4 cylinder import engines, honing method

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Re: 4 cylinder import engines, honing method

Post by ProPower engines »

eTiLiKo wrote: Wed Mar 14, 2018 4:53 am
eTiLiKo wrote: Wed Mar 14, 2018 4:05 am I m talking of a complete boring and honing job. Honda, mitsubishi, nissan, tipically alu engines with integral iron sleeves, some are open deck some closed, but I don t think that it makes any difference for cylinder finish. I always use torque plate on open deck or resleeved blocks. Rings....what come with wiseco, CP, JE, i think low tension japanese made rings.
Quoting myself, rings with these pistons are : Gas nitrided top, cast iron with a taper underhook groove face 2nd, two gas nitride rails with a low-tension expander OIL.
And I'm talking of an honing machine, not a drill work. Italian made honing machine, old BERCO if I remember correctly. Every machine shop in the south of Italy where I am have italian made honing machines, no sunnen here.
What I would do is find out what kind of hone head and abrasives they use.
Most of the real high end import stuff needs a plateau finish. Every Honda or Nissan performance build I do that is the only way I finish the bores.
One of the issues I can see is unless you talk to the piston supplier and request better rings or use a finer finish. If you are always using a napier type 2nd ring they will not last with a rough bore finish very long and the result is oil consumption.

depending one the type of hone head they use at your shop of choice I would discuss with them to get the stones/abrasives that you specifically need OR just buy them yourself and every time you get a block done you supply the stones you want used.
If you do enough work with them they should be the guys to supply the stones to do the job.

But from what we have seen here depending on the performance level you want just accepting a ring set with the pistons may not be the best way to go as a lot of times the ring sets are no better then a stock factory replacement set.

You up against a wall and I think the best way to deal with the issue is to talk to the shop doing your block finishing and get them to work with you OR maybe its time to think about adding some equipment to you shop and do your work in house.
There is a lot of Italian made machinery that is very good quality and because it would be more cost effective to buy it there then import it from the US.
That way you can do all your work in house and also do outside work from other shops. it it is as bad as you say over there for quality there would be enough of a market to take in work as well as do your own builds and have total control over quality.
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Re: 4 cylinder import engines, honing method

Post by BILL-C »

Using a flex hone by Brush Research on the bores can fix alot of surface finish sins. A flex hone can't fix any size or distortion problems, but if problem is only cylinder finish related, then it may help you.
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