240ZBUILTBYME

Got the dashboard back from rare parts here in perth. Wow! What an amazing job they did on the dash, well the worth the cost. I’m stoked with the result. now I need to clean up and check the gauges and remaining components as well as have Martin run his eye over the dash loom.

Wow nice Find! are you going to sell the other car? Will be a brave man to take that project on!

Not a z vid I know but I thought it was a very interesting build and it would be really cool to see this type of build done to a S30 chassis! Just add lightness!

Not so sure about the quick detailer and microfiber not scratching the paint. Goes against everything I’ve ever been told or seen on detailing. rubbing dirt into the paint like that damages the paint. Anybody disagree?

During the Black Friday sales I decided it was time to fulfill the basic cliche modification of any car enthusiast. I purchased a cold air intake kit from Godzilla raceworks who make a lot of cool z & zx parts. I thought I’d support a small company making cool z parts instead of giving money to MSA who I loath. the stock intake of the zx is ridiculously over complicated. The air is drawn in from behind the LHS sugar scoop then needs to perform a series of turns before reaching the intake pipe, the stock system is also extremely heavy, probably a 1-2kg weight saving with the new intake. Well supporting the small company didn’t pay off to be honest. The intake pipe on their site photos looked nothing like the one they supplied. The weld on the pipe bracket was yuck… when I went to install it I quickly realized it was not going to meet up to the stock intake bolt in points as advertised on their website. circled is the stock intake mount point. I was pissed. It wasn’t a cheap kit to buy… and what’s with company’s supplying parts that don’t fit!!! I contemplated removing it and returning it but this would likely cost me the shipping costs of roughly $100 USD…. so I decided to make it fit with a custom bracket. I bought some aluminum RHS and used cardboard to create a template. Ended up like this. 1 extra hole was for the plastic clip that holds the wiring harness inside the top of the radiator support. Certainly not ideal but worked out well. I will pull the bracket off at some point and remove some excess material and maybe throw some paint on it. I did have to play with the position of the pipe to clear bonnet. But all fits nicely Performance wise this intake system 100% adds power and lets the engine rev more freely, particularly from 4000rpm to redline. I’d have loved to dyno it before and after just to see but ain’t nobody got time fo dat! 1-3000rpm there is no difference besides a throatier sound. so moral of the story, don’t buy the Godzilla raceworks intake kit because it doesn’t fit…..but do buy something similar, MSA does have a similar kit for a similar price.

I advised T3 that the bar would still not clear a stock rocker cover. I measured it would need an additional 6mm to clear, I used playdoh to check bonnet clearance which showed a 9-10mm clearance with the version 2 bar. they straight away fabbed up a new bar with an additional 7-8mm rise. I received it and fitted last week, glad to announce it fits perfectly now! Good clearance from the rocker cover now and no fouling on the bonnet! So going forward no zx owners will have these dramas. T3 gave me a $100usd credit for my troubles which is awesome! Took the car for a spirited hills run and I have to say this strut bar makes a big difference to the feedback the car gives, definite increase in the rigidity and confidence in the front end. I recommend!

Haha I think the gaudy is what makes them!

Ok homework done papa lurch. Had to do an engineering degree to understand lol One thing I couldn’t find an answer for was, what actually causes the hydrogen embrittlement during the zinc plating process? Is it a chemical reaction or the temperature of the bath that makes the metal susceptible to HE. And if the plating process does cause HE can most platers use temperature controls to expel the hydrogen and avoid the HE? im assuming that’s a service you have to specify and pay for if your plater is even capable of it. coz otherwise how do we replace our high tensile bolts for a Resto?

Was curious as I was planning to zinc plate my hubs too. I’ve seen it done on a few builds and it creates a nice contrast against all the black.

Are you zinc coating your front and rear wheel hubs?

Yes cables are correct

What’s your thoughts? Crap in the liner not allowing the wire to feed properly? Yes I have the gas less left over and thought I might as well use it up, I do have a bottle of argoshield now so maybe I should swap to gas and see what happens

