JohnnyO

I will be working on this tomorrow. The paint is now about 4 weeks old so I gather I should be safe to sand and try the razor method mentioned above. The area is in the engine bay on the fender well where the brake booster and clutch slave attach so it is not very visible after assembly but I want it right. The paint is single stage. I will scuff the entire area with 600 and repaint when I get the runs out. I will let you know how it goes. John

My completely stripped shell to 6 weeks to primer and jammed, inside completely painted with new floor support rails welded in. I was at the shop every other day to check on progress and pointed out a few flaws in his work that required a redo. I have the shell at home now to install the engine and put it back together. After that it will be another week or so to do some more blocking (noticed a few flaws) and topcoat. I would say that if a shop had to do it all it could take upwards of 3 months to do a very straight car correctly and quickly.

I am always amazed when these low vin # cars show up. Regardless of condition, after 40 years to find one that just about pre-dates all others is just amazing. Nice find and as Sailor Bob said, Pictures please. John

I really liked the way the Tower paint covered. I purchased a 6 pack of cans to paint my engine and parts and I think it looks great. I believe they referred to it as Dusty Blue. How do you think the color compared to the original you may have found on your cars and seen at shows? It matched pretty good to the 40 year old paint I found on mine. John

I've seen block paint from Les and from Tower Paint and they both look "similar" to your picture. John

Is the area marked with red the area that should be either 105 or 115? If it is, this measurement on mine is 115mm on center (Approximately) I measured between the 2 bolt holes not the ball joint hole to the tie rod end as indicated by your drawing. Sorry for the confusion. John

I am dealing with the outers right now. I know that the outers are L or R but the inners should be identical. Ron (Geezer) would definately know. Maybe he'll chime in. Rockauto.com has 2 vendors listed and they both list universal inners. John

Ron, This is what I found after getting the ball joints and steering knuckles off. Castelated nut inside diameter = 11mm Ball joint threaded shaft = 11.5mm Steering knuckle ball joint receptor = 12mm/15mm top/bottom of taper respectively Steering knuckle length between 2 bolt holes = 105mm This seems to make sense to me. The nut being slightly smaller than the shaft and the shaft being slightly smaller than the receptor. What do you think? Are these the original or is there a way to tell if they are original? I couldnt upload the pictures because I left my card reader at work. I will upload them on Monday. Hope this helps you, it definately helped me. John

Neither do Supreme Court Justices! http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_a_US_Supreme_Court_justice_have_to_be_a_lawyer

I will pull the ball joints and knuckles Sunday. I'll let you know what I find Ron. John

Ron, OK, I learned something. I thought the steering knuckle and ball joint were one piece. (Should have been looking at the FSM) I removed the front suspension but did not remove the ball joints yet. I will get them off in the morning then soak them in degreaser and post some pics and measurements. You are correct, Rock Auto list 2 manufacturers with 11mm as an option. If you are correct (and I believe you) that OEM was 12mm I wonder if there was a fitment issue with after market 11mm wearing too quickly or excessive play. Not sure. What measurements do you want? Judging by your diagram above I should be able to measure the shaft and tell the difference. I don't know if I have the right tool to measure the thread but should be able to measure the diameter of the shaft. I am probably going to order the Moog if mine are 14mm if not do you have a prefered brand? They offer a/c delco and raybestos in both sizes and Moog in only the 14mm. All offer castle nuts and xerxes fittings. They also sell Moog outer Tie Rod ends. I will be ordering both side from them. I don't see the steering knuckles listed at Rock Auto. Any idea who might sell them? What about the inner/upper tie rod ends? Should they be replaced? Thanks for all the help. John

After reading this thread: http://www.classiczcars.com/forums/showthread.php?t=17423&highlight=series+ball+joints It sounds like the 14mm steering knuckle that comes on the later ball joints is a better performing ball joint/knuckle. With it being 14mm wouldn't the tie rod ends be a different size also, say 14mm to match the knuckle? If so, would early series 1 ball joint/knuckles be 11mm and would the tie rod ends be 11mm also? Maybe I am even more confused than I think I am. Please set me straight. Thanks, John

Ron, Maybe I am confusing the ball joint with the tie rod ends. So the tie rods are the same for all Z's. That's good to know. I wanted to replace/rebuild these during the rebuild but noticed that the bushing kits come with the boots and wasn't sure if the rubber bushing was replacable. What's the difference in the ball joints? My car has a lot of pre-1000 vin parts and am starting to think it had problems during assembly and sat for a while before they assigned the vin. My block number actually is in line with cars in the 750 range. I havent got the ball joints pulled yet (still working on the tie rod ends) but will search to see the differences. John

It is my understanding that the early series 1 tie rods are different than the later ones. If this is true: Are they available somewhere? How do you know if they are shot? Is replacing the boot the same as rebuilding? I am in the middle of the suspension rebuild and want to know if saving these is worth the trouble. Thanks, John

How long do you plan on having these available?

Carl, My rear rubber mat does have cutouts for the bolts and appear to be "stamped" out. Not sure what you found with your set. Edit: Mike, you beat me to the punch. That is what mine looks like, and yes, my front mats were missing but I do have the passenger side Datsun rubber mat. Not sure if that was after market or not.

My car has the rubber deck mat. It was under the carpet when I disassembled the vehicle. I was unaware that this was low vin item. "You learn more here by accident than elsewhere by design."

Pretty sure the first item is just referred to as a "Seat shield" The second item is the seatbelt hooks and yes, from what I've read there are 2 versions. Third item: Very nice find on the solid z. Very rare, I have never seen one in person. Fourth item is a very nice spare and wheel. How about some pictures of the whole car and a little history? John

I appreciate the offer but I am at a point where I need it now. I am going to purchase a parts car (5/70) primarily to get the door hinge. My car is just about ready for paint, just need to remove the suspension. I am not sure that a 12/71 hinge would be the same. I know that a 7/73 hinge was different. The spring was skinnier and the hinge had a double stop. The early series 1 hinges were single stop. Again, thanks for the offer. John

Thanks Mike, they looked great.

I just looked at my cowl and it is exactly as you describe it here. John

Mike, In an earlier post you were wondering whether or not to paint your fuel tank gloss black or por-15. What did you decide and how did it turn out? John

82% here. God I suck....

Even with all that rust 920 gold looks good! The one up here has rust too but I dont remember it being that bad. The floor boards are gone and I remember that the rockers had bubbles too. I wasnt there to look for rust so I guess I didnt pay attention. I am wanting the door hinge, passenger side lower seat plastic (what is the official name of this), the dash for a core, and if I dont sell it for parts I might rebuild the engine. If anyone wants anything you should pm me. If I get enough interest I will probably pick it up and part it out. I've already had a couple of requests. John

lmao!!!!