Mikelly

John...Is that your final answer? You would be correct! Greg, What John said! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Well I'm not a professional welder, although I was certified years ago, and now, depending on who you ask, I'm quite possibly certifiable! But I digress... The issue is the matterials being welded, the type of gas and wire being used and the skill of the welder. A lot of bad welds are the product of lack of research of the matterials being welded together, and not providing the proper preperation, bevel, heat range, cycle... bottom line with welding is do your research before you do the work. However, if the parts are welded properly by a professional, I'd suspect that they would be as strong, if not stronger than the bolted adapter... Now that I have rambled... I want some of those adapters... we gonna make them or what? Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Z Dr. of Roanoke Va. did a swap with a Mazda RX7 power steering pump, and it took him a very long time to get it sorted. He told me that he wouldn't recommend doing it again! Good Luck and let us know what you come up with! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

If that is the route you want to go, I'd look at the edelbrock package. A while back Car craft or Hot Rod took their Advertisement for the Performer series heads, cam, intake, and carb and dyno'ed them, as built in the advertisement, and got over 400HP... Thats good cheap HP! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

When you say it doesn't fit, how doesn't it? Do you have the right number of teeth for the right flywheel? or is it hitting on the frame? Give me more specifics so I can help. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Count me in... I'd be up for a set. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Well here is the scoop on Syncromesh fluid.. I was told it cost $28 a bottle, and mine took 4.5 quarts.. I got mine for free from a buddy who knew a guy that was a trouble shooter for GM. The guy helped sort out the trans woes and got me my dust shield and clutch fork at cost. He told me that the stuff is all they run in their T56 units from the factory now and GM will not put the stuff that BW recommended in the trans after it has been serviced because the auto trans fluid they recommend foamed and showed heavy signs of breakdown... even with the anti foaming agent... so I used this stuff and the trans shifts as smooth as butter. I have driven three other cars (F-bodies) with T56 in them and non shift like mine. All of them felt like the old notchy BW five speed. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Owen, Yesterday I just bought a $70 timing light from sears and it has a dial on it for setting the advance without screwing around with a degree tape... Nice unit. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I know it really depends on the layout, and you want to shoot for a total of 36 degrees total timing, but... What initial timing are you guys running? Mine was set at around 11 degree.... thought that was pretty low... When people refer to backing off the timing they usually mean to reduce the number, but I found the car running much better when I advanced it... Here are the exact specs.. 383 with aluminum heads, straight plug, 1 5/8th ceramic (Thought they helped with heat issues??)headers. Valves are 2.05/1.6,cam is hydraulic roller with 282/294 duration w/ 110 lobe center. 1.5 rockers, intake lift is .530 and exhaust lift is .550. Overlap is 68 degrees. Running a BG 750 double pumper, with four corner idle circuit and a MSD billet distributor & 6AL box + 8.5mm wires... Also, Pete, I still have a lot of heat under the hood so I'm gonna order some of the wire and line wrap for hi temps... that will hopefully resolve part of the issue, and I'm gonna relocate the remote starter to way up high and far back in the battery box area. This will mean extending the 1/0 wiring... how well do those welding grade butt connectors work for extending cable? Don't want to throw away $50 worth of 1/0 cable... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk [This message has been edited by Mikelly (edited May 20, 2000).] [This message has been edited by Mikelly (edited May 20, 2000).]

I'm running the torker2 intake and BG 750 double pumper, also running the RAM AIR BOX with a 3 inch filter and a drop plate... all this fits under the stock 77 hood with vents. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

....A new timing light and a case of beer, and then I'm gonna play on my lovely girlfriends sympathies and get her to give me some mental therapy tonight in the hot tub! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

