201 replies to this topic

[ljv8]

Cheers Linesy and Kieran. Linesy I do love my 6's and always wanted a Tate Holden 6 since I was a boy so it had to be done. Do love my Holden 8's too. Always wanted an LJ with an 8. Plan to do a 4 door LJ and drop in an 8 when the bank balance recovers.

Update #09

Been spending a bit of time re- organizing my workshop so have been a bit slow in getting things done. Garage was getting out of control too much crap and too many boxes of parts so gave it a good cleanup and organized my tools a bit better so I can work without falling over things.

Im a bit all over the place at the moment, put the front end on hold wanting to finalise the engine first.

I brought the lynx manifold below second hand. The previous owner removed the dividers and welded them up but went a bit crazy when porting them.

As can be seen in the photos the ports look a bit dodge. The head is perfectly matched to the gasket however the manifold is anything but. The lower sections are the worst the tops are ok and one or two sides and some corners are out. There is quite a significant step on the bottom when mating it up to the gasket. Would definitely interrupt the smooth flow of fuel.

After going over it with Ian the only or cheapest option is to build it up with jb weld then file it to match. Could get it welded up but will cost more than the manifold is worth, cause it will probably distort from the heat and will need the faces machined.

I also have a standard Lynx M091 that still has the dividers in it and has not been ported. Strange thing is even the factory original lynx has quite a large step on the bottom when put up against the gasket. Not as bad as the ported one but still enough that it would cause an interrupted path for the fuel to flow.

Started to think maybe was a gasket thing but my old orange extractor gasket is pretty much the same.

Images below show inlets and texta marks show roughly where filling has to be done.

Will get stuck into getting the ports perfectly clean and roughed up before jb welding it.







Another item I need to fix is the lack of vacuum outlets for the pcv. I plan to drill and tap both balance tubes on the carb side as per the XU1 manifold and will run two hoses with a T piece XU1 style. Have a couple of brass straight outlets from other manifolds but after dummying it up will definitely need the angle outlets as per XU1 so the hoses don't foul on the fuel lines and don't stick out too far.

[ljv8]

Update #10

Drilled and tapped the vacuum outlets for the PCV. I brought two of the brass 90 degree fittings from Bursons.



Thread was 1/4 bsp. Also had to buy the 1/4 bsp tap and a 10.8mm drill bit to suit.



First did a test run on a piece if scrap aluminum box tube. Because the tap I brought was tapered the tap needs to be screwed most of the way for the tapped hole to be a full 1/4". The tap is fairly long so was a bit concerned that the balance tube on the Lynx was going to be too shallow and the tap bottom out before fully threading the hole. Was fortunate that I had a spare manifold to test it on first.

After drilling the hole there was reasonable wall thickness to hold a thread and the balance tube was about 25mm deep so no issues with tap depth. Cut the first thread and the fitting went in perfectly. Did not drive the tap all the way left about four threads out but was plenty deep.





Did both sides of the test manifold and worked out well. Time to do the manifold I will be using and had to remove the carb studs as my long handled tap driver fouled them.



Marked and punched the centre hole as per the test manifold but the first one I drilled shifted about 2mm lower when I drilled it. Bugger, pressed on without checking it so had to drill the second hole the same. A touch lower than I would have liked but worked out ok. Looks worse in the photo than it actually is. Of course the test manifold had to workout better than the actual manifold!



So ended up being just enough clearance from the linkage arm and should be a neat fit when all plumbed up. When its ready to go on the engine will Teflon tape or lock tight the fittings on. So ended up costing $50 to buy all the bits I needed to do the job and took less than an hour including all the testing and beer time admiring the job.

Edited by ljv8, 13 January 2013 - 02:59 AM.

[ljv8]

Hey Jacob,

I brushed the paint on, and didn't end up masking up the headports. Just carfully brushed around it, and will scrape / lightly sand off the little flicks that went on the face. Wouldn't be too hard to mask up with decent wide tape, and a sharp stanley knife cause you have the raised sections to follow. That green frogtape I think they call it works really well. I was just a bit lazy and in a bit of a rush at the time

Steve.

