My Sanity Saver 521

[thisismatt]

You are missing a bunch of parts for the horn.  There is a metal ring with keyholes that attaches to the back of the horn pad, then there are 3 plastic standoffs with rubber isolators that screw to the steering wheel that this ring keys onto (ie to remove the horn pad you push and turn the pad and it just pops off).  You're missing the large horn pad spring, and there is also a small spring that goes into that hole at the top of the wheel side to make contact with the aforementioned plate.  The piece you are bending is supposed to apply pressure to the contact ring on the back of the wheel, so you are bending it the wrong way and probably ruining it.  Good luck finding the plastic standoffs and rubber isolators - I may have bought the last ones in the US not too long ago.  I can't remember exactly, but I bought about 3 sets and they could only find enough of one of them (either the standoffs or isolators) to complete that many.  I sold some in the classifieds a while back.  All that said, the design/operation of this style horn button doesn't work very well and is pretty prone to failure as the rubber isolators don't do a good job maintaining the spacing over time as they deteriorate.  The top of this diagram is the style you have (note that the diagram only shows each part singularly, even though their are 3 standoffs and 3 isolators for instance):

 

[banzai510(hainz)]

noticing the engine hiccuping. only really happens when i apply the gas, in any gear and in neutral, and will last for about 15 minutes after startup

 

if this photo is taken with a cold motor then the choke plate should be closed and truck is warming up till its Ok then runs fine.  then choke needs adjustment

 

a 72 is elelctric as mine. but I went to a manual choke weber

[maxima_tyler]

You are missing a bunch of parts for the horn.  There is a metal ring with keyholes that attaches to the back of the horn pad, then there are 3 plastic standoffs with rubber isolators that screw to the steering wheel that this ring keys onto (ie to remove the horn pad you push and turn the pad and it just pops off).  You're missing the large horn pad spring, and there is also a small spring that goes into that hole at the top of the wheel side to make contact with the aforementioned plate.  The piece you are bending is supposed to apply pressure to the contact ring on the back of the wheel, so you are bending it the wrong way and probably ruining it.  Good luck finding the plastic standoffs and rubber isolators - I may have bought the last ones in the US not too long ago.  I can't remember exactly, but I bought about 3 sets and they could only find enough of one of them (either the standoffs or isolators) to complete that many.  I sold some in the classifieds a while back.  All that said, the design/operation of this style horn button doesn't work very well and is pretty prone to failure as the rubber isolators don't do a good job maintaining the spacing over time as they deteriorate.  The top of this diagram is the style you have (note that the diagram only shows each part singularly, even though their are 3 standoffs and 3 isolators for instance):

 

wow ya, i am missing quite a few parts.. I dont know if i'll be able to find all these parts right away, so for the meantime im going to wire in a momentary on/off switch and mount it in one of the existing holes on the dashboard, make is something i can remove easily when i am able to find the right parts.

 

noticing the engine hiccuping. only really happens when i apply the gas, in any gear and in neutral, and will last for about 15 minutes after startup

 

if this photo is taken with a cold motor then the choke plate should be closed and truck is warming up till its Ok then runs fine.  then choke needs adjustment

 

a 72 is elelctric as mine. but I went to a manual choke weber

 

i did a little more digging into this and i think i found why my choke is not closing. Everything looked good on the outside of the carb, from what i could gather from pics on this forum, so i opened up the choke thermostat and found a nice surprise...

 

 

 

There is no coil inside my choke thermostat. This is my first time working with a carb, but from what i've searched, that coil is what will control how much my choke will open and close, based on how it expands and contracts with heat from the engine. So no coil  = no choke control = no bueno.

 

Is this something that is common between all different types of choke thermostats, or is this something i have to find that will be specific to the type of carb/thermostat i have? If i could just grab one off a common thermostat from a parts store, i'd get this done a lot quicker than looking for a specific coil.

[banzai510(hainz)]

put the ignition On and then feel if it gets hot. notice the slot. this will hook up to the choke plate slot and turn as the coil gets hot.

 

Im not familiar with the shock set up but look like the coil is there. if anything if this work one just turns the case that your holding more open or close till you get it right.

I was never good at it when I had my stock carb. it would stay on to long or not long enough.

 

Im used to the round circle flat element type that on the weber.

