Joe's 1972 240Z adventure. // 16 JUN 21 - 13 Jul 24 // 3 years 27 days build

[57GMC]

Wow!!  Looks great.. It is hard to determine where to stop when you have it torn down that far... Keep up the great wook... What a great project.. Thanks for sharing..

[A to Z]

Thanks for the kind words.

[A to Z]

01-22-2023 UPDATE.  I finally finished up the engine bolt cleaning!.  All cleaned up and ready for the block when it gets back from the shop.  Crank is done....010 under all the way across, ZERO run out, nice and straight.  I also wire wheeled up the driveshaft then cleaned it up.  Then before I went in for the day, I got one side painted.  Once dry I will flip it over and paint the other side.  Look at the pic, this is the 2nd wire wheel I have completely wore out on this car......but hey it's Progress.  Hey it's cold!  I have heater in the pics, and it's keeping it manageable.  But a one car garage is rough.

Edited January 23, 2023 by A to Z

[YoBrother]

Nice and cold BRRRR!

[A to Z]

01-28-2023 UPDATE: I have been working on my water neck that splits off to the heater. Since I am heater deleting my 240Z I decided to look into blocking off the port in a nicer way. So, I went to Lowes and bought a rubber plug that was tapered, and got one that fit right in. Then I coated it with Gorilla glue and pushed it in. After a couple hours, I checked it and it was permanently in there. So I held it up and poured water from the inside which actives the gorilla glue and then filled it up with gorilla glue from the inside. Now, because this stuff expands, I had to keep wiping it smooth. This will all be sanded up inside and cleaned up, but once this is done, it will look much cheaner than a piece of tubing with a bolt in it to block it off. So, more to come on this. Also an update on the block, it is all cleaned up, was magnafluxed and all is well, and is going to be bored shortly. Its been so cold you have to enjoy ANY progress. Heres a couple of pics in mid finished state. Cheers.

Edited January 29, 2023 by A to Z

[NewZed]

That Gorilla glue might not be resistant to hot ethylene glycol and water.  That is the inlet to the water pump so if it lets go that plug might get sucked in under certain conditions.

 

You could boil it in a coolant blend since it's off and see what happens.

 

Also, even though it's on the suction side it's still under pressure.  Not really sure what the balance between suction and pressure would be at that area at certain times.  So even though the gap is filled the bond between the metal and the glue or the rubber and the glue might not be strong enough to withstand it.  Probably 10 psi +/-.

 

Stuff to think about.  Automotive applications are tough on materials.

 

Since the hose fits on the outside, you could tap the inside and use a threaded metal plug without ruining the part for future use as an inlet.  One possibility if the Gorilla glue doesn't make it.  Good luck.

 

https://www.gorillatough.com/product/original-gorilla-glue/

 

[A to Z]

Thanks.  I have received several responses that all, like yours, made too much sense to take the chance.  So, I went ahead and got a lower coolant piece from an L28.  Since I am going heater delete, this one allows me to put a flush threaded plug in the end, looks much better.  No longer available through Nissan, so I found them at JDM-Parts.com.  Not cheap, but.....

[A to Z]

Anyone offhand know the size of the threads in there for a flush plug?

[A to Z]

02-04-2023 UPDATE:  Hit the work today, nice decent temperature, so I went ahead and pulled the center console and started opening up the shifter hole.  You can see the outline of where it needs to be cut out.  So using my Dremel and cutting wheels I cut it to the point where I could grab the pieces with some pliers and remove it.  Then I used both my die grinder and hand held file to clean it all up.  Then, you can see the the holes that need to be drilled are also marked for you, So I drilled the holes open, and that part was done.  After that I took my clutch master cylinder, the braided line and Clutch Slave cylinder and bolted them all together, and then I bled the whole system.  Nice to get it done while it is out.   I kept going and installed the master cylinder, and then grabbed the transmission and went ahead and installed the Backup light switch , and the speedo gear piece.  Then the bracket for the transmission mount.  Since the rubber ones are so expensive, I took advantage of the chance to get a solid aluminum mount for about half the price.  My neighbor mentioned it would be good to put a bit of rubber in there to give it some give, since the engine motor mounts are still rubber, and gave me 2 thin strips of rubber.  As you can see in the pics below, I put them in there behind the mount and then bolted it down.  Becasue the mount isn't centered, I need to figure out if I have it correctly or if I need to rotate the mount 180 degrees.  So....next is the clutch and brake pedals.  I pulled them off my pare set, and wire wheeled them up, then masked and painted them.  A lot done today.  Getting her all ready for the new engine and trans to go back in.  Here are some pics.

