my first 70' 521..wichita kansas

[Chris Haines]

i pcked up my 70' pl521 w/L16 yesterday. this is my first datsun. ive had 240's but never anything with a carb.

i was in the market for an older jdm rwd vehicle, had my eyes on a 82 corolla liftback and a 4door wagon, toyota cressida (that ran really well) and 85 200sx. all of these were in my price range and in town and in running condition or only very minor work needed. but instead i went with the out of state 521, that needs brake repair, wiring repair and much needed tlc. i found the pickup on craigs list 3hrs out from where i stay i was hopin to find somethin in state with less needed work but thanks to google and ratsun.net i fell in love with the out of 521. i love the simplicity of the 521. I CANT WAIT!

i need help with distributor and ignition wiring issues and brake issues. but first and foremost the wiring.

 

any and all help would be greatly appreciated.

thank you

(these are pics that were sent to me thru email before i made the 3hr drive to get it.)

this is the hardest part for me to show... one of the previous owners decided to chop the hood into a cowl style hood. needless to say i will be lookin for a hood in the near future. it looks far worse in person.

Edited December 24, 2009 by Chris Haines
pics

[Smiley720]

Pics would be nice.

[Chris Haines]

i know i am workin on it.....

[datzenmike]

Looks like a water choke Holly 5200.

 

You have a manual choke connected to it?

 

Wiring diagrams can be found here: http://www.olddatsuns.com/data/521_Wire_Diagram.pdf

[Chris Haines]

i have no idea what i have, but i wanna learn... im so new to this datsun/carb thing. not sure on the manual choke how would i tell??? and ill check it out in the morning.

if yes is this good and if no should i? (would you recomend it?)

[Smiley720]

Wow, looks like alot of fun.

[Chris Haines]

oh its been a motherf'n blast already... im startin to figure some things out. atleast i think i am. the more i read the more sense it makes. small steps.

[Rubberman]

Nice buy Chris, and you gotta luv those slotted mags. I'll find me a set, one of these damn days.

[nukeday]

Welcome, looks like a good start. How are the floors?

 

I did a whole bunch of wiring on my 521 using the diagrams that datzenmike linked. They are a huge help.

 

What are your plans for the truck?

[johny5]

welcome to the club i bought my first 521 3-4 months ago then the second one a few weeks ago , hoping to pick up a 620 next week for the disk brakes

[Charlie69]

Great find and welcome. Welcome to Ratsun. On the site old datsun there are downloadable parts manuals & service manuals also. Looks like you have some good mentors already posting in your thread. As far as the wiring, you picked a great vehicle to learn wiring on, it is really basic automotive wirng on the 521's. If you download the 521 manual and the 521 wiring diagram from Mike Klotz's site Old Datsuns.com, it has all the info you will need. Also Rock Auto on line has some older parts and some good prices. If you get stumped use the search function here and if you are still confused ask for help. You are already on a good path with this truck. Keep up the good work. I believe there are several members that live in Kansas.

 

Merry Christmas

Edited December 24, 2009 by Charlie69
spelling grammar

[Chris Haines]

merry christmas everyone,

 

rubber man, i am willing to come off the slotted mags if your interested. i got love for them cause their so classic but their not part of the direction im goin for. let me know.

nukeday, the floors are really good, the only body rust that could be an issue are half dollar size spots at the body fronts of the doors. nothin major this truck was a great 521 find.

 

thanks everyone for taken the time to go over my thread i hope everyone keeps following through my build.

 

i am a huge fan of rat member NSRZ32, i love the ratrod/jdm shop truck look and that is my direction for my truck.

[fisch]

Nice score dude! Ahh memories, you are bringing me back to when I got mine. I knew NOTHING about working on cars other than that I loved it! (Mine was an actual shop truck! Even has a hand painted mascot on it.) This place will have you rocking in no time. The knowledge base is second to none.

 

I love the slots too!

[Sudo]

Welcome Chris. I'm in Wichita too!. Well, I'm not right now, I'm in KC for the holiday. There are some cool cats up here with some Ratsuns. PM me if you want to meet up and rap Datto. I'm new too, but I have the bug. 1967 520 and a 1964 NL320. I, too, like NSRz32's build also and I am planning on copying it. You've definately found the right place. I've only been on Ratsun for a couple of months, but these guys are all pretty cool: good info, good sense of humor, great knowledge and skills.

 

I'm around the Central and Rock area, where are you?

 

-Steve

[Rubberman]

Hey Chris, what size are those rims, 14's, 15's??

[mklotz70]

Nice rig Chris...congrats. It's actually a late '69, sold in '70. You have side reflectors instead of blinkers. I'm guessing you don't have door lock buttons either. Looks like you have the cherished bumperettes on the rear and a decent front bumper. I'm hoping that within the next month, I'll be back on Mend....my 521 project for my daughter. :)

[Chris Haines]

just lettin everyone know whats up on the truck.... when i got the truck none of my ignition system was hooked up. not sure why but it was all in pieces with some extras that didnt even belong to the 521. big mess. i started over with some help on the post i made under the electric section of the threads.... thanks to help from the experienced people on this kick ass forum i got that solved pretty quick. workin on some fuel issues now. i cant wait to get this all sorted out so i can get the brake situation tackled and get this sa-weet ass truck on the road.

[Charlie69]

Hi Chris, i am glad to see you making progress on your 521. The gentleman Mike Klotz that posted above your last post is the owner of the olddatsuns.com site and is very knowledgeable in these old Datsuns. In my opinion you have tapped into some of the creme of the crop so to say here on Ratsun. You have some very knowledgeable people helping you get your 521 on the road. Keep up the good work and keep searching for answers, when you can not find the answer searching please ask as you have already experienced there is help available here.

Edited December 30, 2009 by Charlie69
typos

[Chris Haines]

i was thinkin last night... ok got the truck runnin.... again. got the brakes holdin pressure and the rotors are catchin when you spin them. everything should be ready to roll tomorrow. but its so cold outside and my garage isnt heated and it sucks cause i wanna test everything out.

[Chris Haines]

so its been to cold to do anything to the truck for the past two weekends, i did take my radiator and get it fixed and today was cold but half ass nice enough to weather the cold and work on the truck and it was the the first day since i got the truck that i have been able to really let it sit there and run and get warm since my radiator did have a leak. long story short there is a 1.5" or so crack in the block on the driver side where antifreeze is leaking out. i got really pissed at first but i really wanna get the truck goin.

 

there are a couple 620's in my area i know of, not sure what years exctly but one ive been told will run and drive and one im not sure but i know they will sell.

 

ive been looking into picking up these trucks for a few reasons,

1. they have some really good parts on them that i could sell on here to help guys needin parts or put them on ebay which either way in return gives me cash for my 521.

2. if the engines/trannys are in good shape i would like to pick them up to rebuild or if roadworthy use one as a quick fix and drop in place of my cracked L16.

 

MY QUESTION IS, IM PRETTY SURE THE ANSWER IS YES BUT I COME TO YOU GUYS TO MAKE SURE..

 

ARE ALL L16,L18,L20 STRAIGHT DROP INS?

IM NOT SURE WHICH MOTOR EXACTLY IS IN ANY OF THESE 620'S UNTIL I SEE UNDER THE HOOD.

[izzo]

All three will bolt right into the tranny and motor mounts. Some things to look out for, the L20 is like an inch taller? There will be some extra stuff on the 620 intake such as a brake booster port, you can just block that off. If its a later 620 it will have a dizzy (electronic ignition) But that can be easily wired in and its a lot better than the points!! I am sure there are some other differences and others will point it out. Thats just what i remember right now, been in class most the day and tired :\ Cool truck tho :D

[Chris Haines]

thank you it will be much cooler once its runnin.

 

i thought they would all fit thank you. and hopefully they are later models so i can eliminate points.

[Chris Haines]

pickin up a 79 620 tonight using what i can/want for my 521 will be parting the rest out... grill, tailgate, etc... i will get pics up of it so i can part it out.

 

can the dash be swapped into my 521?

[DanielC]

I do not think the dash from a 620 will bolt in to a 521. But..., given enough time and money, anything can be done.

[Chris Haines]

ok so upon further inspection the 620 is not a 79 as the guy told me its a 73 but no biggie to me the drivetrain is good and thats all im after.