Classic Mustangs (Tech) Technical discussions about the Mustangs of yester-year.

Cutting down a piston????

Old 09-06-2007, 03:42 PM
  #1  
boogerschnot
5th Gear Member
Thread Starter
 
boogerschnot's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Ramona, CA
Posts: 2,682
Default Cutting down a piston????

So, my engine builder was finally buttoning up my motor, putting the pistons in and the Speed Pro pistons he had ordered were just barely too tall for the block. Anyone ever have this happen.. The guy said it would probably not hurt anything, just that the compression would go up a little, and I could have some valve slap.. But we decided to go ahead and shave down the tops of the pistons to fit correctly.. Anyone see any problems with that? Im not sure what the part number is of the piston..
boogerschnot is offline  
Old 09-06-2007, 03:50 PM
  #2  
RHuckster
2nd Gear Member
 
RHuckster's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: California
Posts: 411
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

Hmm..well...lets see...all the heat is on the top of the piston as well as the piston compressing your air/fuel mixture. I guess it depends on how much meat was cut off & how much is still there. How can the pistons be to tall? Did someone shave the crap out of the deck?

Rick
RHuckster is offline  
Old 09-06-2007, 03:57 PM
  #3  
RobbieG.
1st Gear Member
 
RobbieG.'s Avatar
 
Join Date: Jun 2007
Location:
Posts: 106
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

If your talking.005 or .010 it would be ok. Anymore than that I'd be looking for a differant piston.
RobbieG. is offline  
Old 09-06-2007, 04:05 PM
  #4  
JMD
6th Gear Member
 
JMD's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: AR
Posts: 5,469
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

It should be ok,,, might change your balance a little....but probably not enough to make any difference.

How much is barely??
JMD is offline  
Old 09-06-2007, 04:36 PM
  #5  
67mustang302
6th Gear Member
 
67mustang302's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: California
Posts: 10,468
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

Yeah, you can have the pistons sticking out above deck some, as long as the quench height is correct
67mustang302 is offline  
Old 09-06-2007, 05:28 PM
  #6  
Starfury
6th Gear Member
 
Starfury's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2007
Location: Elk Grove, CA
Posts: 5,896
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

ORIGINAL: RobbieG.

If your talking.005 or .010 it would be ok. Anymore than that I'd be looking for a differant piston.
+1

How is it that your engine builder didn't take this into account? Either these pistons are designed to be like that, or your block has been decked way too much and you could possibly have intake sealing issues.
Starfury is offline  
Old 09-06-2007, 05:30 PM
  #7  
my77stang
6th Gear Member
 
my77stang's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Citrus County, FL
Posts: 8,007
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

decked block is what it sounds like to me, what motor is this? maybe a 302 crank with 289 rods or something? that would stick em outta the hole.

your head gasket is about .040 crushed, so you can get away with a little sticking up - but you have to "****" the piston side to side and measure how far it was sticking up there, not just when the piston is centered in the hole @ TDC
my77stang is offline  
Old 09-07-2007, 02:06 AM
  #8  
boogerschnot
5th Gear Member
Thread Starter
 
boogerschnot's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: Ramona, CA
Posts: 2,682
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

Im not too sure,, how much it was sticking up.. I would guess about a finger nails worth.. Probably between .025-.030 of an inch.. They decided to just mil the pistons,, You know,, i was thinking about the crank Idea.. and the guy who sold me the car did say it was a 302 from the begenning,, but maybe it was just built with a few 302 components.. I dont know.. I will have it back tomorrow to sit in the garage for another week so that I can weld my shock tower cracks up... and then finally get her back in and running... Im getting depressed just thinking about having to wait even longer... But hey,, I thought I wouldnt get this dont until October , so I guess Im actually ahead of schedule..

The glass is half full for now,, at least until i do something like burn a big hole through my shock tower with a mig welder...
boogerschnot is offline  
Old 09-07-2007, 05:38 AM
  #9  
Norm Peterson
6th Gear Member
 
Norm Peterson's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: state of confusion
Posts: 7,635
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

Boss 302 rods?

Norm
Norm Peterson is offline  
Old 09-07-2007, 07:36 AM
  #10  
my77stang
6th Gear Member
 
my77stang's Avatar
 
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Citrus County, FL
Posts: 8,007
Default RE: Cutting down a piston????

is the motor supposed to be a 289, or 302?

if the motor is still on the stand and the oil pan is off you could check the casting numbers and see WTF is going on there. a 302 crank should be a 2M or 2MA if i remember correctly, and a 289 crank would be a 1M (again, IIRC)
my77stang is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread
Quick Reply: Cutting down a piston????



All times are GMT -5. The time now is 03:54 AM.