Forged Piston Poll

[90GSX]

Engine rebuild is in the planning stages at the moment, but I'd like some opinions on Pistons. I'd rather not hear "JE's rule b/c Dave B run's them in his Talon Yo!" If you don't have, or have not used, or had experience with a particular brand, please keep your comments to a minimum. Thanks.

 

[L2RTSiAWD]

Weisco's are what's going in my built motor.

 

[larryd]

I asked around a while ago and the general consensus was the best pistons are ross pistons and crower rods

 

[HighPsi91]

They all just go up and down anyways. They are all good provided they are installed and clearanced properly.

 

[mrmadmax]

I'm building mine with Wiseco's as we speak. Wiseco's - $500; Eagle Rods - $339. That's pretty reasonable for forged parts. I'll post more when I finish it.

Larryd- How did they come to Crower/Ross being best? Are there failures with the other brands, or is it just popularity? I searched for info before buying, but I didn't come up with much.

 

[larryd]

Crower is what Ive been told by many people as being the best rods for the DSM.. I dont know why other then maybe there just stronger??

as for the pistons. I was told Venolia is the best but for the price Ross isnt far behind them. The reason the pistons were named better to me is becuase when the pistons heat up and you have clacking issues, the ross pistons dont expand as much as the other forged pistons and have less clacking.

 

[90GSX]

Thanks guys.

I've decided to use Ross pistons and Eagle rods.

The rest will include SS swirl polished valves, HKS 264/272 cams, Crower Springs & Retainers, ARP fasteners, Balance Shaft elim., Mild head porting/polishing... Pretty standard stuff.

 

[dyezak]

OK, I haven't seen a bit of useful info here yet, so I'll post it. You left out the most important part. Is the engine TOTAL strip or street/strip. If it is TOTAL strip you want a low silicone content piston that is high content aluminum. This gives you the most resistance against detonation. If it is street/strip you want a high silicone content piston to minimalize piston growth during warmup. The lowest silicone content piston out there is JE with Ross close behind, then there is Venolia with Weisco being the highest silicone content. So, for a street strip motor I'd use Weisco's or maybe Venolia's depending on how often I'm hitting the track. For a full race...JE's without a doubth.

What does silicone content have to do with a piston? Good question, remember that aluminum and steel expand at different rates, and your pistons are aluminum and your sleeves are steel. You have to have a HUGE clearance between JE's and your walls, that on start up and a cold engine gives you piston slap. The more silicone the less the piston expands and the tighter your clearances can be...therefore the less slap you will have and the longer the engine will last.

I'm using Weisco's and Eagle's in my car, but JE's and Crower's in our shop's track car. It all depends on the end use.