Zak's Z

Thanks, I'll have a go at it tomorrow. I might as well put off the prep/paint session till I get everything right. I guess its better to get the whole bottom cleaned off and POR'd before painting anyways, that way no chance of cross- contamination after. Zak

Heres where I am: New floors/rockers/rails are in. Rear wheel wells stripped of old undercoating and freshly POR'd. Front inners POR'd. Car is rolling chassis only, but engine still has fuel and brake lines and booster and clutch/brake cylinders are still there. Here was my plan: Remove fuel/brake lines, and strip engine bay, clean it out, POR it, then tie-coat prime it. THEN send rolling shell off to body shop to prep/paint. Heres my problem: I cant get the fuel/brake lines out easily without removing the differential. It's still there, and it looks like if I take it out, I gotta drop the whole rear suspension. Also the rear underside (including all suspension components) need to be stripped of old undercoating and POR'd. I wanted to get the body in to the place I have lined up soon to do the prep/paint. Then when I got that back, I was going to BREATHE EASY and take my time, clean the bottom, refresh the entire suspension, get all bits and pieces, etc... So can I realisticly leave the fuel lines and rear brake lines in and just remove the front stuff I can access? I plan on replacing the brake lines (ive never seen a replacement fuel line and mine isnt bad, so I was gonna leave it). I think I will have enough space to clean/POR everything and as long as the paint shop can do it with the lines in I'm OK right? Assuming I'm ok to bring it in with the lines still in the engine bay (but masked off), SHOULD I strip all the paint off the car first and bring it to bare metal. Most people Ive talked to say bring it to bare metal to see whats under it for sure. The body shop says I can bring it in either way. It will be a pain in the a$$ to strip all the paint off, but if it makes that much of a difference, I will. Any advice on this is greatly appreciated. Thanks, Zak

That looks excellent. That black really suits it. Nice work. Zak

I see one bid now! That car looks better than any parts car I've seen up north here. I had a mouse family living in my parts car's glove box, and a few shed snake skins...If I was closer I'd rent a flatbed, buy some wheels, a big can of RAID for the scorpions, and I'd tow that gem. Just from the pics theres lots of great parts on there. Bumpers look good, early hatch is complete with vents and trim (minus a badge), grill, taillights, glass, engine stuff, wiper arms, steering wheel, headlights,etc. If that body is free of rust....someone, please save it from the scorpions!. Zak

Hey, My Z was in better shape than that one, and I still had to pay $2300 for the metal work, and $1300 for the floors/rockers/rails. You will need MORE metal than that, and more metal work it looks like. If I wasnt so far into it, I would have started with a better frame. Even with all the work I paid for, the floors are a bit off, and the door lines will need cosmetic work because things just dont line up exactly like they did before. Zak

Bart...Thats a great price, and seems to be the same part number as the other kits. I might get that one. Zak

Try http://www.datsunzparts.com/ Charlie Osborne is his name, hes in Canada. I dont know how far he ships, but he ships to Can, and the US so I assume he ships anywhere. If the part isnt listed on his site, drop him an email and he'll get you a price if he can get it. I bought from him several times no problems, quick shipping. Zak

Has anyone found a knock-off or aftermarket mirror that is similar to the original chrome-style mirrors? New ones are a bit stekep, there must be something out there thats close. Zak

ya...good idea. I was wondering about that. Zak

I see what you mean. When I look at passenger side, looking at it level and from about 3 feet away..it looks pretty close, although maybe a touch too tight like you say. The drivers side is 'more' off than the passenger side though. So now I have one side too high, and one side too low. Any thought of how that will affect the door closing when the weatherstrip is on? Any other possible problems may arise out of this other than cosmetic? Thanks, Zak

Sure, I dont mind at all. I forget how many hours he quoted me, but I know I went over becasue the guy doing it (although he was off on the one floor/rocker a bit) kept finding other problems and he fixed those also. He had to fabricate me a new piece where the t/c rod connects at the frame rail, and he also did new inner rockers, and a few pieces in the engine compartment, he put the old seat brackets in the new floors and cleaned up some prior repair work done to the front corner also. I bought the Floor Pans, Supports,Frame Rails, and rockers all from Charlie Osbourne at Zedd Findings for around $1,200CAD, I dont have the total with me, check the website. Anyways...the bill for the metal work was $2,200.00CAD and probably 5 cases of beer in total that I kept bringing the guy doing the work every now and then. Zak

The '72 I bought had 'very little' rust, it even looked half-decent mechanically. I didnt have any battery tray rust either. But I found out my frame rails and floors needed to be replaced. Couldnt even see the rust until you really searched for it. So I call BULL$HIT on a no rust Z! Have a reallllly close look at the frame/rust situation. If it is in fact very good and no rust...youre in a great spot. I even looked at a Z where the frame rails looked great under the undercoating and even some bare spots actually didnt have rust on the outside, but they were so soft I could rip through them with a screwdriver. The interior can all be had (for a possibly hefty price I might add) from classifieds and E-Bay, if your plan is to go stock. A good dash means its free of cracks on the top. You can always put a dash cap on it, and I hear they're pretty good, but a crack-free dash is a gem. I dont know anything about the motor situation, but if a guy is willing to do a (Skyline?) swap, then it sounds like some care has been taken. So..if the motor and tranny are good, and you cant find any rust (check under the fenders at the drain area near the firewall, battery tray, floor supporst, frame rails, dog legs, inside up in the top of the rear wheel wells) and all you need is a fender, paint job, and an interior, then I would say that is a good deal. Even if youre going to buy it regardless of what we say, at least FIND a bit of rust or a few problems so you have some room to negotiate price.

