My 260Z build (Brake upgrades and Mods)

[Zs-ondabrain]

So I finally got my 79' 280ZX rear disk Brake Rotors from O'Rileys. Got them home and did the test fit before painting them with the Red Caliper Paint from Dupli-color.

I also found out that when I welded the Ebrake brakets in the place that I did, They actually sit back far enough that I don't have to mess with or alter my Ebrake handle, brackets, pivots or rods. as a matter of fact, I think they will lock up withing 2 or 3 clicks of the handle. My 240Z never did that, no matter how much I adjusted them. I'm really liking these things and I haven't even driven the car yet.

Also got the Stainless Steel Braided (Earls) Brake Lines from MSA and popped right in. BUT, they have a 17mm bolt that doesn't lock into the 19mm hole of the stock bracket. No big deal, just held it with a wrench and tightened them down. I also relocated the Hard-line bracket to the Frame, to completely avoid the Caliper bracket hitting it. 1st pic.

Proportioning valve up front (on the firewall) is next.

Dave

Edited November 11, 2009 by Zs-ondabrain

[orange 73]

Thanks for taking the time to post all of your great looking work for all to see. It's so much easier for all of us doing the same things on our cars to learn from good pics and posts like yours. This sight is an essential part of my restoration!

[LBO730]

Hey Dave, Are you gonna change to an adjustable proportioning valve since you went to the ZX master cylinder? I read somewhere that that was necessary to keep the rear brakes from locking up before the fronts.

[Zs-ondabrain]

Hey Dave, Are you gonna change to an adjustable proportioning valve since you went to the ZX master cylinder? I read somewhere that that was necessary to keep the rear brakes from locking up before the fronts.

Yes. I'm going to block off the stock valve on the firewall, allowing the fronts to still go thru it and the new Proportioning valve will be mounted just above it, on the firewall.

I may have to place it on top (in front) of the stock valve. To hopefully keep the stock lines as unbent as possible.

Dave

Edited November 11, 2009 by Zs-ondabrain

[Nigel1943]

Hey Dave, Are you gonna change to an adjustable proportioning valve since you went to the ZX master cylinder? I read somewhere that that was necessary to keep the rear brakes from locking up before the fronts.

The main issue here is usually getting enough braking to the rear brakes when using the Toyota front calipers. People using the same setup as Dave have found that a proportioning valve needs to be almost wide open to acheive this. Incidentally the 240 (not 260) also has a valve in the rear line which should be discarded.

[ktm]

The main issue here is usually getting enough braking to the rear brakes when using the Toyota front calipers. People using the same setup as Dave have found that a proportioning valve needs to be almost wide open to acheive this. Incidentally the 240 (not 260) also has a valve in the rear line which should be discarded.

Correction, 240zs up to 1972 have the valve in the rear. The 1973 has the valve on the firewall.

[Zs-ondabrain]

SOOOO.... I finally got to the other side, basically a mirror image of the left side but here ya go..

It was a little easier on the right side, as the left was all practice. So I copied every thing and it was a breeze.

Now I gotta go get another GM mount cause I sold the other one to Nigel in the UK. Mount the R/T, mod the GM mount, raise and bolt in the diff and finsh the body work on the left side so I can spin the car around and start on the right side.

Much to do.

Dave

[suzook86]

Dave,

Does your car suffer nose bleeds being that high off the floor? Seriously though, I was toying with the same idea with some left over scrap wood I have laying around. Did you use the same wood beam shoring front and back, could you post a pic? It has got to make life working/moving around under there a whole lot easier.

Jim

[Zs-ondabrain]

The front wheels are on dollies, with the dolly wheels locked. There's no way I would work under the car if the only thing holding it up was 4 wobbly legs.

So front wheels on dollies and rear end up with a 4"x4" across the floors, held up with 2 jack stands. Definately made doing the doglegs and suspension much easier.

Dave

[Zs-ondabrain]

Dave,

Does your car suffer nose bleeds being that high off the floor? Seriously though, I was toying with the same idea with some left over scrap wood I have laying around. Did you use the same wood beam shoring front and back, could you post a pic? It has got to make life working/moving around under there a whole lot easier.

Jim

Sorry for the delayed answer Jim....

I did the front with Jack-stands on the frame rails and the rear still had the old suspension and wheels on. There was no way I was gonna crawl under there with the whole car teetering on 4 stilts (jack stands) Then I put the front wheels on and put them onto small rollers becasue the rack and pinion was not done or installed and I had no way of keeping the wheels straight.

So with the front done and on rollers, I tossed some sand under the small wheels of the rollrs to keep them from wondering around, then raised the back end and used the 4x4 and taller Jackstands to keep the rear suspended and make plenty of room to work under there. Made life much easier being able to sit cross-legged while scraping old undercoating off.

One side at a time, that's all I need.

Dave

(*EDIT*) I just realized I already posted but rather than erase one, I'm just leaving this one here.)

Edited February 7, 2010 by Zs-ondabrain

[mike260z]

youre doing a great job, im planning to restore my 260z brakes and i have a question

what do i need for the toyota caliper swap, just the calipers and brake pads?

can you post a picture of datsun vs toyota calipers, just to watch the difference

[Zs-ondabrain]

Kinda hard to see them amongst the crap on the floor, but you can see that they stock 260Z calipers are a Dual piston like the 240Z's and pale in comparison to the 4-piston Toyota calipers.

in the second picture, you can kinda see the caliper under the control arm

Hope that helps, I don't have a side-by-side as I shipped them off to the auto parts store for the Core charge. The only thing you need is the S12-8 calipers, your rotors and rebend your hardlines, as they are obviously in different locations on the calipers compared to the datsun calipers.

Dave

Edited February 10, 2010 by Zs-ondabrain