78 liquifire pistons HELP

[skoalmint]

Hello there.I am having a terrible time trying to get a good set of pistons .020 over.I have had two sets of pistons,two sets of LLP, and the quality is horrible.The top ring is giving me fits ,it wont seat properly.I have tried switching the rings,New rings.The pins are lined up,rings the right direction.The top ring groove is .003 to .005 smaller than the bottom ring groove but if you mic the rings they are the same thickness with no taper on the ring.I would love to have a set of wisecos. Does anyone know if wiesco will still make those pistons? What pistons are you guys using and what results are you getting.I guess my next try will be with SPI.But someone told me that one company makes all of the (taiwan made pistons). Is this true? Does anyone have a set that they would like to sell.WHAT HAPPEND TO GOO QUALITY PISTONS? I have put way too much time in restoring this machine to start using junk now.Any help or insight would be greatly appreciated Thanks Brock

[skoalmint]

Oh by the way this is a 440 liquifire .Thank again Brock

[harleysportster]

I understand that SPI are decent. Did you try DennisKirk. They had a supply of nos JD pistons.
http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/search/se ... Categories
http://www.denniskirk.com/jsp/search/se ... rchbtn.y=8

[skoalmint]

Hello there.Thanks for the reply Harleysportster.Yea i have the dennis kirk book,but i didnt know what brand of pistons they send.Maybe it says on the web page.Yes they do have NOS jd pistons but they are only .010.I have a set of the .010 overs they are kioritz pistons and excelent quality.Do you know if wiseco would still possibly make these pistons on request?If you would hold one of the Kioritz pistons in one hand and the LLP in the other you would never believe that they are for the same engine.Thanks Brock

[JDT]

Sounds like one of your pistons failed to get pulled out by QC.

Try sending it back and ask them to replace it.

There is now question that the fit and finish on OEM pistons and Wiseco pistons is better than cheap aftermarket ones.

Others have inquired to Wiseco about reruns of old pistons. If you are willing to by 100 of them they will do it.

Another option would be to work the grove with a small file to get it to mic out true.

[skoalmint]

Hello there.I am going to have a friend of mine contact wiseco.He spends alot of money a year on wiseco pistons.I will keep the site posted.Is anyone else interested in some wisecos?I dont know who you guys have contacted about 340/s pistons or dator pistons,oversize or whatever but i cant think of any that would be better than wiseco!Thanks Brock

[Matt]

Yes, contacts have been made at Wiseco and quotes done about 295/S and 340/S pistons, and 'Dator pistons have been done (Someone owns the rights to them). The issue is cost and having enough people interested to cover the minimum.

[HoosierDeereMan]

Brock,

I'm not bad mouthing Wiseco. They make excellent pistons! However they are in the business of supply and demand. That means if you are looking for late model pistons they will have them due to high demand. If you are looking for vintage pistons you are at the mercy of what might be left on the shelf because in their eyes there is little or no demand. If they still have the tooling to make these pistons they will require a large run that you will have to pay for. If they don't have the tooling they will want big money up front to pay for design work and tooling and you still have to pay for a large run of pistons. They may also try to make your pistons from an existing piston style they offer and you may not be very happy with. Again I'm not picking on Wiseco. I'm just telling you from past experience what you will most likey run up against.

If you really can't find suitable replacement pistons after market I would suggest having your cylinders re-sleeved and using your .010" over Kioritz pistons. It would be much cheaper!

Troy

[lwb140]

i while back i bought a bunch of 340 and 440 case reed pistons . when we went to use them instead of 5 pr of stds i had 9 rights and 1 left , anyway in mic-ing them they were all pretty round but the ring grooves were all pretty poopy i ordered 8 lefts from dk and they were fine . i think one company makes all the aftermarket ones they all look tthe same anyhow wade

[JDT]

I think your correct Wade.
Seams like all the Made in Tiwain pistons are the same regardless of brand.