thanks...that leads me to another question: What if he didnt weld in straps, how do I tell if the body is straight? I have all the measurements from some manuals, but I better get that done before prep/paint so I'm sure its good. Zak

Even the drivers floor pan is about 1/4, not quite 1/2 inches lower. heres the passenger side for reference. And the doors on both are lined up properly at the top as far as height goes.I cant move it down any on the drivers side or it wont line up correctly. EDIT: Im already reserved to the fact that this wont be a showcar, but I am putting an awful lot of work and $$ into it, so I want it to look nice, and be mechanically sound and all that. zak

I need some professional opinions here, heres my problem: Last year I had new floor pans, rockers, and rails put into the car. I got a really good price and the guy came recommended from someone at work. After he quoted me, it turned out to be more work than he thought, but he gave me the price he quoted and his guy did the work between jobs. All good so far. I got the car towed home and put it in the garage. I saw it alot at the shop, but didnt see it with the doors on till after it got towed home. I put it in the garage for winter then I just now noticed the gap on the drivers side between the bottom of the door and the rocker is a bit much. The passenger side is ok, but the drivers side is about 1/2". the gap is almost enough to stick my pinky finger in there. I really dont want to have to take it back to that place and try and get the guy to re-do it. I just dont want the car hacked up again after getting back. It cant be good to hack up all that work to lift it, about 1/4 inch maybe? Im getting a different guy to do the prep/paint, and am hoping that it can be fixed by building that area up a bit to even it off. Which I'm sure can be done...but is there anything wrong with that? Look at the pics and tell me what you think. Thanks. Zak

I sure hope so. I'll be happy if in the end the body is straight, the panels are smooth, and I dont have to pray before I turn the key. Zak

Wheels are a done deal. 15" Konig Rewinds!

Thanks Jared, The color decision is driving me nuts. I personally like the blue, but I'm thinking of going with Datsun Orange (the original color) for that stock appearance. I should be able to get the car in for paint in a month or two..so I better make up my mind. Thanks again for getting me the code for your blue, I'll keep you posted. Zak

Hey thanks! Now I guess I need to find something for the next one... Zak

If you think theres a chance you're gonna be stuck with the car..then paint it whatever you want! If you'll only take a certain amount for it when it's done and you think you may NOT sell it...then you'll get that amount whatever color it is (if it sells), because you have already pre-determined what its worth. If youre going to sell it for best dollar no matter what, then think about the resale colors. Zak

Here is how it turned out. The black was very close I think. Not too shiny, not too flat. Zak

I thought I'd post another restore-thread. I was taking a break after scraping undercoating off the trans tunnel and I thought I would get out the bag-o-emblems I have. I was reading an earlier post on how to restore emblems, (I dont wanna put the guy 'on the spot' again) . After reading it I went and got some supplies and thought I'd give it a try. I used the following items, and the total was about $30.00 CAD. Tamiya Color for plastics R/C spray in Semi-Gloss black. Liquid Masking Film Spot sanding pen hobby knife Tamiya Acrylic paint for R/C's (white) some plastic Q-Tips. I tried to find Pactra paints but theres limited supplies. Either Canada is getting Testors or the guy who posted the earlier thread is an old timer :tapemouth because most hobby stores said they didnt carry the specific kinds in years. I found a hood emblem and cleaned it up. Its plastic, not metal soI was worried the fake chrome paint might come off when I was doing this. I painted the Liquid mask on the chrome parts with a hobby brush, and let it dry for about 1 1/2 hrs. Then I used the knife to gently cut the mask off any black surface. Then I painted the whole thing black. That stuff comes out lots of pressure for a little can. I waited and that black paint dried in about 1 hour. Then it got tricky. That mask just wouldnt come off easily. I started scratching it off with the back of the knife, but that was too risky. So I used my finger nail for some of it, and I cut a plastic q-tip into a pointy end and used that to get all the mask off the edges. Then I used the touch up brush and went over all the edges andit took the rest of the mask off pretty easy. Let me know what you think. Zak

Didnt mean to put you on the spot , but you DID put up a few detailed posts on it... I just used POR today, and I got quite a few drops on my garage floor, guess I wont bother trying to get it off. I cleaned the inner fender with Varsol (i read later it says dont use solvents), then I wiped it down, then used Metal-Ready, then sprayed it off with the hose (not alot), then dried it with the air compressor/heat gun/propane torch, then applied. Can you see any problem arising from using the Varsol to clean the area first? My car is up on jack stands, and I lied on the floor and had to paint up. My wife told me tonite I have a black spot in my hair at the back. I have a dime sized black drop that cleared my hair and soaked right onto my scalp. I'll have to wear it off, cause it wont wash out! I also bought the Manifold Grey high heat paint they have to paint my headers, and the POR-STRIP I already sprayed some of that on the paint and it seems to let you scrape it off after. I also (i dont work for the company!) bought some of the tie-coat primer, and applied it by brush to the inner front fenders. Its very thin going on, so you'll get some runs. I havn't sanded it down yet, but its supposed to sand easy. You need that if youre going to topcoat it with color, they say. zak