JMortensen

I just got my Millermatic 135 off ebay with Hobart helmet and a pair of gloves for $607 and free shipping. Here's the company's items for sale right now: http://cgi6.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewSellersOtherItems&userid=weldfabulous&completed=0&sort=3&since=-1 Add $230 for an extra spool of wire, CO2/argon tank, a nice wire brush and a better regulator, and I tell you, this thing welds AWESOME. Much better than the cheapo welders I had used before that didn't have the infinite wire speed and voltage controls. I'm REALLY happy that I paid the $$$ to get a better quality welder, and the price really wasn't as high as I had thought it would be. I'm a very inexperienced welder, limited to what I learned in high school auto shop 12 years ago and a few lessons from friends while fabricating this or that coupled with a couple minor projects (weld this bracket, weld this exhaust pipe, etc), but I can weld like a pro with this thing!!!

I've got a bunch of Roloc pads, but I was worried the plastic scotch brite pad material would get in the seams as was previously mentioned about the plastic wire cup brush I have. I suppose if I clean it well it may not matter too much.

I hope they train them on how to drive the thing. I can see cops smashing into guardrails and buildings at 150 mph already.

If you view seller's other auctions he's got a couple nice 1st gens there too.

I love Toyotas, and I've owned one for the last 11 years, but I gotta say majik sounds a little sycophantic here. I guess your friend missed out on the 3L head gasket fiasco, and has never seen a 22RE break a timing chain and bend valves (mine did that at 45K on the Toyota timing chain), witnessed a 22re chain break the plastic guides several thousand miles after installation and watched the chain eat thru the timing cover, seen broken Birfields on the 4x4's, or had problems with the tiny little turbo on the 22RE trucks getting burnt up. Another small thing, I know, but I've replaced the fan resistor in my truck 4 times now. These are all Toyota truck specific problems, because neither I nor my friend's own any Toyota cars. I'm sure there would be a similar list of car problems if we did. Toyotas are great, but no manufacturer is perfect. I think most of the problems I just mentioned would be on vehicles that are too old to bother having serviced at the dealer anymore and some wouldn't be covered under warranty, but they're out there believe me. Side note-- just to poke fun at the Supra ricers in my old hometown (there were LOTS of them) I got the following license plate frame "TRD--What's that spell???" and stuck it on my Z.

I should also mention that I just sectioned some struts and it wasn't hard to do with the proper tools. Jon

I think you can live with 2" lowering without sectioning the struts. I know plenty of people who have run Susp Tech lowering springs without sectioning. Yes, you will bottom more frequently. If you want to go any lower, then you'd definitely want to section the tubes. The Tokico Illumina part number for the front is BZ3099, you can use that to cross reference the correct KYB part. I believe it is from an 87 MR2 rear. The front struts will go in the back, the MR2 struts will install in the front. You can also trim the bumpstops to get a little more travel too.

I remember what I had heard on the weld thru primers. They don't stop rust. In fact almost all primers don't stop rust. Isn't that right? Maybe an etching primer would, and I'm not a body man so I don't know, but aren't virtually all primers porous?

Thanks Dayz. I've heard mixed results on weld thru primers. Anyone care to comment.

evil, check the link I put up before. You can just swap valves with a 280Z head then you don't even need to mess with the valve geometry. Just add shims under the cam towers and you're done.

Let's not start the whole triples vs SU thing again, OK???

I think someone's trying to tell you something...

WTF is going on?!?! Everyone who it seems has the MOST time and effort and $$$ in their Datsuns seems to be on the selling bandwagon lately. It just seems to be a shame because you'll get pennies on the dollar for them, and there's so much blood and sweat in all of them. In any event, I wish all of you good luck in selling and hope you get enough out of them to justify the hours of work that went in.

Ooh, good one! Thanks!

Well I suppose I could get a 7/16 bolt with a 9/16 head to negate the different sizes problem, then just paint that hole and bolt day glo orange so that I don't try to force it into another hole...

There is a process that machine shops can use where they can remove steel from an aluminum head without damaging the aluminum. Not sure how it works, might be an acid that doesn't eat aluminum??? I'd look for another head personally, maybe one with square exhaust ports (you'd need a square port manifold or header to go with it).

Well so far I've prepped the rear control arms (removed the bushings and the spindle pins), sectioned my spare set of struts, pulled the stubs, and I'm about to drop the diff out of the car. Plans include the "poor man's toe adjuster", a diff mount like Jeromio has, possibly a fuel cell, and definitely stitch welding the chassis in the back. So the questions are: What is the easiest way to clean the areas to be welded? I bought a plastic wire wheel from HF and I'm thinking I can use this on an angle die grinder? Also I've gotten some advice that I should paint the areas where I've welded so they don't rust with a tough spray can paint. So far I'm thinking of using Hammerite or a similar "durable" spray can paint. Any suggestions about other paints to use would be appreciated (must be spray can). One of the nuts that holds the differential crossmember that is stripped. These are the captured nuts inside the frame. What to do? Should I cut out that section and weld in a piece of sheet metal with a new nut tacked to it? That's about all I could come up with to do to fix. Finally starting to get somewhere with the latest round of mods... Jon

dvlax, if you have a NA motor and you aren't revving past 5500, you're missing the best part. I understand that there are some issues with the turbos and air/fuel ratios at that rpm with the stock computer, but having a NA Z and not using the whole rpm range is missing the whole point! You gotta use what you've got, and these cars love to rev. Jon

I think the P90 is the best head to use, and I like the way this guy did it: http://geocities.com/zgarage2001/p90.html That way you get the best of all worlds. Straightest runners, best quench area, runs on pump gas, don't need to change lash pads or any of that. Jon

I love this engine in this car. Sounds so good... http://www.leksus.com/Videos/werbung.mpg

I really think you should pull the engine. It will be much easier to get the main caps out if you aren't fighting for room to move your arms and struggling to get around the crossmember. If it were a V8 and the mains were just bolted to the bottom of the block I'd probably say do it in the car, but it's not and sometimes getting the caps out is a pain. MARK them so that you don't switch them around from left to right when you bolt them back on. I don't know how hard it is to pull a turbo motor vs a NA, but pulling my NA is really quick. Drain radiator and remove, pull hoses, pull manifolds, remove oil pressure fitting and coolant temp probe, remove alternator wires, remove starter, unbolt trans, yank motor.

I agree with Guy. I don't take the tranny out or work on the exhaust nearly as much as I work on the suspension and brakes of my car. And you can do both with a regular lift.

37 is the ring gear tooth count. 11 is the pinion gear tooth count 37/11 = 3.363636363636363636363636... It is a 3.36.

I'd say definitely, but I know better... EDIT--the springs are supposed to reduce the chatter and provide a smoother engagement.

http://hybridz.org/nuke/index.php?name=PNphpBB2&file=viewtopic&t=31967&highlight=valve+stem+seal