Question re stuck rings on a removed piston.

[Mart]

Hi guys.

I have a piston and the rings are stuck. It is already removed from the engine.

I dosed it with atf/acetone and degreaser and put it in boiling water in a sonic cleaner.

After a while the oil ring did free up.

The top two rings are still stuck tight after quite a few cycles. It only runs for 10 minutes at a time and I have to keep resetting it.

Is a sonic cleaner any good for this kind of job?

Should I try something else?

Mart.

[cadillac512]

Mart, I've had better luck heating the piston to let it expand. The rings being iron expand a bit less and sometimes come loose after a few heat/cool cycles. Helps to tap the piston top gently too,while hot. I use a propane torch on the piston top. Probably get the piston to 400 F or so.


Terry

[Ggmac]

Same as above , a grill or oven ( if single ) with a temp gauge . I only bring it up tp 325-350*

[Mart]

Thanks fellas. I had a go today using a heat gun. I did get them to partially free up, from the ends, about 80% of the way round. The last part was hopeless, though. I tried for about 2 hours. But you can't lever that part like you can work from the ends.

I broke the second ring while tapping it to try and free the last part. I then broke the other one out of frustration, as it already meant I need replacement rings.

The last Parts were very tight, even with direct access once the rings had broken.
No wonder I couldn't free them up working from the ends.

Mart.

[A bones]

Ultrasonic, I haven't a clue as to where or how. If it were my project considering what the gunk is composed of and the manner of buildup ( hours upon hours upon hours of pressurized baking ) the easiest way to overcome it is attack at the molecular level. Good luck.

[Tim Ayers]

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Mart:

I appreciate all the effort and time you are putting into this project. I'm just left wondering if it was this bad, don't you think it will need a clean up bore making the pistons and rings useless?

[Mart]

Thanks for your concern and support Tim.

This is a completely different set of pistons.

All I can tell you is that I will not be using the 45 over pistons in those bores. Things are progressing well at Mart's Early Ford repair shop.

Mart.

[Tim Ayers]

Originally Posted by Mart

Thanks for your concern and support Tim.

This is a completely different set of pistons.

All I can tell you is that I will not be using the 45 over pistons in those bores. Things are progressing well at Mart's Early Ford repair shop.

Mart.

Cool. I really enjoy watching your videos and the learning from you as you learn the hard way. LOL!

Curious as to thoughts to why the rings are so stuck on these pistons. What caused that?

[Mart]

Don't know, Tim, If I were to guess it is due to water ingress and then corrosion between the dissimilar metals. but that really is a guess.

Mart.

[Ol' Ron]

The piston ring grove has a very important size to insure proper ring operation. Oveer time the groves widen from the running of the piston up and down. After long periods of operation they may look good but have too much clearance for the rings. Som where there is a standard for the amount, I think it;s .004/.006" but i;m not sure,. I'd have bored the block.050 and bought new pistons.

[JSeery]

Mart I don't see how the piston grooves could be reusable if they are that tight on the rings and that difficult to get the rings out of. I would think there would be too much damage to them after all that.

[cmbrucew]

Blue point made a ring land cleaner that would remove the carbon.
Bruce

[GB SISSON]

Most old engine books suggest cleaning out the lands with an old broken piston ring. I have been at the EXACT same place as Mart as far as saving old rings and pistons. ( click goes the ring).... OUCH For whatever odd reason, sometimes we just want to get it running again, not as a daily driver or a bonneville racer, just as a low budget hobby and to see if we can do it. With enough money invested, getting it running again is a sure bet. A dead on sure bet. Goofing around with old junk is a kinda different hobby than a dialed in, balanced flattie with perfectly machined surfaces. I absolutely love the both to pieces, and I could sell a few of my relics and order up a perfectly machined engine, (God knows I have some really nice blocks), but that just isn't the same hobby. And yes, it is just a hobby ... Unless it's an obsession..... Signed, Guilty As Charged

[Mart]

It doesn't take much to make them tight in there. The problem is that the last 10%, directly opposite the ring gap is virtually impossible to "work" free, because you can only work from the ring ends and they are not strong enough to transmit any freeing forces almost 180 degrees around to the back.
Once the broken parts are removed it is quite easy to scrape the groove to clean it up. As said a broken ring works well.

Mart.

[Fordestes]

Mart , I have used a small pin punch to carefully tap the rings out, somewhat tegiouse and most of the time the corrosion has gotten to the ring lands and rendered them unsuitable for re- use, find a ring groove cleaner tool and be sure to check the ring to piston groove clearance and ring depth all the way around the circumference as to avoid pre-mature failure.