Two40MuscleZ

Pierre' Z Service Center in Hawthorne, CA sells a complete weatherstripping kit that actually fits. His address and phone: 12579 Crenshaw Blvd. Hawhtorne, CA 90250. 310.644.3645 Fax: 310.644.3647 Email: Pierrezman@aol.com

Another problem with the colder weather temps is the humidity factor. Excess moisture in the air during colder temps can sometimes fog the paint. Check your paint manufactures tech sheet. That should give you min - max temps, your recomended reducers, hardeners etc. You should be fine around 65 degrees in fair weather.

A thing of beauty. Very nice job.

Too many accomplishments to list. Currently 14+ years as a State Peace Ofcr., with 23 months to retirement. Started my first business in '76 as a Pinstriper. Been doing it ever since. I still on occassion go to some of the local SoCal Car Shows, break out my "Macs" and pull a few lines. It's easy, fun and I make good $$$ doing it. Decided that I will continue Pinstriping after I leave the Dept. Also looking into developing a line of HybirdZ custom show parts, lots of bling! More to follow on that in the coming months.

Pearls of Wisdom shared by those who know. Thanks Dan for making it into a sticky. That alone should be of great benifit to the new HybridZers. I particularly like the part about not building more than one Z at a time. Building 2 has been a killer in some ways but fruitful in others. The biggest down side is your always twice as broke! The up side offers two unique and seperate build challenges. But the bottom line is do your research, build it right the first time, take your time and enjoy what you are doing. Its a labor of love in every respect. Treat her like a "Mistress" and she'll return the compliment. VAN

With 22 months till I hang up my badge and gun, I decided to take an early retirement! What I should have done with this years return is finish my two Z projects. What I wound up doing was settling for a 7 day Curise with friends! Oh well, its only money.

Any decent Automotive Paint and Supply store should have the information on the color that you need, or you can give them a sample and they can match the color your looking for. Or if you want a custom color they should be able to do that also. It's not a real tough thing to do. Good luck. VAN

I agree with Mikelly. Circumstances are tragic, for everyone involved! But through it all she still will be displayed on many a wall! Gone but not forgotten. Wish her life could have been better. RIP

Very nice...can't wait to see the finished product. Good luck, VAN

Didn't I see that car in the Philippines?

Even if you have never painted a car before, you owe it to yourself to do so. Have the teacher help you, but unless you actually get in there and do the work yourself, your never going to learn. Take your time, go easy. Don't be overwhelmed and do one section at a time. And don't shoot it when all your friends are around...thats just asking for trouble. Do a test section on something other than the car until you get the adjustments on the gun down. Once you have it dialed in and have the spray fan set then say a little prayer and go to town. But to have come this far and not take the plunge...In any event, have fun and good luck. It will turn out just fine, no worries. The worst that can happen is you get a few runs or sags. Color sand them out and respot your work. Thats how you learn. So, go for it! VAN

I love it when a sister agency "grabs the bull by the tail and faces the situation"! LMAO!!! Higher State Taxes...Gov. Schwartzinshitters' way of getting his due.

Sata is pricey but it is the Caddy of spray guns. It has always been the industry standard. Many of the professional painters sware by the Sata. But, contact the various manufacturers ask for product sheets and then compare for yourself. Got to the larger auto body shops or custom paint shops in your area and ask the painters themselves for the pros and cons of the guns they are using and what their opinions are about the various guns. Perhaps they might even put some solvent in the gun and let you run a test pattern. Its worth a try. But for my money, I like the Sata. Both RacerX (Ernie) and I have shot our share of customs over the last 30 some years. Ernie will agree with me that Sata is a hard one to beat. It's the best I've found and I have several. Iwata and DV are also good, but spray pattern is not as fine as the Sata. Good luck...

I don't know where in Turlock you need to go, but research the automotive paint supply stores in your area. Tell them the color you want and in what medium you want it made in, i.e. single stage, base coat - clear coat, enamel, cat poly urathane,also you may need clear, hardner, reducer, etc. They will be able to give you a quart or gallon price and even a "System Price". But in any event, automotive paint in general is not cheap! Good luck.

If you understand the principle behind paint and how it works to get the shine then just about whatever you put on the surface can come out surprisingly well. Clean the surface well, spray it with at least 4 wet coats of a single stage paint (spray can type), allow it to cure, color sand from 800 to 1500, buff and polish. Basically, your increasing the refraction properties on the surface. Have fun!

You've pretty much got the right idea. Grind the areas to be welded to clean exposed metal, then spot tac your metal filler piece. Careful not to over heat and warp the metal especially in small areas. Make a few tacs and let the metal cool. Once you have completely tac'd around the filler piece then grind it down smooth. You have several options at this point depending on how comfortable you are working with various body fillers. You can lead over the repair area, shaving off the excess, sand/shape then prep, prime and paint. Use a good catalized primer/surfacer. That is the real secret! You can also use "Kitty Hair" followed by a light coat of plastic filler. Again sand/shape, clean, cat. prime and paint. Either way will work fine. Body rust will not penitrate the worked metal areas as it will be protected by the Catalized primer/surfacer acting as a sealer. Of course the top coat of paint will add even more resistance properties. Have fun! VAN

Definately; I can see rebuild bills on the horizon...Yes, I'll have a pound and a half of fine grind please! Dog teeth and synchros are a thing of the past in this case. I agree...poor car!!!

THAT'S MY BOY! Remember, the Z is your mistress, treat her with respect and she will return the compliment. Study hard and go have fun in San Diego. I couldn't be prouder of you. Dad

Show cars are not race cars necessiarily! Obviously, it was built for 1) the fun of it, 2) for show and 3) advertising! The car is a write off...every single dime! Same with the red truck with the Dbl Blower. You have to think out of the box. Both of my cars; "Two40MuscleZ and the Orange Crate" I write off for advertising! It's no big deal. VAN

Two40MuscleZ: 1972 240Z, 650+ Hp, 409 "Strong Arm", Old School Dual Tunnel Ram set up, 210 AFR Racing Heads, Cam, Crank, Solids, bored 30+/stroked, polished/blueprinted, ported/relieved, Morrison one off rear 4-Link Clip with narrowed Ford 9"; Currie 4:11 Detroit Locker, tubbed/backhalved, Wilwood Disc brakes, 12 Pt Roll Cage, 29"x18.5"x15" Mickey T's mounted on Centerline15"x15" ConvoPros. Custom one off flairs all the way around; with the rear flairs measuring across 76.5" wide! Plus a crap load of other things too lengthy to mention. Hence the name Two40MuscleZ!

I have the large MSA Whale Tail on the MuscleZ. I had many of the same issues as you. I rectified the problem by using some longer machine screws with flat washers and drilled a few more holes for attachment points. It fits perfectly and is solidly on there. I also used a bonding glue to add additional stiffing and holding properties. Then kitty hair, light coat of bondo, prime, block and paint. Take your time and have fun! VAN

Glad your back Scotty! VAN

Heavy duty door popper to spring the lid. If there is enough upward force then the hatch shock should do the rest. Bringing it back down would be manually done, unless you incorporate a hydralic system.

You go Ernie! A vast wealth of knowledge...thanks for sharing! VAN

Very smooth clean design. I like it!