On the subject of brakes.
Yesterday at a vintage event I was examining an Alfa Romeo DZ1 racer and lo
and behold I saw the same brakes as on our Roadsters. They looked a bit
different but were the same thing. When I told the owner he was not pleased.
To rub it in after his condescending attitude I told him he could buy them
much cheaper at Nissan than a special order from Alfa.
I also told him he may want to try the caliper too. A little more salt.
Another rich owner who knows jack about cars, he had mechanics working on
it, and after watching him drive I realized he knows jack about driving too.
Usually owners and vintage people are nice.
BTW, met an owner who had a Daytona Cobra coupe and the original Scarab.
Very nice guy and he showed me all the neat stuff about the cars and
explained their history. He even let me sit in the Cobra. Sweet heart of a
guy. I was careful not to scuff it as it was all shiny and beautiful. Didn't
look like he liked to push it too hard on the track however but then neither
would I.
One more story involving Datsun. There were 3 510s in one race and one of
them gridded third behind a Cortina and a Aston Martin DBR. He got a great
jump and wound up leading as they came around again he was 2nd behind the
Aston and by the third lap he was 3rd. At the 7th lap he was in 1st again
but spun out trying to pass lapped traffic. Oh well.
I loudly cheered him on while sitting with my MG buddies who were laughing
as I'm the only Datsun owner in a MG club.
Mike
----- Original Message -----
From: "Daniel E McHatton" <hallosb@juno.com>
To: <datsun-roadsters@autox.team.net>
Sent: Saturday, September 01, 2001 8:31 PM
Subject: Brake line questions
> I've replaced all the calipers and wheel cylinders with parts from our
> vendors. I heard about the corrosion problems with the plastic coating
> on the brake lines, so I removed it. So far, all of my brake lines have
> looked pretty good. A little surface rust, but nothing major. I lightly
> sanded the lines with 220 and 400 grit sandpaper to get off the light
> rust, but tried to take it easy. It doesn't take much to reveal the
> golden hue from the original chrome coating process. I then coated them
> with clear coat spray. Please, tell me I haven't done anything stupid up
> to this point.
>
> Now, the questions.
>
> 1. I have to replace two lines. The brake line from the distribution
> block to the left front flexible hose is corroded. The brake line from
> the distribution block to right front flexible hose has a bad fitting.
> Any tips on bending lines? Is it easy to find lines close to the right
> length or do you have to buy them long and cut and flare them to the
> correct length?
>
> 2. I noticed the brake line that runs along the frame is wrapped in a
> spring (in fact, the fuel line is also). I guess it protects it from
> vibration wear. Is this anything like the plastic coating? Should I be
> concerned about corrosion problems? ...or... Should I just inspect them
> and leave them alone if I don't find any problems?
>
> Thanks in advance. Hey, maybe once I get the brakes finished. I can
> fire the engine up again and start driving it. Then, I'd get to write
> about driving down the highway with the top down like some of the others
> on the list. Someday.... I hope real soon.
>
> Dan McHatton
> '66 1600
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