[grumpy xu1]

Hi Jacob, mate just use some 6mm blue
fineline tape from any good paint shop &
some tape gets a nice sharp edge & no
bleeding easy as if you can paint then
you can mask.But i've had plenty of
practice i spose, Grumpy.

[ljv8]

Update #11

Progress on the Torana has been slow as I have been spending any spare time sorting out my sheds and parts. Setting up my largest one as a clear open workshop and the smaller one for storage. Nearly done and will start on the front end next.

Sent my 13 x 6" rims off to Ajax wheels to get trued. In update #06 said they were 7" but they are actually 6". Only one was buckled, all fixed now and tyres off so I can strip and paint them. Will rust proof them with the KBS stuff and paint them in the satin chassis black.



Date stamped 1/74 so they must have been originally fitted to a LH.



Cleaned and ground the carbon off the manifold inlet and gave it a good roughing up so the JB Weld will bond. Taped up where it needs to go and applied it one side at a time. U can apply it reasonably rough as it settles smoothish as it drys. Off to get match ported. Lets hope it holds, will be an expensive experiment if any of it dislodges and gets eaten by the engine. Will take the manifold off after it has been running for a few months to check it or until I find a better replacement.

Armours and Seton manifolds are a touch hard to find.



Taped up a reasonable amount above what was needed so it can be ground smooth.



Bit hard to see but went a good inch and a half in so it can be tapered up.

[warrenm]

I don't think you'll have any trouble with the JB weld, as long as it was clean. I know of a few cylinder heads that had reshaped inlet ports with Devcon(same type of product) & there still in use today.

[ljv8]

Cheers for that, warrenm. Yeah ground it out with a dremel then cleaned it very carefully with laquer thinners. Ian Tate uses it and had no hesitation in recommending it so let hope my preperation is up to scratch!

[ljv8]

Update #12

Spent some time cleaning up and sorting out my front crossmember. I fixed the cracks by opening them up with the dremel and mig welding them. I then ground the welds flat and cut up some 3mm plate to reinforce the whole area and welded it on top of the factory plate. I also cut a small triangle plate to reinforce the underside. My welding skills are not 100% but it came up ok. It looks a bit messy because you can also see the factory welds. I started making up a box section like the CRS one but didnt like the way it sat. Figured I won't need to ever remove it so just plated and welded rather than making something to bolt in.

In hindsight I would not have added the top plate. I should have just welded the crack and weld in the triangle plate underneath. I'm sure that would have been strong enough and would have looked much cleaner. Anyway should not crack again now.









I then took the opportunity to drill the XU1 upper control arm location holes. Took a lot of measuring and triple checking to ensure all was lined up. Not as if you can just go to the wreckers and grab another crossmember these days if you butcher it!

I found the easiest way to mark the 16mm center to center point was measuring 10mm from the bottom of the existing hole as the hole is 12mm in diameter. Also using the upper control arm to constantly check the positioning and alignment when drilling. Did one at a time carefully and worked out ok.





While I was wire brushing off the rust and grime noticed some serious wear in the hole where the castor rods bolt to the crossmember on one side. I am guessing at some stage in its life the nut was loose and with the extra pressure of the GTR swaybar and all the movement has opened up the hole. It was too worn to leave it so again had to cut up a tiny bit of plate in a moon shape to fill the out of round section. Left it a bit bigger, welded it in and then filed it out to size. Photo shows it just having been welded, I then also filed it out and cleaned and smoothed the welds on both sides with the Dremel.





Ok kept wire brushing the front end with various grinder and drill attachments to get as much rust out of the little nooks and crannies.

Once it was clean enough cleaned the crossmember with the KBS degreaser. Then used the KBS rust blast to treat and seal the metal. Was quite easy to do. Just kept spraying it to stay wet with the rust blast for a good 40 mins. After that gave it a gentle hose and wipe. Was interesting to see the finish ended up having a yellowish gold finish in some areas, other areas the ingrained rust went black and any new metal went black too. It's all sealed now and you can leave it for 30 days before it needs to be painted.

