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First attempt seemed to yield good results I wasn’t able to clamp every spot. I put it in very hot water in a tray clamped, then cooled with water. Here is before and after. If anyone wants to use the jig let me know or want to buy one I can make you one. I’ll upload more pics after the next attempt to get it better

Yeah, you and every other Z owner who didn't buy it new. Figuring out what previous owners did do, didn't do, and/or screwed up... It's a sport.

Why replace the alternator without testing the charging system, the starting system, and load test the battery? Simply guessing and throwing parts at a car is the worst way to go about troubleshooting. Test, prove what is malfunctioning, repair, then test again. That said, follow the testing procedures in the service manual. Find the problem and correct it. Most auto parts stores can test the alternator and the battery, to either confirm they are serviceable or not. Testing the voltage regulator should be covered in the service manual, and can be done with a voltmeter.

That video didn't download. Most people create a Youtube channel and upload their videos to it. Makes them easier to view. Sounds like a nice project especially if it really only has 36,000 miles.

Now this set of seats is available , only 12 hours left. This is Mr.Sudo’s work , I think his work is the best in the world. Not only using original materials from the manufacturer , but also his technique of sawing, shaping , creating a better support and better comfort. It is a real craftsmanship. I can say they are ‘better than new’. It is very unusual his seats are available on auction sites . Unless you find a set of super mint condition original seats , you will never wish to sell them . Mr. Sudo can do for both 1970 fat seat back with rubber-belt seat bottom and later slim seat back with spring-tension seat bottom. This set as you can see , September 1971 and later ‘slim seat back with spring-tension seat bottom . Mr. Sudo is no more making S30 seats , so , if someone want nice seats, I think it is a good buy . Paying for an original radio or an original dash are so expensive today , but how about seats ? I don’t think people care about it seriously , so the price will be seemed high at the moment. Kats

I would also caution against using a new alternator to charge an exceptionally dead battery. Thats a good way to destroy an alternator

Sounds like your alternator is not charging. So either you have a bad power circuit to/from the alternator or the alternator you purchased is bad. You have an external voltage regulator that could be causing the alternator to not do its job. Check to see of the parts place you purchased the alternator has the ability to test the alternator. If its good then I would suspect the voltage regulator. Dont forget that this is a 50 year old car and any if not all of the electrical connections can be suspect or corroded. Get the FSM and go thru the testing: Free download here: http://www.xenonzcar.com/s30/fsm.html

Story of my life. lol... Well, the whole point of this was to teach the kids some mechanical stuff, so mission accomplished!

I found the thread I was thinking of. It's actually just a portion of a longer thread. The weirdness starts at post #24.

@Captain Obvious and @Racer X I have sourced a used replacement from @Terrapin Z and will be sending it in for refurbishing. I got a strong light in there and bumped the engine around with a remote starter to inspect the end of the crankshaft and don't see anything obviously chewed up, will get in there and do a thorough cleaning/inspection before proceeding any farther. And yeah, someone has done A LOT of updating on this car in the past... The balancer is a later model, the carbs are from a 240Z, there is a five-speed transmission(!)... I wish I knew who had done all this work years ago just so I could pick their brain about what else lies in store. LOL...

Things will get more clear when you get that used damper and test fit it. The woodruff keys are available. There is a recent thread on the forum from a guy who was having trouble getting the damper on without pushing the key out of its slot. Some good details in it, I'll see if can find it. I wonder if those seal parts that you found aren't from a previous seal. That's a 280ZX damper on a 260Z. Somebody's been in there before. Here's the part number for the woodruff key. #10. Search the part number and you'll get lots of hits. Your local auto parts store might even have it. http://www.carpartsmanual.com/datsun/Z-1969-1978/engine-240z-260z/piston-crankshaft

Couple thoughts: After watching the video, you can see that BOTH sides of the Woodruff key shot have cracked. You can see the rough grainy surface of the cast iron on both sides of the groove (or where the groove is supposed to be). One side is a huge chunk missing. Other side is a smaller piece missing. It would be important to find all the loose metal. The little rubber ring and round spring are what's left of your front oil seal when it disintegrated. So when you say "The seal itself looks fine"... That would not be the case. The little rubber ring is the sealing lip that has been sheared off, and the round spring is the garter spring that is supposed to provide the pressure on the back (wet) side of the seal. I'm coming back to thinking it was broken upon installation and has been cracked for some time. Surprised there was still enough of a seal to keep it from spraying oil out at an impressive rate, but I guess it depends on just how much oil is flinging around behind that pulley. Maybe the oil slinger was doing exactly what it's supposed to do. Woof. Last thought is about having that balancer rebuilt... I'm no expert on the topic, but I don't think you're going to find a company to fix that. The companies that rebuild those things specialize in vulcanizing rubber and balancing the result. I would not expect them to make new parts, just rejoin old parts.

Here's a video I just now shot! Also now that I have a used one on the way (thanks to @Terrapin Z!), does anybody know who rebuilds these? The only company I have seen advertise this service is Godzilla Motorworks out of Texas and they charge $350.

There is oil spray on the surface too, and most notably the out of true groove. I would venture to say that had been broken for some time while it was a runner. Hopefully mine will get him on to the next stage.

You can certainly tell those seats were assembled and re-covered by someone with excellent skills.

I received the last of the parts I ordered for the 5-speed overhaul on Sunday this past weekend, so three weeks total wait time. Not bad considering one of the bearings was lost in transit to Courtesy Parts and had to be ordered again. Not as fast as ordering a quest kit, but I went above and beyond what's available in those, plus it's all OEM.

I don't think I am exaggerating when I say I have probably 20 weekends of time invested in fasteners: going through all of my labeled zip lock bags, measuring and writing down details regarding nearly all of the fasteners on the car, identifying any non-original hardware that was on my car, replacing it from my 510 fastener collection (I was young ok... and I wrecked a couple!). I may have more than two hundred hours of glass bead blasting, lots of hours of dremeling, and a dozen hours of polishing with #0000 steel wool - all "invested" in prep for plating at this point. Today I spent a bunch of time going through all the boxes of parts on my shelves looking for any fasteners I missed. I found a couple of clips for side marker lights. I found a couple of clips that hold the chrome tail light trim bar to the lens. I found that my throttle rod that Paltech did is just ok, not great - so I will have it redone. I found a few other odds and ends. Soooo... I'd love to find out that my time spent glass beading and tumbling and steel wooling... was completely unnecessary. I am tired of it. And my restoration is just dragging on. I thought I had a chance at getting the car painted last August. Now it is this August, and I haven't done any additional bodywork since last year. I've got a 510 sitting in the corner of the garage that will go through a similar level of restoration sometime after I finish this car. It would be great to just dump all the fasteners in a couple of boxes and send them off, and have them come back like new. It sounds like that may be possible based on a few of your comments here. I plan to use http://tfcplating.com/. I forget how I heard of them. Anyway, if anyone can share more detail about their platers, maybe some before and after pics, then maybe I can discover the even easier way than my "easy" way of getting good results.