Rings fall off- is this a bad thing?
 

Hey, just looking for input. If the piston rings fall off in pieces when you take the pistons out, is this a bad thing? I thought maybe the rings were some new kind of fancy stuff, like triple ring-gap rings or something.:D :D

Nahhh,
Just put 'em back in reverse order that they fell off and you'll be all set! :D :D :D :eek:

By any chance did you just tear down fouls short block :eek:

I like to segment mine to 4 pieces, running appx. .090 between each piece. The increase in crankcase pressure helps piston speed on the up-stroke, thereby giving a nice little boost in overall performance.

Are you running the two-piece pistons and ventilated block as well? :D

I've found that a small dab of silicon helps hold the pieces in place. It has also been known to help reduce oil consumption and increase cylinder pressures by reducing leakage. Another trick of mine is to seal those small holes that are behind the oil control ring. No point in pressurizing the block!:D

You guy's are GOOD! :D

Um, are you looking for a serious answer? If so, I've heard pushing then over a big cylinder ridge can cause them to crack. At least that was what I hoped when mine came apart.
You could try duct tap, it fixes everything.
Gary

More gap less friction. Less friction more HP. You may be onto something here.

That happened to my wedding ring once, so do what i did, throw it out!!!:p:p :p

My EX-WIFES ring kept falling off also- usually around the oposite sex. Come to think of it her pants had the same problem.

Do I know her????

If you've spent more than 1 week in GR you probably do know her.

I'm still a litle grey on the silicone thing. Does it go all over the sides of the piston thingy or just in those little groovy thingies?

Silicone is a cure-all. If a little is good, alot must be great! I'd coat the entire piston, wrist pin, connecting rod, and be sure to get into all the little crevices between the rings and bearings, alot of people overlook that imortant detail. :D

I'd skip the silicon and go strictly with CRAZYGLUE;)

Should I, like, put a great big bead of it around the bottom of the big hole it fits into before I pound it up through the bottom? I checked the piston thingies with a ruler (a Stanley) and it looked ok to me. The guy at Menard's said these Stanley rulers were really good.:D Also, I noticed the piston thingies fit in the holes lots better without those scraper thingies on 'em. Silicone takes care of these, right?:D

Crazy-I've found that if I measure the pistons on a humid day with the yard stick and measure the block on a dry day, that my clearances are very acceptable. Usually less than one little mark. Never bigger than the 1 little mark between two medium sized ones.

You know-Bruce's idea of coating the entire piston skirt with silicon has merit. It sounds like a excellent way to reduce the cylinder leakage. I sure wish I had though of that with the burned valves in my old 454. But what color should I use? Is the red OK, or should I step up to the copper?

Once again, I see all you guys getting way too technical on this piston engine stuff-
Apply a little turbine techonology to this problem-

1)Measure with a micrometer
2)Mark with a grease pencil
3)Cut it with an axe

;) :D

Jafo, I mean this in the nicest context but;
Turbines and Jet-A just ain't got no class. Gimme pistons and props and LOTS of Avgas!:D And what's a Micro Meter? Is that a special airplane-guy thingie? Does Stanley have them in the same isle with the rulers?:D
P.S. I hear you turbine guys just keep pushing the loud-lever forward 'til it flies or you make a loud expensive noise at the end of the runway.:D By the way, Waterfoul and I cheated death the other night when we went flying. I even let him fly for awhile.

Crazyhorse-
LMAO!
Let me get this straight-
This round thingy goes up in a tube, some flammable stuff is thrown in there, and somehow a fire is thrown in at the right time to make an explosion and drive the round thingy down- repeat over and over for power? Sounds like a lot of thrashing parts!:p

BTW- Stanley makes great mikes (and rulers), and some of us do like the smell of Jet-A in the morning!:D

Ahem, um, are you sure you're talking about automotive stuff here? :rolleyes:

You guys are unbelievable. I've read this sight for some time now and was starting to get some feeling that maybe this Bruce guy knew what he was talking about. I guess I was wrong. Any moron knows that silicon won't last on piston skirts and such. You must use #2 permatex in these situations. Just a little dab will do ya...

BT

You mean there's more than one permatex? #1? #2? Now I'm confused. Bruce, what do I do now? Next thing ya know, somebody's gonna try to tell me the piston thingies go in from the top. Somebody help me, I'm gettin dizzy from the sillycone fumes.:D

Now I'm getting confused- Bruce is going to have to tell me what to do with all this JB Weld!:D

Jafo, I didn't know my cousin Joe Bob could weld. Or that he was selling weld instead of moonshine.

mine always seem to fall off whenever I'm in one of those "Gentlemen's Clubs"

If a little silicone is good, more is better, and too much is perfect!!!!!:D :D :D :D

Silicone,,, permatex,,, silicone,,, permatex,,,. Jeez Louise, guys. Now y'all need to tell me whether the color of the sillycone makes a difference. Orange is my personal favorite but if another is going to work better I'm game.