Vocational School Selects Datsun Roadster for Restoration-help!

[IH8-V8]

Hello Folks.

I actually teach carpentry at a vocational school in Rochester, NY- but my passion has always been 4 cyl turbos.

Recently, the auto tech teacher and I started a "Recreational Vehicle Club" to expose students to odd and fun vehicles.

I used to race Sentras with SR20DET's, and always wanted a Datsun in the arsenal. The week we started the club, my friend from Grass Valley, CA sent me a link to a 67 1600 for sale in Sacramento. The gentleman (I'll post his name in the future with his permission because without him our project wouldn't exist) anyway- we'll call him "Datsun Dave" was introduced to restoration by an auto teacher many years ago. Datsun Dave received many offers, but chose to sell the car to us because of our plan to work with students. Datsun Dave went above and beyond to get the car ready for shipment, and the vehicle arrived in Rochester NY in early October.

We have a space ready, and we'll be starting the restoration when the 2017-18 school year begins in September.

We have a complete black top Sr20det (came from a clip, and I literally grabbed everything), and plenty of man power. The vision is to do a resto-mod.

We are very weak when in comes to body work, and hope to gain knowledge and parts from this site.

When I was building turbo Sentras in the early 90's, there is no way our cars would have been built without the knowledge located on the forums.

Also, forums force the students to really dig, read, evaluate the good, discard the bad, and ultimately problem solve.

I'll start by heading to the "Stickys" to figure out how to post pictures- wish me luck.

I hope y'all will enjoy the build as we slowly make progress. Thank you for existing.



Scott-

[Toptech360]

Cool!
Sounds like a fun opportunity, looking forward to seeing the car and students progress.

[fj20spl311]

Sounds great!

Don't for get to post questions and .....
I am sure lots of us are will to help.

[IH8-V8]

Morning! I spent a little time trying to figure out how to post pictures, but I'm not finding the solution. (Scary, how can you do a full restoration if you can figure out how to post pictures, right?)

Is there a sticky or link that can help me figure it out.

My goal is to have the students build a site for the car (or perhaps manage posts for the build on this site?) - shockingly, these teenage kids weren't aware of automotive forums.... They have so much to learn... (me too)

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[amazgjoe]

This is very awesome! Looks like Edison to me and am thrilled to have you take on a roadster project!
I know that there are other roadster owners in the Rochester area who would be happy to help.
Let me know if you would like me to drive my 67 1600 there this summer for a meet and greet?
Joe B.

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[IH8-V8]

Joe!

Thank you for writing! Are you an Edison grad?

This is exactly the type of interaction I / we were hoping for. I've seen a few datsuns at the glen, but not since acquiring this project.

Once we get more organized, I'd love to have you out. We host a wrench day for some MG gentlemen, and perhaps we can do the same with the upstate Datsun community..

Ultimately, we'd like to be able to use the Datsun for promotional purposes to generate interest in the programs at Edison.

Please feel free to pm me your contact information, or anyone can reach me here:

Scott.moore@rcsdk12.org

[Gregs672000]

Scribed!

[Toptech360]

Wow can't beleive they dont know what forums are. I guess if its not facebook etal it doesn't exist? Lol.

My best advice to using forums: be polite, be humble, dont hesitate to ask questions, and use proper grammer and mechanics to the best of your ability. It goes a long way in how people perceive you.

Remember there is always more than one way to do something. So even if you know how to set points, adjust dwell, tune a carburetor, polish a mirror, or modify a brake system, take a second to listen to what the person offering advice has to say. You may disagree, or you may learn somthing new about a subject you are already familiar with. Just be passionate and keep old cars alive! Don't let technology trick you into thinking cars are an appliance and the safer the better.

Just my 2 cents. Looking forward to your progress!

[jrusso07]

Hi Scott,

Joe B. (Amazingjoe) told me about your project yesterday. I am in Rochester and would be happy to lend a hand if needed.

It would be great to have a meet and greet or other social event to kick off your project.

[notoptoy]

What a great project, I am pretty sure you'll find the members of this forum are all in for help in general, but I get a little more excitement out of the fact that it can be a teaching experience. Please be sure to post progress, needs and questions, you'll find that you may get a lot more than you might have expected!

[IH8-V8]

I'm meeting with the head tech (Bob) next week to discuss the meet and greet logistics. He'll be interested I'm sure, just a matter of coordinating schedules. I'm very grateful for the folks in rochester who have reached out- thank you! I'll definitely be in touch.

Also, So I can train my students to use this forum effectively / properly, can y'all point me in the correct direction? What category what I post a thread like thisk

A. I haven't been able to find much information about rear end swaps and rear end suspension for the roadster. What is the best rear end for this set up? The goal is 280-300 wheel hp from the DET- and I'd like to learn more about this area. Where should I look on the forum, or post this style question?

Thanks again- the stickys, links, pictures etc are amazing here. Also feels more professional than some other forums I've joined.

I'll post more pictures of the car, space, etc soon. Thank you folks!

[spriso]

Scott,

Congrats on the project-- looks like the perfect base car to start with!

Spriso Motorsports will be happy to provide some technical assistance and some discounted parts to help with your project-- send me a PM with your needs and we will get something put together for you.

As for rear ends, we have had great success with the Mazda RX-7 axle conversion and have not killed one yet-- here is a write up we did a few years ago:

http://www.311s.org/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=9547

Good luck-- let us know how we can help!

Michael

[jrusso07]

There is another roadste owner In Rochester that has a SR20 with a RX7 rear end. He's not on the forum but I am sure he would like to s show his car to the class.

[IH8-V8]

Joe, I'm teaching summer school this year, perhaps we can all meet at the facility, check out the car and space, then do lunch? I could use any and all advice. My experience is primarily just with the sr20- I have a 75 Olds 98, but I've never done a project like this. (Those who can, do..... Those who can't, teach

Mike- it was an early conversation with you that really sent this project into motion. Without your products, and the fact you actually called my phone when I emailed, I don't think we would have selected this chassis. I'll definitely call when I get my summer school paycheck

This is amazing!

I'm off to read about rear ends....(RX-7's

[carlkaty]

My car is one of the 4 pictured in the post that Joe posted. I talked with joe (amazing) and Joe (russo) about a meet and greet. I would love to be included. Being retired, most any time is good for me. Also, the vintage weekend is one of the best automotive weekends at the glen. A strong Datsun showing along with beautiful race cars both on the closed streets of Watkins Glen (Friday) and all weekend at the track. Hope we can get together.
Carl