Undercoating

I've been super busy lately with work so I haven't made much progress on the build.

I did however manage to spend 5+ hours this past Monday (Presidents Day) stripping under coating and I'm still only half done.

Super shitty cell phone pic of destruction!

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I have been softening it up by slathering it with chemical stripper and letting it sit.

It comes off fairly easy after ward but will make a complete mess of you.

I do not recommend doing it this way but I am extremely "winter lazy" and simply cannot bring myself to do any really hard work. I have however been wearing the proper protective gear so I don't acid burn my eyeballs.

So many options...

From DirtyS30

Tons of actual paint chips in here.
Lots of colors to research... Damn this is tough.

Color testing

I've been spending a lot of time lately considering my options for color.

Since it is relatively difficult to know what you like until you see it, I started spray bombing my car.

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This color is Rustoleum's high Performance Graphite Metallic wheel paint.

I used this same paint on the centers of my ZX wheels and I liked how it covered and looked.

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A touch too light for what I was looking for.

Looking to see if I can find anyone local that owns a Gen 5 Maxima in KV3 "Grey Lustre".

The shitty pics I have been able to find online look very promising.

Casablanca

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SSR Casablanca 8

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15x7.5 front, 15x8 rear.
Offset unknown.

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Tough Guy approves.

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LCAs

Now that my Lower Control Arms have been removed, it's time to clean them up and paint them.

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Blasted off the end bolts with an impact wrench.

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Removed the crappy rubber bushings. (to be replaced with Poly later)

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Wire brushed the crap out of them and picklex20'd.

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One of the guys in my local Z car club hit me with a tip about this paint.

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It is supposedly really durable and can be applied to almost anything.

Few coats down on both sides.

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I really dig the finish. Looks badass, and dries hard like a plastic almost.

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Sweet.

How To: 240z Spindle Pin Removal

I was finally able to remove my 240z rear suspension spindle pins.
Piece of cake if you have the right tools.

Here is how I did it for those of you that are unsure:

10 Steps to Victory!!!

1. Buy the Spindle pin Removal Tool from John (jtburf) at HybridZ.org. $50 shipped as of 2/1/2011.

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2. Apply the included Anti-seize copper lubricant to the threads of the rear facing end of the spindle pin.

Note: The rear facing side of the Lower Control arms are flat so you can only use the tool from this side.

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3. As you can see below, the all thread rod is threaded both inside and out.

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thread the rod onto the spindle pin.

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4. Lubricate the outer threads of the rod and slide the included pipe with pipe fitting over it. Make sure the included fitting is touching the LCA.

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5. Install the included washer and nut onto the rod as shown.

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6. Heat "the crap" out of the cast iron part that houses the spindle pin.

Note: This will cause the entire assembly to expand slightly loosening its grip on the spindle pin.

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7. Start slowly tightening the nut with the box end of a 28mm wrench. (I successfully used a 1-1/8" wrench since I couldn't find a metric wrench that size)

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8. It is extremely important to make sure the spindle pin is pulling through the assembly as you are tightening (see below). It has been reported that if you over-tighten the nut without breaking the pin free, you can strip the all thread from the inside out and you will be SOL.

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9. Once you are sure the pin is coming out, just keep cranking and cranking, being careful not to bend or strip anything.

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10. Victory!

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Once the spindle pin is out you may now get very excited and start telling your girlfriend all about how awesome you are. When it becomes clear that she simply does not appreciate just how awesome you are, proceed to step 11.

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11. Beer.

From DirtyS30

Time to start building a suspension system.

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Spindle Pin Tool

Thanks to John (jtburf) from hybridz.org for making this nasty looking reverse spindle press contraption.

Looks ultra bad ass.

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If you want to pick one up they are $50 shipped and the thread is HERE.
Also, a good percentage of the sales go right back into the HybridZ community through donations.

The thread says loaner program but I just bought mine.

Check it.

YAY!

10,000 hits!

I am so honored that there are so many of you from all over the world with nothing better to do! :)

Thanks dudes and dudettes!

And now.........




a photoshop hint.

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Pipe wrench style

Thanks for the suggestions on how to get that 51mm nut off.

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I found this wrench in the car when I first cleaned it out after buying it.


Add a little heat.

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Wrench fit like a champ.

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WAY better than buying a $60 51mm wrench.

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The strut looks clean and seems to be working pretty well.

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Still gonna throw it in the bushes.

BIG thanks to you guys who have been down this road hitting me with the tip.

Damn you Spindle pin!!!!

So this weekend I got started taking my rear suspension apart and of course I had to start with the springs.

Picked these up at Harbor Freight for under $10.

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Worked like a champ.

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With the spring pressure relieved I can unbolt the top hat.

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This purple substance appears to have once been some sort of bushing or bump stop.

Totally FUBARed.

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shortly after removing the spring assembly I realized that I don't have a wrench that is anywhere NEAR big enough for this.

I measured it out to 51mm!!!! WTF? Did all of you guys really go out and buy a $60 wrench for these bastards?

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Finally we meet....

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Pulled the little stopper thingy.

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And then stepped into ultra-fabrication mode.

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Check it.

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Coupler nut.

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LOL. Ridiculous spindle pin puller contraption!

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Handle.

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"This is totally gonna work!"

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HUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUURRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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haha ok ok maybe it wont.

So then I start thinking with my tools.

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The issue here was that I couldn't get it to stay straight.

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It kept pulling from an angle.



FOILED!

Looks like I'm getting the spindle pin puller tool from HybridZ.

Oh well.... :(