1978 Datsun 280Z

[camerashy]

Okay. Electrolytic rust removal.

Take some carbon anodes to sacrifice..



Setup tank with a charger, my charger was too smart to detect a load, so I had to stick the battery in (in parallel) to 'trick' the charger to kick on.



I couldn't find any Arm and Hammer Washing Soda that the internet said to use, so it turns out that dishwasher powder has the same required ingredient - sodium carbonate. Sparkle sparkle.





Note the active ingredient.



Attach the positive to the carbon, the negative to the part to be de-rusted.





Bingo. And then for the disc...



It was pretty rusty before...I'll do you guys some proper before and after at some point. Now that was really fun, but now for some actual progress. With the old air deflector that I cut off the back (it sat above the iron bumper to try and deflect exhaust fumes, a unique and ugly feature to the 280z) I made some fill-in pieces for some holes that needed filling.

Aerial Hole



Rear running lights





All ready to weld in. Next for the rear lights, cutting the rear panel to go from 280z to 240z lights





And then what I've been doing much of lately, disassembling the entire rear end awaiting shiny aluminium.



So the diff is dropped, as well as moustache bar, brace and the control arms too. Not a huge amount of cleaning up to do under here



But this guy does need some R&R



Now army of RR, do I leave the (almost entirely) intact undercoating intact and touch up where it's come away, or do I strip the lot and do it all new?

[darrenh]

just did a catchup of the whole thread, epic journey, i cant believe the efforts they went to "repair" the 260, how could that have been economical even to bodge it that badly ?

neat idea with the carbon rods! washing soda is available in most supermarkets here (and very cheap) i got mine in asda it was in the same area as clothes washing products. the only tricky bit is that the de-rusting works on line of site, the ions only travel in straight lines so you have to daisy chain anodes or rotate the item.

[TurboDieselWeasel]

I've used an old bicycle basket as anode in the tank, two pieces of wood strpped with cable ties to prevent contact. Worked well.

Good to see this getting worked on, I'm following with great interest. And that's a weird but awesome working place you got there. Oil sands... we don't have anything like this over here, would love to visit such a place for it's strangeness.

[camerashy]

Jun 21, 2012 10:48:07 GMT darrenh said:

just did a catchup of the whole thread, epic journey, I cant believe the efforts they went to "repair" the 260, how could that have been economical even to bodge it that badly ?

neat idea with the carbon rods! washing soda is available in most supermarkets here (and very cheap) I got mine in asda it was in the same area as clothes washing products. the only tricky bit is that the de-rusting works on line of site, the ions only travel in straight lines so you have to daisy chain anodes or rotate the item.

It's amusing to think what gets bodged over and hidden, I'm sure rob will come good in making that shell right eventually, but in my circumstances it made little sense to. I found I didn't have any issues with 'line of sight' I just ran it at a steady 6A, no need to move the part to be cleaned around, it does clean when it the anode can't 'see' the rust, just not as quickly I guess.

Jan - The reason I went with carbon anodes was after reading this - "One major advantage of using carbon (graphite) material for the anode is that no iron is deposited on the part. Instead, the part gets a loose 'plating' of carbon, which is pretty easily washed and brushed off, and does not promote subsequent re-rusting. Additionally, the carbon anode does not decompose into any hazardous compounds in solution, unlike many metals such as stainless steels. When using a mild steel anode like concrete re-bar, the red Fe2O3 (ferric oxide) surface rust is converted to a layer of black Fe3O4 (magnetite). The magnetite is a porous iron 'plating' on the casting which then promotes re-rerusting after rinsing, and must be removed with a wire brush. "

For full instructions these were the ones I followed : Click

After trying out the carbon anodes, I won't be using anything else, there is less scum, less mess and the black carbon plating the part gets means there isn't the crazed urgency to dry the part after having it in the tank.

The moustache bar arrived from T3.



