Filing rings

[Goman]

I went ahead a bought some new rings. Is it ok to file rings as the one is at the bottom of the piston? I don’t know if the rings pictured were from the factory or not. The rings didn’t show much wear or carbon build up. The last ones I ordered I had them do it and they were filed a little on each end of the ring. It’s a Johnson A-25. As always thanks for your help.
Glen

[RICHARD A. WHITE]

If memory serves, the ring end gap is about .002-.003 per inch of bore. That is pretty close, so a 2 inch bore should have .004-.006 of gap between the ends WHEN the ring is installed in the bore. Take one ring, insert it in the bore, about 1/4 inch down, then use a feeler gage to check the gap. Use the bottom of your piston skirt to make sure the ring is level in there. This gap is imperative for when the engine heats up as the rings WILL expand and cant hit, so error on the bigger side of the gap allowance… This process is the same throughout ALL motors, now that being said, in some instances the gaps are mad different for a specific purpose. For the "normal outboards this is the rule of thumb.. Hope this helps and EVERY time you change rings this should be done.

Regards

Richard

http://www.richardsoutboardtools.com
classicomctools@gmail.com

[Goman]

Thanks Richard I see where I asked the question wrong. I was more concerned about the way I should be pinning the ring. I wasn’t sure if I should do it the way shown in the picture or file a little off the two top corners of the ring as the ring guy filed it last time I ordered rings. The specs show the gap to be .005-.012 I measured between .013-.014. My last motor the same size seems to run good with an even larger gap.

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