RebekahsZ

Jon, teach a little more. What are the potential negative effects of running reverse caster in the back (conceivably non-steering) end of a suspension? Although I haven't heard SunnyZ complain about having trouble holding it straight at 135mph. But SunnyZ hasn't been to a road course with his car (and that needs to change or there was no reason to stay IRS-and he did a heck of a lot of work to stay IRS).

I'm going to keep most of my discussion on this event in the Events forum with the original post. I just put this on the Gen III forum because I know several guys who only stalk this forum and not the whole hybridz site. Registered with extra T-shirt in case I manage to stay on this diet. It sucks when your t-shirt HURTS!

I'm being serious. What would it take, SunnyZ, if I wanted to retain my Z31/R200 drivetrain? Custom LCAs that were offset backward at the inboard end? But wouldn't that require moving the upper strut mount backward? Talk me thru it.

Test fitting the 28" slicks. I talked to the body magic man to ask him to lower my spring seat and jack the tire up to see when and where it hits. His reply was, "man, if I cut any more, this things gonna look stupid! I don't want to cut anymore." So, I've asked him to start stitching it back together. He did put a jack under the control arm, but he wan't able to compress the springs very much before the tire came off the ground (250# springs and konis). I will have to drag race it a bunch of times with the flares off and get photos to know how low I can afford to make it again without rubbing. Again, if I rub, plan B is for 27X10.5s and a 3.36 diff. I'm sure I'm gonna look stupid with my 25.7" Hoosiers on it, but oh well, you can't have it all.

Sure, geno51. I was thinking I might have to go swing out bars and a remove able steering wheel too, but it is remakeably easy to get in and out, although I may shorten my turn signal stick so I don't break it off. I'm on a diet, and that will hopefully help even more. Too much BBQ. But I'm trying to offset some of the weight I added to the car. Braille battery will help too, but I would really like to wait for the current battery to poop out first. Also, I probably don't need all the relaxing of the harness bar that I have. That would allow the diff bars to be more straight, which I would have preferred. I'm not certain that will help enough to justify the weight. You may come up with a better solution to that issue. I was planning to take car to be certified, but it turns out that isn't required until you go sub-10s. I'm still trying to play the game as close to the letter as I can so no track turns me away.

HD-30H - thanks for your contribution. I just would like this thread to be a place where folks can put pics of their flares to better understand what is out there and where to get it. I totally understand your points and I have followed a bunch of your posts over several years on the subject. I just don't want to be critical of what's out there. Lots of folks are OK with the "cheap" flares. If I bust a flare, which is a probability with as much jack-handle rash my car accumulates in any given year, I need to be prepared. It may be "worth" waiting a month or more for a replacement but I may not want to. For what it is worth, I have a set of Maugen Shoukai flares on-order right now. I'm also looking at interchangeability. The guy that I sold the Shoukai flares to found that either one or two holes were in a different location than on his cheap flares. That kinda sucks. I tried a set of cheap flares on my rears after I drilled the holes for my BAMF flares, and the drilled holes lines up well enough that I only had to enlarge a couple of holes a bit on the cheap ones. It is nice that RHD Japan tells us who actually makes these flares. I have not found US suppliers so forth-coming. Wonder why? Cause lots of cheap-skaters will try to go around them to try to get flares direct. This understandable lack of transparency makes it impossible to attribute each flare to its creator. Wish they signed their product like surfboard shapers do.

See my new thread in the Body section. Car is in body shop getting hogged out for bigger shoes. Trying to go from 26" slicks to 28", and planning for 275/60/15 MT drag radials for the GA Half Mile this fall and the Ohio Mile next summer. And no, this never was a rust free body. But I still feel a bit like a rapist.

Jake, I don't get into Nashville much. It will be a couple hour drive for me too. I will have to break out the GPS and mapquest to find it myself. My car is kind of in pieces (see all my latest posts) but maybe we could put together some drag racing but probably not. I don't think there is any thing in the schedule. Why don't we just try to get together this time and look at our cars and swap phone numbers and talk tales. . Then I will try to get us all together later this summer at a dragstrip or autocross somewhere central to all of us? It may be too much to pack into one weekend. I'm not planning to spend the night in Nashville, just get up early and drag my arse home late.

I believe the white flares shown above are the Marugen Shoukai wide over fenders, RHD Japan product #68595. I am trying to get confirmation from the hybridsz member who sold them to me, and it seems I need to indicated if they are the racing version or the deluxe version. HS-30H, I see your point: RHD Japan also has similar looking flares made by Kameari over fenders. So I get your point about being more specific. There was no receipt in the box, so I will post it up as soon as he replies. Point taken.

