Matthew Abate

I'll take it slowly and reach out as I progress. Excellent discussion, guys. Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

Man, I almost feel like building a harness from scratch is the way to go regardless of whether or not mine is any good, which is something I wasn't going to look into until the car is getting painted.

I wasn't aware of this problem. I had assumed they were distributing for Sean rather than replicating his work. Is there a thread where this is being discussed so we don't highjack this one? Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

By the way Sean, I saw that we can get your system at Z Car Depot. Is that the best way to order it, or are you taking orders directly? Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

The current Fujitsubo system can be had for $1,329.56 plus shipping at RHD. I have not found DEFINITIVE proof but I have read that at least two other people have the full system in their cars and the header is fine for LHD, as above. I'm looking at both of the Fujitsubo systems, Sean's, and the GReddy Trust header if I can figure out what to put behind it. We'll see, but this was all great info to pile into the heap. Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

Okay, so what I'm getting from this is a headlight upgrade, fog lights, two USB plugs, the engine, the dash lights, the heater fan, seat heaters, and LED marker and tail lights, and the interior light *might* be too much for the ZX alternator upgrade and I should look into the capacity of my wiring harness. But the one I started this thread with is probably overkill.

Thanks, but I just bought him one so we're good to go.

Does that go on top of primer or under it? I've never applied my own and I won't be painting the car myself, so if I can lay it down after I strip the car, great, otherwise I would have to get the car back from the painter to do it or have them do it for me.

Thanks for the pro tips Captain! Pistons & rods update coming soon.

I think the image link of your car broke because I'm not seeing it (although I see it in your signature when I use my laptop), but yes that's the same car. I stumbled upon that series of photographs when I was looking for a 911 project can and it pretty much convinced me there and then to drop the Porsche hunt and go find a Z. I really wanted one when I was a kid, but somehow I totally forgot until I saw this.

Is that because the alternator would just connect directly to the battery and not the harness? I think of you go with a 2-wire solution to get the low rpm charging you are connecting to the harness. im following you on the various items pulling from the battery, though. I think. I'm not up on the wiring in these cars yet.

Whoa. Yeah. I hadn't thought of that. I hadn't noticed anyone even broach that subject in any of the alternator upgrade conversations that I've read. Something else to add o the research. Thanks.

Please keep posts productive.

I accidentally back over one in the middle of the night once. I pulled forward and couldn't go anywhere. Got out and found it up between the tire and fender and my freshly restored 65 Corvair mangled to hell. Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

Not sure yet. Just doing research at the moment. Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile

I think one can be excused for not owning a $2,000 to $6,000 work surface in their home workshop. We're Datsun owners after all. I also think we can discuss precision and ways to achieve it regardless of the tools used as long as we achieve it, right? We will show our work from now on, though, because you are correct that if this is going to function as an accurate resource for others it needs as much information as possible. --- So, I made some more progress on our build choices today by choosing and ordering my camshaft! We talked to and researched tons of places: Isky, Colt, Delta, Comp Cams, Web, Schneider, etc. etc. etc. Here are the highlights that led to my decision: Isky: I found lots of really great information, including a huge history of the firm's background in developing Z cams in the 70s, on the various forums, and was 100% sold on them. Initially Ron was quick to respond so we sent three cam shafts to them for evaluation last fall, and then... nothing. Silence. They had them for months and we just could not make contact to get the work done nor the grind profile chosen. We finally got through and after trying to move it forward felt like they just didn't want to do the job, so we requested the cams returned. Supposedly they went into the mail today. So then we looked at the others and I dug around on the forums. After talking to a ton of people about the right numbers for this engine I landed on either the 260 or 280 grinds from Comp Cams. Then I started digging into that and found a LOT of negative feedback in various Datsun and other forums, specifically that the metal is really soft and tends to fragment. Since it seems all of the new billets come from one supplier, this put me back on the regrind path. In the process of finding this out I had found out about Colt. I called them up and had a weird conversation that was dismissive of my project. I've read that people have had great results but I just didn't get a great vibe, plus the guy's insistence on switching to roadster springs put me off. He might be right, but he just wanted me to take his word for it. I couldn't find enough information about their product to do that, other that it's a solution to get around the coil bind his high-lift causes with factory springs and in-machines heads. The same day I started talking to Delta and had a great experience. John was always available to talk to me (when their phone system wasn't crashing), answered all of my questions with tons of detail, and even discussed how I might go with other grinders to get what I was after. The fact that he wanted me to have the best grind for my needs whether it was his or not meant a lot, and after looking at his grind against several other ones I was considering I felt that if his numbers are right then I will be in good shape. The open question is that last bit. The only negative criticism I've seen of Delta (other than other grinders talking trash) is that the numbers don't match what they advertise, possibly due to being based on a 1.6 rocker ration rather than the 1.429 I've seen as spec. This feedback was about 12 years ago, and it seems that they've figure it out since. The feedback I've seen more recently seems to be really positive. Oh, and they supplied the cam. I didn't have to send one. So I ordered the 268 grind with .430 lift. I don't have the rest of the specs readily available but I'll post them when I get the cam, provided it is correct and we don't have to adjust anything. I have good feelings about this. Great service (so far), great price, no mailing cams around, and a profile I feel good about. Now we wait to see how it turns out. If it isn't 100% awesome, I'll run it to break in the engine and upgrade after the car is done if I'm bored.

