2ManyZs

Well, who likes needles anyway?? Good thing you aren't an MD. BTW, I have monitored the chatroom when you were online to see if you logged into the chatroom but you never did. Hmmm..... And I'm not that smart, Mike told me about it one of the first times I chatted with him in there. Funny thing is, I hardly ever see him in there now.

To those of you who don't know, there is a way to monitor the chatroom. If you log in and don't find anyone there, click on the push pin icon under exit. Then exit the chatroom and while you are on the main page you will have a box in your tool bar that will tell who ( if any) log into the chatroom. It works well if you remember to look on your toolbar once in a while to see if anyone has logged in.

Although Mike told me what it costs to operate the site on a monthly basis, I'm not going to say. If Mike wants everyone to know then I believe he should be the one to say. I will say this. If every registered member gave $1.00 per year it would go a long way towards the operating costs for six months. Most of us spend a dollar without even thinking about it on something every day. So, if you think about it, it really won't hurt anyones budget too terribly to lend a hand. Yes, it would be nice to have t-shirts, key fobs, license plate frames, sponsors etc. But until it becomes an absolute necessity I think that we as members of our "Z family" have the means necessary to make sure that this site will be here for us to enjoy. I personally like the fact that we are more of a close knit group instead of having hundreds of posts in a day. If you think about it, how many of those posts on those other sites are redundant? This is the main reason I chose to participate on this site in the first place. If it is feasible to get into club merchandise in the near future then I am all for it. But until each of us decides whether or not we can devote that much time and energy into the project, I think we all should just try to help out when we can.

Early style carbs will work on the L-26 but you will need to use the carb linkage that came with the early carbs. If you have the 240 carbs on an intake just swap the whole thing over, the 260 manifold had provisions for the smog equipment you may not need. If you can register the car without the smog equipment you can take all that off and plug off all those hoses and save a little weight there. The early round top carbs will be much better than the later flat top carbs. The flat tops were a PITA, that's why Nissan only used them from 73 to early 74, then changed to fuel injection in 74 1/2. The displacement is slightly higher in the L-26 but as far as I now the weight is pretty close to the same. The only added weight came when they added the fuel injection.

If you use an L-28 for the 75-78 280's you will get a better compression ratio with the flat top pistons. About 9:1 versus 8:1 (approx) with the later dished pistons from the ZX. You can use the E-31 head for even more compression, but an E-88, N-42, N-47, P-79 will work just fine. The E-31 and E-88 will have the smaller valves but can be upgraded to the larger 280 valves.

Yup, the steering coupler can be a major PITA. But as you found out (like the rest of us have) it can be done with a little extra work. I don't know about the end link, I have not used the Energy Suspension kit so I don't know if their bushings might be a little too thick or not. The "cup" on the control arm should be OK as long you make sure the end link is tight and does not loosen up. It could wear the bottom bushing if it were to move around a little due to under tightening. You could use one of the old washers in its place, perhaps with a little dab of JB Weld or even silicone to keep it in place. By shortening the end link you may have changed the stiffness of the bar slightly, but I don't think 1/4 inch will make a noticeable difference. Calling would be a good idea since all the urethane sway bar bushings I have used fit with no problem.

Does that mean I can "snort too"?? A thesis is a good thing, that's what my teachers always told me anyway.:sick: I agree with many ideas that have been "put to page" since this discussion started. I also agree that we don't need to try to be the biggest site on the net, just the best! I personally don't like the other sites as many of the questions are not only redundant but at times very naive. It is easy to see that this site hosts a large group of true Z enthusiasts. Why do I say that? Well, how many people have taken the time to take apart a tachometer and knows how to fix it on those "other sites"?? Not many, I'll bet. I believe what we need to do is this, let's not change too much, let's not get greedy, and let's all work together in whatever capacity we are able too, and let's keep this site just like it is. Period. We don't need all the latest and greatest, we just need to support this site. I'm a "techno-idiot" so I gave Mike a donation so that he can put it to good use. If someone else can't donate money but can donate time, great. If Alphadog has time to moderate and I don't, why does it matter that I gave money? We are both working towards the same end. If Mike needs help all he has to do is ask. I think it's says something that he has never asked before. So let's all just pitch in however we can and not worry about stars or titles or any of the other petty little things. My $.01, after my 401k contribution.

Great, I'm glad it worked. Now, if your palms aren't too sore you can pat yourself on the back!

