Z Build Recap pt.2

I chemically stripped the entire car down to its bare ass and started fixing the little things. Broken seat mounts etc...

Picked up a set of SSR Casablanca 8s on Club4AG <3 .="." p="p">

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Sealed the undercarriage with ZeroRust.

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Refinished the suspension and steering parts.

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Sealed the floor pans inside.

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Fabbed up a custom set of Ground control coilovers.

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Some body work.

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MMM Paint stripper....

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And then she was ready for paint..... :(

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Primer went down smooth enough.

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Color looked great!!!!

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Now that I know what Im looking for I can see the errors..

And lets just pretend that clear coat thing never happened...

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Then I rebuilt an L28 motor with a high compression N47 head.

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Also picked up a new gas tank that has been modded for better gas flow with -8AN fittings.

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Then I simply slapped the suspension in and tossed the wheels on!

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To be continued.....

Z Build Recap pt.1

At long last I have my 1973 Datsun 240z painted and ready for reassembly. I have been looking forward to this day for years.

When I first bought the car (for those of you who don't remember) I was the happiest I have ever been. I had finally purchased my dream car.

Emily and I had taken the Redline to Quincy to see the car. The guy came and picked us up from the train station in a pair of spandex shorts. I have done my fair share of shady Craigslist deals but I had all my cards on the table with this one. With no way home and about $4000 in my pocket this car was coming with me.

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Emily and I took these pictures before I had even left the previous owner's garage.

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I will never forget the ride back to Arlington from Quincy. 

It was pitch black out and starting to rain. Even a perfect 240z has laughable wipers, and this Z was far from perfect. I remember laughing out loud while the wipers smeared an opaque white film of grease and water across the windshield in moving traffic. To make matters even more exciting my directional signals weren't working and I am quite sure we resorted to hanging our arms out the window to signal as if we were on a bicycle.

Somehow we managed to get Emily's dying IPhone GPS to guide us north to 93, all the while being "gas chambered" with fumes from the carbs and exhaust. I will never forget the feeling when I first hammered on the gas to get out in front of a dozen sets of headlights reeling up behind us on the highway. Bouncing in my seat to try and make the car go faster. I can't imagine what was going through Emily's head.

High on adrenaline and gas fumes we roll into the driveway knowing full well that it was the sketchiest ride we have ever taken. But there I was. After years of searching and browsing Craigslist out west, down south, and the mid west for a clean rust free chassis to ship up here, I had found my holy grail only a stones throw from Boston.

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Driving around in the Z that summer was the greatest. Every where we went people would be yelling out of their windows about how they used to have one just like it, or their father had one when they were growing up. 

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We could feel their nostalgia.

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At the end of the summer we started the process of buying a house. Two car garage was my only requirement. I couldn't wait to tear into this car.

Not that the lack of a garage would ever stop me. :)

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But as luck would have it, we went under contract on New Years day that following summer we moved in.

We all had a home now.

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It wasn't long before the teardown had begun.

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I went all out.

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To be continued...

Finally home

Finally have my car back and Ill be god damned if it wasn't worth the wait.

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