KatoKid

Hi guys. Im going to replace all the hard brake pipe lines on my project. There seems to be lots of different brands and types at very dfifferent prices available, can anyone make a recommendation on a tool that works well but is reasonably priced? Thanks. David

Happy days Jamo! Ive done a few other conversions and in my experience clutch operation is a real pain and often the biggest disappointment of many conversions. Often you have to go up a size or two in master cylinder but this results in an overly heavy pedal, especially if people go for a strong clutch at the same time. Pedal ratio, the available pedal stroke and how that compares with the pedal stroke of the skyline and the actual stroke delivered to the master cylinder (not the pedal) needs to be checked as this is where ratio impacts.

Pictures required

Black Pete. Finish on the alloy bits looks familiar!!!

^^^ What he said!

There is?.....typing "clear anodizing" into google......

Probably not G man, Ive seen clear discolour over time so not keen to go there. Dont know Simon. Engine bay is going to be strictly satin black and natural aluminium, no other colours so anodizing other than black isnt an option. May have a sprinkle of Carbon Fibre on the induction side.....hint, hint.

Good to hear from you again Tony! Good luck with the new one!

Pretty sure they would be able to, there was a Stromberg style carb on the bench when I picked up my stuff and it looked brilliant.

Youre right Pete, most amazing finish Ive ever seen. Looks like a ceramic coating buts its just aluminium.

Now that the bottom end is back together I could refit the windage tray that gave me a heart attack when I first started the engine on the test stand. This tray is from the 3 litre engine and the longer stroke on the 3.2 litre engine means there isn't sufficient clearance. The ARP bolt heads also stand a bit taller than the factory rod bolts so the rods 2, 3 and 4 were hitting the windows in the windage tray much more than previously. Some judicious filing and checking had it fixed and turning over with no other clearance issues.

Have to give this guy a plug..... Woodys Engine Services Greg an Louise Wood. (03) 9597 0387 Unit 12/ 20 George street Sandringham 3191 hydrolblast@iinet.net.au I had been looking at alternatives for cleaning/restoring the cast aluminium sump and accessory brackets on my M3 engine as they were badly corroded from the salted roads in the UK. Research says that hydroblasting is the way to go to get an as new finish. I was going to go to a guy in Pakenham http://www.southernhydrablasting.com.au/ but Peter Mc recommended Woodys. Im blown away by the quailty of the finish, it actually looks better than new, nearly fake its that good. Hyrdroblasting is like glass bead blasting but using water rather than air. Cost is $1.00 per minute, both items ended up costing $150. Not cheap but I think well worth it for something that looked terrible before. On the right is my old S50B32 sump for comparison.....the clean one was actually even worse beforehand. The oil filter housing/accessory bracket was just as bad.

Have to give this guy a plug..... Woodys Engine Services Greg an Louise Wood. (03) 9597 0387 Unit 12/ 20 George street Sandringham 3191 hydrolblast@iinet.net.au I had been looking at alternatives for cleaning/restoring the cast aluminium sump and accessory brackets on my M3 engine as they were badly corroded from the salted roads in the UK. Research says that hydroblasting is the way to go to get an as new finish. I was going to go to a guy in Pakenham http://www.southernhydrablasting.com.au/ but Peter Mc recommended Woodys. Im blown away by the quailty of the finish, it actually looks better than new, nearly fake its that good. Hyrdroblasting is like glass bead blasting but using water rather than air. Cost is $1.00 per minute, both items ended up costing $150. Not cheap but I think well worth it for something that looked terrible before. On the right is my old S50B32 sump for comparison.....the clean one was actually even worse beforehand. The oil filter housing/accessory bracket was just as bad.

Lastly, the Cortina: 3/4 chassis, ladder bar rear and tubs. 461 LS7 spec Big Block Chev, 12.5:1 comp, solid cam, 850 Holley on another Victor Jnr. Powerglide with 2800 stall converter and 4.88 9". Ran in the heads up Pro Gas class which was had a 9.80 breakout. Sold this to Geoff Patton who owned Superplus speed shop in Dandenong. Geoff was good mates with Peter Ridgeway who ran a 71 Chevelle in AMS, he bought the big block out of the Chevelle, put a small gas kit on it and the car ran 7.71 and held the SS/AA record for a few years. Top photo was when I owned the car, bottom photo when "Mullet" as Geoff Patton was called with the ex Ridgeway engine on gas. Here endeth my trip down memory lane!

