Datsun Roadster Forum-311s.org

I got the body off without any problems. I was happy to find that the frame is in very good condition, just a lot of surface rust. I got one of the Harbor Freight scotchbrite discs for the angle grinder. The good news is that thing works great! The bad news is it filled my garage with a cloud of dust in a matter of a couple of minutes. I had to stop. I have ordered a better quality of respirator and will have to put the tires on to roll the frame outside anytime I want to buff the frame. I will buff it and treat with Ospho phosphoric acid. Also, time to start making a list of parts needed.

I am beginning to feel some jealousy with the progress a lot of people are making on their cars and the great pictures they are posting. Congrats to all of you. I decided I really needed a small sand blast cabinet, which means I need a permanent solution to have 240V power rather than the the makeshift way I have been doing things. This is to power the compressor and the welder. So, I have been distracted with support work, but nearing completion and hope to get back on the car soon. I have the calipers dismantled and want to blast parts while the cylinders are getting sleeved. I have cleaned up and painted the torsion bar and fortunately, the rubbers are in very good condition. Once I have the blast cabinet operable, I will be pulling suspension components and doing them and finish cleaning /painting the frame. The drive train is out and ready for rebuild, which will be next in line.

Sometimes in order to be able to make progress you have to stop and step back and take the time to bring your facility up to the needs of the job. It pays off in the end in better quality work.

Welcome Steve, we look forward to sharing in your Project! It's good to have tools, eh? Wish I could upgrade my garage, but it's just not in the cards right now.

I got the blast cabinet up and running. This is after 4 minutes in the cabinet. This should be a most useful addition to my garage. Now maybe I can get back to work on the car.

I enjoy my blast cabinet so much that sometimes I just look for something to blast

Anyone see a problem? I guess I am going to need a set of pistons. I have never seen one break like this except in 2-stoke motorcycles that have seized. Funny thing is, there is absolutely no scoring in the cylinder. These were AMPCO pistons. I don't find anything about them on the internet. I don't think I'd want another set of those though.

JB Weld it! Hahaha haha. Ya, that sucks, not what you want to see.

Some shots of my dash re-do.

They did not come out in the proper sequence. I am sure you can figure it out.

Wow, that looks great!

Got my crank and pistons installed yesterday.

I blasted, painted and installed the motor mount brackets and alternator bracket. Started work on the head. I got all of the valves apart, cleaned and lapped them, but ran out of human steam. Hopefully, today I can get them reassembled with the new seals and the head installed.

Well, this sucks! I opened up my box with my new head gasket and this is what I found. This came from RockAuto and is a Mahle gasket set. The box had a tamper seal from the manufacturer. This is obviously a manufacturer's defect. I am not sure who I will complain to, but I am now at all stop on my project.

Nice ovoid shape! Not.