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ANOTHER Datsun Z/LS3/T56 Swap Thread


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Finished the stitch welding....nice to have that chore done....and moving forward at my normal glacial pace.

 

Started building the supports for the main hoop of the roll cage.  I included close-ups of this because I couldn't find much in detail about how people built these up on prior projects, hopefully some day someone might find the pictures useful.  I pondered a bit wondering the best way to do it.

 

I am using 12-gauge (.100") steel....which meets the SCCA requirements that cage bases be at least .080" thick.

 

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Thanks for looking.

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Definitely interesting to see how others have done it.

 

I positioned mine slightly higher, because I want the top of the hoop as tight as possible to the roof of the car (I am 6'3"), and if I tack the cage in place on the "higher" base, it should give me a bit more room to drop it off the bases for 360 degree welding.  At least that is my thinking...

 

I also wanted to preserve the stock seat belt anchor to use for my harness...as it seems to be in a good location for that....I figured why re-invent the wheel?

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Had to redo my main hoop base plates.  They were within about 1/8" of interfering with the seat I was using for mock-up....and since I am not even sure what seat I am going to use in the future, and that the original base plates were bigger and clunkier than they needed to be, I figured I would slightly redesign them lest they cause problems and bug me down the road.

 

Same basic design, just streamlined a bit.

 

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Also got the main hoop bent and tacked in place.  The tape at the top of the hoop was built up 1/8" inch thick to give me very tight clearance....I wanted the bar as high and tight to the ceiling as I could possibly get it.

 

fzPPY7G.jpg

 

Thanks for looking.

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Hello! 

When I was about 12 years old It was a good old racing game named Tokyo Xtreme racer 2. The best car was 240Z (devilZ). Since I love it.

I've got on this site accidentally when finding an information about Mull.tk Project Z (may be somebody hear about). I've seen some videos on youtube a couple of years ago. But as I understand it's not finished yet. What about I am? 

I'm just read some logbooks on this forum and I was amazed. I so excited of quality & accuracy of bodyworks on every project. And I decided to register just to follow on project like yours. I have my own project, it's 1982 Lada 2101 (Zhigouli). I have to teach some tricks and decisions in body repair from all of you. 

I wish you luck in your beginning! (Sorry, my English is not so good((( )

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Thanks for the kind words Vanilla.

 

I spent most of the day today getting the passenger side door hoop bent.  It really fought me.  To make it fit decently, bends in multiple planes are necessary, and each subsequent bend affects the angles of prior bends.  It had me pulling my hair out, but on my fifth try I was finally satisfied with the fit.

 

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And of course, all the FAILS:

 

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Got the driver side door hoop bent, fabbed up the bases, and tacked them in place.  I also mounted my seat to see how everything fit.  It looks like the setup will meet the SCCA requirement that the main hoop be at least two inches above the top of my helmet....but barely.  I have the main hoop 1/8" from the roof metal, and the bottom of the seat is scraping the floor....so there is not much else I can do other than choose a bigger car for my fun.  I don't intend to do any door to door racing in the car, but am following the SCCA rules to the letter just to avoid safety/design errors.

 

I have enough clearance that in a side impact my bare head would go below the upper door bars, but I with a helmet on I would probably hit them.  Overall everything is really tight.  I am sure I am not the first to face these issues due to my height (6-3).  When the car is actually ready to roll I think I will invest in a halo seat, and obviously a lot of FIA padding will have to be used on the relevant bars.

 

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Yeah...the dash that came with the car is trashed...and I am not really bound to maintaining any sense of originality anyway.  All I need is a place to mount a digital dash.

 

I was taking stock today....other than the doors and body shell...there is really almost nothing OEM Datsun that I will be reusing.

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More roll cage nonsense....

 

The diagonal roof bar is just wedged in place and is coming out for a redo.  I can tuck it a bit tighter to the roof if I change some of the angles.  I don't think I have ever gotten one of these bars right on the first try.  Kind of frustrating being an idiot...lots of wasted steel...although a lot of it can be cut up for smaller pieces....and/or used for welding practice since I am a noob welder.

 

Thanks for looking.

 

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I had to postpone finishing the roll cage...without more critical parts on hand to mock things up too much chance of welding in a tube where it will end up interfering with something.

 

So I started working on a structure to support the fuel cell.  The cell is a 15 gallon, with an integral surge tank and in-tank fuel pump.  I am going to wind up making it a bit beefier than necessary to support the tank and fuel, just because it seems like it would be a good idea to include some crush protection in the event the car gets hit from behind (or crashed backwards).  I am using .095" wall tubing, so it is pretty sturdy (also, sadly, fairly heavy).

 

This is where I am so far.  Just need to include some more bracing and a bolt on "lid" then I can work on welding it into the car.

 

Nice doing some welding on a work bench for a change, rather than contorted inside or under the car.

 

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Edited by Ironhead
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Finished the fuel cell mount.  Once welded in place I am going to skin the outside with 18 gauge sheet metal.

 

I realize it might be a tad over-engineered, but in addition to the safety aspects, I am going to weld a rear jacking point to the bottom of it, and probably mount a diff cooler pump, possibly a diff cooler, and probably rear exhaust hangers as well.

 

Thanks for looking.

 

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