Hey guys went to do some welding in my rotisserie and could not get my welder going properly. it’s a cigweld 135 cheapo from supercheap, it’s about 3 years old now. move done plenty of welding with it without any problems. It hasn’t been used for probably 8-10months. The wire is about the same age and is gas less. I used the exact same settings I’ve always used for welding 3mm thick tubing together. The machine seemed to be pulsing, would not give out a constant arc and would not get the parent metal hot enough to penetrate. It would melt the wire but barely penetrate. I use extension chords to get power to the shed. So I moved the welder to the house and tried direct into the power point, it seemed stronger than before but still not normal. - I checked and cleaned the earth clamp and cable - I checked the feeder tension and rollers. All normal - I made sure the metal I was welding on was clean - I checked the tip size was right for the wire - I checked the welder power wires and earth wires for damage - I played around with the setting a lot and the only time I could get a decent pool and weld was if I ran the voltage at 4 and wire speed at 5 (normal settings I use are voltage 3 and wire speed 7.5-8) it seems it’s not getting enough power. I’m not well versed on the mechanics of welders. But is it possible that it has some sort of voltage regulator that is not working properly? I’m basically trying to work out if there’s anything else I should try or if the welder is cactus and I need a new one. cheers Ryan

@C.A.R. I’m wondering if there is a particular product you use or anything as long as it’s 2k?

I’ve seen similar, majority of the z builds I’ve seen, particularly in the states have used powder coating Lurch posted this in my build thread last week “No high end restoration shops I know, use powdercoating anywhere on their restorations. Powder coating is not durable. And if you get a chip - which is easy with powder coating - it's bare metal underneath, and rust starts very quickly buy moving UNDER the powder coating. Next thing you know, a chuck of powder coating comes off to expose a rusted suspension member underneath. 2k is far harder and more durable, and wont be as easily chipped.”

Don’t let @C.A.R. Know you’re going to powder coat your suspension parts. He won’t speak to you ever again…

Nice one Locky! Just went back through the whole thread, some impressive work as always. couple of random questions. I noticed you received the shell back from the blasters in raw metal, do they coat it in something to protect the bare metal? Or do you get straight onto getting epoxy on right away? I assume you don’t let them blast things like the roof or rear quarters and strip them by hand? also with your rotisserie, what’s the rough height measurement from the front bumper mounts to pivot point and rear bumper mounts to the pivot point? I’ve read roughly 3 inches in the front and 5 inches in the rear is about balanced on a rotisserie for s30s.

Interesting. This guys doing some seriously valuable Aussie muscle cars here in perth. Well there goes that plan…. I was quite excited about getting this crossed off the list but looks like it’s back to the drawing board. I don’t want Lurch giving me the cold shoulder for eternity….

I’ve read arguments that if powder coat chips it’s more difficult to repair which is a question I posed to the restoration shop guy and he said he just touches up with paint. majority of the builds I’ve gone through have used powder coating which is a reason I decided to go with it. Now the majority are not always correct. But I’m interested to hear all opinions and reasons why I shouldn’t use powder coat!

Well this is an unexpected reaction indeed… I feel like the powder coat vs paint on suspension parts is in the same category of age old arguments such as epoxy vs etch primer…. Are you able to eloborate on the reason Lachy? I spoke to a high end car restoration shop here in perth and he used powder coat due to efficiency and cost. He stated the cost for him to paint would be 2-3 times and be the same results

@JDM-TOY thanks mate, appreciate it, I’ve been reading that the grief doesn’t ever go away, it’s there to stay, it just becomes easier to carry with each day. Time will tell!

So finally got back to the shed after a long hiatus. It’s very hot here in WA, 40’s as far as the eye can see…. And it’s about 20 degrees hotter in the shed so I have started coming early in the morning and leaving by midday. managed to cut all the 65mm tubing for the rear rotisserie and drill holes in preparation for castors and captive nuts to be welded. so all left to do next time is weld everything together. I still have to work out tying in the rear strut towers but will need to purchase some plate to make up the mounts. shot of how I will mount to the rear bumper mounts also put together a first run of things to bring to the powder coaters, front subframe and front/rear hub/strut housings are missing from the photo but they will go too. pulled all the bushings and finished little bits of disassembly those with a keen eye will notice I sourced a curved moustache bar and transverse link for the later diff position wasn’t sure if there was anything that shouldn’t be powder coated? And is there places that powder coat should not go? I know threads are a no no but wasn’t sure about inside of bushing holes

Thanks Lachy, lol yep bodywork is priority, hoping to pull my finger out of my arse and get it blasted this year…

@gav240zdid you ever end up fixing those dents? I have the same problem with mine, huge dents but perfect internals I have a stud welder and slide hammer kit and was thinking of giving that a go but as you were I am worried about welding activities on a fuel tank… also does anyone know what metal the tanks are actually made of? I can’t find anything on it Mines been empty and dry for 3 years so I’m not overly worried about explosion. I was also thinking of trying to make up a bracket I can bolt on with the drain plug and using the slide hammer to try and pull the majority of the dent out. or trying those suction dent pullers New fuel tanks are around 1000 AUD shipped from s30 world so there’s always that option