There was also one featured in Zcar mag a while back with the 300ZX Turbo in it and it had a really good review. Shoudl be able to get motor, trans and all support equipment for about $2500! Not really a bad deal, just plan to upgrade the turbos, waste gate and intercoolers... and of course an adjustable boost dial & Turbo timer. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Beware..... Dave @ ArizonaZ is a nut. He is the one that sent me some super stiff 500# springs for my first lowering job... Car was the owrst handling street car I ever drove and it wasn't much better on the track. I'd also recommend the full Wilwood brake swap as I have the ZX rear swap and it isn't the best for severe driving. Also, I have the rear sway bar on the car and I found the car tracks better with it... Much better! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Well after about two months, I think I have figured out the solution to my problems of fuel pressure and hard starting... and the heat under hood. Without a doubt it all is related to the heat under hood, and more importantly to the timing. I used a piece of double sided insulation hot matt and placed it under the fuel pressure regulator tonight and got the pressure rise from 4psi all the way back up to 9psi. I was amazed... I then touched the remote start solenoid, and burned my hand... touched the vacuum canister, burned my hand... touched the wiring loom... felt like hot spaghetti... Now some of you might wonder why Joe mechanic here hasn't checked his timing lately? Well My light is busted and I really didn't think the timing was that far advanced... No glowing headers, but if I shield the regulator from heat... I have rising and stable pressure. If I shield the starter solenoid... no hard starting and the starter doesn't drag... HMMMMM interesting. Looked in my MSD billet distributor manual and one of the trouble shooting clues is to reduce the timing if things are too hot... Guess what I'm gonna go buy tomorrow? Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Mine is right at 3 degrees on either end. I did have some issues when I first installed the motor and trans, but made the JTR recommended mods to the mustach bar bushings and have had no adverse vibrations since. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

....Someone else mentioned using the Electromotive Tech2 distributor-less system for ignition... I'd not go that route either.. Lots of headaches. However, My buddy Rick at Hi Tech auto in Woodbridge Va. advises that the 1st generation Holly 4DI was a problem child of rushed engineering and the newest system out is well worth the money as it is pretty much "Bug Free"! He has installed several on hi HP cars with no problems. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Owen, I was told the same thing by several hotrodders long ago before I ever thought of building cars.... The air being sucked back into the combustion chamber is supposedly a bad thing, and can cause the car to lean out (I believe) which causes bad things to happen to your valves. Someone else here can probably expand on this in greater detail, but the short answer is don't run it long without full exhaust on it. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

.....After the fuel problems I have suffered the last three months... I don't want to be Mike Kelly either... I think, T-H-I-N-K... I have another possible solution I'll be trying tomorrow to see if it works... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

On my T56 with the JTR flange adaptor and the T400 style yoke, my drive shaft was 19 3/4 inches. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I started re-routing lines tonight and I'm gonna need a 120 degree bend AN fitting at the pump to get away from the exhaust and then I'm running half inch aluminum line up the outside of the frame rail all the way up to the wheel well... up under the headlight bucket and then back into the engine bay. This, along with some copious insulation in the few areas I can't seem to avoid, will hopefully solve the whole issue... I looked at spinning the fuel cell 180 degrees so the sump is in the front instead of the back, and I'm not sure I want to do that. Not much roon back there with the fuel cell, fuel filter, and pump all needing room... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

What I've found when trying to locate Zs is this: When you want one, you can't find the "Steals" that are out there. When I have a garage full of cars, thats when someone comes by and says "Gee you can have this one if you can tow it".... If it suits your build needs and you can't get a better deal elsewhere, try to haggle a bit without insulting the guy and then make your decision to purchase. It doesn't sound like a bad deal, just not a "Steal"! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

Ryan, None of this is gonna be listed for datsun. A lot of this is going to have to be fabricated as you go. You need to be able to take the factory Z manual and wiring diagram within it and compare them to the wiring you get in the kit and replace as you go. On a similar note, you are going to have to be able to do the same type of thing with the other issues such as fuel, cooling, transmission.... You really need to be strong in the area of mechanical engineering, fabrication and experimentation. If not, you will not be able to finish this project on your own, or even with our help here. Being able to build a small block chevy motor won't get you from point a to point b. You may need to seek out a local shop for assistance. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

The wheel spacers I have used are solid billet units that you just drill holes in for the mounting points on the back of the hub. Remember, the spacer is sandwhiched netween the rotor and hub. Pete is right about the early ZX vs. later ZX rear brake pads...I have the early units and the car stops well, but more pad is always better. Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk

I have the vented hood already. Not sure what I'm gonna do. I'm probably going to turn the cell around so the sump is pointed forward and then move the fuel pump up close to the original location and then re-route the fuel lines under the hood away from the stock battery box area, maybe bring them up from the front of the car. Last fall when I was driving it some I didn't have this issue, so maybe it is directly heat related... Crazy... Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk [This message has been edited by Mikelly (edited May 16, 2000).]

Steve, Best bet would be to pul;l the engine, harness and trans out of a Late odel F body or Vette if you want to go Fuel injected. Can't go wrong there, as they come with aluminum accessories, and the fuel injection is proven! Mike ------------------ "I will not be a spectator in the sport of life!" mjk