Z-TARD

This site has a lot of free downloads for all kinds of anti virus and registry cleaning software: http://www.docsdownloads.com/ I've used the easycleaner on my registry, it works pretty well. I haven't used any of the anti virus stuff from here since I have Norton, but some of them might be worth a try. Mike

Doh! Thats probably what I was doing wrong. The stuff I was typing was showing up like a transcript of the McDonalds drive through window intercom: "arge....sbugrer....ies....oca cola", etc. Eventually I'll figure it out.

Having a little difficulty in there for some reason, I apologize for all the nonsense I was typing, it was supposed to be rather eloquent..... I'm gonna go get my crayons and do some coloring now. Mike

Just finished putting the new stock on it, looks probably as good or better than when it was issued over 60 years ago: Close up of the new bolt handle, this is actually a 1" ball bearing. It's quite a bit larger than the original, and makes the action even faster to cycle than it was before: I'm gonna shoot it as is for a while, eventually get the scope mount put on it, and then I'll start the conversion to 308. Which looks better out of these two rifles? L42A1: No.4 Mk1 (T): Mike

Jungle carbines are cool, one of the rarer variants of the Enfield. They kick like a mule because of the short barrel though. For a real treat, try shooting it at night and watch the flame that shoots out of the end. The best ammo for flame throwing is the old military surplus stuff, it seems to burn a little slower. My Dad had a 303 converted to a pistol (!!!!!) with a 12" barrel. At night it would shoot a four to six foot long column of fire and burning cordite out of the muzzle. Needless to say, it's accuracy was somewhat lacking, and it was quite a beast to fire. Post some pics of yours if you get a chance, it's always nice to see a customized Enfield. Mike

Just picked up my new (new for me, actually manufactured in 1943) Enfield No4 Mk1 rifle at Big 5 Sporting Goods a few days ago. It's the top one in the picture. Planned mods for this one are rather extensive: Drill and tap receiver for reproduction WWII sniper scope mount; Glass bed reciever to new stock; rebarrel for 308/7.62x51 Nato, which includes considerable work to the bolt face, extractor, and magazine. If you look closely, the bolt handle on the top rifle is slightly larger than the lower one. I replaced the knob at the end with a 1" steel ball bearing I found in a metal dumpster at work. The entire rifle will eventually be bead blasted and re-blued, which I've already done to the magazine and bolt handle. I'm thinking about going back next payday to get a Moisin Nagant 91/30 (Enemy at the Gates rifle) as well, those are only going for $79.00. Of course, I could also spend that money on the Z...... Multiple hobbies suck. Mike

Wow, thats almost exactly what I've been envisioning for my own car. I really like how he did the louvers on the hood. I've spent a lot of time thinking of how to best vent the underhood air while maintaining the classic lines of the Z hood, this hood does that very well. The front strut bar/ cage thing is very cool too, and oddly enough also eerily similar to what I have been thinking of doing. Is it possible that I have a Japanese clone? Thanks for posting this VegasGuy, it definitely has started the gears turning in my head again. Mike

Hopefully in the bathroom, anyway. I noticed the Z in hell also, it was in quite a few scenes actually. I think that was what it took to bring that movie to a "pretty good" status. All the other movies I've seen lately have been crap. Mike

If the steel is thick enough, I'm thinking 18 gauge, you might be able to get away with tack welding the templates to the backside of it. You might still end up with the templates "printing" through to the other side though, looking like the ribs on a really skinny dog. Your best bet would be to find someone that has a roller big enough to roll the width you need. If that fails, you can build one out of steel plate and some pipe. Fiberglass is another option as well, but that opens up a whole new can of worms as far as construction techniques. Yet another option would be to check Ebay, there are a lot of vendors selling roll pans for trucks and hot rods on there. Some of those could probably be adapted for use on a Z. Hope this helps, Mike

No cables on mine, the ones on the Nismoparts website look identical to mine as well. The cables would definitely be nice to have though.