First in a series of parts ordered from techno toy. I'm still working out how best to go about the 'RT' or 'Ron Tyler' diff mount that is suggested by many on HybridZ, it removes a lot of the slop in putting the torque down and gets rid of the infamous 'clunk' of a soggy front diff mount.

[camerashy]

Given there was some life shown on this thread have a teaser of things to come, after-all, you lot did vote for stripped out racer.

DOM-tubed TC rods





Fibreglass inspection hatches that weigh almost nothing.





My headlights were pants (original sealed beam units( so after a bit of research finding the best bang for the buck, I picked up some new 'Autopal' H4's on ebay.







And of course that seat. I have since worked out, that putting ceramic 'seat heaters' in this (these once the other seat is paid for) is possible, and relatively cheap which makes the need for a large heater unit in the car not so urgent and in keeping with 'add lightness' philosophy. I do however need to do a bit more Google-Fu and work out the probability of them burning out/needing replacing/lifetime as well as if they're going to melt my seat. Research, research, research (I hope it pays off in the end!)













It really is incredible considering it's all hand-built by Stefan at GTS Classics, serious talent. I am also thinking of going back to my original basket weave plan for parts of the interior, sucking it up and buying/begging/stealing/borrowing a sewing machine. Decisions, decisions. Annoying how Mystery Machine is always right, his comment about 'do it yourself or you won't be happy with it' has nagged and nagged.

[TurboDieselWeasel]

I'm with you on that. But - I'd still like to see such a devastatet landscape with my own eyes - to get an impression that settles. Seeing it on pictures or TV makes it too easy to switch off and forgett.

Back on topic... When will you sent the seat my way? ;D I've drooled lots over Stefan's seats, but I'm too skint to afford them. And then there's that Motolita ML6 Competition Highback lurking in my brain...

And the carbon rods- yeah, I guess that makes sense then

[infamous]

This thread is full of so much win!!!
Looking forward to more updates

[camerashy]

I'm behind in updates in terms of what I've actually done..but here goes.

The dirty R200 diff came out, separated off the remaining half shaft and had a butchers.



No oil leaks around the gasket, but I need to get the studs out of the cover to fit the new mustache mount (I tried...and cracked a vice in half in the process of trying...so I now am trying to hunt down a spare ideally finned 300ZX turbo diff cover). Cleaned it up a bit before paint



Drained the differential oil



It wasn't awful, no giant metal chunks but likely never changed in the life of the car.





Checked ratio on the ring wheel - it's a 39:11 which is a 3.545:1 input to output ratio, not the fastest but good for highway driving. Also checked the backlash while I was at it, which was bang on factory tolerance, so I'm leaving the diff alone (for now at least), just a change of oil, new gasket and cover (when I track it down). Then I got the primer out, and the crackle finish black after de-rusting parts in the tank



Next up, cracked dashboard out. On a 240z it's about 4 bolts, on a 280z...it's 10 and ofcourse I forgot I had to disconnect the tachometer. Out it came leaving me this



Next up for removal was the AC unit. First the panel.



Then the unit



The AC assembly had to have weighed 60lbs, all the gubbins, evaporator etc, even more. The rest of the day was spent cleaning up the remnants of the AC.

[Alpina99]

Still an excellent thread,
Sorry, potentially stiupid question about the electrolytic rust removal,
The neg. goes to the item being cleaned / derusted & the positive to the carbon electrode but what happens to the electrode then ??
Is it just "secured" submerged so it cannot make physical contact with the neg / item ??
Thanks,

[camerashy]

The electrode is eaten up and eventually dissolves. I get through about half an electrode per part. the ones I bought weren't ideal, McMaster Carr do sell huge ones (1.8cm diameter) but they won't ship to Canada

I just have the electrode hovering in the water held from the crocodile clip, all of it just hangs off some pipe cleaners. Don't let the positive (electrode) croc clip touch the water, or it'll get eaten up like the electrode. I usually leave like 2inches between part and electrode.

