Thread: Piston top markings

Originally Posted by drifter

I have found 4 machine shops in Canberra (so far) who advertise reboring facilities

Berco in Mitchell are the main rebuilders in Canberra but prices can be all over the place - sometimes good sometimes not so good so make sure you getb quotes. Also be aware that some of the "reconditioners" just send the jobs to Bercos to get done.

Garry

Thanks Garry - I have just sent them an email.

They didn't come up in my Yellow Pages search - a crowd called Engine Rebuilders in Mitchell did and I was going to be calling them.

Looks like a fun time ahead:

8 emails sent to piston suppliers
3 emails sent to engine reborers

Hopefully at least one from each category will reply with a favourable solution.

G'day Drifter, and everyone else
I'm a fresh face here

20 years ago I was living in Canberra and needed to rebuild a 2.25. My block was already 060 oversize and two of the bores were lined (long story). I took the block and rods to an engine rebuilder in Mitchell (is there more than one there?) and I have to say they did an excellent job. They relined the block but due to some mis-communication took it back out to 060 thou using Mahle pistons.

As I was putting a 2A crank into a 2 block I also gave them a set of conrods with mismatched caps, as its all I had, and they "closed and honed these" with very satifactory results.

It was expensive (still twitch) at a time when I could hardly afford it, BUT 20 years later that motor is still going strong and I work it hard. I'm glad now I did not (entirely) scrimp on the rebuild.

I did burn out the exhaust valves at 60,000 miles (fairly normal?) and found some valve seat recession. It was minor and after reseating would have lasted the rest of my life - but I did get hardened seats this time around.

If its the same guys at Mitchell, I can recommend them

cheers

Hugh
1964 GS109

Heya Hugh

Thanks for the input and welcome to AULRO. Where did your nick come from? Your profile says Perth and Kowanyama is up in the Gulf...

Feel free to pop in any time - I have the feeling that this saga will go for a while yet.

Hopefully I'll get the same crowd - and hopefully they will still be charging the same prices now as they were then

Cheers,

drifter,

Any machinist worth his salts will be able to measure up and tell you what size they have to machine out to. Once you get someone your happy with let them measure up and they will be able to tell you what pistons you need.

I agree, Slug, and would accept that in Sydney or Melbourne.

Originally Posted by drifter

Well, I'm up for a rebore. What I thought was a carbon lip at the top of the bores was, in fact, metal. The bore is worn.

Seeking oversized pistons and rings as we 'speak'.

Question - no-one seems to have .010" pistons - is it OK to go straight to .020"?

I know it limits the future by one step but is there any problem with it for the bore engineers?

Also - I am assuming I need to get the pistons first, right? Just so the engineers know what size to accurately bore to.

Comments welcome.

I would go straight to the largest I can get - the 2.25 needs every bit of extra power you can get!

0.010 and 0.030 don't seem to be available these days. Just 0.020, 0.040, 0.060, (and possibly 0.080).

As Dave mentioned, you can always sleeve the bores later.

HOWEVER - I would advise buying the pistons first, then getting the machine shop to bore to match a particular piston. This costs slightly more, but allows for tolerances in piston manufacture.

Originally Posted by isuzurover

HOWEVER - I would advise buying the pistons first, then getting the machine shop to bore to match a particular piston. This costs slightly more, but allows for tolerances in piston manufacture.

This is what my machinist insisted on also. I gave him the block and crank. He then measured them and advised me what size pistons and bearings to buy. He then measured them individually and did custom bores and crank journal grinds.

Aaron.