choopacabra530

iTrader: (1)

I am trying to do as accurate a resortation on my 3/78 spark yellow SA as possible. Buying NOS everywhere I can. The goal is to have a close to something that would have rolled of the dealer floor as possible. The car itself is a relatively clean, never modded desert car. All records since new and only dealer serviced for the first 28 years.

That said, I have a few issues.

1. The dash is cracked, finding a clean one with the speaker hole (to be accurate) might be a challenge. I have located a NOS never installed 80 dash and it is NICE!!! Just not 100 percent accurate. I can try to repair the current dash, but that wont perfect either..... Grrrr

2. The engine harness is shot, I have tried to do repairs and it is so brittle the wires just keep snapping. The connectors have seen better days also. A trick I have learned is to find mazdas of the same period at the wrecking yard and scavenge the connectors from under the dash an other places that have not been subjected to numerous heat cycles and crumble.

3. Anyone ever succesfully rezinc parts (relays) back to the original condition (figure this will be a nice touch)

4. I have purchashed the new washer bottle. What i need is a NOS overflow bottle that is NLA. I have 3 kinda clean ones, but it sticks out like a sore thumb compared to new. Anyone have luck removing the years discoloration?

5. The black clips that hold the wiring harness in place on the engine bay, are those still available somewhere?

Trying to do this right and these little details are the difference maker to me.

7aull

iTrader: (2)

Wow Choop - you have a real passion for Spark Yellow!
-which I totally get - neat color for these cars.
1) yah earlier 79 dashes with radio speaker hole are a bear to find w/o cracks, but chances are decent to find one out of wet (ie no-sun-bake) NW area would be best bet. maybe check location-specific sub-forums here to start.
2) dash/interior connectors a good source IF they are the same as needed. OR:
BUY NEW:
http://www.easternbeaver.com/Main/El...onnectors.html
Fab OEM connector kits (buy the crimping tool too)
3) yes - get ahold of Banzai - he just did a whole set of these and can tell you what he did. Trick I think is removing cover off relays to do the job, but this is easy stuff in the Resto-World.
4) yep NLA and I too would love to know what we could dump in there and get that stain out w/o damaging the plastic of the container....
5) which??? the zip-tie style that are re-useable? the ones with the plug so they can be popped into holes in the firewall to mount? BOTH of these are (were?) available thru BlackDragonAuto.com

So. Does this project mean the other 2 Spark cars are complete and ready to go?? Or are you just a sucker for orphans?
;D
'luck on the resto-

Stu Aull
80GS
Alaska

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

I can see where Spark Yellow Fever could be a real afliction. Good radio speaker dashs are very rare but not entirely non-existent. I have run across one maybe two that I can remember the last 3-4 years. I've never needed one, but would tell you have to be either extremely patient or extremely lucky. You may just want to go with a speaker-less dash. Much easier to find.

I have tried different things to whiten/brighten fluid tanks. Nothing I've tried, has met my version of sucess. As Stu puts it, "I'm a picky Bastid". I'm sure there are other period vehicles that use a common fluid tank, just not sure which ones to be looking at. Windshield wash tanks are still available, not the radiator overfill. Again, NOS ones do come along with the whole blue moon thing.

Yes, you can re-zinc bits and pieces to restore the show room bling. Just depends on how much time/money /effort to are willing to invest.

choopacabra530

iTrader: (1)

Thanks for the help

I wont be using the chrome handles, but the rest of the stuff will be put to good use on. I also won the C pillar vents nos and the corner garnish a little while ago in addition to those taillamps.

The wheels I will drive it with most of the time will be a vintage set of Hayashi 14 mesh. I also need to get restored a set of the Almex yokohama wheels as the stock option.

I might just go with the 80 dash and can always keep my eye open.

Let me look at black dragon again, but I need the black ones that pop into the fire wall. It would be worth buying a handfull of those.

Banzai, did you ship the parts out or find someone local to you to do them? What was the cost? I would want to do this for some repu bits and peices also. The black brackets and so on I have located a local powder coater.

The sparks have always been where my heart is. under all of the primer of the 1st rx7 I bought at 16 was that yellow. Then it just so happened the 2nd one I got at 18 was shiney spark yellow. (that one is being worked on now also, just nowhere near stock with epsilons, fuel injected 4 port 13b, t2 trans, r&p conversion, and on and on and on... lol

The 3rd is a super clean body, just missing the motor that I wanted to make sure didnt get parted or hacked up. It is just stored at the house in nor cal for a rainy day. I wont be touching it for a long time.

Banzai

iTrader: (13)

There are a few plating shops in my area. This particular one is about 20-30 minutes away. Cost is dependant on size/shape and volume. $35 a run. Most things are done automatically in a basket, other things (large or tangle prone) have to be done by hand. So if you have a box full of hardware, small items and one large or weird piece, it would be two runs and $70.

What you see in the picture, was 2-3 runs. Yea, I'd buy a regular dash and keep your eyes peeled. Be a Biatch to change it twice though. You can find whole harness's too from donor parts cars. Desert storage is good when it comes to rust, but harsh on plastic/rubber. It tends to get hard and brittle in the hot dry conditions.

13x

OMG Did He Say Use the 80 Dash?!?!?!?

oh no choop say it ain't so

RX-7 Chris

iTrader: (19)

I had a little luck with acetone on the discolored bottles. If you do this, be very carefull it will eat the plastic. I put a small amount of asetone on a rag and scrubbed the bottle. I would try this on a bottle that you don't care about first.

RX-7 Chris

iTrader: (19)

I would assume you already have these: http://foxed.ca/foxed/index.php?page=rx7manual

79-80 fiche page 4-C2 shows the parts numbers for all the clips. THey all start with 99.

onlinemazdaparts.com can get them if they are still availible and it will be cheaper than black dragon.

992771202 - $2.08
992891053 - $2.96
992891353 - $2.89

Hope this helps

rotarydude

iTrader: (2)

i have a stash of some parts and can help with ideas on some stuff all us early SA guys need to get on board with some stuff we might be able to get some repop stuf if we work together

Yellow '79

a spark yellow yellow was my first rx7. I love seeing them restored.
good luck!

j9fd3s

iTrader: (3)

3. yes! cad plating. its actually not hard to find, although you have to make sure they are doing the correct finish, the original is pale with a rainbow effect.

4. keep your eye open, i had an FB one kicking around. since the bottle clips on, clean yours and keep working...