Piston rings

[DavidZ1R]

Hi guys, anyone know how to release the piston rings from their grooves, I have number 1 piston the the top two rings are stuck fast, cannot even get a feeler gauge in the groove, is there owt I could soak them in or any other method. Cheers.

[PAULJAC47]

Hi David,Sounds like you are having a bit of fun with this build,are the rings scrap and pistons out of engine.If so Red x might be worth a go,its supposed to free off gummed up rings.. if still in engine try rags soaked in the stuff,Good luck Paul J

[z1bman]

put the piston in a saucepan of hot water & boil it on the stove

[DavidZ1R]

Yes this rebuild is anything but straight forward, strange that only one piston is gummed up, will try the boiling water first, other than that the pistons and bores look okay but will take them to our local engine tecniks guy.

[johny brando]

Hi guys, anyone know how to release the piston rings from their grooves, I have number 1 piston the the top two rings are stuck fast, cannot even get a feeler gauge in the groove, is there owt I could soak them in or any other method. Cheers.

Hi Dave.
If your Pistons are Off the rods.... then best put them in a Cold oven and bring it up to 125-C for about 30 mins no more ....then pull em out & work quickly to get the rings off...they "should" be free then as long as you haven't left em too long in the oven & the temp differential is lost i.e. the rings have then equally expanded by the heat too.
If it's a carbon issue , best use an old broken piston ring to clear the groves & then also check the Oil scrapper rings are OK too & your Compression Ring free end gaps are not less about 10mm ....and to a lesser degree the compressed free end gaps with the rings sitting parallel 25mm down the bore. Also check your Lands are not deformed causing the Rings to be gripped= this normally caused by Pinking or deteranation ( normal lands / rings clearance is about 1.5 thou..but check in your manual ) Final point... piston rings constantly rotate over time & as such occasionally the ring gaps can line up & cause reduced compression & oil usage issues. Cheers Lee.

[DavidZ1R]

Thanks for the tips lads, managed to get them off, boiled them first as suggested, not a lot of luck, heated again with a torch, not luck, out of desperation, I filed down a 2" panel pin to for a wedge, then gently and patiently levered at the ring gap, eventually lifting the ring end out, then slid a feeler gauge around the ring to pop them off, success and no damage to the piston or rings. Have taken the barrels to engine shop for measurements, all seem okay and a hone and a new ring set looks fine, the engine had only done 31k which is nowt for a zed.

Funny you mention ring movement Lee , one piston had the rings perfectly in line, gaps together.