Also had some chalking as it dried up which can be easily removed with a rag. I have the KBS Rust Seal which needs to be painted on in two coats, then seal with a coat of KBS Blacktop as the Rust Seal will discolor if exposed to UV for prolonged periods. I chose the OEM satin finish. Looking forward to seeing how it comes out. Plan to paint it up in the next week or so.



All rust blasted note the strange coloring.

[sibhs]

Hey nice work Stevo,

I'll be doing this in the next couple of months. I've been experimenting with the KBS system and have sand blasted a few K-Frame parts and applied the Rust seal, just having trouble getting a satisfactory finish.  Because of all the angles on the frame the KBS tends to run and in those areas I get bubbling because it's on too thick. Have been told to try thinning it a bit so I got some KBS thinners and Fusion to try.  All a bit of trial and error and the moment for me.

 

When you drilled your holes 16mm lower did you check the original holes to see if they were level?  I've got one hole on the passenger side thats 4mm lower and I have seen the same on another frame.  Not sure what to do about this. 

 

Keep it up.

 

Cheers

 

Marty

Edited by sibhs, 14 April 2013 - 09:16 AM.

[ljv8]

Hey Marty

Geezus your right. From the top of the original hole to top edge is 32mm, that is the rearward hole. The hole to the front of the crossmember is 28mm. Spot on 4mm difference on both sides. I never even noticed it just assumed the factory would have used a jig to punch the holes and they would have been level and identical.

I spoke to Ian Tate about it before doing it and he didn't mention anything about drilling the front hole lower than the back one so I assume it's by design.

Grant kicked off a thread a couple of years back on the second hole http://www.gmh-toran...er/#entry585626

I just had another look at it and there is a GMH pic Red6 posted and you can see the line drawing that the rear hole is slightly lower than the front. Grant also made comment a couple of times on the holes being around 4mm out of level so I would take it that its by design if there are so many examples of it.

Thanks for the tips on the KBS paints. I have not tried the rust seal as yet. If all goes to plan will hit it tomorrow and see how it goes. I have some of the KBS thinners as I brought the chassis pro kit so will try thinning it a little if I have the same issues.

Thanks again Steve.

[ljv8]

Update #13

As reported back at update #05 things were progressing slowly at the panel shop. It took over a year to repair the wheel arches, rub back all the rear panels and roof.

Now my panel beater is fantastic in turning out some award wining paint jobs and has done a few Fords and Holden's that have won best paint or body at many car shows. However as with most panel beaters, smash repair is his core business / revenue source. He does a couple of restos every year but they are a side project. He explained this to me at the start and there have been a number of delays which kills me but I can accept as I was aware of the conditions. As desperately as I want the shell done I have to be patient as I am getting a paint job that well exceeds what I am paying for. Your dedicated resto shops may be able to turn it out quicker but the price I found was four times as much!

I have not been past the panel shop since just before Christmas, and went past a couple of weeks ago and was anticipating the worst. A few nights before I went I had an actual dream that he told me he couldn't finish it so I brought it home and painted it in my garage Satin black, with gloss black sills and the GTR stripe. In my dream it looked hot!

So I walk in expecting to have to go and get a trailer to bring it home and nearly fell off my feet. The car is sitting there all prepped in sealer. I could not believe my eyes. Attached are some photos my panel beater took of the remaining panels that were rubbed back to bare metal, and sealed.

The drivers door still needs some repair. There is slight rust near the top weather belt and the LJ mirror location and trim holes down the center need to be filled. There was also a dodgy repair done in the past near the base of the right hand side windscreen pillar that needs to be fixed also. Apart from that its pretty sound for a car that has been sitting for 15 or 20 years in highfill.

It has been sitting in my shed for 10 years in yellow highfill so I am pretty excited to see it in another colour!

Seeing so much progress has gotten me fired up to get things done which is why I started on the crossmember last week.

