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Source for forged pistons


2eighTZ4me

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As the title says - just looking for a reasonable source for forged pistons. Motor will be used mostly on the track, under high(er) boost. Goal is a workable 400rwhp. I plan on having the car tuned at Balanced Performance on the dyno, so the tune will be good. I have a "mule" motor in the car now for tuning. There are those that say a stock motor is capable of the 400 figure with a spot-on tune. Well - I'm going to test that theory! The mule (F54/P79 dished pistons) only cost me $150, and I won't cry if I shred it in the tuning process.

 

Once tuned though - it's going straight to Road Atlanta for a NASA event with the mule in it (should it survive the dyno tuning). I will eventually need a backup motor, which is why I want to get started now. Slugs are the first thing on the list to procure, as I know it will take some time.

 

Ross has the flattops at MSA - that's too much compression for the amount of boost I'll be running. I need dished. I've tried Wiseco, and they won't call back. Nearly a month, and no reply. There's JE, and that's really about all the forged piston manufacturers that I'm aware of. Can anyone make any recommendations? I really just want a forged replacement for a stock dished piston.

 

The car will be limited to 7500rpm, but will probably see a boatload of boost to attain the goal. I will have ARP hardware throughout, and stock rods. Anything over 400rwhp will probably be unusable by the driver (me), so there's really no point in going above that figure for a track car. I do, however, want to have the ability to bump that figure in the future (safely), should my needs/driving skills change.

 

So what say ye good people???

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I'm just thinking that with both or one, you can forgo forged at that level, somewhat safely.

 

I THINK that if you dynomite cast/coated pistons (cambers as well), you would easily be out one set of forged pistons.

 

Just considering cost effectiveness.

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Call Ross directly and send them a sample of a turbo piston. Tell them what you need and they will do it. They might still have the piston specs they made me ( dished turbo with floating pins) on file. I ordered the pistons through Summit Racing to get the best price. This was about seven years ago now, and I got pistons, pins and rings for $463. I am sure it will be more now, though.

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  • 4 weeks later...

If you're using a p90 head like me, a .040 over l24 rod 2.8 piston of zero deckheight will get you a solid 8.5-8.7 cr. That's perfect for a turbo engine with only 1 bar of boost. Mid 7 cr is unnecessarily low. Also placing a fully dished piston under a kidney shaped combustion chamber is not ideal. If you want dished use a "reverse deflector" style piston. My AZZC pistons are forged and cost 600 with pins and rings and as mentioned work perfectly with stock 2.8 crank, L24 rods and are .040 over. These are flattop. Good luck.

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With a proper induction setup, 400HP will be available at 15 psi, no need for 'high boost', especially if you plan on camming and porting it to get it to run into the 7500 rpm range.

 

I would concentrate on making the engine like an N/A port wise, with a cam to match your rpm requirements, then select a turbo with flow capabilities for the HP, and run as little boost as you need to get the power you want.

 

JeffP is running 380HP at 8.39psi. That was before Methanol Injection. Power gobs to 7500rpms.

 

This is a FAR better solution for a track car than the 'Corky Bell Boost it till it blows' paradigm.

 

Coatings are insurance, but so is extra fuel. Tuning will be critical as with any boosted motor, loose fuel partially under boost and it doesn't matter what you have in there, it's going to blow.

 

IMHO, I'd run a stock Nissan Head Gasket and let it be the safety valve. Blowing a head gasket sucks, but 2 hours and a new gasket same day (between sessions trackside) sure as hell beats saying you got the whiz-bang special gasket and five pistons with sunken rings and watching the rest of the weekend go by...

 

Then again, a stock L28ET bottom end would make 400HP at only slightly more boost (say 18-20 instead of 13-15) if you swapped the head trackside and did a shortblock exchange to keep it going during the track weekend....

 

I digress... :P

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Tony - you ALWAYS digress! Funny - but your insight and information is priceless. I'm stuck with a Garrett T04 .60 trim turbo. I want 400rwhp with the ability to have a little leeway in case I wanted to up the boost to drag race some idiot ricer in a Honda at the strip. Mostly wanting to buy insurance with the setup. I have a 130K "mule" motor in the car now that's starting to smoke. I've been to one tuning session, and much to my chagrin, I could only make 4psi max. Well - found the boost leak and am going back next week to have it tuned by one of the best tuners in the Southeast - Ed Senf.

 

I am getting my hands on a diesel Maxima motor this week and will be putting together a stroker with a set of stock 240 con rods (9mm) with ARP bolts. I "do" want to get the power with as little boost as possible though - that leaves leeway to up the power if I ever needed to. I just want to make sure the engine will hold it. I know I've heard 400rwhp is do-able on a stock bottom end, but damn, I'm chicken!

 

I have spoken with Delta cams and have a stock Japan cam that I'm sending their way this week. $72 for a regrind - not bad! I have a P90 head that will be going to the machine shop soon as well. I'd like to do porting, but I think I can achieve my goal with boost/fuel, rather than shelling out big buxx for a Rusch, Sunbelt, or similar port job. I have the Lonewolf intake and 3" intercooler/piping, so I think my induction is up to snuff. Also running an Aeromotive A1000 fuel pump (the aluminum brick), with -8AN lines, and AZC 440cc injectors, so I think I'll have the fuel piece down.

 

I guess I'll have to wait and see what it does at the dyno next week (makes power - or sh**'s the bed) before making any hard fast decisions.

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Sorry I just noticed this post - I'm quite happy with the Diamond pistons that I'm currently using...

 

I had them ceramic coated and did the piston skirt coatings too.

 

piston1.jpg

 

piston4.jpg

 

The pistons were custom made from Diamond:

 

http://www.diamondracing.net/home.asp

 

The coatings were done by Dart:

 

http://www.dartheads.com/products/dart-coatings/dci-mos-teflon-skirt-coating.html

http://www.dartheads.com/products/dart-coatings/dc2-high-temperature-reflective-heat-barrier-coating.html

 

...they did my combustion chambers, exhaust ports and valves too, btw.

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