WD-40 will work, or any other kind of penetrating oil you might have lying around. I hope it works, or I will look like a fool again. It has always worked for me. My one car has had the wheel off and on so many times all I have to do is take off the mounting nut and tap it lightly and it comes right off. If it is stubborn try tapping it at the 12 and 6 position a few times and then go back to 9 and 3.

I have never had to use a wheel puller on any of my Z's to get the steering wheel off. Maybe I've just been lucky but try spraying just a little penetrating oil on the shaft so that it seeps down into the splines. After about a half an hour come back and sit in the seat and using your palms, give the back of the wheel and good whack. Not enough to hurt your hands but just a little "help". Using both hands on opposite sides of the wheel (9 and 3 position works) tap it quickly on one side then the other. Kinda like playing the drums on the back of the wheel.Be careful not to hit it too hard, if it pops loose suddenly you might end up with it on your chin (I had that happen once and it doesn't feel to good), if it doesn't start to work loose you can always spray it a little more and try again. I have pulled the wheel off 5 or 6 cars this way, try it once, and if it works you have saved a little money. If it doesn't work, well, then it's back to trying to find the right puller. If it comes off, before you put the new wheel on put just a tiny bit of anti-seize on the splines and it will come off much easier the next time. Good luck!

You could also look through the forums here. The answers you are looking for would be under Help Me or Body, Paint and Interior. I know that I have been involved in a number of discussions recently on the topic of what to look for when buying a Z. Not sure of the thread titles though, sorry.

You could also try Impact Parts. I bought some parts fro my Webers from them and I was told they could get me any pieces for the throttle linkage etc. that I might need. Of course that was a few years ago, like everything else..... The old catalog I have gives an info line phone number: 1-914-434-3338 Good Luck!

Great! That's what we are here for, making someone else do the work! Just kidding. As long as you have it apart now would also be a good time to check out under the cowl panel too. The area under the wiper motor is another place that leaves and dirt like to hide. Clean it out and put the POR-15 in there too. Be sure to check the fender itself in the area behind the wheel where it bolts to the rocker panel. There is a pocket there that likes to hide a lot of crud, just clean it out as best you can with a long screwdriver, and seal it up too. It's always easier to do as much as possible when you have the car apart rather than having to do it again and finding out you should have done something the first time, and having more of a repair the second time around. If you haven't done it already be sure to look under the battery tray too, POR-15 would work well there too.

What do you mean there is nothing in Albany, Oregon???? What are we ALL supposed to do when we get there?? I've already been to Mollala once, so I guess this next time it will have to be a little further south!:eek: Don't worry Mike, we'll let you know a little in advance.

Pro's??? You did exactly what I would have done. guy geo, If your car hasn't been raced hard or wrecked it seems unlikely you would have to worry about any cracks. Rust, yes, but most Z's don't start having any problems unless they have been raced or been hit hard in an accident. It isn't so much cracks you are looking for but spot welds that have separated (although you may find cracks around a spot weld). Seams that have too much open space in them, due to weld separations from rust or misuse. Get under the car, check all the seams for straightness, gaps and so on. Check around the t/c rod mount too, and around the sway bar mounting holes. I would be more concerned about rust deterioration than anything else, the frame rails trap moisture and rust away from the inside out. The moisture collects when it seeps between the weld joints and starts decaying the inner flange of the frame rail and it doesn't stop. Take a small hammer and tap along the frame rail sides and underneath. Does it sound "tinny" or does it sound like you are tapping on a thick piece of metal? The frame rails are quite a bit thicker than the inner fender panels, so if it sounds like you are tapping on the inner fender you may have rust inside. Of course to do a good visual check it always helps to have the paint stripped off if you choose that route.

I would have to agree with EScanlon on this idea. While MSA has grown a lot over the years they aren't a large corporation, they are still basically a family run business. Without having a web-site structured towards taking secure orders over the internet I doubt they would want to invest the money to do this just for us. I can remember Ken and Greg answering the phone to take orders the first few years I did business with them. I believe they might be willing to go for an ad on the site but that would be about all, they do sponsor race cars, but I doubt their advertising budget would be up to what you propose considering the investment they would have to make to bring your idea to fruition. I believe the answer is somewhere in the club logo/t-shirts/hat's and/or member donations. While we do have over 1,000 members only about half are active. And of that number there is an even smaller number who are active at a high level. I believe if you look there are less than 100 members who have more than 10 postings so a lot of people join just so they can look thru the whole site or choose not to participate. What it will boil down to is the people that use it will need to support it or we will lose it if it becomes too expensive. There are other Z-sites but after looking at them I preferred this one, and as you can see I have been a "little too active". Once spring finally gets here I will have too much to do outside and someone else will have to take my place. So, IMO it will be up to the members to support the site in the end.

