John2189 454 #1 Posted June 19 Hi. While the piston is At the top of the cylinder, I can rock the piston on the wrist pin in the cylinder. Does that mean I need new rings? It doesn’t smoke or use oil. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 67,768 #2 Posted June 19 New rings wouldn't help piston movement. How much does it move?? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
John2189 454 #3 Posted June 19 I have it back together and it runs great. I didn’t measure but I push it down maybe 1/16”. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ebinmaine 67,768 #4 Posted June 19 1 minute ago, John2189 said: I have it back together and it runs great. I didn’t measure but I push it down maybe 1/16”. I'm not exactly an engine expert but I'd say that's excessive wear. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
8ntruck 7,034 #5 Posted June 19 I'm afraid that the proper fix for that would be to bore the cylinder and install an oversized piston. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
John2189 454 #6 Posted June 19 Kinda what I thought. I don’t use it that much, so I think I’ll run it as is for now 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
squonk 41,171 #7 Posted June 22 You can maybe run it for years. Or you can maybe run it for 10 minutes. I had a great running 16 HP Kohler that had most of one of the piston skirts laying in the oil pan. I chose not to run it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Handy Don 12,282 #8 Posted June 23 On 6/19/2024 at 12:14 PM, John2189 said: I have it back together and it runs great. I didn’t measure but I push it down maybe 1/16”. Motion should be zero or barely discernible. Yours is definitely heavily worn. As @squonk noted, it WILL fail. It could be soon or years and when it occurs, there is a high likelihood it will be the end-of-life for that engine. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites