New Guy! 1969 Datsun 521

[brettbyrd]

Hey guys, names Brett, new here.

I literally (as of about 3 hours ago) just purchased my new truck here in Portland, OR.

1969 Datsun 521 pickup in pretty decent shape aside from a little front end damage.

Im pretty new to truck ownership and not too mechanically inclined (yet!) but i wanna turn this truck into my baby daily driver.

 

Had a few questions:

• Are body pieces hard to find for this truck? I'd need a new driver side front fender and possibly a new hood.

• As I was driving it home the clutch pedal went entirely to the floor and wouldn't let up again, I had to manually pull it back into place and now theres no life in it whatsoever. Thankfully it happened on my street or else I'd have to get it towed. Any idea what could cause this and how to go about fixing it?

• Is there any way to install a cigarette lighter in these trucks? I don't smoke but I do enjoy the luxury of being able to charge my phone while driving.

 

I'll post pictures as soon as I learn how, again I'm new to this whole thing!

Looking forward to being a part of this community, been wanting a Datsun for a very long time and I'm super stoked to be able to finally say I own one.

[brettbyrd]

OUCH!!!!! :'(

[thisismatt]

Welcome!  Most 521's I've seen have a cigarette lighter stock, so you should be able to find one no problem.  Body panels are whatever you can find used.  I have seen maybe one part brand new and that was a valance, but it's all NLA (no longer available) from nissan.  Check your clutch fluid level at the master and then check the slave to see if the piston popped out...

[Donedreamin]

In regards to the clutch pedal, check fluid. If no fluid in reservoir, refill, check where your leaking from and replace. 

[4perrev]

Nice truck Brett. Defiantly am digging the rims in black. Clean inside and out. There are a lot of parts available at rockauto.com. Welcome to the house!!

[wayno]

Welcome to Ratsun   B)

I was talking to a guy today about your truck, he was going to call about it, but you bought it, congrats.  :rolleyes:

Not many 521s are showing up in the wrecking yards anymore, so you need to check their inventory daily, and if one shows up, get there fast.

I have a few fenders, not sure which side they are, and what shape they are in, although I am sure they are better than what you have at the moment.

DanielC has been repairing his fenders, and has been describing each repair thoroughly, sorry but I cannot seem to find his thread about it.

[brettbyrd]

@Wayno, are you a Portlander too?! I called about this truck super early this morning when a VW pickup purchase I was interested in fell through at the last minute. I'm so glad it did because im obsessed with this truck now, haha. The guy who owned it was super rad and informative too which was nice.

I only need a driver side front fender if you happen to have one, shape isn't too important as long as its functional, the one that's on it now was dinged up in a small accident and sometimes rubs on super sharp turns, it's also been smashed in a bit too much so the driver side door doesn't open completely. I'm a pretty skinny dude so it's not too much of a problem as it is annoying.

I don't know too much about these trucks or mechanics in general but I'm totally interested in learning as much as possible about this truck, if you have any vital information you can pass down about these bad boys it'd be very much appreciated.

[wayno]

The only vital info I have is that the cabs are not big enough for me to be comfy, I need more legroom, so I made one with more legroom, I made my 69 into a kingcab.  :lol:

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/22928-1969-datsun-kingcab-project/page__view__findpost__p__375219__hl__wayno__fromsearch__1

 

I will try to remember to look at my fenders tomorrow, I have some out there, but don't know the shape they are in.

I am across the river in Vancouver, so I guess I am local, does your truck have a J13 engine in it, or an L block?

[brettbyrd]

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[wayno]

That is a J block with a weber carb, and you are a true ratsun member now, it has a bungee cord holding the battery.  :lol:

Keep oil and antifreeze in it, and it will run forever.

[DanielC]

Nice truck!  And you have the greatly desired red hazard flasher knob.

 

I too have some fenders, but I need to decide if they are spare, or extras, or not.  The fenders bolt on, but there is a good chance in removing them you will break some bolts.  You also have to remove the headlight bucket assembly to get to two of the fender bolts.

The bolts holding the body together are SAE sized.  That means they are measured in inches, but fine thread.  Fender bolts are 1/4-28.  The headlight buckets are held with #10-32 bolts, or screws.

You will probably need to pull the inner fender to get a newer fender to fit, and also do some work on the lower rail, the front part just below the grill.  Your apron, the part the bumper brackets go through also, needs to be straightened, to fit a newer fender.

 

Here is a handy little web page for you.

http://www.carpartsmanual.com/datsun520/Datsun520521Index.aspx

 

Here is one of my threads, current project.  Page 12 of the thread, I am pulling on an extra 521 cab to get a better fender fit.

