Mark Maras

I'll do that. I can practice on the original cowl. I have a replacement for it. The orig. was looking pretty good until it threw itself under the tire of an RX7. Actually, I leaned it against the wall, unsecured, and it slid onto the floor. Anyway that one will be my learning piece. It can only be improved.

Here are the first pics of the 71. He says the console is pretty bad and no mention about the heater core. looks like many good parts avail. Makin a list. Judging by the pics alone, It looks like a saveable chassis. What a shame it's been picked over.. OH NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO, The voices are returning again!

Going to give him a call first and ask specifically about those parts and let you know if they're available.. Big windstorm coming in today. I'll take a look at it Tues. or Wed. and report back.

IMO everyone that owns a Z should take it out for a spin in the snow. In my younger years, when it snowed, I would set my alarm for 2AM and take my 240, "Hiro", out for a joy ride on Portlands' streets. Night shift Police pulled me over a few times and wanted to know what in the hell I was doing? After they were convinced that my driving was not compromised by any substance other than adrenaline, they cut me some slack and would just blink their lights at me to say hi. Did I mention the 70s were great in Portland?

IMO, a ScotchBrite pad is easier on the bore and cleans very well.

Yeah, I had considered that too. I'm looking forward to learning a new technique. The next car is already on the list. My sons' daily driver 81 RX7. Hopefully the 260 will be on the road by late spring and then we can start on his. The subject has not come up yet but I can see the wheels turning in his head. I'm sure he's planning to drive the Z while the RX7 is down. Fortunately, he can be trusted but he's going to earn the privilege. The sooner we finish the Z, the sooner we can start on the RX7. It will be interesting to see if he still loves his RX7 as much after driving a Z.

Thanks. Great info. I hadn't heard of a shrinking disc. Just watched a couple of videos. Gonna get one and try it. I've got a ways to go on the bodywork.

If the hole in the manifold was centered over the stud a centering punch and a left hand drill bit would be my first choice. That not being the case, I'm with madkaw. Pull the manifold. It will probably save time and remove a lot of guesswork.

What does he use as a heat source. I'm getting frustrated with my hood. I tap the high spots down just below level and they want to pop right back up. I could bash them down and I know they would stay down but I want as little filler as possible. I'm thinking a little heat would help. Opinion? Also, Is he using compressed air to control the shrinkage?

Depends on the condition of the sheet metal of the body, the doubler and the surrounding area. If there is a possibility of rust between the layers, They should be separated and treated or replaced. I've replaced and added a few doublers (fish plates) on mine. 16g galvanized sheet metal with zinc rich primer on the body is my choice. In lieu of those options, a good rust converter should be used. I'm going to be using Ospho on the rest of mine. Wish I had looked into it previously. I don't mind rinsing some areas with water but I can't bring myself to use water to rinse the seams out. Ospho, it appears, can be left to dry.

Patcon When cooling the weld with air do you notice any warpage? I realize the weld probably adds enough stiffness to prevent much warpage. The reason I ask is the other day I was working on my hood when my neighbor came over and asked me if I had ever shrunk high spots with heat and compressed air? He has restored a 52 Pontiac and a 54 Studebaker, both look good. He explained the process, heat it with a torch (not too hot) and control the shrinkage with compressed air. I don't have the courage to try it. Especially on the thin sheet metal of a Z. Z hoods are thicker than some of the other panels but I'm not going to experiment on a reasonably straight hood. Curious if you've tried it or even heard of it?

So, So many. Back in the late 70s it was Huey Lewis "Sports" album on the Pioneer Super Tuner for me. Volume cranked up, a favorite road in my Z. Totally in the moment. Loving the drive and doing some of my best singing ever. Sigh.

I've been butt welding mine except where the floor pan welds to the rocker panel. Half the welding and grinding and no overlapped seams to eventually collect moisture. I have more trouble with patience (letting it cool) than I have either type of joint.

Lost the patient but saved some vital organs so another can live. Good job.

Thanks, I haven't tried that yet. Any problems with paint or primer not adhering if it isn't rinsed and just allowed to dry?

Ah, Memories of Zs and dogs. When I introduced my puppy Max (Springer Spaniel) to my 71 Z and went for a ride, he promptly got sick and filled the console tray to overflowing status. First and only time. His way of christening it I guess. From then on it was 16 years of clear sailing.

Creeping rust in the welded seams is the tough one to deal with. The seams that are overlapped or folded over and spot welded allow moisture to eventually eat away everything but the spot weld. There's no way to media blast between sandwiched layers so acid and a water rinse :( or neutralizing agent must be used. Or unfold it and take it apart. Does anyone know of a one-step product that will creep into the seams, neutralize the rust, dry to a paintable surface and maybe even seal the seam at the same time. I'm not asking for everything? I'll apply it.

Small wrecking yard SE of Portland parting out a 71. Craig's List, Portland. If anyone needs anything let me know. I can take a look at it for you.

Both acid dipping and media blasting work well but both have their negatives. I didn't see either show but I'm betting they weren't working on anything as thin as a Z. Both methods will remove rust as well as good metal if not done carefully. Media blasting can also warp thin sheet metal. I'm not a big fan of removing ALL the original paint and especially the primer on the sheet metal if it's still sound. Did it once and had to spend more time and money replacing what I had removed.. The seams & frame are usually the places that need the most attention. I would media blast those areas but only after attacking everything with a mean and nasty wire brush. It will show you what areas need extra attention and what doesn't. I don't have the answer for the the final prep. I coated the inside and outside of my new frame rails and floor pans with many layers of zinc rich primer before painting with equipment enamel. Spent a good share of my working life fabricating galvanized steel projects and have always used zinc rich coatings for protection on welds. great stuff. One other thought. While I had the front frame rail opened up where it welds to the floor board, I welded it on the inside and while the weld was hot I used a zinc stick (available at your welding supplier) to cover the hot surface with zinc. US Coast Guard approved method. If I do this again I may have the new sheet metal galvanized before fabrication. No, It's not that hard to weld even if you don't remove it. Most of the horror stories about welding galvanized material are B.S. Fumes are a concern but easy to eliminate. Hmmm. I wonder how much it would cost to galvanize a whole Z body?

It's fine. One project at a time is all I want to handle. What would I do halfway through this one and another shows up in better shape. I've got enough decisions on this one to fill my plate.

I stopped the voices by replying. Received no answer, ad is gone today. Back to sanding. SIGH!

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO The voices. I can't stop the voices. They keep saying REPLY, REPLY, REPLY.

Truly rust free? Not likely, But if it is, or very close, the way prices are escalating for primo early Zs, $7000.00 will be a bargain in just a couple of years. Probably would take that long for me to reassemble it.

I agree with madkaw. It may not need it but a vented crankcase is cheap insurance. Years ago a lot of pan gaskets leaked because of excessive pressure when the engines got some miles on them. In drag racing we used to build a windage tray. Just a flat piece of sheet metal baffle that bolted onto the main caps to keep the oil sump and the crankshaft separate. There is a lot of turbulence in the pan.

Affirmative on the second one. The first one looked pretty far gone. The second one in Kingston "could" be one hell of a deal for someone wanting to restore a Z and doesn't have one. Owner states that everything looks OK. I know if I was looking for another to restore , I could really assess the body quality if it was on a rotisserie. That would be a real plus. Also, IF, the owner did a decent job of disassembling it, that would save a lot of time. Gotta stop now before I decide to go rent a U-haul. It always starts like this. Even tho I don't need another, I've got the urge to find out how much he wants for it. Gonna go sand on my hood. Need a reality check.