st0878

Yes paint stripper is some nasty stuff. WEAR GLOVES! You will get some on yourself so have a wet rag laying around. I was wire wheelin some treated paint Sunday and a little speck of it shot in my eyes yeeeeeowwwww......wear goggles too! :pirate:

I have used allot of POR15 on my Z. Overall I think it's a good product but I wouldn't go so far as to put it everywhere. Once it sets nothing else will stick to it and it's over priced. I used it under the cowel and on the top of front wheel frame. Basically anywhere that water has a tendency to stand. I also did my new pans with it too. It's important to note that POR15 is not a top coat and should be covered with some other paint as it is UV sensitive. There is a short window when the product is set but still tacking that other top coats will stick to it. I used some this weekend and yes I got some on my hands which I'll wear for a few days! I also experienced the joy of stripping paint from the interior of the car and afer trying just about every abraisive made I can tell you the EASIEST way to do it is with Aircraft paint stripper. Some say that strippers are messy but I don't think they are as messy as kicking up sanding dust everywhere! Couple of coats of this stuff and you will be down to nice shiny undamaged metal in half the time it takes to sand. One last tip is how to get that tar like insulation of the pans is to use a loosly held air hammer with a chisel tip....sounds like it would damage metal but it won't as long as you apply little or no pressure....busts it right up. I would like to know if anyone knows how to treat the the inside of dog leg and rocker panels?

Thanks to you and my 5 pound sledge....they're staight now!!! Thank for you help!

I originally put compression rod but I was reading my FSM and it called them radius arms so I came back and edited my post. So yes I'm talking about the compression rod. I loaned out my digital camera so I cant send you a pic but here's a link to Atlanticz article that shows the rod. Thanks EZ http://www.atlanticz.ca/zclub/techtips/suspension/comprod/index.html

I am in the middle of overhauling the rack and all the rubber bushings to poly. I was cleaning the radius arms and noticed a slight bend on the driver side and an even slighter bend on the passenger arms. The car was really lowered by the PO and would bottom out easily. I have since put the original springs back in. Can anyone tell me whether the bend in radius arms is by design or damage?

Is there a mailing list that we can get on or a web site with the latest show info? I might just make it this year!

I Just bought the MSA Aero kit that includes the front and rear bumber replacement and the side ground effects. I am still trying to get the rest of the car ready to paint but couldn't resist the urge to duct tape them on to see how they will look. The parts are hardly an exact fit! The Ground effects tend to be twisted and the bumpers will need some tweeking. If your familiar with the kit you know that only the ends on the bumber are actually fastened to metal. So my question is how to deal with the gaps and transition from a cut fibreglass edge up to the metal. I mean obviousley I can trim the fibreglass peices so that they match the contors of they body, but still doesn't seem like it would look right. So what is the best way to get smooth paintable tranistions? I bought some of that E6000 adheisive but I would think that would be more for reenforcing the mating surfaces where the peices will be bolted on? Or can you use it to create a bead on the strait edge of the fibreglass to hide its transition to body? :surprised

Buy them directly from Charlie at Zed Findings. http://www.datsunzparts.com/start.htm I just bouth a pair for about $250 including shipping.

Well I finally got the courage and the money to buy the MSA Aero Kit that includes the front and rear bumber replacement and side skirts. Anyone that has ever ordered one of these kits will tell you they need some tweeking before you can install them. I was wondering if anyone has any tricks or advice on how to trim and install them. I am especially interested in which adhesive and which method would be best to bond them to the metal? Also what could you use to blend the edges of the fiberglass to the body so that it looks like one piece and something that's not going to crack. Thanks in advance for your advice! EZ

Yeh think all of them have contributed to some of my other posts. This site is my first stop for z-car info. I don't know if you read the "What you do you do for a living" thread but I was impressed with the resumes of just about everyone that replied. Thanks for your help. EZ

Thanks Gary, that's what I needed to hear! Sometimes you just need someone to talk you down from a stupid idea! The $250 ........ well I guess it wouldn't the first time I had to drop trowel for the old bit&^%... Seein how Halloween is coming up I'll already have an old pumpkin for the kids ta boot! Yes the 76 was the first year that the R200 reared it's ugly head. Still would be nice if someone did an article on how rebuild the differential if all the tools were available at Harbor Freight that is......