[A to Z]

02-06-2023 UPDATE.  Ok, so my lower radiator fitting arrived.  Nissan part # 14-J8204.  This is the L28 fitting.   I found that a 1/2" brass plug workes perfect.  It goes halfway in by hand, just need to run it back and worth to get it to set all the way in, and I will goop the threads with pipe dope.  Couple pics:

[A to Z]

02-11-2023 UPDATE: I started with the foot peddles. I removed the brake pedal for the auto trans, and installed the manual peddles. THIS IS INCREDIBLY HARD! A lot of contortion....6'1 and 240 lbs makes it ROUGH. I put it off for a long time, and now I am SO glad it is done. After this I decided to put the lower radiator hose fitting on to the timing chain. As always I like to put a very thin coat of gasket maker on each surface then use the gasket. This way the gasket maker can fill any imperfections in the surfaces and you get a great seal. For the plug, my stainless plugs came in and would not go in.....So I decided heck with it.....gooped up the brass plug with some pipe sealer and ran it in. I was able to enlist the help of my neighbor and his buddy and I put my shifter into his vice, and with a MAPP gas torch I heated and bent my shifter into an "S" so it will clear everything. In doing this job, the surface of the chrome, etc was all burned and looked awful. With a file and with my wire wheel attachment in a drill I was able to clean it up to a nice brushed finish. I decided to tape off the ends, and give it a few coats of clear paint. I used the Clear Engine paint. It is tough....thick, and VERY glossy. Duplicolor engine clear with ceramic added. Here are some pics of the day.

Edited February 12, 2023 by A to Z

[A to Z]

ready to go!

[57GMC]

Wow... lots of great progress.. Thanks for the update.. Shifter looks super..

[A to Z]

thanks!

 

2-22-2023 UPDATE: Kind of in a holding pattern right now. Short block is being finished up....have to wait in line. The Ported Head I bought from Dan Carroll has been shipped....the Electromotive cam in there is shrouded in mystery....On Steve Ehlers advice, I called Isky cams and talked to Ron, who was the one who ground these cams. As soon as the cam is here I will write down all the info on the back of the cam and get back with him to see if he can get me the cam card to degree the cam just right. Mark FL helped me out with a new and unused .080 Cometic headgasket and a Kameari adjustable cam gear sprocket. And since my coil died a while back, I went through MSA and got a FAST PS20 coil and a chrome bracket. It really wouldn't have killed the people at FAST to put the sticker on straight!:)

Edited February 22, 2023 by A to Z

[A to Z]

here is the cam I have.  Now to search and find out the specifics so it can be degreed in.

[A to Z]

02-25-2023 UPDATE:  A busy day, and today was cylinder head day.  I started by using a wire wheel attachemnt in my drill and cleaned out the chambers and a couple spots that had material built up on the mating surface.  After that I then went over the outside surfaces of the head, then going over it in a few spots with some fine sandpaper and then buffed it to a shine.  Then with brake cleaner and a toothbrush I cleaned the whole head up.  In the pics you can see how clean I was able to get the valley inside the head.  Next was to cc a chamber.  I found that the machinist marked the head .060 after he shaved it.....quit a bit huh?  Well, it explains the 3 shims under each cam tower.  I used a CD case cover and drilled a hole in it, and then got some vaseline and rubbing alcohol and a syringe.  Reading, I found out that Milli Liters (mL)  the same as cc.  So, I went ahead to cc'd a chamber.  37.5cc.  Stock was 42.4, so 5 cc lost in the milling.  In the pics you will notice the cam is dry....brake cleaner does that!  You can tell the cam was ground on a factory blank, and you can see how the lobe is even maybe even a little lower that the cam shaft itself.  At this point, I set it to the side and began stripping everything off my factory head.  I was at this time I noticed my head is actually an E88!!  I don't know how I have read it wrong for almost 2 years, but off the car, in the light, I found out I didn't have an E31 head after all!  What a shock!  Well, next was cleaning up the thermostat housing.  It's not completely done, but form the pic you can see it getting close.  Took a while, but I like the direction it is going.  Kind of pic heavy, sorry. 
 

[YoBrother]

Lotta work!

[A to Z]

Oh yeah.  I had it almost done, then decided to tear it apart and convert to manual trans, change to a 4:11 rear end, and build a bigger engine.

 

03-05-2023 UPDATE:

Initially I had concerns that my stock cam would be too small....and that as a consequence the Pressures in the cylinder would be too high......