[maxima_tyler]

put the ignition On and then feel if it gets hot. notice the slot. this will hook up to the choke plate slot and turn as the coil gets hot.

 

Im not familiar with the shock set up but look like the coil is there. if anything if this work one just turns the case that your holding more open or close till you get it right.

I was never good at it when I had my stock carb. it would stay on to long or not long enough.

 

Im used to the round circle flat element type that on the weber.

 

From what i've been able to find, this is what it should look like on the inside:

 

 

the shaft in the center of my casing does not line up with the shaft on the carb. The coil thats in this picture is what i need to connect the two. Is that coil a universal piece or specific to my carb?

[banzai510(hainz)]

yup thats wht it look like.

 

you can wire the choke plate back. and just pump the pedal in the morning and wait till it warms up.

They used to sell a manual pull cable choke system that would have a couple caps that would pull the choke plate.

[maxima_tyler]

yup thats wht it look like.

 

you can wire the choke plate back. and just pump the pedal in the morning and wait till it warms up.

They used to sell a manual pull cable choke system that would have a couple caps that would pull the choke plate.

 

Thats what i have been doing for now, but i'd like to have it working correctly. i think itll be really difficult to find the coil specific to my carb, so does anyone know if a universal will work? universals will never be a perfect fit, but im hoping it wont be completely wrong.

[banzai510(hainz)]

http://www.oreillyauto.com/site/c/detail/MTM0/55104/N1073.oap?ck=Search_N1073_-1_-1&pt=N1073&ppt=C0261

 

they list 2 but loo the same so could be "can" size

[maxima_tyler]

Hainz, i didnt see that those chokes had the little casings i would need until just now. i think i saw a kit like that at my local store a week or so ago. Hopefully they still have it there!

 

 

 

so i havent done too much work on the truck the last couple weeks, but i have got a few things done!

 

First, i managed to get the original horn working without the factory horn button, since i dont have one. I bought a momentary switch on ebay and it fit perfectly in one of the holes in the dashboard i wasnt using. Wired it in with some soldering skills ive been practicing, and voila! i now have a working horn. If i ever do manage to find a factory horn assembly, this should be very easy to remove as well. No pics, cause i put it in wanting it to be stealthy, so you cant actually see the button unless you look at the bottom of the dashboard, right under the slot for the radio.

 

Second, and this does have a video, my radio now officially works! from help in another thread, i found that i just had a bad ground. Got that fixed up and the radio turns on! but i dont wanna listen to AM static, so i used this thread (http://community.ratsun.net/topic/55621-make-yer-very-own-aux-input/) to wire in an auxiliary port. it was incredibly easy, and materials only cost me $8 (auxiliary port and a pack of resistors), all off ebay. The aux port fits perfectly in the hole left in the dashboard where there would normally be the knob for the manual choke.

 

Bench Test:

 

i dont have the brackets i need to install the radio or the speakers, so this weeks job is to make up a cardboard template for each, draw them up on AutoCAD, and see if i can get on of my works steel suppliers to cut them up for me. I'm hoping i can have the radio and speakers 100% wired and installed just in time to put the truck away for the winter.

 

Also got this pic at a show last weekend. Niceee.... (excuse the bad photo shop to remove people, rust, and bad paint lol)

 

 

 

[mrbigtanker]

Nice

[banzai510(hainz)]

man that truck looks good

I call it a 50/50 truck  Look good 50ft away or 50mph Like mine.

 

should just keep Itthe way it is

 

Bet you get lots of comments

 

People like mine also but Id trade that fucker in for a Jeep Cammanchee in a second.

[luckydevil]

looking good keep up the hard work.

[mklotz70]

I think I show all the blinker parts in this vid.....  

 

On that old electric choke, the coil heats the bi-metal strip.....on newer versions, they run the current directly through the bi-metal strip and use it's own resistance to create the heat.

[maxima_tyler]

Its been a while since i've posted here. Got a few things done over the winter, and found a few more issues that hopefully you guys can chime in on. gonna break it up into a couple posts, so bear with me!

[maxima_tyler]

Some of the simpler things...

 

A few posts above i mentioned my horn wasnt working. I ended up buying a button of ebay that fit perfectly into an existing hole under the dashboard. I ran a couple wires from that to the contact behind the steering wheel, and now i have horn! i'm still looking for an original setup if i can find one. If i do, this one is completely removable.

