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Finally got my self a 620!


Gensaiken

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Well I finally own a 1978 Datsun 620. I've looked for a pretty long time and finally found one that was running and pretty clean for a good price.

 

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BODY

 

So the body is in pretty good shape, graphics are mostly there. Going to try and pull out that front end damage and adjust the damaged grill which you can't see since the grill is black but its cracked in half a slightly off-set. Maybe ditch the shell for another one or none. Its kind of broken and the glass is gone (or as some would call it.. Invisible glass).

 

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INTERIOR

 

Interior is pretty beat. Needs some cleaning and work. I'll likely have the seat recovered. Maybe an aftermarket steering wheel since this one feels like I'm driving a tractor. rolleyes.gif Toss in a wink mirror I have sitting around. Find a few small interior pieces. Etc. See if I can't get a radio in it... maybe CB radio?

 

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MECHANICAL

 

As you can see its pretty stock here. At the moment it runs fine but it needs a missing piece on the automatic choke so it'll stay running when cold. Right now it'll die unless you give it some gas. It also sounds like the idle is a bit off so I'll have to check that too. Other wise it stops good (front disc). Steering a little loose but I imagine that bushings are pretty worn out after this many years but suspension is pretty tight and rolls over bumps good.

 

One area of concern is the trans. The PO seemed to have bad luck with 620 5 speeds (figured they were pretty reliable). Anyways his first 5speed lost 5th gear so he just kept running it with out 5th and then said the rest of the trans eventually went out since he didn't address 5th gear going out. So he got a parts truck for the 5speed (which was sold to my friend as part of the deal) and this trans works good BUT it pops out of 5th gear (only 5th no other gears) if you let off the gas for a bit.. seems if you keep on the gas it'll stay in gear. The PO said it might be a bad syncro? I've had a bad syncro on another trans and it made a horrible buzz when you went in to the gear with the bad syncro... Anyways, its not a huge deal as I expect this truck to mostly stick to slower streets or limited over 55 speeds.

 

 

I'm kind of up in the air regarding mods. What do you guys usually do past the standard lowering? This truck is pretty darn stock.. is it worth keeping it that way? Not many stockers left... huh.gif

My friend used to do burnouts in reverse, 'till his trans started popping out of 5th gear. it got a little bend in the shift fork, so that it would go in gear, just not enough...and on decel, it would come out like you descibed. SO, stay on the gas! LOL

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Floors look great, you really scored a clean rig there. The trim rings are hit or miss with me, maybe a full side shot of the whole truck with 'em on?

 

Curious what this 'Zero Rust' product is that you used, and where to get it?

 

That hood is a canvas begging for a rising sun using the rest of the colors already on the truck... :D

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Floors look great, you really scored a clean rig there. The trim rings are hit or miss with me, maybe a full side shot of the whole truck with 'em on?

 

Curious what this 'Zero Rust' product is that you used, and where to get it?

 

That hood is a canvas begging for a rising sun using the rest of the colors already on the truck... :D

Yeah, I'm a little so-so on the trim rings. I think I need to put some nice clean black on the wheels and polish the caps and rings and I think it'd look a bit more interesting.

 

 

There's a paint supply store in eugene off of west 1st ave called industrial finishes. They carry oshpo and zero rust. Zero rust come in a variety of colors and in a quart, gallon and aerosol.

 

 

great job on the floor!

 

Thanks, took some patience. :lol:

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So, I've decided on a design for my bench seat:

 

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It will be black and I will be using vinyl dye to change the color of my door panels and stock floor mats to black as well.

 

I picked up a suction cup at harbor freight today and used it to pop a dent on the roof out. Looks good as new. Unfortunately the one I bought is too big to get suction on the slightly more dented fender. So I will go back tomorrow to find some smaller sizes to pull out the fender. :cool:

 

Other projects include repairing a rubber shift boot and finishing up the carpet that will sit under the bench. I'll also be replacing the big tall rubber boot that came with the truck on the center console with a fabric boot. Going to be pulling off the wheels and repainting the wheels black, hammer out the dents on the hub caps and polish them and polish the trim rings. Should give a lot cleaner look to the wheels. Then eventually have the paint buffed to get it looking a little cleaner. :D

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You are aware I'm not actually putting that bench in my truck. I'm only stealing the design to reupholster the 620 seat.

 

 

I think hes referring to the fact that a regular cab 620 has DICK for room! That is a sweet bench seat:)

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I think hes referring to the fact that a regular cab 620 has DICK for room! That is a sweet bench seat:)

 

Meh, I knew what I was getting in to. ;)

 

 

On a more related note, I spent some more time trying to pull out the dent on my fender. I think i've pulled it out quite a bit and it looks better than when I got it but its still pretty dented.

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Hey my Man, I will take that Bumper. That sweet, straight sexy chrome-assed bumper is mine. I will pay you 20$ more then anyone else.

 

Keep her stock man, with nce wheels. That's what I did. Total Stocker.

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A little time with a *very* light hammer and T-stake dolly will straighten out those dog-dish hubcaps.

 

I did a little work on one and got it looking a bit better but still kinda ugly. I'm hoping my dad's shop tenant would be will to part with one of his mind hub caps since hes missing most of them.

