Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

So it has been a few weeks since the purchase and just haven't made enough time for this post but figured I should get something up even if it isn't much just to get the thread going . Here goes...

Vehicle: 1967.5 1600
Color: Black (appears previous was red and then maybe before that was sky blue???) - nutshell: needs a new paintjob
Purchased on 04/02/18 in Oakland, CA then drove it down south to Orange County, CA
Purchased from: Duncan aka acuboy
Previous owner before Duncan: Mike Young

I just purchased a hardtop for it the other day and it fits pretty well but I will need new weather stripping and quarter windows.

In putting it on a lift a few issues have been noticed along with other parts that need to be addressed and fixed (exhaust, gaskets, bearings, etc.)

Parts need/want (off the top of my head):
- Tachometer
- Driver side door lock
- Weather stripping (for now I am mostly concerned with the hard top)
- Clutch
- Brakes
- Oil guage needle (maybe not possible so i guess a new temp/oil gauge)
- Exhaust

Ok enough with the words and now with basic pictures of what I have taken so far (I will take more pictures and update as I continue with the restoration):

Are you still bringing it to Solvang?

2mAn wrote: Tue Apr 24, 2018 3:48 pm Are you still bringing it to Solvang?

I unfortunately no longer will be able to go to Solvang this year. Family emergency. I was very much looking forward to it but I will have to wait till next year.

That's awesome congrats.

Once everyone is back from Solvang we will need to put together a Fun run for the southern California members (and anyone else who wants to join)

Nice starting project.....Best of luck

Time to remove those broken quarter windows. Safety first!
Check it out, original dirt around 50 years old. I’ll be selling the dirt on EBay soon. How much do you think it will go for? “OEM Datsun Roadster Dirt” hahaha yes I’m joking.
Now I just need to cut some new glass and change the seals.

spags1986 wrote: Tue Apr 24, 2018 5:37 pm That's awesome congrats.

Once everyone is back from Solvang we will need to put together a Fun run for the southern California members (and anyone else who wants to join)

Yeah that would be great especially since I missed the Solvang event this year ... let me know if a SoCal drive ever happens! Thanks!

That's a nice looking roadster! Hard to really see from pictures, but that paint looks to be in pretty good shape. If you were to repaint it though what color would you go with? It is surprising how much better a car will look after a nice wash/claybar/polish/wax. On cars this small, it could be done in a few hours and less than $100 if you don't have any of the stuff.

What are your plans for it as far as a restoration goes? Best of luck with it.

Cheers,
Wade

First quarter window cut. Decided to go with lexan material from home depot. I was also able to salvage the 2 outer metal frames but the 2 inner frames were not as successful. 1 inner frame completely crumbled apart during the cleaning process and the other MIGHT still work but since it doesn't look as "clean" as i would like, I may just replace that one too. I've also decided to stay away from the original rivets and go a different route. Maybe sleeve bolts. This way if I need to remove them in the future I won't have to drill again. I will also be cutting gaskets to make sure there is a better seal.

beebo wrote: Mon Apr 30, 2018 2:35 pm That's a nice looking roadster! Hard to really see from pictures, but that paint looks to be in pretty good shape. If you were to repaint it though what color would you go with? It is surprising how much better a car will look after a nice wash/claybar/polish/wax. On cars this small, it could be done in a few hours and less than $100 if you don't have any of the stuff.

What are your plans for it as far as a restoration goes? Best of luck with it.

Cheers,
Wade

Hey Wade! Thanks man much appreciated. Yeah I actually spent 6 hours detailing just the outside when I first purchased it (no joke... but I am very meticulous when I detail my cars haha).... I used to work at a carwash for about 5 years and also co-managed a mobile detailing service when I was younger so I did my best on getting that "shine" back as best as I could. And yup it included hand wash, claybar, polish, wax, and lots and lots of patience haha. But even then there are many MANY chips in the paint which doesn't show up too much on the camera but in person it is very easy to see (at least to me it is). The paint color before this was RED too so every chip definitely stands out next to the black. I plan in the future to do a complete strip down and sand, primer, etc then paint. I don't think this was done when they painted it black. Also I don't know what color i want yet. I originally wanted white but black is really growing on me. I especially like how the chrome really pops on the black. But paint job is probably at least a year away. I have many other projects first. Paint will be last since I would worry about scratching it during other projects.

Any ideas on what other projects I should do? Upgrades? Any input is much appreciated

-Nicholas

Update:

Projects I'm working on since my last post:

1) Been having electrical issues. Appeared to be either alternator/battery/voltage regulator/and or fuse box
- Tested battery = good
- Removed and professionally tested alternator = good
- Removed and heavily cleaned fuse box = all fuses good
- Removed and inspected VR off car, then again on car while running = appears to be an issue = bought a new one and will install today

2) Tachometer has been busted since I bought car. Tach needle was broken off and it was not spinning correctly with the RPMs
- Removed tachometer and completely disassembled
- Found piece of needle that broke off in the gauge and re-attached
- Unable to reconnect one of the wires/spring so I will be taking it to a professional shop tomorrow for help (Jon Frampton aka caraddict)
- Removed and inspected mechanical tach cable (sorry forgot name. The metal line that goes from camshaft to gauge)

3) Driver door lock does not work since purchase
- Removed door panels and removed door lock. Locked has been stripped. Purchased new locks. Will install once received
- Removed chrome pieces to clean/restore

4) Lastly I have decided to sell my Mazda Miata seats (going up for sale once I do a heavy clean on them) and purchase vintage style racing low back seats

Well that's pretty much it aside from some smaller misc stuff here and there... Till next time

Wow! Let me say that car looks awesome in Black with that wheel combo. Those seats are very cool, can't wait to see them installed. Is that stick on side trim? looks a little off, but an easy fix with new stick on from the tech wiki

ACote wrote: Fri May 25, 2018 3:11 pm Wow! Let me say that car looks awesome in Black with that wheel combo. Those seats are very cool, can't wait to see them installed. Is that stick on side trim? looks a little off, but an easy fix with new stick on from the tech wiki

Yeah PO put on the stick on side trim. He laughed and said he had a few beers when he was putting them on. To be honest I don't like them. They are peeling off on edges and now look a little cheesy up close. From far away not TOO bad but I still plan to remove them soon. I'd love to get the true metal ones but I can't justify spending about $1,000 on exterior trim.

I'm in the same boat, That's the last thing I plan on doing if the rest of the car is ever perfect. Original trim is a pain to install, especially since you'd have to drill holes. Should be easy to remove the stick on, little heat if need then adhesive remover. Give that paint a good polish and let it shine!

Wow, you are making a lot of progress. Glad you scored something you are happy with and making it yours.

Steve