Jump to content
HybridZ

Weight of Shell


Z0wner

Recommended Posts

What do you suppose the weight of an empty 260z shell weighs?

 

I am going to start sandblasting soon' date=' and want to know if 2 or 3 guys can pick up the shell to be worked on once fully stripped.[/quote']

 

Auxilary and I stripped a 240Z down to the shell and I could pick up the front of it, but it was still pretty heavy. My guess is that you should have four people to move the shell--this would be relatively safe. Getting a good grip on the thing is one of the biggest issues IMO.

 

Just my $.02

 

Davy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well I finally dropped my Z off the rotisserie tonight and I had promised BlueOvalZ' date=' Terry Oxandale, that I would weigh the bare body shell. Of course I promised him this over a year ago when I put it on the rotisserie. :bonk: I have it on four jack stands and bought four cheapo bathroom scales to place under each stand. I added up the weights and subtracted out the weight of the jack stands.

 

[b']And the verdict is 520 pounds[/b]

 

The car is down to bare metal with every ounce of undercoating stripped and the small rails that go under the floor pans are removed right now. The tranny mount has also been removed. I would guess this is 30 to 40 pounds that need to be added back in.

 

I was a little surpised that it weighed that much as I would have guessed in the 400 pound range. Oh BTW this is an early 260 so it should be similar to a 240. I started with a 240 that I gave up on and I really don't see very many differences when comparing the two body shells.

 

Just thought this was an interesting bit of trivia I would share with the masses. I've got a great pic of it on the scales but won't be able to post it until tomorrow because I left the cable for my camera at work. I hate it when that happens :twak:

 

just did a search.

 

steven m.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I believe the total was around 530-560 lbs for a 280.

 

And the verdict is 520 pounds

 

This sounds correct. I lifted the front of the car off the ground so that should be about 250-300 pounds (half of 520 lbs?), so by extrapolation this is about correct. That said, to 'easily' move the shell get four people to help move it around. Will you be using a rotissery? If so, this will make moving it far easier and you should be able to do it with one to two people.

 

Davy

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well, I was thinking about a rotissery, and I am going to talk to a local guy about building one :)

 

But, I don't know about the cost. I never have any extra money (high school student) so I have to split my tiny check up a lot... I'll probably put some aside for a rotissery and some aside for a welder

 

SO FAR:

 

rotissery- 00.00

welder- 250.00

 

Take only a couple of weeks to get the welder... hopefully

Link to comment
Share on other sites

what welder do you plan on getting, might I ask?

 

also plan about spending 150+ on cost of steel, probably more depending on your design. make sure you polish up those welding skills before tackling a rotisserie job. If i were to do it again, i'd opt for scrap steel instead of fresh stock.

 

steven m.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I used 3 engine stands to build my rot. You need the third to make the mast section taller so that you can spin the car all the way upside down (if you want to do that--I'm glad I did). I think the stands were ~$50 each from Harbor Freight. I got two of the 1000 lb stands and one of the smaller 750# stands.

Then I went to an industrial supply place and got some 1x1 square tubing and some 1 1/2" square tube to make brackets with. I'd say I probably spent ~$200, but it was a lot easier IMO to make it the way I did vs with a big pile of scrap metal.

 

Here's some help for you:

Good rot thread. I put my pivot just where Zerrari GTO said and mine is just a bit top heavy I'd go between 2.5" and 3" for a 240 vs his 280.

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=104151

Info on the front mount:

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=105319

Why you might want to go all the way upside down, requiring the 3rd engine stand:

http://forums.hybridz.org/showthread.php?t=106849

Link to comment
Share on other sites

It was me and three friends when I put my 280 shell on the rotisserie. It takes a moment to get everything lined up to mount the car and you really need the stability of four people- plus one (my wife) to slide each end on.

 

lucky... putting mine on involved me and my brother. me, standing between my fuel cell rails, lifting like hell, and my brother guiding the stand. ended up using: big SUV jack stands, a cherry picker, and alot of cursing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I did it all by myself. Just kept jacking it up higher and higher. You get that sucker about 3' off the ground and it starts to get a little sketchy. Cherry picker is a damn good idea. Think I might use that to get it down.

 

I did mine by myself too and yes it does get a little hairy. :twak: I damn near droped mine in the process. :shock:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This seems a little high. By “shellâ€, do we mean the removal of absolutely everything that is not welded together to form the unibody?

 

The only “factual†basis that I have for my opinion is the following: removing the engine, transmission, and most underhood componentry from my ’78 280Z, but leaving intact the suspension, glass, interior (what’s left of it), and so forth – so, the car is a “roller†– one can, with a modicum of effort, lift up one of the front corners of the car by grabbing the corresponding fender lip. It’s possible to lift the corresponding tire about 2†off the ground.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...