Ed

This head has definately been "played" with. Both the intake and exhaust have been polished, the area around the valve has been unshrouded and smoothed out. To guess the chamber cc would be wrong since the chamber has been altered. The only way to calculate the chamber cc now would be to measure it again. Find a piece of clear plexiglass that would fit over the entire chamber a 4x4 inch piece would be enough. Drill a 1/4 inch hole in the center. Useing one of those chemistry set glass beakers(sp), one that has measures in ml. Fill it with 50ml. of water. Install the valves with one spring for some tension and a spark plug. Carefully pour the water into the chamber through the hole in the plexyglass. Subtract the difference to find your chamber cc. Nice work by the way. Too bad they didn't replace the intake valve seat while all that work was being done.

My turn to Edit: What James did was wrong. And he should burn in HELL.

The bouncing amp guage could be a problem with the Voltage Regulator, start by replacing it (especially if it's 30 yrs old). Have the alternator checked out or replace it if it's over 10 yrs old. How does the battery look? Is there any corroded build up on the terminals? Check your wireing especially at the connectors make sure they are all clean. It could also be your switch (the one on the steering column). Do a search and you should be able to come up with some more info on this. I remember a member here sucessfully taking his switch appart and fixing it. Good luck.

One difference that I can tell right off the bat is the factory restored ones had all it's bolts, lines, and engine hardware either replated or replaced with new. Like the fuel line for instance. You can tell that it's probably the original 30yr old line. I'm sure there would be many other differences but from what this guy describes about this car I would say it is worth the 10k he wants. Here is a pic of a factory engine:

Carl, not 100% sure but my 72 is the 110 with the black interior and as far as I can tell it is original.

Thats a nice looking car! Does anyone know what that decal is on the passenger side strut tower in the engine bay?

There are alot of good tools out there. It's all personal preference. Just make sure you get a lifetime guarantee with them. Usually you start with the basics, Metric and standard open end wrenches and a basic socket set in the 3/8 size.

I invested a cool $2,500 back in 1998 for a california car with very little rust. Since then I have put a lot more then my wife needs to know (close to 10,000):tapemouth. As she is right now all torn apart she should be worth atleast 15K (not that I'd ever see that). I think we should all simultaniously increase the value of our cars by $10,000. Bang! Let's call it a historical increase in value. With good Zed's so hard to find now a days it's time. We need to show the world that a Zed is not just junk but a historical piece of art!

I'm at the stage now where I'm wondering the same thing. Now the floors I will be stripping and doing the POR thing but elsewhere it seems like I will be wasteing my time. I'm thinking that if there is no sign of any rust in the area and the original paint looks intact, leave it. As I was stripping the undercoating off of the bottom I noticed that the original paint/primer was still in great condition. So why strip? Oh, and on the replacing the nuts/bolts thing by making a trip to the hardware store, good luck. I have been to every hardware store in 50 miles and if I'm lucky I will find one maybe two bolts. I have had better luck cleaning the original bolt and taking it to the platers. So start looking now for a good bolt supplier. Good luck on your restoration. Oh, and make a rotisserie. You will be glad you did.

I got it out and blew through it. It seemed pretty clean to me. No obstructions of any kind. I don't know what it is. Does anyone else's leak?

I believe you will have to get an estimate for your repairs at a body shop. Which will probably be only to replace and paint your fender. Now you can just take the check and do it yourself. Pick up a fender at a junk yard and do the rest yourself. Unfortunately I don't think that check is going to provide you with much. If you get lucky you could find a fender that already matches your current paint color.

If your talking about a 1/4 inch (3mm) "tube". It's not really a tube. It's a U shaped rod. They are placed between the cylinders. They are either for alignment or cooling I don't really know. Your block is fine.:classic:

Behind which plug are you talking?

I agree:classic:

I'm getting ready to work on my diff and as I was looking at it I remembered that i've always had a problem with the fluids coming out of the vent. This is my second diff and i've always made certain to not overfill. Back when my car was running I would wash the diff every now and then with a high pressure hose to get the oil/crud off. Then after a couple of months it would be there again. I noticed on my Chevy truck there is a two foot hose attached to the diff that goes up with the vent cap at the end of the hose. Now I'm wondering do I just have a case of bad luck when it comes to my diff's leaking or is this a common problem? And what do you guys think about putting a piece of hose to the top of the diff?

While you have the head off inspect the cylinder walls. Look for scratches that could indicate a broken ring. Also unless you plan on removing the front engine cover make sure you properly secure the timing chain tensioner. Good luck.

I agree with you Stephen, If we can help then help I will. Silent, all radiators will eventually build up with crud. Even a well maintained engine if the cooling system isn't flushed yearly. It's all part of preventative maintanace. Now if you want to keep the original radiator then have it boiled out and rodded. This is where they take the radiator apart boil it to loosten up all the crud then they will run a metal rod through the passages to clear it. Alot of work but sometimes cheaper than a new one. Now I don't know about the 280zx having problems with overheating but if that is the case then I would suggest getting a larger capacity radiatior. This is usually refered to as "rows" 3 row vs. a 4 row the 4 row would be better. Now if you could get a 4 row radiator for your car I would think you would have any overheating issues solved. That is of coarse depending on the condition of the rest of the cooling system. Try Motorsports Auto they are in southern california and could get you a new radiator.

You've got my vote on that too.

Kats, your attention to detail is quite overwhelming. I'd love the opportunity to see your car some day. Good job!

You guys always have the cool stuff.:classic:

At 5.90 hr you should start with a good tune-up. Everything else would be some serious $. Headers 150 (ceramic coated? add 150) Exhaust 150 Cam 500 Ignition 100+ And these are just estimates, personally the L28 makes pretty good HP. Spend your money on fixing her up. Suspension, interior paint etc.. then when you get that pay raise you can start saving for some extra ponies. :classic:

Not sure, most places have some kind of minimum charge for the hour. But you figure after an hour of bending and stuff you will have a pretty nice fitting tube.

That Aluminized tubing is very common for exhaust systems. Go to any muffler shop and they should be able to bend you a custom tube.