I just rebuilt my engine (first engine I have ever done) and I ground my rings to .022 and .020. Can't quite remember which one was the upper ring. I used the instructions that came with the rings and chose that number based on what it said to use for a N/A setup.

My question is: Does this mean I can NEVER spray or boost the engine? People seem to do this to stock engines all the time without issues. I think the factory sets ring gap to .018.

I will probably end up getting AFR heads when I have the cash, but would like to know if I can ever spray or boost the engine.

Thanks!

 

you can spray it, just don't go overboard on the amount used, the more spray the hotter the cumbustion can be, thus super heating the chambers, as more heat is generated = things expand , if things expand to much rings can butt together and crack

 

That's why I always gap mine larger than recommended. The sealing loss is minimal, in many cases not enough to even measure on a dyno in a typical street engine. Helps to account for transient leans, spray, boost etc. Gap depends on piston design, some pistons transfer more heat to the rings that others. If you gapped them tight(min recommended) then be conservative with spray and it wouldn't hurt to run it a bit on the richer side to keep the chamber cool.