I tried just about everything on my 240Z that I can imagine except one...replacing the rocker panels.

Replacement panels are only about $50 ea, but I've never seen info on how to remove/reattach them. I haven't scrutinized them too closely, but are the rockers completely welded all the way down or is it matter of cutting a few spot welds and reattaching?

-Bryan

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Bryan Little
Datsunzgarage.com

1970 240Z - enhanced F54 L28 w/P90, Weber DCOEs, 4:11 R200, Nissan T5 5-speed

I just visited our member Vinny Bedini on Monday, and he was preparing to do some of that work. He has some small sections which he showed me, which require the simple cutting of the bad stuff off the car and these panels get attached in their place. They blend right in, pre-fabbed.

He said the same application can be used to do rocker panels just as easily.

I know that's not a direct answer to your question, but I guess what I'm saying is that Vinny knows how it's done and makes it sound pretty simple.

860-355-1829. He seems to be there at his speed shop regardless what time I call him! I brought him soup last visit, because I'm not sure he ever leaves!

It's not a simple matter of cutting a few spot welds....yes it's all spot welds but unlike a lot of cars, you can't pop them with an air chisel....for some reason on our cars the metal tears before the weld breaks. So you have to use a drill bit made for the job (a bodywork friend of mine gave me a set he stole from work, but they look like brad point bits, so you might want to try those first) and drill out every spot weld. You'll be surprised what a PITA it is. You will especially have trouble at the front of the panel, where it is sandwiched between other panels, and three and four layers of sheet metal have been spot welded together.You will have to remove the front fender to get at this area. The whole mess is covered with seam sealer, too. And at the rear of the panel, the rear quarter (dogleg) panel overlaps the rocker panel by about 3/4", and you will have to grind off the paint and filler there to find the spot welds.
Assuming everything underneath is reasonably solid, (and that's a BIG assumption) the replacement is not so hard. The overlapping seams are easy to clamp with vise-grips and you can just drill holes and plug weld it back together, using the same approximate spacing that the spot welds had. You want to apply a god rustproofer inside, using a spray wand . I use rust Bullet. Then lots of seam sealer and you are on to external bodywork....blending, filling, priming etc.
By far the ickiest part of the job is getting it apart, getting all the old layers of sealer and paint and rust cleaned up, and drilling out all those spot welds.But none of the work takes an extraordinary skill set, just patience and perseverance. And you definitely will want to get the car nicely elevated in order to do this job, high enough so you can comfortably sit on a low stool while you work at the bottom of the panel.
If you need any of the stuff like a spray wand gun, tons of clamps, or a MIG welder , you can borrow mine.

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71 on a rotisserie, two more in pieces in my shed...and a 69 1600 waiting for me to get to it

Hi, Bryan, this is a switch, you asking others for advice/assistance!

Yeah, Mark C is right. If you are just dismantling a car you can use that
cutter that goes on your air hammer to shear right thru the spot weld in
most cases. But for a job where you don't want to rip the sheet metal,
such as if you are going to re-use a panel, I like the tool he was talking
about. If I can find it you can use mine: It looks a lot like a miniature
hole saw.

You dimple the spot weld with a center punch to keep the point of the
tool centered, then the hole saw cuts a little circle right around the spot
weld. After removing the panel you can grind the remainder of the spot
weld flush. However, I would keep some of the more strategic spot welds
in place till last, such as in the corners, letting them help you hold what
you are removing in place. Sort of like tack welds would do in an instal-
lation, only in reverse, until you are about done with the job.

I just came upon a thread in which a complete 240-Z is available in
fiberglass, yes, even the shell. I suppose fiberglass rockers would be
a viable option, except the company in question is in Northern England.
For that reason I think the $50 apiece for sheet metal rockers would be
the more economical choice, especially considering that in these parts
we seldom take our Z's out in rust-producing circumstances any more.

All Z Best,.............................Kathy & Rick

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All Z Best,.......Kathy & Rick

1969 Z.CAR (#00013 10/69) 8/30/76
1969 ITSA.Z (#00171 11/69) 8/24/73
1970 OLD.Z (#06289 6/70) original owner
1971 510 2dr since 12/31/75
1969 1600 rdstr (our 160-Z)
1971 (#19851 1/71) sold
1975 75.Z (#01343 1/75)

Thanks, great description of the process. I can see now why so many don't get replaced.

Does seem kind of messy in the sense that metal is being torn. Nothing a coat of paint can't fix of course....

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Bryan Little
Datsunzgarage.com

1970 240Z - enhanced F54 L28 w/P90, Weber DCOEs, 4:11 R200, Nissan T5 5-speed

Brian,

If you do go through the trouble of cutting off the entire rocker panel to replace with new, you might want to think about using the area behind the rocker to reinforce the frame. I used 2x3 box tube inside my rockers which basically created a situation that allows the flimsy floor rails to become passengers. Invisible strengthening!

BTW, where are you getting full rockers from? I'd love to have another set.

Joe

Put the car ouside for another year and just let em finish rotting off. (sorry, couldn't help it, )

I thought Charlie Osborne at ZeddFindings (http://www.datsunzparts.com) carried them for S30. Anyone know where I could find S130 rockers?

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Phil
1981 280zxt - Now in the care my son!
2014 370Z Sports Touring Roadster

tabco makes rocker panels for s-30's for about 40 bucks apiece. I don't know if they have them for later cars.

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71 on a rotisserie, two more in pieces in my shed...and a 69 1600 waiting for me to get to it

I did replace mine but if I had to do it again I would have just sectioned in where the rust was. The back end by the dogleg was the toughest part and had to fab up some pieces haere and there. Jim

I replaced the driver side rocker last summer. You indeed have to use a spot weld cutter, to get the old rocker off. It is a time consuming job. If you take your time, you will get satisfactory results.
My replacement panel fit perfectly. You then use the spot weld holes, to puddle weld the new panel in place. When done, you can't tell any difference, between the new panel, and the old one.

Dan Linquist

Good ol' Paul!!
You can always count on him for fresh and creative ideas.

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All Z Best,.......Kathy & Rick

1969 Z.CAR (#00013 10/69) 8/30/76
1969 ITSA.Z (#00171 11/69) 8/24/73
1970 OLD.Z (#06289 6/70) original owner
1971 510 2dr since 12/31/75
1969 1600 rdstr (our 160-Z)
1971 (#19851 1/71) sold
1975 75.Z (#01343 1/75)

Dan!

Good zeeing you here...

Al

Thought I would open this old thread again as the bodywork bug just hit me again.

I found an interesting video showing how to cut off S30 rocker panel with a grinder wheel (go to the 3 minute mark). Compared to description of the spotweld method...the grinder method looks pretty simple and easy. Hmmm.


http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-6971486494943061363


BTW, Tabco gets my vote for replacement rockers at $40ea.

http://www.tabcobodyparts.com/

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Bryan Little
Datsunzgarage.com

1970 240Z - enhanced F54 L28 w/P90, Weber DCOEs, 4:11 R200, Nissan T5 5-speed

Not the full rocker, but I did the "dogleg" on my S130. I ended up making my own patches. They turned out "OK" - definitely would have been better if I had put a little more time and care in their shaping.

http://z.modeltrainguide.com/gallery/vi ... m17&page=1

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280zx NA to T... http://z.modeltrainguide.com