Composite Rngs?

[Coyote]

Guys, I'm not really comfortable with these GT550 rings. I got them from Paul Miller yesterday. These are obviously made of 2 different materials. Notice the irregularity in the thickness of the overlay. If you flip the ring over, it looks just the opposite as if the ring sides were slanted when whatever that is was applied. Anyone ever use these? I wonder if they are for the nakasil lined cylinders found in Europe. They were in the correctly marked box, but coming from PM that doesn't mean a whole lot.

[Suzukidave]

http://www.oldjapanesebikes.com/mraxl_G ... 50-28.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[JFISHSOLEVIBE]

Both top and bottom slot use the same ring correct? They are just both keyed. If I'm right the ring will not compress if it is in upside down right?

[Coyote]

What's that supposed to tell me?. I've rebuilt before and I know about the keystone rings. I'm concerned about the composition of these rings.

[yeadon_m]

The 550 nikasil rings are of one material - cast iron. Slightly less shiny than the chrome-faced rings for the iron liner motors (which is composite only in the sense of a very thin layer of chrome on the wear surfaces only).
I've held both in my hands, and neither look anything like the coppery colour in your image. I cannot make out whether yours in a plated ring, I can't make out enough structural detail. But, if that colour rendition is accurate, I'm not sure they're GT rings.
Mike

[Coyote]

The colors are not accurate. The inner part is nearly black and the outer part looks like nickel or dull chrome. It is silver.

[yeadon_m]

OK, but still, my old rings (iron with chrome plate) looked one colour when viewed from top like yours and only shiny is turned on edge.
I have no idea what those rings are, sorry. I don't know much about rings.
Mike

[Vintageman]

The colors are not accurate. The inner part is nearly black and the outer part looks like nickel or dull chrome. It is silver.

Don't undertsand what you are saying. And, that picture has a rust colored hue to it? Are they tarnished

It looks to me like the layer on the edge (rubs cylinder wall) is the moly coating to aid ring break in, but again I am not 100% sure what you mean

[Suzukidave]

Will that rusty coloring come off at all with like a 3m pad ? Looking at other 550 rings he has for sale you can see the lighter edge but not the odd color http://www.ebay.com/itm/Suzuki-gt550-no ... d5&vxp=mtr" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Alan H]

Early UK (iron bores) and other markets had chrome faced rings for better wear capabilities.
When Suzuki went to Nikasil bores,(and different Schneurle port systems), as you don't run chrome/plated surfaces as they don't seal, they went to softer (unplated) rings so, so long as they are keystone shape and fitted the right way up, they should be OK. So long as bore wear wasn't out of spec, you can re-ring these barrels.
Remember that the plated bores were not reboreable without being replated to the original bore size, and no oversize pistons were available for Nikasil barrels.
You can't run hard/hard facings, or soft/soft facings. Only hard/soft or soft/hard.
The more I work on Suzukis, the more I realise I don't know as they changed stuff so often in the 70s as technology jumped, that everything wasn't logged. Interesting though, being able to still learn now as things changed back then.
I suppose that's why so many are still running/being restored as more folks find they are relatively unstressed and willing to give more power than others of the same era.

Good learning curve wasn't/isn't it?

[Coyote]

The white balance was set for fluorescent and I shot under incandescent light. That's what gives the pic that yellowy tint. They look exactly like the other rings he has posted.
Thanks Dave. I guess I never realized rings were chrome plated. I buffed one of the rings that came out of this motor. I can see it on the original ring now.

[pull the wire]

The coloring looks just like my new Wiseco rings. It may be part of the plating process. This is the ring info from Wiseco for their CD series rings

Alloy steel, ferrox coated, chrome faced, internally notched

Maybe a similar process that Suzuki adopted over the years

[Vintageman]

Best I can see his other rings look like they have the light gray Moly break in coating only.

[Coyote]

When I was working we used to farm out some parts for Metalloy. Metalloy is similar to hard chrome except the deposit rate is super slow. It take 2-3 days just to put on a few tenths of a thousandth. It had super lubricity properties. That's what these rings look like they have on them but I know it's not. The color is the same though. Metalloy, though hard and slick did not lend itself to grinding. It tended to ball up. That's why it was applied after the part was finish ground.
I'll take a few pics outside in the daylight tomorrow. Maybe the camera will produce more accurate colors.