280zx windshield area rust repair part1 (lots of pics)

[tennhogfan]

In a perfect world, my DD would be a pick-up truck and my z would be a weekend toy only to come out in fair weather. In reality, my z is my DD and although extensive repairs are more difficult, anything is possible with adequate planning. I'm currently enjoying a 6 day hiatus without having to drive the z, so I decided to tackle one of the notorious rust problems to 280zxes currently referred to as "the windshield area".


I'm dying to start on my JY turbo engine, but quickly realized if I don't take control of this rust issue I won't have a car to swap a motor into. So last month I stripped the interior (bagging and labeling accordingly) to not only assess damage but to confirm a no-leak status after repairs have been made.


After going back and forth as to save or replace, I decided on a new windshield. I had planned on buying the tools and urethane myself (I hate paying anyone to work on my stuff, esp. the z), but as others have pointed out having a pro do it was definately in order. He's charging me $167 + tax, not bad.



Not as bad as I thought, I was expecting large golf ball size rust holes. Some pinholes and one pea-size area over the driver's side.

My wife said "why did you take the fenders off?" I knew what had to be lurking underneath.


Take a razor blade or utiltity knife and cut as much of the old urethane off as possible. That stuff will clog up grinding discs easily. A small putty knife also came in handy. Don't cut yourself!

After cleaning off what you can it's time to pick up the angle grinder and get to work. I found these little jewels on sale at Harbor Freight. 4" angle grinder ($20) and 5" orbital sander ($20). Grinding wheels and hook-it sanding pads sold seperately.


After grinding you can see the largest hole on the driver's side.

While doing research on this project, I came across a product I wanted to try. A 3-step rust solution that lays down under any bodywork curing rock hard. Seals out moisture and oxygen permanently.Kinda pricey but if it can do what it advertises then I say money well spent.

After following manufacturer's instructions, the holes and pitting stand out.


Before the last of (2) coats dries, you can apply your filler or glas. I really like this stuff from my bodyshop days.
Mixes like bondo, sands easily.


After sanding the glas down with 80 grit, A skim coat of metal glaze is all thats needed to fill in small imperfections, pitting.

The cream hardener is blue so you know when its mixed thoroughly.


Let the unused filler harden on the spreader, then you can snap it off.
Presto! Clean as a whistle.

Here is the skim coat. All I needed was one pass. Sands easily, 80 grit, then 120 to smooth it out further.

You can use masking tape to keep filler off unwanted areas. Save yourself work. BE CLEAN!

After sanding, ready for primer.

There are several metal glaze products out there, Evercoat's line of glazes and putties are top notch. At least they were when I was in the collision repair business, 5 years ago.

Don't have an air compressor? No worries, mate. How about a blower? You can use this and a quick wipe with cleaner/degreaser between coats of primer, filler with great results. Ask me how I know.


Stay tuned for part two on priming and paint.

[palladin]

So the glass guy was ok with making 2 trips out to your place?

[tennhogfan]

Once I made up my mind to go with a new windshield I decided to skip over a national company and try and find someone local in town. The guy pictured owns the company and in fact has worked for places like Safelite in the past. I made it clear up front what I was doing and he had no problem coming back out. Plus it took him like fifteen minutes tops, I already had the garnishes and wipers and stuff out of the way.

[tennhogfan]

I was going to start a new thread on priming and paint but instead decided to bump this one so that anyone researching this project could find everything I did here. I've been very pleased so far with the progress of this venture so without further ado let me show you what else I got up my sleeve:

2k epoxy primer surfacer in an aerosol can! Once activated pot life is 4 days. More than enough for this project!


First coat block-sanded w/p400 grit dry per manufacturer's instructions. Normally I like p220 on the first one. Who am I to question?


You can use a guide coat of plain ol' black spray paint to assist with block-sanding. You can buy "guide coat" from the supply house that won't clog up sandpaper but the regular stuff will do fine.


For blocking you can buy various blocks of rubber in all shapes and sizes, I like to use plain ol' paint paddles. Simple, effective, and FREE! Take your time. Once you've sanded the black off you're level. Time to lay down another coat of primer.


Now's a good time to caulk those areas by the cowl. If this caulk is guaranteed 35 yrs. on my house windows, why not the z?


The second coat of primer called for p800 grit wet. The stuff in the simple green bottle is just water. Duh.


While wet sanding you can check your progress with a small rubber squeegee. I can't find mine at the moment so this spreader will work fine.