I am trying to fit 28X10.5" slicks under my 240z. I spent a lot of time talking to folks who have installed screw-on flares only to have to re-cut due to not cutting enough the first time. I put them high-higher than most (and I hope I like it), but I got to this point working with MiKelly who cut a tire road racing and had to re-cut at least once. The top of the flare is 4" below the hard bend in the quarter panel near the rear of the quarter window. The following are photos from the hot rod shop doing the metal work for me while I'm out of town. The metal man is being great about sending me photos. This is not a custom car, this is a race car, so I'm interested in not cutting a tire. I do not offer these photos as the best way to install flares; rather I only hope to share what I have learned and what I'm doing. I forgot to take my slicks to the metal man for test fit, so that has me stalled for now, but I called back from vacation and a good friend is delivering them in the morning. I need a lot of metal taken out of the dog leg section. I will include a photo of my car squatting on launch wearing 26X8.5 slicks-note how close the tire is to the dog leg. Test mounting the big slicks should answer the question of whether he has removed enough, or if I need him to remake the forward portion of the wheel tub/inner fender. SunnyZ solved this clearance problem by totally redesigning his rear suspension to move the tire rearward 1 full inch. I'm not about that. If push comes to shove, I will go to 27" slicks, but there isn't a lot available in that diameter. More photos when I have them. I made one obvious mistake in locating my flares but I'm pushing forward. When you test fit your flares, make sure the car is level. I test fit with the rear of the car high on jackstands and the front tires on the ground and used a plumb bob to locate the center of the flare over the center of the hub. That resulted in a flare that is rotated rearward somewhat once the car is on level ground. I wish the front of the flare was farher down, but I'm moving on. I will try to stick with the small screws that come with the Z-force Productions flare mounting kit and delay the placement of rivet nuts (which puts a BIG hole in the sheet metal). I may be looking at a paint job this winter (especially if the welding burns my paint up terribly), in which case, I will have the current small holes welded and then rotate the flare and redrill it as it should be.

Pics are added to the original post. Let the flogging begin. I'm not going to argue on this thread. Anybody else can argue if they want, but not with me. I'm just going to post what I see from holding the actual parts in my hands. If you have something smart to say, say it with pictures that show your flares in a way that teaches something to someone considering buying a set of flares. Then we/they can make an educated purchase. That is all I seek - information. I do not desire a pissing contest with any one. And I don't know who manufactures anything. I just buy from folks who are selling. It is a shame that the folks who make things often don't sell them, because it makes it hard to track things down when problems arise. So unless the source sells them directly somewhere, I don't think it really matters who the source is. I think it is pointless to talk about flares that are no longer available, so lets not have a history lesson. I am happy to unsubscribe from this thread if it deteriorates into a chest beating match. Lets just help folks make informed purchasing decisions.

Are you talking about something for the airconditioning? I don't have airconditioning, but there was no idler pulley in my kit-didn't need one. Must be something new? Please clarify then maybe I can help.

Oh, come on ZFan, stop bei g such a weenie! Aero, I'm nor registered for the tours. Will be going on Sat only. Will look at the registration stuff tonight. I'm not going for awards but if I have to pay $45 to get a spot, I guess I will pay it. I'm adapting to inflation. I would spend $45 in gas to come see just you, and I've already done that once or twice! I spend about that any night at the strip. I will need a head count in the event they will let me save parking spots when I get there. They may or they may not. AeroZ-am I saving you a spot if I can? You will likely have the cleanest car among us.

Standby guys. I'm at the beach and the connection messed up my first post. Will add to this later tonight.

I am learning about the various "ZG-style" fender flares out there on the market. So far, I have in my possession: Full set of fiberglass flares from RHDJapan. These are supposed to be the standard or narrow version. A pair of rear fiberglass "clone-ZG" (my terminology) fender flares from a US manufacturer out of California A pair of rear BAMF wide flares in carbon fiber from Z-Force ALL of these flares are incredibly thin material. These cannot be very tough or impact resistant. I consider them all to be trim accessories only. They are not tough like ABS or injection molded plastic. They are not tough like the production pieces you would find on a Chevy pickup or a Jeep CJ. None of them are pre-drilled. I guess it is on us to avoid cracking them when we "drill" them. Things I have noticed. The RHDJapan flare has the following features that distinguish it: 1. Smoother (more smooth?) finish. Made from random fiber fiberglass mat. I don't think I would bother with any prep prior to paint. 2. Flange on body side. This looks really nice. The other flares dig into the paint with a sharp edge. 3. Pretty roll or edge to the tire side-the others don't have this-it gives a nice "factory" look to the flare and probably makes it a little stronger. 4. Curve to follow body line. These are not straight where they meet the body. The fronts are very curved. 5. Off-white gel coat. 6. I have not fit these to a car, but I just sold them to a friend and I will get more feedback on the fit later. 7. These are marginally thicker material than the clones below. But not much; still very thin. The US "clone-ZG" flare 1. Rough finish, will need some filler to fill pin holes in gel coat prior to paint. Made from knitted fiberglass cloth. 2. No flanges, no roll, no curve to follow body line. 3. Surface cracks formed in gel coat when flexed to fit curve of body. 4. Very thin material.-like an egg shell. The Z-force Productions BAMF carbon fiber flare 1. Smooth, nice finish. Ready for clear coat with no sanding. Very pretty carbon fiber mat. 2. No flange, no roll, straight body edge. 3. With a little flexing (very little), these fit to the car without any cracks so far. 4. The thickest material of the three. Try not to reply to this thread yet, I will post pics in an edit later today/tonight. Then let the discussion fly.

