Engine experts take a look!

[PaulR]

I pulled the heads on my S3000 powerhead today after 2 1/2 summers of use. The motor always seemed to run very rich. It has stock F1 heads, A8 ECU, and I run it with pump gas and Amsoil 40:1

HOW DOES IT LOOK?

[PaulR]

#2

[PaulR]

#3

[PaulR]

#4

[PaulR]

#5

[PaulR]

#6

[ripperd2]

them are looking pretty rich. the only one that looks close to normal is the top on in the #6 pic.

[WATERWINGS]

How many hours is 2-1/2 summers?

I run over 100 hours a summer, (season)

You still have cross hatch in the walls.

[Capt.Insane-o]

And see if the pins are coming out.:eek:

[Liqui-Fly]

I gonna run Amsoil from now on.

David

[Raceman]

I've been kinda waitin' for John or Jay or Skip or Jeff, or one of several others to stick their 2 cents in 'fo I go stickin' my foot in my mouth, but I'm not used to seein' all that natural piston color on the piston tops on my stuff.............. looks almost washed in some areas to me. Seems like the picture of the number one and number 2 pistons are the ones that look the most like I'm used to seeing. Is the camera/light and my old eyes foolin' me, or do some of the cyl's look almost like a brown light rust tint also?

[PaulR]

The top two pic's are a bit blurry, and the brown tint on the cylinder walls is part reflection from the piston and part storage seal. I didn't want to wipe the cylinders completely clean as the motor will be sitting this way for a few weeks.

I want to have Jay light'n up the pistons and rods, but I don't know how much time I'll have to work on this. I have a set of 34cc heads coming and a A6 ECU, I was hoping to make it one more summer.

The summers are short up here so I'd say the motor has between 50 or 70 hours on it, I'm not really sure.

Thanks

[sosmerc]

Which Amsoil? Series 2000 racing oil? Or their "injector oil" or 100:1 Oil?
Did you do a compression check and or leakdown test prior to removing heads? Is that " "line" a measurable groove? That doesn't look good, but I'd say everything else looks good as far as color. Sure like to know what "numbers" you got if you did do some leakdown and compression checks.

[Liqui-Fly]

Looks exactly like the pictures I had taken of mine last year. Got a whole re-build and probably didn't need it. Digital cameras do funny things.

David

[Fish]

When there is that much buildup form runing rich, how does that effect performance? I generally run rich thinking that I would rather buy sparkplugs than a powerhead. I beleive mine probably look similar if not worse by now.

Do i need surgery? Is it bad to intentionally run a little extra oil in my gas?

I know this is a real bonehead type question, but I guess if the shoe fits...

Don't know if this helps, but here is a pick with the sparkplug out.

[Fish]

sorry for jumping in on your post with a question regarding my engine, hope you dont' mind.

[stvhelm]

when you get black build up on the piston tops your also getting it by the rings. it eventually binds up the rings.

[PaulR]

Amsoil Series 2000 racing oil for sure, I'm a retailer for it so I get a "Really" good deal on it if you know what I mean!

Fish: I think the motor is running rich because of the ECU and soft heads (37cc) not the mixture. The motor is on a stand right now so I couldn't take a compression test. I have a Balzy leakdown tester but I made the deal on the heads and had to get them sent out.

[us1]

How much RPM does the motor usually run at? Not top RPM but where it sees most of its run time. It looks totally water washed to me. I would say the exhaust divider is leaking on the starboard side and that or the base gasket on the port since only #6 is looking weird. The first thing I would do is water pressure test the divider plate looking for a CRACK and make sure you have been running a S3000 divider gasket and not a 260.

[PaulR]

I would have to say the motor runs in the 4000 to 6500 RPM range as I run 30P props. Peak RPM was only 8200.

[us1]

Thats why its black but it looks like a lot of water has been going through it too.

[CRMERC]

I am at a loss to decipher your question? The motor runs fine? Your question is about the clean pistons? About 5 years ago I made a 140 cross flow johnson for a freinds vandal that he drove unmercifuly for three seasons. In the third winter i took the heads off to find that i could still read the little stamp marks in the top of the weisco pistons. when i went to wipe the top of the pistons off with a rag and all of the carbon came off in one shot. Im guessing 200 hours 75 to 1 amsoil.

[Jay Smith]

Q-Shot

OK except for that line where a locator is possibly dragging. I have to agree with John , looks TOO clean to me. The discolorations in the center and toward the intake side of the piston maybe a water seepage problem ... Drag motors are nortorously leakers at the divider plate gaskets. The 260 had MUCH more meat for the divider plate to seal around the transfer water holes from the block to the divider plate Ialways take a SHARP punch and prick up around the four areas so that the block will bite the gasket. The trouble with Drags is that with the lack of meat ther to hold the gasket when one chops back the throttle the gasket is sucked into the exhaust cavity due to the hard drafting the motor is doing.

Don't get a "chubby" boys because of the Amzoil use most all 100% syn oils look that good or better..........The rings should be looked at for sure most of the new motors I have been building have the concaved rings flattened and doing damage to the top of the bores at 110 to 140 hrs.....Inspect the bores right at the top of the stroke ( TDC) and I bet you will find a roughness high in the bores. Also look carefully at the ring ( with the divider plate removed ) and the ring will have a diffenate line worn in the center of the ring the wider that band is the more wear is there. As the ring is concaved the more time and weaR THE MORE the ring wear pattern will look all silver when the ring wear pattern is all silver the rings is shot and is already doing damage to the bores !

Good luck,
Jay

[PaulR]

Well I decided to pull the pistons.

[PaulR]

Pistons 2

[PaulR]

piston

[PaulR]

another

[B. Vruwink]

Assume #5 is left bank viewing from rear. Tore down a motor with same line in cylinder this winter especting pin loose. No loose pin. All cylinders had fair amount of carbon buildup. Want to believe carbon let go in ring gap and caused mild scoring of cylinder.

while it is true spark plugs are cheaper than pistons, peak power is not produced until correct fuel/air mixture is obtained; if the fouling is from richness and not incombustible oil.

[Jay Smith]

Take a very close look at the rod bearing journals , I don't get a warm feeling about your Amzoil on that surface , looks like SH$^ if I see the picture correctly !

Pictures are sometime decieving....

[G-Train]

Originally posted by Jay Smith
Q-Shot

Don't get a "chubby" boys ..........

Jay

Jay,
I'll do anything to get a "Chubby"..."Chubby" good...

G