[ljv8]

Thanks Jacob. Yeah your right progress is a real motivator. Also I think some people just don't understand the time it takes to do something right especially those that have not done it before or normally do everything half arsed. Money is also a limiting factor to progress too. The best one I get when I tell people that I'm doing up a Torana is "haven't you grown out of that phase yet?", suggesting that playing with old cars is something you only do as an 18 year old. Typically at 18 you break them and drive them into the ground then when you hit gentlemen years you restore them and take care of them, with the occasional thrash!

Update #14

Got stuck into the crossmember and painting the first coat. Was looking at bolting the crossmember to my engine stand so I can flip it around and paint the top and bottom at once. Didnt have long enough bolts so gave up on that idea.

Wiped it all down with a rag and started by painting the underside with Rust Seal. Just used a small brush and was quick and easy to do. Left it to dry for about four hours. Flipped it over and did the top side.

Brushes get pretty butchered getting into all the gaps so used a new cheap brush each time. The finish was excellent did not have any problems with the first coat. There were a few drips where I was a bit heavy handed in the shock towers and it oozed out of the folds but apart from that it came out nice. A little too glossy for my liking, glad I got the satin Blacktop for the final coat.

Called KBS to confirm the coats and duration between coats. Was told by the product bloke that you do two coats of the Rust Seal and one of the Blacktop, but there is no harm in doing a second Blacktop coat but one is usually plenty. He said typically he would do the first coat at say 3pm and the second the next day at 9am then the Blacktop once it is dry to touch, say three hours later. If the durations between coats is any longer you just need to deglaze the item before applying the next coat. He clarified deglaze as giving it a light once over with a scotch brite pad just to take a little of the sheen off.

Didn't have time to finish it but atleast its sealed now.

[ljv8]

Update #15

Body work is pretty much done and the panel beater has laid on a coat of black to check that all the lines and panels are spot on. After seeing it in shiny black would be tempted to leave it black if it wasn't a GTR!









Got the motor home a few months back. Few things to finish off such as painting the sump and oil pump orange. A few touch ups from assembly. Need to paint my manifold to match the rocker cover. Brought the baker lite heat spacers for the carbs and longer manifold to carby studs. Also need to make up the heatshield. Just need to get out of the winter blues and get stuck into it now!

[ant285]

wow. looks great black!

[gad05]

Hi stevo,I'm really enjoining you're build thread,reminds me of my lj I owned in the 90's.I have the same lynx manifold and early su's.Hope to use them in a future project .
Just wondering what brand of balancer is on you're engine? Love those steeles.

[ljv8]

Thanks for the kind comments guys much appreciated.

Gad05 the balancer is a power bond street series balancer part number pb17a-st. Tate puts a large washer and bolt to ensure it stays put. However it means I will have to trim my fan blades or run a thermo. Have two types of fans I picked up from the wreckers a while ago so will try them first and see how much has to come off. Would like to avoid using a thermo fan just to look more traditional.

[gad05]

Thanks for the info Stevo,will the fan hit the balancer itself or just the bolt,maybe you could try a dome head capscrew.
Might give you more clearance ,just a thought.
You mentioned earlier spacers for your manifold ,who sells them?
Cheers Graham.

[gad05]

Dome head capscrew,correct term is socket button head,mentle blank last night.
Cheers Graham.

[ljv8]

Yeah I hear ya Nathan. Looks amazing in the flesh and its only a guide coat. Was toying with the idea of doing the car gloss black with satin blackouts and satin GTR side stripes. Would look pretty evil!

Thanks Graham for the tip. I have a Holden 6 fan not sure what its off, think it was an early commo.

Hits on the washer and would need substantial cutting to clear the washer and bolt so won't go down that road.



It came with a spacer and with the spacer clears easily. The only issue I am guessing is it will then be too close to the radiator.



Might be able to machine down the fan spacer to achieve enough clearance on both sides. Will have to wait till its in the car and see how it goes with my chosen radiator. Probably going for a Aussie desert cooler triple bypass in brass/copper. Might be a squeeze! Worst case will throw on a 14" thermo out front.