EricB

Rob Some scanners (white light) do the whole surface and yield a point cloud, others are manually handled and when the trigger is depressed register a point in space one after the next thus giving you a segmented line which is a representation of the section of what you're scanning. Most scanners I've seen save in their own proprietary format but will of course export into whatever you want be it IGES or whatever else. -e

Kind of like the 432 piston picture to the left of my posts... also just given to me but at another shop and i didn't even ask for it... it was a 510 shop and i brought a 510 enthusiast and just hung back telling the owner i had an S30 which prompted the unsolicited gift. -e

I asked nicely and it was just given to me... They sure looked at me like I was crazy when I went into their shop to buy a set of new taillights and the horn pad... -e

Not to throw a wrench into all of this or anything but the Japanese Z horn pad for the 70-3 is shaped just like the ours but instead of having it say "datsun" it just says "Z" and has the addition of a horn logo below that. I should take a picture of the one in my car for all to see. -e

GT4 = Gran Turismo 4 It will probably be a rough poly model though... I'll ask about scanning the 1/12 scale... Don't think it's a white light scanner so I wouldn't expect a point cloud or anything... probably only feature lines... we'll see though... -e

What you guys need is basically my services... that's exactly what I do... I am a digital modeler and build automotive surfaces from scan data and designer sketches here at the BMW design studio in Newbury Park (CA). Problem is that to surface a car correctly we're talking at least 60hrs of work... And of course for it to be accurate you need good data to start from... Using the side/front/rear view illustrations from say a Tamiya 1/12 box or the factory service manual will only get you so far.... To make it perfect I'd have to convince the guy running the laser scanner to at the very least scan all the major feature lines on the Z and some sections of the bodyside, roof, and hood on my Z for me to be able to build an accurate surface model of it. Basically a lot of work has to happen for an IGES model to be available to you all... I do have an unbuilt 1/12 Tamiya S30Z and maybe I could bring it in and see if he would scan that for me?? Don't hold your breath though as the guy's somewhat of a sourpuss. I wonder if some enterprising software programmer types couldn't (haven't already??) crack the code of GT4 and export the poly model of the S30Z and use that as a basis? Just a thought...

So I'm slowly building up a nice cylinder head with some good bits from Japan (Kameari Titanium retainers & 8000rpm safe valve springs) but when wondering about picking out a cam I got to thinking about the bottom end's rev limit. Mine is an 81 F54 which I had cleaned up (hot tank, hone, check for straightness, etc) a year ago and to which I fitted new bearings and rings. Having only the seen addition of a deeper and baffled sump & a higher flowing oil pump it is basically stock. I know the L28 revs less than the L24 but does anyone have a specific number I should keep in mind? For example if the bottom end can only handle say a max of 6500rpm it doesn't make much sense to pick out a cam that only comes on between 6000 and 8000 rpm. Know what I mean? So with that said? Anyone know what's safe on an F54 bottom end? -e

If you know what you want and just need a good machine shop to do the boring/honing/balancing/etc (used him for two different blocks already)... I'd recommend Mark De Groff in the SF Valley on Parthenia near where it crosses Reseda Blvd. 818 701 5274 Another good machine shop who's services I have used (for my cylinder head) is Randy @ REBCO in Thousand Oaks 805 496 0823. Just down the street from the Auto Mall on TO Blvd If you want a great builder with Toyota Atlantic, CART, and drag race background you need to talk to Jack Parker at www.hightechperformance.com 818 908 0943 so he can put you in touch with their builder. (Also in the SF Valley) -e

Of related interest... Yesterday I went down the street to the local UPS Office/Hub on Rancho Conejo Blvd in Newbury Park (CA) right next to where I work and while taping together a couple tires I was sending off to someone, this guy Lance whom I gathered is one of the Fleet Mechanics there came out to admire my Z. Long story short, his dad a retired CHP officer once tailed a trailer to its destination in Thousand Oaks because it was carrying a car he instantly fell in love with. It was one of the Ontario Motor Speedway Z pace cars still in its original livery. He managed to buy the car off of the trailer although it wasn't for sale. It's been in that family's care ever since. I asked if this guy Lance had any pictures of it and he said he'd bring some in to the UPS place next week. Anyobdy remember these cars from back in the day? -e

Ed if you think they can be interchanged than sure I'll take your 72 one. What do I owe you? -e

Jim Apologies... Yes it was more than likely a GC10 made up to look like a PGC10. As you stated hopped up L series. -e

If someone happens to have a spare gas pedal assembly for a 240Z in their spare parts and wants to get rid of it I am on the lookout for one. Thanks. -e

