nitsuj

I'm very seriously searching for a Z right now. Shoot me some details and pics. If it's what I'm looking for and the price is right, we can talk.

What Tannji said. Plus the use of aluminum windings instead of copper. A good source of welding info can be found at Hobartwelders.com, great forum over there.

One thing I haven't seen mentioned: Be careful, the Lincoln 140 you get a Welding shop is much different than the Lincoln you get at Lowes or Home Depot. That said, if you want a 140 class machine and don't want to blow the whole wad, I like the Hobart. (About $400) Made by Miller, so the quality is there. Bare bones features wise, but a nice capable machine. I like my little Hobart. All due respect to Mr. Vette, it isn't a toy, no welder is. It's all a matter of knowing what it can do and not excedding it's limits. Would I turn on the 140 if I had to whip up a bumper for a Peterbuilt? No. But for automotive sheet metal? Absolutley. For anything 3/16 or less? Sure. Different tools do different things. No one weldor willdo EVERYTHING. Well, maybe one will but not one in your price range. Do yourself a favor, seek out a welding school. Lots of high schools with welding vocational programs offer classes to adults at night. Well worth it. Vette, I know that you know your stuff. You seem very knowledgable, but you're being awfully hard on 140 class machines. I wouldn't choose one to be my only welder, but 90% of what I do in my home shop is less than 1/4 inch thick, the 140 works great.

Just caught the 2 most recent episodes on my DVR. Jon, I have to ask, whats your car worth? Ballpark, I'm not trying to be nosey. It looks like you have a bunch of money tied up in it. So how did they recruit people for this show? It doesn't seem fair. It seems like I could show up with any old junker, an old 3 cylinder Geo Metro. As long as I'm shrewd negotiating, I could possibly win. How is it fair that you put you (I assume expensive) car against stock cars from the showroom or even less valuable hunks. I've seen you race a Firebird (or Trans Am, whatever), a 06 GTO and a junky old Honda CRX. I won't give away the results in case someone hasn't seen it yet, but any one of those cars were WAY slower than yours, but because of how the show works, any one of them could have beat you (and maybe did). How is it worth your time and risk to come out and possibily lose your car when all you have to gain is a riced out old Civic?

To me, she doesn't belong there. Not because she's a woman, or even because she makes me want to choke her. But why go on a show where the purpose is to have a fast drag car, and take a stock car and then keep bitching about how slow her car is. I kept waiting for her pre-race negotiations to include "You have to remove one wheel, disconnect 2 plug wires, tow a boat, with no trailer, disconnect your nitrous and drive blindfolded. And I want 3 seconds." If she had planed to go one the show doing that, she could have saved a bunch of money by just showing up with a 50cc scooter and handicapping everyone 10 seconds.

Saw the episode today. Man, nice car. I don't know what drug you're on to keep you from choking that lady with the Trans Am, but it must be good. Good luck. Well, I guess you don't need it since the results are in, but, good luck to the past you.

I like that. A lot. If it could be done for a reasonable price, and I could sturdy up the chassis enough, I'd do it. If nothing else, I'll just send you pictures of my car and you can chop it off for me and I can pretend.

I thought about that. Thats why I asked here and not there. Thats a great forum too, but I figured there was probably some guys there who were orignal owners. I was more curious about how many guys here bought a Z back in the day, then kept them all these years then turned them into Hybridz. Like I said, I was just curious.

How many members here bought their Z Car new back in the day and are still driving it today? Anyone?

As usual, you guys have given me a lot to think about. I never thought about the lack of a sturdy frame under the car. I guess thats what separates my Z from my Dads vette, the frame. With this roof removed, his car can still remain rigid, where on the Z, the car would get flimsy. You guys are so smart!

So, I'm sirfing the Z forums. Not looking for anything in particular, just sort of surfing taking it all in. I notice that from time to time, I see people who have done convertibles. Good concept, but I don't like how it looks. No offense to those that have done it, it just doesn't fit my tastes. I like the shape of the Z. The convertible changes the lines too much, IMHO. Again, no offense to those of you who did it, just my tastes. Anyhow, I do like the concept. I'm a motorcyclist, so anything to get me in the open air when I have to drive the cage is all good with me. I like convertibles and I like T-tops. Even a moonroof, if thats all that available. I told you all that, to ask you this. How come I see convertible projects being done, but not T-Tops in cars that don't come with them? Or, better yet, why no removable hard tops? If you could just remove the roof panel, you'd be in the open air, but retain the hatchback shape we all love. My dad has a late 80's Vette with a removable top, I really like the feature. So, why don't I see these being done? Or are they out there and I just haven't found any yet?

I know this is an older thread, but it really hit home for me. I recently went to look at a Datsun for sale locally. It had a muffler from a Harley dresser mounted. Witha fish tail end cap. (I spent the last decade working at a Harley dealer, I recognized the part right away.)

Thanks guys. Still mile to maybe see the MSA kit close up, installed. And even the stock mounts. You guys rock.

Does anyone have any pics of the motor mounts used in a SBC swap? I'd love to see several different styles. I can find pics of the mounts themselves, but I haven't seen any decent pics of the mounts installed. Thanks in advance. (And, yes, I tried searching.)

See, thats just the thing A.G. I my mind, theres no sense in buying a car with a V8 when I know I'm taking out the V8 to put in a different V8. And heres why. Locally, I have 2 Z's I've looked at that I'm considering. Both are in about the same shape. Interior is shot, exterior is ugly, but salvagable. Neither is rusty, both have terrible shade tree paint jobs. One has the stock motor which runs, but badly. I suspect one carb needs attention. The other has the 307 in it. I can't tell which kit is used to mount the V-8 or even if it is a kit. It may be a home brew. The tach isn't hooked up, which makes me think maybe they didn't buy a kit. Now, heres my snagging point: The one with the V-8 is $2000, the one with the stock motor is $700. So, do I want to pay $1300 extra bucks for a motor I know I'm going to be taking out anyhow? If it had a nice 350 in it, and I knew it was a proper conversion, it would be a no brainer. I was really sure I wanted the one with the V-8 already mounted. But now I've had some time to think a bit, the $700 car seems really attractive. I'd get to pick and mount my own motor, so I'd be sure to be happy with the results. I'm just damn glad I found this forum full of folks that knows what I'm going through. My wife is getting sick of hearing me whine about the choice.