mom never did understand why I HAD TO disassemble and reassemble my new bike and anything else I could get my hands on. The urge lives on.

"Sometime they'll give a war and nobody will come." Carl Sandberg.

I like it. However, in my 520 there was a couple of things I didn't like. My knees would bump the bottom of the steering wheel whenever I used the brakes or the clutch and the upright seating position wasn't comfortable. I'm 5' 7". I doubt this little gem has much legroom either.

Then it must be your wife. She's sending you a message.

He bought more than one sanding block. Perhaps it's a hint that he wants to help. Yeah, that's it. Everyone likes to sand.

Chia Z.

I removed the top layer of flaky flat black from my 260 using a couple of cheap new HF wood chisels. Very little pressure was needed when I got the angle right. There was very little damage done to the next layer even though I wasn't careful. The next layer was to be sanded. Wear eye protection. The paint chips fly off in a cloud.

I'm curious about the manufacturer too but fitment is the real issue. Massaging a replacement valance is one thing. Just the thought of massaging a poor fitting replacement quarter panel makes me shudder. Have you taken any comparison measurements to see how close they are to originals? The info could boost the price.

The cups of liquid reminded me of one of Blue's injector tests.

I'd want to take a good look at the body modifications. Pulling the inside rear side panels to inspect the workmanship of the flair installation would be a good idea.

How long are you going to let it idle?

How long are you planning on letting it idle? Also, how long do you normally have to let it idle in traffic?