After wet sanding a nice wash and rinse to clean away the sanding mud. That stuff goes everywhere. I was always told a good paint job starts with a good wash. I let her set in the sun a little bit to dry out.

Now its time to mask her up to spray. I don't have one of those fancy-shmancy masking dispensers with the tape, the box will work fine.


More goodies

All masked up.


I originally wanted to break off the paint line between the t-tops, but when I was pulling off a piece of masking tape behind the t-top, it pulled off some clear! So I had to fix that >


Another time-saver from the trickbag. 1981 Nissan 663 Diamond Mist Metallic in an aerosol can! Can it get any better?


Don't forget a light swipe with a tack rag between coats.


And the final ace up my sleeve, 2k clearcoat in an aerosol can FTW ;D


Am extremely pleased with the results and products used. Here's how it came out. I'll post some more pics when I get her back together. It sure looks different than it did Thursday morning.

[dreamteam]

Good tutorial.
It's going on my flash drive.

[Datto240z]

**** yea dude... good work!

[palladin]

So from what you have seen... I guess I need to remove the windshield. It started out as a 1/4" intrusion into the top and had to grind out a little further. In the picture is bubbles which I really don't see with the naked eye. But I do fear the rust had also gone downward under the plastic strip that holds the chrome trim.

[tennhogfan]

Thanks for the compliments. Its been a long weekend but a fruitful one nonetheless.
Palladin, the car in the pic you posted-is it leaking? If its not right now its just a matter of time. If you look at the sixth pic down you can see where the rust actually crept underneath the urethane and allowed water intrusion. I carried a towel with me in case it rained cause mine leaked like a sieve! More pics FYI:


The windshield garnish strip has a foot that sits on the pinch weld so its easy to see the proper position.
Take your time. Upper (72825-p7100) and lower (72826-p7100) still available from Nissan.




I ordered some clips also but I'm still unclear whether I need them or not.


I took this pic from a 1983 at pull-a-part. There's no mention of them in the 81' FSM.


Maybe my helper can clear up this mystery. Well Toby?


Another product I wanted to try. What can it hurt?


It comes with its own hose and reaches into crevices. The price paid was worth it to me for a little piece-of-mind.


Just make sure your ready when it starts oozing back out!


It only comes with one hose, but a quick hook up to this carb cleaner helped clear it out. I can think of other places this stuff could help! The bottom of the hatch, inside quarter panels, doors, rockers, etc.
On a side note: I need to mow my [s]weeds[/s], I mean grass! ;D


Here's a new to me set of windshield garnishes ready to install courtesy of borini63 (thanks jamal)


Might as well go ahead and shiny up those tired looking wipers while I wait on the glass installer.
Who says you cant paint old faded brittle plastic nut covers?


Well that's all for now. I'll post final pics after I get the glass in.

[tennhogfan]

Update: the glass is back in and everythings back together. Final pics as promised:






P.S. The white clips noted in this thread were unused, the moldings clip nicely and suprisingly easy on the plastic strips.
Once the top and bottom moldings are on they will slide to allow you to center them up and install the side moldings.

P.S.S. I'm very impressed with all of the products mentioned and wouldn't hesitate to use them in the future.
http://www.kbs-coatings.com/
http://www.eastwood.com/
http://www.autobodytoolmart.com/
http://www.paintscratch.com/
http://www.spraymax.de/index.php?id=2&L=1

So remember kids, be sure to do plenty of research on your project, ask questions, and get started on that rusty spot so your ride doesn't end up here:

[81 1/2 280zxt]

Nice job! Even better pictorial. I just went through this on an 83 Turbo that had serious rust issues in the same standard locations.....You mention the hatch...don't forget that hood flange and the lower rear quarter panels. The pic of the pic and pull car, show exactly what most of us contend with. The 83 had rust around the Ts, windshield, tail lights, gas cap....all standard areas. I took a similar direction you followed to clean it up, however, I went with an epoxy material call System III. It allows you to use multiple fillters for either strength or filling...sands really nice however, once on the steel...rust never comes back. It is used to make steel ships. It was two years ago that I built the whole tailight section out of the stuff. It has not stayed on the steel in the NC sunshine and heat. One warning, make sure you do not get it on your hands or skin and don't let excess spill on your driveway or anywhere. It will not come off either. A hardened steel chisel would not take it off the concrete...it took the concrete with it. If you get it on the steel, just sand away until you get it how you want it.
The products you showed were pretty cool as I was not aware of them. The frame coat system is really interresting too as I saw that on either Spike TV or Speed Vision shows. On these cars...its a must. Thanks again, Russ