Thanks John, Guess before I decide what to do with the car, I better get some rule books and do some reading. Can't see much sense in racing IT anymore since they are allowing so many new cars in, it used to be nothing but Z's, now it's just a few of the die-hards who won't part with their Z's.

Hate to tell you this Alphadog but that's the way its supposed to be, just harder to tell if the emblems aren't in perfect condition like the ones in the photo. Panasports ain't cheap, figure in the 200 to 225 (that's in US dollars) each for 15 inch depending on whom you purchase them from ( 16 inch can go up to 250+ each). Tires can be about half of that, again depending on what size and brand you decide on. If you have to have the look, you will have to pay the price. I wanted a set of Panasports on my first Z 10 years ago, it wasn't until last year I finally got a set for the car I'm working on.

Sounds like we are on our way to something. All we have to do is figure out which way we want to go. Patches, complete shirts, hey, why not a license plate frame for our Z's??? This could go on and on couldn't it??:eek:

Now I'm sitting here wondering why I don't just paint the whole underside of my 71 with it instead of messing with primer and paint. Guess I kinda answered my own question that has been nagging me all winter since I can't get anything done in the shop till the weather decides what it is going to do. I think maybe I'll do mine in black and just do the engine compartment from the top of the frame rails up in body color, with a little of the POR-15 under the battery tray that isn't rusted out yet. Black inner fenders would make my Panasports really stand out. Darn, now I gotta go order more "stuff".:eek:

I've never had any problem with a strut bar on mine. Most strut bars use 2 of the mounting bolts for the strut for their mounting plate so you shouldn't run into any problems. The tops of the strut towers seldom rust and they are double plated, it's the bottom of the strut tower above the frame rail that usually rusts through so as long as that is OK you should be fine. Any uni-body car will crack if it is abused or is not in the best of shape to begin with. A strut bar will reduce the flexing of the upper strut towers, if it in questionable shape down lower near the frame rails it will soon become very obvious even without using a strut tower brace.

Mike and I were sending ideas back and forth last month about this, and I'd have to say that kmack and EScanlon have hit on something that is better than we came up with. T-shirts and/or hats would be relatively cheap to produce and would bring in the needed revenue so we can enjoy this site. In fact, somewhere in this eclectic mix I would say there is probably someone with the equipment and/or knowhow to do the job. All we need is some seed money to buy the shirts and/or hats and we are in business. Great idea guys!!!! Now all we have to do is get Mike involved in this discussion and set some goals and find out who or how we could get the job done.

John, I gave the weights as I remembered them since the last time I raced they didn't weigh the car with the driver, you just had a minimum chassis weight. So what you are saying is basically the chassis rules for BSP are quite close to IT as far as what you can or can't take off the car. So if I were to run my IT 280 I guess I would have to run it in FP since it has a fuel cell and all the undercoating is off? I've been thinking about doing a couple Solo's with it but haven't decided if it would be worth the effort. What is the best web-site to get the solo classifications from? They don't allow the 280 in E Production yet (probably couldn't afford it anyway) and it isn't competitive in ITS anymore so I was just wondering if it would be worth the effort to try Solo.

Besides the sound deadener and undercoating and bumpers you could change the doors to 240 doors and save little more weight. If the 280 has A/C that can come out too. All in all you might knock off 100 pounds or so. Swap for an R-180 and you can save another 35 pounds ( I think that's the weight difference, I'm not exactly sure) so you sould get the 280 to within close to a 200 pound difference. Going to carbs might help save a few pounds too. I know my 280 ITS car weighed in at around 2575, while the 240's were all around 2200 give or take a few pounds. I put a 2 inch cage in my car so that hurt my weight a little. I guess the biggest question would be this. Can you find a 240 for $500 that is in the same shape chassis wise as the 280?

I think MSA still has the hatch vent grills. I believe they were close to 30 bucks a piece though. My car didn't have any when I bought it so I had to buy new ones.