NismoPick

Measure the piston diameter.

FricFrac

That is a sexy pic - need a bigger one for my background

Twiggs280zx

I will have to take the head back off but, better safe than sorry. At first I thought maybe it was the 1 that failed compression but when I went through my notes it was #4 that failed not #5 where this piston is.

Twiggs280zx

Are these injectors reliable? Something about re-manufactured I second guess.

Fuel Injector Set, 75-83, Non-turbo - rebuilt: Fuel Injector Sets

NismoPick

Those aren't size markings like mine. I'd say they are probably balance or alignment markings (been a long time since I've looked at n/a pistons)... I wouldn't worry about it as long as you measured the ring gap & installed them correctly, you should be fine.

As for those injectors, I'm sure they will work, but they are rebuild... not new (just making sure you noticed). You could probably find a set cheaper than that, but you might have to search a bit.

Twiggs280zx

I found out the hard way, carb/brake cleaner and engine degreaser takes the type of paint, I had used on the engine and all of the attached parts, right off. So I decided, since I have to wait for the injectors and some misc other parts to come in, I would repaint the engine right. I prepped all of the parts, again, and primed them with engine enamel primer and will be painting the block Royal Ford Blue and a simple Aluminum for the rest. I will get back to working on it this Sunday and should have it all painted by Wednesday. While the parts are drying I will be repairing the wiring harness and removing some minor rust in the engine bay. I just came into a little extra money so I don't have to stress as much on parts.

Twiggs280zx

Things have smoothed out and the attachments are going back on... Cam and front cover and the oil pan are all on, along with the oil pump. Today the water pump, distributor, thermostat, and a few others are going on. Might even get the intake manifold on and the Pallnet fuel rail mocked up (waiting on the injectors/connectors).

evandubya

Make sure you prime the oil pump, a lot of people seem to miss this part. Other than that it looks like an engine!! Good job!!!

Twiggs280zx

I was cruising along getting the oil pan and front cover on installed the oil pump and harmonic balancer. I ended up braking an oil pan bolt in the block at 6 ft/lbs. At that point I decided I would take a break from it and work on the water pump. I was cleaning the water pump bolts and noticed one was broken. Turns out the PO forced a standard bolt (just so happened to be broken too) into a metric hole and trashed the threads. So, that added to my excellent day.

I went to R&E Fasteners in Sparks, NV and bought all of the 31 oil pan bolts/washers and new bolts for the water pump. That day I opened the garage and proceeded to attempt the removal of the broken bolt. Apparently my drill bits are a bit weak, I now have an offset hole because the bit bent and followed ended up on one side of the broken bolt instead of the middle. Because of this screw-up I couldn't extract the bolt and am now left with a F-ed up bolt hole (pics to come).

I thought I would take the opportunity to remove the front cover, since I was not in the mood to drill/tap a new hole in the block, and access the damage from the broken/wrong WP bolt. During the attempted removal of the balancer (mind you I am using a rubber mallet and not beating the sh*t out of it) a 3.5 inch chunk snapped right off the damn thing! At that point I just tossed the mallet aside grabbed a beer and sat back to re-gather myself before

On top of the fantastic amount of old-sh*t braking, the injector wires are crap. Meaning, every time I attempt to strip (even an 8th inch section) the wire they break off and I am not using too small of a cutter/stripper hole. But, I know it is 30 years old and I am doing everything I can not to frag something.

Gotta love the Z...

Twiggs280zx

Still working on the Z. Most of the intake manifold is together but I am still searching for a few of the emissions hoses.

FricFrac

Hey looking good! Nice injector connectors ;P

Twiggs280zx

YES, yes they are...

evandubya

Get your oil pan bolt hole fixed yet?

Twiggs280zx

No I havent. I bought a stronger drill bit the other day and was planning on working on it but, as cold as it is I dont want to run the risk of breaking another bolt. That is a huge motivation killer...

Twiggs280zx

Making some serious progress. About to order new manifold bolts and some other misc stuff.

WildmaN

Hey....you copied my blue and silver scheme. All aside, good job man.

Twiggs280zx

Intake & exhaust manifolds are on, some of the hoses are on (retarded emissions) and I just found out that AutoZone gave me the wrong spark plug wires...back in August! FML!

Good thing is, after I get some hoist brackets I can get the clutch, pressure plate, and tranny on and be ready to drop this damn thing in the car very soon.

Twiggs280zx

The engine IS IN THE CAR!!!!!
I managed to break the leveler on the hoist.
I just need to manipulate it enough to get the passenger side motor mount to line up. Then it is running of the new wires from the wiring harness to the injectors and some hose work.

How difficult is it to run a cable throttle setup? One of the old ball joint throttle linkages broke and I am not trusting the others.

CosmicZ

Where did you get the fuel rail?

Twiggs280zx

That fuel rail is from Pallnet. Really fast response and he will work with you for whatever you need.

Here is his email. pallnet@hotmail.com

Twiggs280zx

Here are a couple pics thus far.

As you can see I have been rerouting the wires for the injectors around the back of the motor. What you see in the photos is rough and will eventually be dressed. I am still working on the other connectors.

Thank you to FricFrac for the new connectors... Where can I get more? I need at least 3 more of the 2 hole connectors.

Seattle

I can't answer your question but I would just like to say "BRAVO SIR" this is a inspirational thread!!

Twiggs280zx

Thank you it has been and will be a continuous learning experience.

pnoyslimm

Your rebuild has me pretty excited to get my turbo swap in!!!

I like the blue and silver scheme. Thank a God, you didnt paint the oil pan blue or silver. That would of been weird...IMO. The Pallnet's looks really sharp, i wish you would of painted rail blue!!!

Now here's the ugly. Dont be offened, but You took the worse picture of the engine when it was back in the car...you said "here are a couple pics thus far", i see UNO. i hope you show us more, please!

Question, did you use the transmission bolts to mount the block to your stand?

FricFrac

Send me a PM and I'll get you fixed up.