[grumpysdeuce]

i've got a low mileage chevy 350 crate motor ( '80 - ' 85 ' 2-piece ) that was taken out of a vehicle . the motor was cleaned & three cylinders had water left in them & it set long enough to be stuck , but i was able to remove the stuck piston & rod assembly's after soaking all the cylinders in transmission fluid . the rings are stuck mostly due to carbon . i'm gonna install new rings & bearings while i have it apart , but i'm not sure which rings i need to use , cast or moly . the cylinder walls cleaned up with a scotch brite pad & a very little ridge is in each cylinder . pistons are tight , but i don't want to put it together with-out new rings & bearings . the crankshaft & bearing look real good , but as cheap as they are it would be best to install new bearings . one more question , is it o.k. to glass bead the pistons to get the carbon out of the ring grooves ? i have glass beads or media in my blasting cabinet , not sand . any help would be great , thanks , grumpy aka : grumpysdeuce

[DoubleVision]

This is a little trick I use when reusing pistons. I would pick up 2 cans of gasket remover, spray in the ring grooves, let it soak, recoat, then wash out with gas and repeat the process if called for. After all the carbon was removed I would use fine grit sand paper to polish the grooves to remove any burrs to be sure the rings have a good sealing surface. As for rings I would just use basic cast iron replacement rings, the Federal Mogul or hastings would work just fine. I never cleaned pistons in a glass bead machine, and I wouldn`t out of fear some of it would get stuck in the tight places and come loose during engine operation and end the ball game, seen where this happened at tech college when some fellow students cleaned a oil pan the glass bead machine.

[BOBCRMAN@aol.com]

YUP! Cleaning oil pans/valve covers with glass bead or sand is just a big NO NO. As for pistons, been cleaning them with bead for over 30 years and no problems. Do not shoot the ring lands! Use a ring groove cleaner or a broken off ring if you must.

Cast Iron rings only! on a re-ring job with questionable bores.

[flyin99]

I agree with Bob.......Our shop has been blasting pistons clean for years.............and the cast ring suggestion would be the way to go I'd say also.....

[DaSouthWon]

I would probably remove that ridge with a ridge reamer to make sure I didn't break a new ring. Be careful not to scratch the cylinder wall if you decide to do it. If you go with the moly rings make sure you hone those cylinders with a much finer grit stone than you would use with reg steel. I can't remember what grit to use off of the top of my head but the walls need to be pretty slick