The Torana that used the 327 out of the written off Monaro: Angle plug fuelie heads, 12:1 comp, GM Pink cam, Victor Junior, 750 Holley, toploader with vertical gate, 9" with 4.11's. This was a legally registered and engineered "road car".....well not really, it was an animal and nearly dangerous to drive with stock suspension and brakes. Great fun but big time cop bait. Ran 12's on crap street tyres and when I sold it the new owner bolted on a small set of slicks and it ran 11:20's with no other mods. Not fast by today's standards but back in 1981 it was quick enough.

Thanks all for the advice. Its hard to convey how I feel about this car. I think it would be fair to say that everyone has a mental picture of what they want out of a project and how they expect it will drive. Needless to say this is a very personal thing, not everyone wants or expects the same things. I'm all for mad as race cars but I'm also mindful of what makes a good road car. Ive had both so I think I know what I want from this one. Its not a race car, the M3 engine makes 320 hp but is very useable so it will get along fine. Yes, I agree that Z's do flex, as do all road cars, as long as its not stupidly unpredictable I'm happy for it to be a stock chassied and I will live with the short comings compared to a race car. I will do some motorkana's, maybe hill climbs and even track days but first and foremost its a road car to be driven on sunny Sundays. I like the challenge of doing something that no one else has and yet past experience has led me to think more about the value of the finished product. I still kick myself for slamming my stock (apart from wheels and in brilliant condition) silver mink HK 327 Monaro into a tree when I was 19 years old. What would it be worth now.....a lot more than the $1990 I paid for it. As I said, I'm not in this for the money but I'm not going to modify the car to the extent that it erodes the value either, hence my each way bet. This topic has inspired me to pull out some old photos that I haven't looked at for many years and may give you some insight into why Im doing what Im doing. The Monaro:

So bigger housing next? What's your final expectation for hp?

Sounds like youre talking from experience Scoota!

More hijacking....sorry Jon. Maybe we should ask if there is enough interest for a group buy/production run?

Good call G man....may do that.

Farking!

I hear you Craig but I need to get this engineered first and foremost and a cage will draw too much of the wrong kind of attention. I know cages are beneficial but the regulators don't see it that way! I'm also concious that the car is probably worth more as an unmodified Z so everything I'm doing is bolt in and can be reversed, that's the main reason for going with the original colour. Ive got the matching engine and will one day rebuild this and the rest of the standard drive train so that when I do sell it I have choices depending on what the market value is at the time.

Welcome mate. Un naturally aspirated L27 is good bang for bucks. Keep at it.

I know what you mean Craig and sometimes (read often) I question what I'm doing! The reality is that cars like Mustang's, Camaro's and GT Falcon's are not that unique now, especially the yank stuff. Not saying I don't like them, I do actually but they still drive like the nearly 50 year old cars that they are unless you spend big bucks on completely redesigned aftermarket suspension..... http://www.heidts.com/6769_camaro_rear_independent_suspension.html The Z has an OK chassis and suspension to start with, give it some more power, and improve the steering and brakes and you have a car that will drive really well and has some classic appeal. It may not be worth what the others are but I'm not in this for the money.

Colour coding is how they size bearings from the factory, they have different size bearings available in small increments and paint these codes on the cheeks of the big end journals after they have been measured so as they come down the production line the assembler just grabs the correct colour bearing rather than having to measure and check clearances. Its just a way of getting ideal clearances by sizing the bearings to a preground crank journal size. In an ideal world and as PMC would do it they grind the crank to provide the required clearance for the measured big end bearing. Same thing but doing it the opposite way. The panel shop has filled the spot welds that were drilled out to remove the panels and then they re spot weld so it looks factory.