Aside from not knowing whether it would use R180 half-shafts/etc, I figured that since this was the first one I'd seen for sale in a long time (it was actually the stock rear end on a PGC10 that had been imported to the States) I did wonder how available parts would be for it. Thanks anyway guys. -e

Ron, A 4.44 or 4.375 is exactly what I want for my car... If you check the math you'll see that I am running an even higher rpm at cruising speed on the freeway right now with 4.11 gears and a loaner 4speed with a 1.0 ratio in 4th... Getting my 5spd back from the rebuild shop and mating it with a 4.375 or 4.44 rear end would actually give me lower revs for the same speed... -e

Really? That easy Alan? Darn... I just passed one up. Well that will teach me... Is it any easier to find rebuild parts for the R190 LSD than the old R180 LSD? I'm thinking such items as clutch plate sets (the LSD is a clutch-typeright?), seals? -e

Indeed the first English language article I see about the PS30... cool. Thanks. -e

Alan (or anyone else caring to comment) in the case of R190 and R192 rear-ends what are they most like? Fitting one to an S30 requires the use of the original R180 intended axles/driveshaft or does it require the use of R200 specific ancilliary parts? I ask because I recently saw an R190 LSD come up for sale and didn't know what to make of it. I'm sure you can fill the rest of us in perhaps? Thanks as always, -e

The full width competition flare kit front and rear (but not including the G-Nose) and as pictured in the red and white liveried car was put for sale on eBay last week or the week before for $200. It was pickup only and I missed the close of the auction because I got wrapped up in some housework we were doing and simply forgot the time... Bummer... Maybe someone on here got their hands on it? Then again with flares that wide and supposing you did dig up some period correct 14x11" watanabe for the rear... good luck finding suitable tires is my guess... -e

Thank you Victol Raury... pipe wrench it is. -e

webdawg1 what is the tool you pictured? I don't see how that's the one I would need for the "nut" at the top of the strut casing. The nut that's at the top of my front strut casing on my 73 is round with two 3/8" square tabs cut out 180degrees from each other... I looked in google images for some pics of 240Z struts and here's what i found... Andrew the motorcycle suspension "C" spanner sounds like the way to go... they come in different sizes? or do I have to specify one for a certain bike that happens to have a shock diameter similar to our struts? -e

The kit you're referring to isn't HID. It's HID-look a like. It's an aftermarket 7" headlight housing with a brighter (probably bluer too) than stock H4 bulb inside. A true HID kit made by the likes of Hella and Phillips will include a ballast and igniter and special bespoke xenon gas filled bulbs. The dis-advantage with an HID kit is that the bulbs supplied will be a single filament design meaning that you will only have low-beams. You can't get a dual filament HID bulb for low and high beams because the Xenon takes a moment to heat up to produce maximum light. Look at a car with factory HID (Porsche, Audi, MB, Cadillac, etc) and notice that when they first turn their lights on they initially aren't that bright and take about 30sec to a minute to come up to full strength. The technology behind it is the same thing as your fluorescent office lights at your work. The few modern cars that say they have HID low and high beams actually operate the following way, when you trip the high-beam there's actually a motorized mirror inside the headlight housing that re-orients the low-beam light to point more up and out giving you a wider illumination path. Expect to pay between $400 and $600 for a true HID kit. -e

Where can I purchase the right wrench to tighten the threaded top that keeps the inserts inside our stock strut casings? -e

When I bought my S30 4 years ago I noticed the threaded end links that attached the swaybar ends to the lower control arms in the front needed some attention. The top end of the threaded end link had been rubbing the opening inside the sway bar end to a point where nearly half the material was gone from the end link. I replaced both sides and fitted new polyurethane bushings at the same time. I happened to be looking under there last night and found that the same thing had again happened. Problem is that now the opening in the sway bar end is no longer circular... it's become potatoe shaped and I can only see this getting worse in the future. My front swaybar is a 1" diameter one. What should I do? Replace the swaybar with a new one because of this? sleeve the opening in the swaybar end so that it's a tighter fit with the threaded end? Curious if any one else has seen this happen? -e

All good things eventually come to an end... So much so I've been toying with the idea of buying an RB26 just to prop it up on an engine stand.... I would never put it in the Z but am feeling it's important enough to have around for the future... S20 are no longer economically feasible and I'm sure that the RB26TT will end up with a similar place in the pantheon of engines... ahaha listen to me write hahaha -e

Alan I understand of course. I just figured I'd post the full reply from my Japanese friend so that for once you wouldn't have be the one typing out the full what/where/when/how for the people that were still somewhat in the dark... That's all. Just adding to your post, not critisizing it. -e