[brettbyrd]

Thanks for all the info guys, it's much appreciated.

I'd be doing all these repairs myself so every bit of knowledge helps.

Any chance one of you dudes wants to help me out with this project!? I can't pay you much cause im a college student with no extra fundage, but my girlfriend makes a mean dinner!

[brettbyrd]

Also as far as my "pedal to the floor" clutch issue is concerned, what type of fluid should I be putting in the reservoir? I checked this morning and its completely empty. (sorry for the n00b questions, again I'm not mechanically inclined AT ALL)

[thisismatt]

Dot 3 or 4 brake fluid, same as the brake system.  Check inside the cab at the clutch master for leaking into the cab.  If so, your master needs a rebuild or replacement.  If no leaks there, check the slave at the transmission.

[DanielC]

Use brake fluid. 

 

A handy skill to learn with these trucks is driving without a clutch pedal.  Do this away from traffic!

 

You start the truck, in first gear.  Yes, it will crank in gear, no neutral safety switch.

Accelerate in first, let up on the throttle, and the transmission will slip out of first, and let the engine RPM slow down to the speed that matches the truck in second gear, it will then go onto second gear.  Same idea shifting into third, and finally fourth.

when down shifting, same idea, but you have to rev the engine up to the speed it would be in the next lower gear.

 

This is hard on your starter.  I do not know about the availability of J-13 starters.   

 

Most common cause of loosing fluid from the clutch system is the slave cylinder,  it is on the transmission, being exposed to road dirt.  Second common cause, is the master cylinder leaking, look inside the cab, up where the master cylinders bolt to the firewall.  It is also possible the rubber hose from the frame of the truck to the transmission mounted slave cylinder is leaking, and an outside chance the steel brake line is leaking.

 

The rubber hose, and brake fittings are like the body bolts, SAE.  Brake, and clutch line flare nuts are 3/8-24.

[wayno]

I looked at my fenders today, I have lots of passenger side fenders, but my driver side stock is in short supply.

Your going to have to try and find one elsewhere, as I cannot sell the only good one I have.

[brettbyrd]

Not a problem @Wayno, thanks for looking for me anyway!

[Tristin]

Did you end up saying which side you needed for fenders? Theres a decent set up here (3hrs away), but could be brought down in a couple weeks for Canby. 

[brettbyrd]

Got the clutch situation figured out thanks to @Aaronstutz. Bunch of air trapped in the line had to bleed out the cylinder.

 

I'm noticing a lot of faint white smoke coming out of the tailpipe. I got the oil changed before I brought it home on Friday and someone mentioned to me that it might be that too much oil was used that's causing the smoking, any idea how long I should let it smoke that like before being concerned about it being something other than too much oil?

 

Did some more snooping and realized my rear blinkers don't work, checked under the bed and was surprised to find all the wiring bungee chorded together under the bed. Gonna spend the afternoon sorting this little problem out. Anyone have any diagrams for rear lighting?

 

Also noticed my water temp gauge in the dash doesn't work. Everything else in the dash is in working order but no temp reading. Any ideas?

[mrbigtanker]

First off white smoke? And oil level to high,dont you have a dip stick check the level for starters.Check the oil for water and check the water for oil in it.

 

Temperature gauge not working,start under the hood ,you shoild have a temp sending unit right on the thermostat housing,check first off if a wire is hooked up to it next it could be that the sending unit is bad.but start there and make sure the wire is not broken and start following wire all the way to you go under the dash to the plug that goes in to the back of the dash panel.There is 1 big plug and a speedo cable that goes in the back of the speedo or instrument cluster.

 

As for the rear blinkers,first off assuming the fronts work flasher is good but did you start by checking to see if the bulbs are burnt,did you try the hazard switch to see if that turns them all on first to,and if that fails pull apart the bird nest tyou talk about and check all the wiring.

[mrbigtanker]

OUCH!!!!! :'(

Also welcome aboard first off and second relax when you take a photo.Do the shaka sign like we do in Hawaii or just loosen up.lol  Just busting your balls.Fix that smile on the front of the truck and you are ballin.

[brettbyrd]

@mrbigtanker I was too excited and didn't even want to take a photo, I just wanted to get in and drive the damn thing but my friend was more interested in posting photos to Instagram so i was forced to take that one, haha. I'm gonna get this baby washed up and looking nice then take a proper photoshoot! If only this damn rain would let up.

[mrbigtanker]

Move out of portland to sunny cali.that should fix your rain problem.

[brettbyrd]

I'm actually from Sacramento, just came up here for a few months to help out a friend, moving back in July!

[brettbyrd]

Hoping my truck will make it all the way down to Sac in July.