[Rednecksnowmobiler]

I tore the heads off of my sled and one of the pistons had a little bit of side play in it. I was wondering if this was a sign of the rings failing.

 

[crdude]

my 98 engine has play with both pistons, obviecly its not a good thing. likly worn pistons/rings.. I replaced my head gaskits and checked my comp.. still pushing 120psi in each hole... thats almost like new comp. Im going to run it tell it stops.

 

[Ugly_old_Poo_kid]

The pistons should have some play in both directions. It is different in every motor, you'll need to look up what the proper spec is for your sled and how to measure it correctly.

Too much play will allow what's called "piston slap" where the pistons swing from side to side and slam into the cylinder walls. This won't hurt the walls too badly, but it will eventually shatter the piston causing all kinds of damage.

 

[90polaris500]

my cr125 has piston play and i just rebuilt it. even the seadoo has play and wiesco said there was no problem with that. as long as theres no compresion loss

 

[Ugly_old_Poo_kid]

my cr125 has piston play and i just rebuilt it. even the seadoo has play and wiesco said there was no problem with that. as long as theres no compresion loss

Be sure to let us know how long your motor lasts, and how expensive it is to rebuild, with too much piston play..