craZee

Here's a couple of before pictures.

SOLD

Finished up the engine bay today, at least as far as I am going to take it. To me it's a good balance of nice patina.

1 hour ago, hobospyder said:

Hey so if you get the right ones from rock auto check the threads, come find out my drivers side had buggered threads when I got it on the set I just got and probably on the set that is already in the truck

 

I thought I had damaged the threads putting the motor in, now I wonder if that is right or not

I ended just cleaning up and reinstalling the old ones. Rock Autos return policy is lame. I had to eat shipping to me and eat 50% of shipping to send back. Received a credit of $12 out of $30 or so. Lame

Went for a test drive today and didn't have to walk home. Progress! Took this picture while out that my wife says totally looks like a 70's advertisement shot. Flower power baby!

Many of you have commented on the "ugly rear bumper" on this truck. In searching for something else, I came across this vintage AMCO ad that shows the bumper as one of their add on accessories available in the 70's. According to the ad, it's "groovy" not ugly. LOLLLLLLL

One of the questions on the return the part questionnaire is " Did you order this part for a 1973 Datsun 620 pick-up"? Not sure where the breakdown is here.....

5 hours ago, Stoffregen Motorsports said:

I wish I would have gotten to you before you ground the manifold. Grinding that area weakens the manifold. Step washers were common as was strips of steel welded to the header flange (where the washers would hit).

 

You can make your own step washers by hole sawing a chunk of steel, then stepping the chunk in a mill (or with a grinder).

Thanks for the concern. I'm pretty sure it will not be an issue. The bolts at the top carry the minimal weight that exists, so the bottom flange really just seals it. Step washers would indeed be the preferred method.

So I'm trying to be proactive and replace the motor mounts BEFORE they break but it is proving not to be easy! The first picture is what just came off of the truck. The second picture is what Rock Auto shipped me and what others are showing as the right part as well. What am I missing here? There are no studs on the back of the existing one nor any side flanges on the new one.

Thanks for all the advice!

Datzenmike was spot on with the problem being the thickness of the header flange compared to the intake manifold flange thickness. No way could much pressure have been on the header flange. First picture shows the header flange thickness with calipers. Both are pretty equal now, so I anticipate good results!

One step forward and two steps back LOL There is an annoying exhaust leak on the header so I removed my carburetors for the third (or maybe fourth) time to get at the exhaust gasket. The area of the leak is obvious. The header is sadly all welded in place, so it's difficult to get a straight edge across the flange of it or the head for that matter. I am hoping a new gasket and some super high temp silicone will seal it up.

While I had the carbs off, I noticed that the motor mounts appear to be original as well. Might as well replace those while I have better access. This thing is turning into a money pit. Wow, what a surprise!

I have been to Solvang 3-4 times, but I like to show up with something new each time! My wife will be driving up our LS swapped 240Z

I have been putting off getting this truck registered, having no paperwork and fearing the worst. Now that it's drivable it was time however. I trailered it to AAA today. Super nice lady helped me (although she made me unload it because she "is not allowed to climb on trailers to look a vin plates"). As predicted above, I did have to then take it and get it weighed. It was a bit scary squeezing in between all of the big moving trucks! But 2.5 hrs later and I HAVE PLATES! The AAA lady even looked for a plate with the numbers 620 in it for me, but no luck LOL Pinstriping touch-up and a new bed cover and she will be ready for the Solvang show next month.

Yes, I had the tank chemically treated and boiled out. Good for another 50-years!

So I took my "maiden voyage" the other day and as with most Datsun adventures, I got a good walk out of it LOL. The truck was running amazing, but when I got about 1.5 miles away from home it suddenly stalled. After messing with it for a few minutes I could tell it wasn't going to re-start, so I walked home and got my truck and trailer.

When I purchased the truck, the seller told me that he had a guy "do some work" on the truck, but he was unclear exactly what had been done. When I initially drained the fuel tank the gas was very dark (as old gas usually is) but it left no residue in the filter on my funnel. I replaced it with new fuel and before re-hooking up the fuel lines to the freshly cleaned carbs I had clear gas coming out the lines when cranking the engine. This made me wrongly assume that the gas tank had been cleaned out at some point. During my short test drive the sloshing in the tank turned the gas to soup and plugged up everything. I also missed the fact that there was no fuel filter before the fuel pump. Duh....

The tank has now been boiled out, lines blown out, filter added and carbs cleaned once again. Will repeat the test drive if/when it ever quits raining here in "sunny San Diego"

I had a 240Z fuel sending unit in stock, so I bent the rod to match the 620 configuration. Should work fine.

Found some thanks

I need to source new (or good used) wiper arms for my 620. Anybody have any for sale? Are they the same P.N. as other more common (510/ Z) models? Thank for any help

She's ALIVE! After cleaning out the carbs, installing a fresh set of plugs, a new radiator fan, flushing the fuel system and adding a new battery, I turned the key and she instantly came to life. Header gasket is leaking, but all else sounds good. Will test drive tomorrow after I bolt the seats back in.

All lights, horn, turn signals etc seem fully functional as well. Maybe this isn't really a Datsun after all! LOL

Bought some new air filters from Pierce Manifolds. Couldn't find any with the right bolt spacing for these Hitachi's, but re-driling the backing plates was easy. Got to thinking last night that I need to check and see if the vent holes (circled in red) are clear. The old filters were a Volvo part LOL

Yes, that is the vin number. In the past I have been questioned about ID tags that are "mechanically fastened". All the Datsuns I have had, which include 510s, 240-280Zs, 710 have all had the vin number stamped in the firewall. I guess they didn't do that on these.

I have no title. Former owner passed away and it was not found.

I think I will be fine with the info I have.

Yes, planning on taking it to AAA once it's running. This sticker should answer the question about weight.

This truck has not been registered since the 90's. Part of the process of getting it in the CA DMV system is a vin verification. I have door and engine bay plates, but I am not seeing a vin stamped in the firewall like I see on Z cars and 510's. Is the vin stamped somewhere else on 620's? Does anyone know what the number stamped on the radiator support is? Thanks for all of the help.

The front grill area was showing it's 50-year age, so I took it apart today and cleaned it up. I love seeing parts with old writing on them. Grill is getting a fresh coat of paint as well. Will reassemble everything tomorrow once stuff dries.

Is the fitting circled below hooked to a return line to the tank? The one on mine is capped off. I took it apart and it has a reed valve type apparatus inside. I figured maybe it opened under pressure once the two float valves closed.

Just about done cleaning this project up so it's time to get it running. Drained the fuel tank and the contents were very clean. Pulled the spark plugs and 2 look great and 2 look awful. Pulled the SU's (SV's according to the show sign LOL) and found the choke on the front carb stuck open. Makes sense...

Does anyone recognize these SU's? They don't look familiar to me. I've never seen a banjo bolt on vent pipes before. British perhaps? They have Volvo air cleaners on them, but they had to be modified to fit.