I'm going to make some L shaped brackets that will bolt up to the original mounting points on the firewall, the new dash will bolt down onto those. I may end up having to make some custom brackets for mounting the lower half of the dash, but that should be pretty easy to do. My original plan was to have the dash made from fiberglass, with only the center panel done in carbon fiber, but I changed my mind and decided to go entirely with carbon fiber. This has added quite a bit of time to the project, since the mold will now have to be nearly flawless since the final product will not be painted. I almost decided to give up on this last week, found a Mitsubishi 3000GT in the junkyard out here. The dashboard in it looks a lot like the 240Z dash, just an updated version of it. The width looked about right too...... Mike

I haven't bolted mine on yet since my block is still at the machine shop, but I have a pair of the Pro Topline 220 heads. I got them on Ebay about a year ago for $1100 assembled. I'm not an expert in the field, but they appear to be very well made heads, and if the flow numbers are accurate, should easily be able to support 500 horsepower or more. An added plus, they are able to use either the pre '87 standard or post '87 centerbolt valve covers. Mike

I ended up getting them for $120. They are used, but in pretty good condition. The previous owner had repainted them, they look good but I'm not sure how durable the finish is. I'll probably end up bead blasting them and painting them with Duracoat, an epoxy based firearm coating thats pretty much indestructible. Nismo parts has them listed on their site for a pretty good price, this is where I would have gone if I hadn't seen them on Ebay: http://www.nismoparts.com/catalog/?section=548#1246 The price listed here is each, so the total comes out to around $160 for the set. Mike

I'm going to be using Autometer Ultralight gauges in mine, so the weight will not be that heavy. The Carbon fiber should be strong enough to support them. I designed it to run all the way up to the firewall, so the metal strip won't be used. I'll cut out the defroster vents out of the new dash. I had intended to recess the gauges into the dash, but it would have been difficult to mold a single sheet of CF into the recessed areas, so the gauges ended up being flush mounted. I will probably end up making a kind of visor or cover to extend out over the tops of the gauges to reduce glare, not sure how thats going to work out yet..... My current plan is to use the stock heater assembly and controls, but I will most likely change out the vents with something a little more modern looking. Hope this helps you out a little, Mike

After about a year of searching, I finally found a used set on Ebay at a decent price. At this point, putting them on my car is a little like sprinkling diamonds on a turd, but I couldn't resist Mike

Heres some pics of the progress so far. I've used up all my rattle can primer, about 6 cans so far. Lots of wet sanding, repainting, wet sanding, repainting, etc. I'm trying to get the finish as flawless as possible before taking a mold off it. I'm quickly learning what a time consuming process this is.

I'm probably going to be getting one of those in the near future too. California gas prices+ V-6 Eclipse+ "Premium Unleaded Fuel Only"+ 80 or more miles a day= $300 or so a month. I'm looking forward to the lower payment (Half of my eclipse payment), lower insurance, better Mpg, and the additional money I'll have to dump on my 240Z The true test will be to see if a Z hood will fit inside the Xb. If the hood will fit, so will just about everything else. And for the curious: Yes, a 240Z hood will fit in the back of a 2001 Eclipse Mike

Heck no, that welder is like family to me......

Thermal Dynamics machines are awesome. They may not be quite as smooth as a Miller or Hobart at TIG, but they make up for it by being able to do the smoothest stick welds I've ever seen, and are more portable as well. My welder is almost identical to yours, but I cant use it yet since I dont have 220V where I live Mike

Early Miata, and when it blows it's own guts out on the road you can shoehorn a V-8 into it Mike

The aluminum bodied Cobras have a small diameter steel cable rolled into the edge of the fender lip, IIRC it's about 1/8" cable. Like Tim said, 1/4" steel tube would also look pretty good too, and would give the edge a little strength as well. Keep us posted, I want to see how this one turns out Mike

This could probably be classified as a new scientific phenomenon. All evidence points to the a large black hole located in S.F. that sucks common sense away. What the HELL are they thinking? Mike

Dude, that is sweet! Now the trick will be to duplicate it on the oposite side. I love the picture of the front of the car where it's sitting on a dining room table too. Classic! Mike

I think transmission choice would also play a big part as well. A 302 or 327 would probably be better suited for someone using a WC T-5, since the engine doesn't make as much low end torque as a 383/400, and can run at higher rpm's to compensate for not having the .5 overdrive of a T-56. A 383 or 400 should work very well in front of a T-56, since it should have the low end torque required to use the 6th gear overdrive. Either combination should be able to attain the required thrust to actually force poop from your body at full acceleration, which is what building one of these cars is all about anyway Mike

Depending on how high the carbon content is, it could make welding more difficult. High carbon steel tends to crack when its welded without the proper heat treatment. Depending on the current temper of the metal, it might also be prone to cracking if it is bent to far. It should still work very much like the lower carbon steel, although it may take a bit more effort. I'd suggest trying to get a piece of some from a wrecked car, and just fool around with it to see how different it is. Mike