Okay, so the tone of this has taken a pretty sizable turn and I'm going to ask you guys to get it in check. I'm not questioning the substance of what's being said, rather the way it's being said. Yes, @Takhli needs to show his work if he's going to make statements about precision, as well as explain how he's verifying that precision. Captain Obvious could have been a little less snarky with the surface plate post, so maybe explain yourself instead of crapping on my thread. @Zed Head, it doesn't matter how right you might be. If you're going to make comments like that in my thread I'm going to have to call you out when you come off like a prick, whether it's to my builder on anyone else trying to add value to the conversation. I had respect for the advice you've provided both directly to me and generally across this forum, but that post was out of line. Your advice isn't 100% pristine either. We don't know any more about your background that you do ours (expert mechanic, 40 years of experience building high performance domestic engines AS WELL AS 20 MAINTAINING JET F'ING ENGINES AND THE GD STEALTH FIGHTER, working out of a home garage on a modest budget, so excuse our lack of obnoxiously expensive equipment that only belongs in pro shops, all of which was outline early). If you don't want to start a pissing match, don't. If it continues I'll have to shut down my thread and stop participating in the forum, which would be a shame.

Very bold. I like that orange a lot as well. The thing about the original paint is that I always wish it was a little milder. I see pictures of 432s and Zs in yellow, Mexican Orange, Red, and that weird in-between red-orange all over and I have found that I can't land on which one I like best. All I know is that sometimes when I go into my garage I am not 100% in love with the orange that is in my door jambs and inside the engine bay. My ferret picture of an orange Z is this one of the 432R, which feels much mellower than what is on my car (but it's probably just the lighting): I think the Anrancio Borealis kind of captures that subdued tone better than other things I've looked at , such as the 2017 Nissan Monarch Orange.

Hope so! That's why I picked a military jet aircraft mechanic to put my tiny 6-banger together. He's way more precise than anything I would be doing

Oh yeah! I have this saved in my how-to bookmarks.

Thinking of going in this direction with my paint: Lamborghini Huracan Spyder in Arancio Borealis 4-layer paint ($267,545 MSRP)

Mark, That link keeps bouncing me to the first post in your thread. What's the individual post number you were trying to share?

@/profile/23457-captain-obvious/" id="ips_uid_3816_8" rel="" style="text-decoration: none;" title="Go to Captain Obvious's profile">Captain Obvious Dude. Super helpful Thanks! So while I figure all that out, here is an update: Ready for rods and pistons!

Great info. Thanks for clarifying his description for me. Right now I'm leaning toward the 90 amp one on Z Car Depot if I can find out what the wiring situation is with that one.

So is he assembling something bespoke to our needs from parts out of other alternators? Sent from my iPhone using Classic Zcar Club mobile