Installing piston rings with oil?

[axl911]

Should I coat the piston ring gaps and the 3 rings with oils when installing the piston into the cylinder?

thanks,
anthony

[YTNUKLR]

Yep, clean oil

[axl911]

Thanks. That is what I thought but wanted to comfirm.

[350HP930]

A light oil without any friction modifiers like molly is preferred. During the quick initial break part of the break in process you don't want the rings to be too slick.

Tranny fluid makes a good initial oil for the rings. Some engine builders use marvels mystery oil.

We use non detergent 20 weight where I currently work.

[snowman]

Additional note. Not need to use to much either, as the excess just runs off. Just place the palm of your hand into the oil and wipe it across the piston and rings before installing. Some dip the piston and rings into a can of oil--- to much as it just runs off.

I actually wipe off the piston and rings with an oiley cloth, so they are almost dry. More oil than this is not going to do much of anything but possibly foul the plug.

[ChrisBennet]

I don't oil the rings directly but I wipe some oil on the inside of the ring compressor so the rings will slide out easier.
-Chris

[88911coupe]

Is the object to have the rings running against the walls for a few seconds with effectively no oil? Won't they get "oiled" as the car builds pressure in the system?

[911pcars]

Originally Posted by 88911coupe

Is the object to have the rings running against the walls for a few seconds with effectively no oil? Won't they get "oiled" as the car builds pressure in the system?

No. Oil is quite necessary to reduce friction and prevent excessive wear. The break-in process includes oil to remove metal particles as well.

Yes, but if the lube system isn't primed or fully primed, it'll take a few seconds for pressure to build and oil to flow normally. Meanwhile, pistons are moving up and down at the crankshaft rate of maybe 1500 rpm. That's a lot of sliding with minimal oil film.

Sherwood

[911 tweaks]

what does one do if the build process takes 1-2 weeks??
Squirt oil into the spark plug holes just prior to attempting to start?
Bob

[911 tweaks]

uuuuuhhhhhhhhhhhoooooooooo
I just hit the magical quantity of "911" posts... do I win anything?? Wayne are you reading this?
Bob

[911pcars]

Originally Posted by 911 tweaks

what does one do if the build process takes 1-2 weeks??
Squirt oil into the spark plug holes just prior to attempting to start?
Bob

Remove spark plugs, crank engine w/o spark to build pressure, squirt lube into the SP holes.

Sherwood

[911 tweaks]

thanks Sherwood for the reply... I have a few more posts to make to catch up with you I can see :-) Bob

[snowman]

More oil is not really necessary or desirable. Yes some oil must be on the cylinder walls, otherwise the rings could be damaged or the cylinder or both. But very little oil is required. Remember a well built engine uses almost no oil, extra oil is just burnt, creating carbon, a nasty byproduct that is to be avoided. 912 race engines using chrome rings do not break in if to much oil is used, some actually build their engines bone dry. I do not agree with bone dry, some oil is necessary to prevent galling.

Bottom line. Use an oily cloth to wipe down the cylinders on assembly. also use a hand full of oil to wipe across the piston and rings as you assemble it, thats enough. If you start the thing up within a couple of months you should be ok, more time than that, yes squirt some oil into the cylinders and cycle the engine a few times without the plugs before starting. More than a couple of months is a bad idea for any engine to sit before starting, lubes, even assembly lube dry out. If it has sat for a long time, cycle the engine, without plugs for a long time, like several minutes to 10's of minutes to get the oil circulating. Remove a valve cover and cycle the thing enough to see oil on every rocker. A chevy has an oil pump that can be used to prime the engine, a Porsche cannot be primed this way, it just has to be turned over, but without plugs, ie no load, to prime it.

Bottom line. Assemble the engine and get it started within a month to 6 weeks.

[cnavarro]

I'll reiterate what Jack said- don't run the cylinders dry. It's hell on the rings and on the nikasil. About the only time I've had cylinders come back for warranty work is from improper cleaning or lack of oil on the bores/rings/pistons during installation.

I personally use a mix of Brad Penn 30wt and Red STP (or EOS), as my pre-lube.

As far as cleaning, I tell my customers to clean with chemwipes (lint-free paper, white) with denatured alcohol, until the wipes come out as white as they went in. Suprisingly, it takes alot more passes than one would think to get all the honing dust/oil mess out of the bores.

[dtw]

Charles,
Agreed, I just cleaned up a set of new Nikasils and was shocked. Took several wipes and solvent on each cylinder to get them cleaned out. Very glad I didn't run them as-is.

When you use this pre-lube (I can probably just use some BP break-in oil), do you apply it very lightly? Basically just a light wipe-down with a towel?

[cnavarro]

Yup, just a light wipe down from a towel with a good amount of oil in/on it. Then I use a small squirt bottle to oil the rings & lands. A small brush (that you know doesn't loose bristles) is an easy applicator as well. A little bit of oil isn't going to change how the rings seat, at least with the experience I've had with nikasil bores. For sure, iinstalling dry is about the worst thing you could do :-)

[Fast Corners]

I install the rings on the piston dry. I feel that when I put them on dry I have more control over how they go onto the piston. Once they are on the piston, I drip oil onto them and spin the rings back and forth to distribute the oil on them and the lands.

I then put them on the rod, wipe a thin layer of oil on the cylinder bore then install the cylinder. When they are all on I turn the motor by hand and wipe the excess oil out of the cylinder with a lint free wipe. Not too much oil, not to little...just right.

[cnavarro]

Yes, good clarification. Installing the rings dry is preferred, so you have more feel - then oil after installed on the piston. I've never tried to install an oiled ring onto a piston, but I would imagine it might make the task a bit harder (and more likely to damage something).

It's for that same reason, I know engine builders that don't use thick assembly lubes, preferring just a mix of 30wt and EOS (or Red STP), as they prefer to be able to 'feel' how the engine is going together and how it turns over, prior to initial startup and break-in.