Ring filing

I file cut rings for about 2 hrs. today. While I was making sure they were square, my little PEE brain got to thinking. If I put enough clearance in them so they don't BUTT together after they are at MAX heat, What makes the difference if they aren't perfectly square if they aren't BUTTED together anyway

I think you just answered it Rick. When the thermal expansion occurs they do separate.
IMO,i dont think its a issue. Ill probably get flamed for this one though.

Rick give it a little more clearances incase you decide to giggle juice it later....



Randy

i dont mean to second guess you but have you read the instructions and under stand how to get the recomended clearance for the intended use i just dont want you thinking a little tighter is better,broken rings suck...i use a piston to square the ring in the bore and check the clearance.as randy said clearance the rings for nitrous just in case.i did this on my motor all though i may not ever do it.

as for the squareness do it as best as you can.other wise i think we all would have to buy a special machine to grind them perfect

Think about this exaggerated example, if both sides were cut at a 45 degree angle, your minimum clearance would have to be measured from tip to tip right? Just think how much blow by there would be because the rest of the ring was back cut. A good square cut means you have your minimum clearance AND maximum seal. Make sense?

Think about this exaggerated example, if both sides were cut at a 45 degree angle, your minimum clearance would have to be measured from tip to tip right? Just think how much blow by there would be because the rest of the ring was back cut. A good square cut means you have your minimum clearance AND maximum seal. Make sense?

But in a "Total Seal" piston ring the top ring is cut at a 45 degree angle, but it is also rotated 90 degrees from the ring that it sits on, so I wonder if it matters.
Just a thought

NO FAIR wrote:But in a "Total Seal" piston ring the top ring is cut at a 45 degree angle, but it is also rotated 90 degrees from the ring that it sits on, so I wonder if it matters.
Just a thought

True. I was saying if the angles were both back cut in opposite directions.

I really don't think any of you understood a word I said. What I mean is, I know that we need to strive to get the rings clearanced to as close as we can w/out butting up under extreme heat,BUT I want my ring gap wide enough so they don't BUTT together under any circumstance,so if they have a gap, what makes a difference if they are PERFECTLY square or not.


And Larry, I'm not talking about SQUARE in the Bore

I think it is almost impossible to get them perfectly square on both sides of the cut. I think at the smallest point of the taper on your cut you meet the manufactures minimum clearence for your set up ( street or race only ect) you should be fine. What I can tell you when I did mine the very first piston took the longest.

I've already got them done,and they are as square as they can be, I've done these things alot of times, and they go fairly quickly now. I was just thinking out loud My mind likes to wonder some times.

bbf-falcon wrote:I've already got them done,and they are as square as they can be, I've done these things alot of times, and they go fairly quickly now. I was just thinking out loud My mind likes to wonder some times.

That happens to me all the time Rick

D. Sea wrote:

bbf-falcon wrote:I've already got them done,and they are as square as they can be, I've done these things alot of times, and they go fairly quickly now. I was just thinking out loud My mind likes to wonder some times.

That happens to me all the time Rick

This makes me feel a little better. I did my best to have them perfectly square while staying within spec for gap. A couple may have been off a little bit but pretty close I think. I was more concerned with having the gap all uniform.

I gapped mine for a 150shot per total seals specs (cant remember exactly what it was off the top of my head) and I didnt think they'd ever touch. I guess we were thinking along the same lines.

I don't plan on ever running any squeeze. My bore is 4.440 and I set the top at .018 and 2nd at .022.

damn them are tight...

I ended up .020 and .024 on a 4.42 bore, considered that borderline on the tight side. I guess it depends on the ring material etc.

I went by the instructions on the Ackerly& Childs ring set. They said 22 on 2 and 17 on top. Non asperated Gas/Alcohol

That's about where I have mine. IIRC it's .019 on top and .022 on bottom.