Thank you johnc. I really do seek to learn and to have others learn too, and I don't mind being the illustration. I would like to find a way to put a forward crossmember in somehow, but it was a compromise at best. I would love to have one as a front jacking point too. I have been trying to figure oit how to run a crossmember inside on the floor that perhaps tied into the tranny crossmember. But after a while all the compromises made the objective seem pointless. I may try to put a minihoop under the dash eventually if i install a mini heater to make room. The curve in the forward arrachment of the door bar was a compromise (at the request of the cage builder to shorten his weld snd simplify the complicated tube notching) and a compromise (for me)to maintain space for my clutch foot when off the pedal. It is welded to the rocker pretty well along the curve, so it should function effectively as a box like other folks have welded to their rockers. The bends in the harness bar and the diff support legs are compromises too for seat adjustment. Like you, I'm not a fan of curved bars. Have you ever had the addition of a cage alter door closure as it did mine?

Oh yeah, several of our cars are on coilovers in case anybody wants to take any measurements or trial fit some wheels. I think we are all 4-lug cars. The 77 280 I know for sure has stock springs and fenders. So you can do some comparing.

Just recruited a buddy with a 77 280z budget 350 SBC with a T350 on slicks. It's a 375hp, 7.30-ish 1/8 mile footbrake car with engine plates. A simple, clean little package. Lets pray for good weather.

So far, 3 LSx Z cars plan to attend ZAttack and I hope to turn it into a freak show. I will be there with my running but partially reassembled (always) LS2/T56 240z with drag slicks and rear BAMF flares, roll bar, CLSD R200 with shortened Z31T CV axles and heady duty driveshaft, AZC 4-pot brakes and Kirkey seat. ECUAdam will be there with his newly completed 73 240z Microsquirted 5.3/recently home rebuilt T56, group-buy 17" Rotas, Marugen ZG flares. EasTNz will be there with his 5.3/T6060 un-cut S30 with his own custom built shift linkage. I will be bringing a couple of jacks, jack stands and a bunch of tools so we can crawl over and under these cars to learn as much as we can from one another. I will bring as many of my different wheels and tires so that we have some fun trying out different combinations. Folks can try their wheels o er my big brakes to see if they clear, etc. I hope to make this a super- active event. Others should come and get in on the fun. Bring a chair for your girlfriend but don't plan to sit around. I plan to go home greasy and tired. I will get there as early as I can and try to save some space so we can be next to each other. If you are considering a LS swap, this will be a great opportunity to get some good (and bad) ideas. Each of these cars is different from the other but each of us did the swaps ourselves in our home shops. If you want a joy ride, better bring a milk crate for my car because I won't have a second seat in it for another couple of weeks.

Those would make some bad ass drag wheels if they came in something like a 15x8 or 15x10 with a 5.5" back spacing for the rear and a 15x3 or 4 or 5 or maybe even 6 for the front. That might make my Christmas list. I love Weld Dragstars but they don't come in 4-lug. Let me know if something like that is available and you would get the sale.

Great. That means I can put some aluminum panels in (eventually) along the b-pillar for interior trim. Johnc, I can't believe you haven't used this bar as an opportunity for a few "teaching points." When I posted it, I was basically looking for you approval. But I feel a little cheated that you didn't take at least a couple of shots at it. Of course you know I asked a billion questions before I built it. Any suggestions for improvements before I paint it? There's still time. When dtivingvwith it, whenever a shadow passes between the bar and the body, I think "there's movement between the body and the bars." But when I put my finger between them, I don't feel it so I think it I'd just a shadow thing. I haven't jacked the car up or gone diagonally into my steep driveway yet. The drivers door not lining up was kind of freaky. New hinges on the way from 1tuffz's stash (thanks Dave).

Parts on the way from 1 tuff z. Thank you everybody. Hybridz to the rescue once again.

Love your car. The hood is insane.

Beautiful car. You are doing some nice work. Love the bumpers.

Yeah!!! Big milestone.