 

Well this cam I got with my head....it's actually a RACE cam.....to get it to work, I would have to carve up my pistons' valve reliefs a ton deeper and STILL have to put a thicker head gasket on just to get the valves at max lift to clear......So I went online and figured out the Static Compression, and Dynamic Compression, which is the real world compression the engine has with the cam opening and closing acording to its degrees.  So when I put all my stuff in the calculator, the stock cam turned out to be fine (WOW).....so I am going to install it in my ported head with the big intake valves, and then I can use the adjustable cam sprocket I have to fine tune it. So at any rate, today I went out to the garage and got some things done.......I took the cam towers off the head, removed the shims, 3 under each tower, which is .060 making up for the milling of the head at .060.  Using some assembly lube I put it all back together, turned all the lash adjusters down, put the Kameari adjustable sprocket on and with a pipe wrench tuned the cam over to get some rough measurements.  It is these measurements that I have been fighting with, doing the math, etc., and that is when I ran the numbers with my existing "A" cam......Dynamic cylinder pressure of 183 which is good.  At sea level it would be 219, but because I am at 6400 feet elevation it is only 183.  Dynamic compression is 10.03 to 1.......still quite a drop from the static compression ratio of 11.54.....so no problem with the pump gas and I should be able to run full timing.

  After this I cleaned up my intake and carbs, and then the exhuast manifold....and then just went ahead and gave it another coat of hi heat paint..  The reminaing bolts that were dirty I went ahead and wire wheeled them up, then decided to check the mail and go in.  In the mail was my new Transmission vent tube.  The old vent tube was loose and could be pulled out.  This one you have to tap in.  The Z Car Depot has them for about 8-9 bucks.  Also have my Loctite 640 for keeping my redi-sleeve on the rear seal journal.  Yes, my Electramotive L4-02 cam with 500-1000 miles on it is for sale.  A little pic heavy, but as I have said, it is a recording of the work performed.  Enjoy.

 

[A to Z]

3-11-2023 UPDATE:  I took the day to pull apart my intake manifold, as I am going to powder coat the intake in a satin light bronze.  It will give it the Magnesium look.  So I took the carbs off, and the cross over tube, then removed the heat tube between the carbs.....one of thsoe bolts was so hard I had to put it in a vise , use a pipe wrench AND my cheater pipe pulled out to the max to get it off!  Thanks to the guys at my nearby O'Reilleys for letting me use their vise and one of the guys helping me get it out.  The other one I merely had to stand on the wrench on the garage to get it loose!   SO....I will plug those holes.  I additionally will be having my air cleaner box powdercoated, not sure on the color yet.  Maybe a transparent candy orange?  The heat shield for the carbs will be getting powedercoated (color? not sure yet) and the bottom part of the thermostat bracket will be getting powdercoated in lght satin bronze as well.  The top will be getting polished along with my SU tops and the cross over tube.  Front cover to be either polished or powercoated, still deciding.  So in the pics you will see my pile.  OH!  and the fuel piping I am also going to get powdercoated.....possibly chrome powdercoat, or a candy yellow that mimcks the zinc coating they had new.  I did spend the majority of the time on the cross over tibe.  Using my die grinder and file, I chopped off the unneeded brackets (smog stuff) and then went over the flash and casting marks, then used the file to smooth it out good enough for the polisher to be able to make it straighter with his sanding and then polishing.  I also wire wheeled up the bolts, and pushed them through cardboard and painted the heads, 3 silver then clear... all engine paint, 1 washer for the exhaust manifold that I forgot to paint in flat black exhaust temp paint, and the others in clear.  So, my head work waits until next time.  Here are some pics.  Cheers!

 

[A to Z]

03-13-2023 UPDATE. Several things going on today. My new valvesprings and NOS Nissan valve stem seals arrived, so I can now finish up my head. I bought a valve lap kit, and will go over the valves lap them in just to make them completely fresh, then install the "A" cam I have with the matching rockers for each lobe and lashpads, and use my YOST oil spray bar. I also dropped off the items I had prepped for either powdercoating or polishing. The SU carb tops, the crossover pipe and the thermostat top and bracket are at the polishers. I dropped off my intakes, the grill and carb heat shield at the powdercoaters. I believe I will drop off my air box tomorrow as well. I debated replacing the air box, or painting it myself back to orange, or going with a nice glossy black powdercoat. Gloss black has won out. I like the factory air box the best. So, the grill, heat shield, and air box will be powdercoated gloss black, and the Intakes will be a light bronze in a satin finish to give it the "magnesium look". The front cover and fuel lines will be painted by myself instead of powdercoating. I can get them the way I want and save the money. Everything is expensive now! I also spun by Whistler machine here in town to pick up an assortment of screw in plugs for the intakes as I removed the heat pipe, and a couple in the crossover pipe and still some that I didn't care for the look of. And as I mentioned, I picked up the roof today from Junkyard Jenny's in Ft. Lupton, Colorado. It came off of a 260Z that was actually way too nice to have been parted out....breaks the heart. Also found out the machine shop is done with the block except clearancing....so very soon, the engine will come together and we can get it all back to running again.