 

I got my radio wired in to the truck with a new speaker and aux port. i have another post on that, so i wont repeat the details here, but i'll say it is nice to have some music while i drive.

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/67825-trying-to-get-my-521-radio-working/

 

My wiper fluid motor was not working at all, and my wipers would only work when the felt like it last year, so i did a little digging and found the washer fluid motor was completely rusted through and jammed up. I couldnt find an original replacement, so i picked up a motor from a 2000 VW jetta, wired it in and it sprays like a champ now. it was a little powerful so i had to adjust the sprayer alignment so the fluid didnt shoot over the truck. Putting in this new washer motor also got my wipers working. They work on both speeds all the time now.

 

The heater box now sort of works! i pulled out the heater box and found the fan jammed up with acorns..... cleared all that out and plugged it back in and it worked great. the lower vent is still stuck open, but the fan now runs on all speeds and blows hot air. I also found that the reason i wasnt getting coolant to the heater core was because one of the PO's took out the coolant hoses going from the block to the heater and plugged them up with bolts and spark plugs!

 

 

i cant stand that stuff. plumbed up the heater core to the engine and now all is well.

 

Also spent some time figuring out some wiring. This truck turned out to be a bit of an electrical mess, but the wiring diagram posted earlier in this thread has helped out out a ton! i keep finding wires that have new wires spliced into them, and original wires that have been cut and taped back together. I've been pulling out the new wiring thats been spliced in and leads to nothing, and soldering all the existing wiring thats been cut back together. I'm sure i'll keep finding more as time goes on..

 

I've been finding stuff like this:

 

 

Fixing it properly, and wrapping the groups of wires in electrical tape

 

[maxima_tyler]

Now for the reason i took the truck off the road for the winter..

 

Driving home from work one day the car lurched on a turn and i started to hear the driver wheel rubbing on the fender. I limped the truck home and put it on stands to find this on the driver side...

 

 

 

and the passenger side was not far behind..

 

 

so a few weeks ago after some work on the other stuff in the previous post, i brought the truck to work and had one of our welders fix the mount, and i installed some new KYB Gas-Adjusts. All is well now :)

 

 

 

 

Now, im sitting pretty, and tiny

 

[maxima_tyler]

Now for some issues that i could use some help on..

 

I found that the lights in my speedo are not working because some of the traces on the circuit board were broken (not sure if my terms are right, but its my best guess). a PO had attempted to fix it, but its pretty sketchy, and didnt work anyways. Any suggestions on how this can be fixed? it'd be nice to be able to tell how fast im going at night.

 

 

 

The bigger problem right now is a bit of an odd one.. I used to be able to cruise at about 60mph all day long. Now sometimes if i get above 55mph, or i get a little to throttle happy, the throttle goes all funny. Its kind of hard to describe, and i cant video it cause it only happens randomly. i can press the gas pedal as normal but its almost like the throttle is hitting some sort of limiter and wont let me accelerate or hold my current speed. The only way i've been able to fix it when it happens is to try to rev the car in neutral (sometimes gets the throttle working right again), or turn off the truck completely and turn it back on again. My engine temp gauge only sometimes works, but even when it has worked and this happens, it does not show the truck overheating. Its really puzzling me. it doesnt seem like anything is actually blocking the throttle on the carb, and the truck runs fine normally. has this happened to anyone? not sure where to go from here.... I'll try to get a video if i can, but i dont think that will be easy.

 

There's a few more issues on my mind, but this is the biggie right now. One step at a time

[DanielC]

This thread will help with the "combo meter".  (That is 1970 Datsun speak for instrument panel)

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/30917-combination-meter-521/?hl=%2Bcombo+%2Bmeter

This should answer your questions about the gauges not working reliably.  The four dash lights on a 521 can be replaced with LED lamps.  You need to get the type of lamps that fit your lamp holders on your combo meter.  Some dash lights are a bayonet base, and others are a push in type of bulb, with the wires just bent over the base of the glass envelope.

 

Are you running a stock Hitachi carb, or another one?