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Alright, little progress on the truck this week. While the bench is at the upholstery shop I spent some time tending to the smaller things on the truck.

 

I started with my broken grill. Took my fading badge off and spend a little time restoring it. Thankfully it was just faded and not broken so it just needed some paint.

 

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Ratsun Member Farmer hooked me up with a grill to replace my broken one. A big thanks to him for being so generous! :thumbup:

 

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A little restoration work will be in order before it lands on the truck. Likely lay down some flat black on it, should make the badge pop and look pretty original.

 

This weekend I layed down some fresh paint on the wheels which should look nice with the dog dish caps and trim rings.

 

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You can also see in the above picture my progress on fixing that dent in the fender. It's not quite straight but its looking a lot better than it was when I got it.

 

 

I also decided to tackle the interior a bit more with some work on the dash. My dash facia was cracked by some one likely trying to remove the radio. Taking it off frustrated me sooo much. After removing it I figured out the proper way to remove it but I manged to pretty much destroy most of the facia in the process. :( I mainly wanted to repair the facia but I may search for another in better shape. I also wanted to replace all the old bulbs in the dash with some new ones. I'd go LED but from what i've seen they are so hyper bright it just doesn't look good. Plus regular old bulbs made today will make things plenty bright. I also took out the fuse box and dome light to dip in vinegar to clean em up and get them looking like new. :D

 

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Another thing good about removing the gauge cluster is to clean behind it. It was NASTY under there.

 

Oh, I don't remember if I said this already but I took the big bumper off. It already looks much better with out it. While taking it off that stock diamond plate panel on one side just came off. I was barely pulling on it and it just came right off. :blink: I might pick up a U-haul trailer hitch that should be a bit more stealth in-case I ever want to tow some small trailer.

 

 

Anyways, thats it for now. Got some cleaning and work to do. Thank again to Farmer!

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I found a krylon vinyl paint, I figure they'd do it right. I'm not going to start painting anything till I get the seat back which should be pretty soon.

 

Thanks for the suggestion.

I thought the door panels were fabric, sorry. I've used the Krylon vinyl paint in the past and had great results. There is a cleaner that they sell, sort of a pre-treatment for use before you try to recolor. I highly recommend it. I've had awful results with every spray on carpet or fabric dye I've tried though. It either fades very quickly, doesn't go on evenly, or rubs off on your clothes.

 

Good luck. I like your taste in interiors, looking forward to seeing what you do with it.

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I just got some fabric and wrapped my panels

 

now there olive drab :lol:

 

 

 

if you use the vinyl spray the cleaner is a MUST if its not clean and clear of residues itl come out shitty. paint dosent get along with some chemicals :P

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Been doing some work on the truck. No pics at the moment. Got a new dash facia from a Ratsun member's parts truck and a few other small pieces I needed.

 

Some clean rubber over the pedals, all new bulbs in the dash but so far i've had a lot of trouble sourcing the bulb for the seat belt sign and the heater controls. a small 12v 3.4 wat bulb. Found a similar voltage bulb but it was too big... anyone know what the bulb number is for that? Never mind found the number. It looks to be a G3.5 Bulb... now if I could find a store that has it.. I'll confirm its the correct bulb tomorrow. I think this heater control light bulb is NLA. Only other option is #53.

 

Should be getting the upholstered seat this week. I'll get pics when it arrives. I did a fix on the shift boot with silicone that no one will ever see under the center console.

 

Did a little cleaning behind the dash while I had the gauge cluster out. Amazing how dirty it gets behind the dash!

 

 

Over all things are coming together well. Seems like every time you finish something you find something else that needs attention! I notice my radio antenna was falling apart. Thought I could nab one off another 620 but it was from the driver's side of the truck so it didn't fit on mine on the passenger side. Had an idea to try a 510 radio antenna since they look about the same. And it fits, almost like it was made for it! Stick out a bit more but I think it's a good fit. ;)

 

PS: does anyone still have a 620 fuse block cover in good shape? Seems like every 620 is missing it...

Stuff that needs to get done:

-Paint the grill

-Clean center console and get new fabric boot

-Paint door panels and floor mats (instructions on the spray can of vinyl paint said I only needed to wipe down with soap and water to clean prior to paint?)

-Finish under bench seat carpet

-Find bulbs for heater controls and seat belt sign

-Make new kick panels and vinyl wrap.

-Install Wink mirror?

-Figure out why dome light doesn't work and find dome light cover

-Find fusebox cover

 

 

Anyways, thats it for now! I'll have more pics soon... I wish I had taken pics of the bench seat before I took it in but it looked pretty bad.. but I don't think anyone really needs a pic of a bad bench seat. :lol:

 

For reference - Datsun 620 Pickup Dash Bulb List:

620 Gauge Cluster Bulbs - six 161 wedge bulbs, one 158 wedge bulb

620 dash Blinker lights - two #53 bayonet bulbs (12v/1.7w/BA9S/53)

620 Fasten Seat Belt bulb - one G3.5 bayonet bulb (12v/3.4w/BA9S/G3.5)

Fiber Optic 620 Wipe wash / Lights switch bulb - one 158 wedge bulb

620 Dash heater control bulb - two G3.5 bayonet bulbs (12v/3.4w/BA9S/G3.5) NLA as far as I know use #53 bulbs.

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