Thanks beandip. I changed the oil before I realized that the diff was the root of the problem. I DID make it a point to check the drain plug for shavings. I actually thought it looked pretty clean. I found an 83 280zx 3:9 on the other side of Florida today ($250) and am debating whether to risk spending $100 on bearings, seals and cover gasket when I'm not sure what the problem is and if you can fix it without any exotic equipment. The fact that there is a CAT frickin 4 HURRICANE hovering around off the coast of Miami ain't makin it easy for me to plan any exploritory differential dropping this weekend! I think I'll wait till Monday to buy it just in case I don't have a car come Sunday. Still like to find an article or something that details an overhaul. Thanks again! EZ

I have had a thunking sound comming from the rear end of my 76 Z that is getting progressively worse. I pulled and lubed the 2 half shafts and couldn't locate the cause. I sounds like bad bearing or if you had a tire out of round. I checked the two wheel hubs and they rotate freely and have no play. Today I found that if I put the car in neutral disconnect the half shaft and rotate it while still in the differential that the passenger side of the dif. was producing the sound. It also has about a 1/4 inch of rotational play. I had an extra half shaft so I swapped it out. Same problem! The thunking sound repeats once for each rotation of the tire. It seems to be coming from the differential bearing or is it possible that I've lost a tooth? I tried changing out the differential oil and refilled with 2 qts. :stupid: How do I determine the problem without dropping the diff? And If it is the bearing can you change it out without dropping the dif, or is that my only option? If someone has had this problem or can link me to an article I would greatly appreciate it. I know very little about working on or troubleshooting differentials and need as much detail as possible. This isn't the differential of my dreams and I was considering going to 3:9 or 4:11 in the future. For now I'd like to just keep it limping along until I find a good price so I don't want to dump too much money into this unit doing a complete overhaul. Sorry if I rambled on too long. Thanks in advance for your advice! EZ

Hey Ramshak2000 do you still have that trani? If so PM me at edwardz@bellsouth.net

Sorry I see your in NC. Is this a turbo motor?

Where do you live?

Wow this is cool! Now we need to figure out how we can barter our services for z parts! I always wondered if you could put a solid rocket booster on a Z but little did I know there are members here that can actually fricken do it! I make computer problems go away as a senior desktop analyst for a large insurance firm in Miami. I will help you with one computer problem for a can of POR-15 and some sand paper.

Well think I've just about drained the imagination out of just about everyone! I'll post the pictures after I decide the color (if I change it) and you can rest assured that carpet, spinners, neon and anything rice is not an option. Thanks everyone. EZ

Here's the pictures. Sorry it was getting dark. It's a 75 with 91k miles or is it 191k miles (we'll never know). I want to thank all you guys (and Vicky) for your great replys! I've learned that if I decide to change the color you guys won't rip me apart. And Bush sucks as a president (that I already knew). I know lets change the color of my car and paint Bush yellow! I'm still torn as to whether to change the color or not. You know some days I go out there an think that the car looks great and other days I think it look like sh*%&. I was thinking of maybe keeping it yellow but changing it to a softer yellow like the I've seen on the new VW beatles (is that what they call em?). It's a nice shade that doesn't SREAM YELLOW when you see it. I'm still taking your input and appreciate the the great posts so far! EZ

I live in south Florida and let me tell you it's hard to find a Z that's not rust terminal. A few months back I ran across a yellow 76Z that structurally was is in pretty damn good shape. I jumped on it an bought it for $1200. I'm real happy with the find! The only problem is that well......it's yellow! It's been repainted, but it's original color was yellow too. I want to repaint it and I can't decide if I should keep it yellow (which some days really looks kinda cool) or change it to another color. The problem is that I'm 43 now and I don't want look like I'm trying to be 18! So should I change the color to something a little more mature or maintain the car's original color? And if I did change the color would I be cast into the burning fires of hell and have my Classic Zcar membership revoked and forced to surf only HybridZ.com for the rest of my days? :sick: I posted pictures on Post 42 of this thread or you can go to my gallery. thnx

Have you seen MSA's Aero kit that integrates the bumper into the foil? I think it looks sharp but it's kinda pricy if you get the front and the back ($600). As nostalgic as would like to consider myself, that 100 pound hunk of steel protruding out is just down right ugly and I think it realy makes a car with great lines look funky. I have a 76z and mine extends the car by another foot front and back.

Harbor Freight has them for $40. I put an L28 on their China stand and it seemed to hold up okay. I also did it by myself, although i'm still having a problem getting the stain our of my drawers!

I'm a little aprehensive about wheter the fan would be too much on the 30yr old electrical system. Is there somewhere on the radiator to install the sensor?......geeeez iduno if this is a good idea!