Piston rings / Liners

[AlleyNiki]

Hi fellas 

I bought some new pistons, liners and rings a while ago and it's about time I did the change over.

Hopefully you guys could help me with some questions - I checked the forum but couldn't find a post on what equipment you need..

1) Can I do this job without dropping the engine?

2) Is there some sort of tube shaped clamp required when refitting the pistons into the bores?

3) Anything critical to think about or any things I should do while the head is off?

Thanks for reading guys, sorry if this has been covered before! 

Alastair.

[Rusty's Uncle]

Yes you can do this leaving the crankcase in position. I would be inclined to drop off the sump and release the big end caps. Then when you lift off the cylinder barrels you can extract the pistons & conrods all in one piece. You will find it much easier to change the pistons and refit to the barrels working at a bench especially the delicate business of compressing the piston rings to fit inside the barrels. You will need some sort of ring compressor. I have sometimes used a large jubilee clip and also made a crude compressor using the tin plate from an old oil can. Note that the gudgeon pin is offset on the pistons so check out your manual. Try to space out the rings so the ring gaps are about 120 degrees apart around the piston. Tighten your compressor up tight then slacken it back a smidge so with a bit of lube you can tap the piston/conrod assembly into the barrels. Also the number stamps on the big end caps need to face the camshaft.
I assume that you have a new head gasket to fit.
Depending upon the wear/mileage on the engine you might consider new big end shells but if an engine has been well looked after they can be good for 100,000 miles 

[AlleyNiki]

Great! Thanks for the tips Rusty. Fortuneately, I can try the fitting on a bench without touching the car as I have new liners already. Got it all from 126fan.

Hopefully after this is done my vibration problems will go. I've always suspected one cylinder was down on compression.