[darrenh]

do you step the current down at all? my charger tends to give off loads of froth, which looks impressive but i've read can blast off rust instead of remove it, and its also hydrogen which is flammable

[camerashy]

Nope. I just run it at the 6A setting from the charger with the battery in parallel. So the clips going to the parts come from the battery. Every now and then the charger will indicate the battery is charged, so I disconnect the charger and let the electrolysis run from the battery only before reconnecting a couple of hours later. The process does produce hydrogen yes...but then I go this with the garage do open and don't smoke...so..

[datman]

good work.

[Alpina99]

Jul 1, 2012 16:38:56 GMT camerashy said:

The electrode is eaten up and eventually dissolves. I get through about half an electrode per part. the ones I bought weren't ideal, McMaster Carr do sell huge ones (1.8cm diameter) but they won't ship to Canada

I just have the electrode hovering in the water held from the crocodile clip, all of it just hangs off some pipe cleaners. Don't let the positive (electrode) croc clip touch the water, or it'll get eaten up like the electrode. I usually leave like 2inches between part and electrode.

Thanks,

I'll have a go,

:-)

[Vilppi]

Now army of RR, do I leave the (almost entirely) intact undercoating intact and touch up where it's come away, or do I strip the lot and do it all new?

I think I'd take away all. At least from seam's.

I just start repair sill's from my grandfather's Micra (-99).
I was cleaning undercoating from the sill seam, and I found more rust than expected. And I follow that rust all the way on to floor seam, Undercoating look good and intact before I take it away. After all I make couple holes on to the floor too.

And some similar thing's I found from my project (BMW E12) too.

I know that take time and may be unnecessary...

BTW: Nice job so far! This is one of the thread's what I following. And old Z-car is in my want list. All so I think I maybe try that electrolytic rust removing some time too.

[camerashy]

I have a fondness for a certain beverage (can you get this in the United Kingdom yet?) Anyway, it's more of a love affair. I like rum.



After a few glasses of this, in combination with a couple of glasses of our home-brewed mead.



I made a wee late night purchase 'mistake', it should be known to all Japanese car owners that browsing the RHDJapan website, late at night, with bleary eyes, is FISCALLY IRRESPONSIBLE!








FUJITSUBO!

Photos borrowed for the purpose of showing off just how nice a piece it is. Shipping is 4-7 days, $350 off the list price and full $600 cheaper than buying it in Canada, how could I not!

If this is going to be a true vintage racer GT beast of a machine, one may as well go balls deep, guns slinging with a fistful of dollars to and take it to the man! My welding certainly isn't up to par to make a full stainless header and manifold, and there aren't any up-to scratch garages in my local area capable of making something so beautiful, mandrelled, TIG-welded and well fitting as this without having the shell in the garage!

Drinking = Winning?!?

[camerashy]

For general knowledge, this particular system is apparently based on the Datsun 432 twin-pipe exhaust system (possibly the 432-R?)

Perhaps Alan T can jump in here and give me a history lesson, while I have read the forums extensively, I certainly can't keep up with the sheer quantity of Z-history! All the same, I'm hoping on the L28, that the exhaust note should be something fantastic!

I also own a Motorsport Auto Twice Pipes system, but it's heavy, the fit is to be poor at best so it's going to be sold on. Alan, do you have any knowledge of the S30 chassis NOT having the captive nuts welded in for the Rally Rollbar? Mine doesn't have them, but I was under the impression they ALL had them....?

[Mystery Machine]

Right, I'm sending you some more of that booze....and a shopping list ;D

Excellent purchasing skills, the only downside to this awesome bit of kit....


.....this:


Is too nice to be hidden under a car. It should be hung on a wall in a prominent position. At least the sound will be compensation enough for having to hide it away.

[Colonelk]

Theres some sexy pieces of kit going into this! I too have thought about heated buckets instead of a heater.... makes sense to me!

[markbognor]

Nice Pipe!