 

[thisismatt]

The top of my accelerator pedal arm hits a bolt on my e-brake handle assembly, like the arm is bent or the pivot is twisted.  When it happens it's a dead stop and won't allow me to push the pedal far enough to open the carb secondaries, making it a dog to accelerate.  Are you sure your throttle is opening all the way?

 

As for your shock towers, it looks like you need(ed) shorter shocks and were bottoming out the shocks, killing the towers...

[DanielC]

The bracket the gas pedal pivots on is thin sheet metal, and spot welded to the floor of the cab.  There is a pedal stop at the bottom of the gas pedal lever.  The carb will only allow so much cable travel.  If the pedal stop at the bottom is adjusted too far down, the throttle cable comes tight at WOT, and this stresses the pedal pivot, and bends it.

There has to be a very slight amount of throttle travel at the carb, to prevent the gas pedal pivot from getting bent.

[4perrev]

Good looking truck man. Love the story. There is always a great story behind these beauties (not like Honda stuff). Glad to see that you stuck with the school and the Datsun dream. Welcome to the house.....Enjoy the ride, cause it's a great one!!

[maxima_tyler]

This thread will help with the "combo meter".  (That is 1970 Datsun speak for instrument panel)

http://community.ratsun.net/topic/30917-combination-meter-521/?hl=%2Bcombo+%2Bmeter

This should answer your questions about the gauges not working reliably.  The four dash lights on a 521 can be replaced with LED lamps.  You need to get the type of lamps that fit your lamp holders on your combo meter.  Some dash lights are a bayonet base, and others are a push in type of bulb, with the wires just bent over the base of the glass envelope.

 

Are you running a stock Hitachi carb, or another one?

as far as i can tell from the internets, i have a stock hitachi carb

[maxima_tyler]

The bracket the gas pedal pivots on is thin sheet metal, and spot welded to the floor of the cab.  There is a pedal stop at the bottom of the gas pedal lever.  The carb will only allow so much cable travel.  If the pedal stop at the bottom is adjusted too far down, the throttle cable comes tight at WOT, and this stresses the pedal pivot, and bends it.

There has to be a very slight amount of throttle travel at the carb, to prevent the gas pedal pivot from getting bent.

 

if im understanding this right its possible that all i need to do is adjust the pedal stop to higher than it is right now?

what can happen if the gas pivot pedal bends? how can i tell if ive already caused some damage?

[maxima_tyler]

Also, for those who like oics, some fun with the camera tonight :D

 

 

 

[DanielC]

Use this to get part numbers, many parts for a 521 are still available from Nissan.

http://www.carpartsmanual.com/datsun/pickup-1965-1972

 

Go down about halfway on this page, download the Nissan factory service manual for Datsun 521 trucks.

http://www.davidcmurphy.com/olddat/620tech.htm

 

Now, the questions you asked.

how can i tell if ive already caused some damage?

You have to just look at the gas pedal pivot, and try to move the bracket sideways, and while you are down there, push on the pedal and see if the bracket moves, it should not.

 

what can happen if the gas pivot pedal bends?

The pedal pivot moves around, weakens the bracket, and eventually, the pedal pivot comes disconnected from the cab sheet metal.  the the gas pedal does not work, and is just flopping around in the cab.

 

if im understanding this right its possible that all i need to do is adjust the pedal stop to higher than it is right now?

You have to see what damage has already been done.  The fact that you are having problems with the cable now, tells me you have a little more damage than you should.

 

You need to take the air cleaner off the carb,  That will give you access to the connection of the cable to the carb, and you can see what is going on.

 

This may seem totally unrelated, but it is not.  There should be a pigtail from the negative battery cable, engine end, that goes down to the frame of the alternator.  This electrically grounds the alternator to the engine, and the battery.  At the alternator, there should be a second black wire, that goes to the voltage regulator and is attached to the inner fender by one of the voltage regulator bolts.  This wire grounds the cab to the alternator, and battery.  If this wire is missing, or disconnected, the cab will try to ground to the engine by the throttle cable.  This over heats the inner metal throttle cable, and the plastic outer cable melts, and destroys the throttle cable.

 

The connection between the gas pedal and the carb is just a cable.  The cable is usually trouble free, but it is 45 years old.  It can wear out.  if the carb end of the inner cable is getting frayed, it could hang up on the outside cable, where it is attached to the carb.