Re ringing a Cub

[thdrduck]

Has anyone just re ringed their Cub? I just got it started after a no oil pressure situation (new to me). Primed the pump and let it sit for a few days, it spun over fine and when it started... well I'll just say she is a poster child for OPEC.
Oil pressure looked respectable and no rod knock but lots of valve clatter. Some smoke coming out of the dip stick so pretty sure the rings are toast. Don't know if I really want to do a full overhaul.
Just wondering. Pull the head, drop the pan and for about $100 bucks she could have new rings or would I just be wasting my time (think I already know the answer).

 

[old]

New rings might get you by or it maybe a waste of $$. Only way to know for sure is measure the bore and see how close to spec the bore is. I know at one time they offered over size rings for some engines. The owners manual that came with my 1935 JD B has info about over size rings. Manual is the original manual that came with the tractor when it was new

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

It might be worth it "for science." Lots of guys have done a simple re-ring, didn't even measure anything, and are happy with their results. That's despite the warnings of the "only way to do it is my way, the right way" crowd.

All you're out is your time and $100 for the rings.

Then again, maybe your rings are just sticky, and some run time and work will loosen them up.

 

[thdrduck]

I didn't start turning a wrench until the early 70's but I recall it being fairly common in the 40's and 50's to just re ring a motor but I have never done just that. I sort of feel like this Cub has never been apart and was no longer used after she lost compression and oil burning got out of hand.
I guess I'll just need to pull the head and see how bad it is.

 

[fastfarmall]

Well i started twisting wrench's in the late 50's, the old boy in my home town was a perfectionist, he would measure the cylinder taper with a taper dial gauge, if it was over ten thousands,he would rebore it, he had his own boring bar, did all his own work, including valve guides,if it less then ten thousands he would just rering it,with the owner consent,the other mechanics like to do ring work it was faster to get him out the door, and get the money, so its your call with the results you get,but you might need to run a hone down the walls, to beak the glase.

 

[the tractor vet]

well it is like this , if she is smoking/ BLOW BY then a doubt wasting your time and money on rings will solve it . The bore will be out of round and like said a taper . So it is time to bore it along with any other pieces and parts that need to become Toyota pieces and parts. our only big major problem is hoping that it has not been bored already to the max .

 

[rustred]

tear it apart look things over, a set of rings might get you buy. i have seen only rig jobs work with a ridge u can catch your finger nail
on. couple of hundred bucks is a good experiment, nothing to loose.

 

[gbs]

I shouldn't tell this as sounds like a lie but it will give you something to think about. To start with I wouldn't do it again, but my wife's uncle
had a gmc pickup with a 250 six cylinder that someone else had recently put rings and rod bearings in and it was smoking and ran rough. So he
started worrying me about fixing it which i wanted no part off, because I new he wanted a patch job . I was only 19 at the time and his persistence
over came my standards of engine repair, when i pulled the head the previous work was done without even ridge reaming the block to get the pistons
out of a block that needed to be bored .040 over to clear up 2 of the cylinders. I told him it had to be bored and he just insisted that rings and
rod bearings was all he wanted put in it .I finally gave in with the understanding that he would tell no one i done it and it was his whether it ran
or not. Sure enough even though it spun over fine the compression was so low i couldn't get it to start, so i pulled with the tractor to get it
started it fired right up, I let it run for a little while shut it off had pull start it again, this time i drove it about 6 miles all the smoke
cleared up and it ran fine so i drove it on to the field where he was at left it running and told him that i had to pull start it, he switched it
off and said if it don't start i'll pull it with one of the 4 tractors in that tater field, he rattled on for a couple minutes, his son walked up
reached in a hit the switch it fired right up. i told him again it yours if it don't leave this field, they drove that thing hard and every time he
would see me he would brag about how good it ran, don't remember now how long he drove it, but to this day i don't understand how it held together.

 

[old]

The old Chevy 250 was like a few others. Almost bullet proof. Same with the Dodge 225 slant 6 and the Ford 600 6. I have had all 3 and ran then hard

 

[fastfarmall]

Say old, did u watch the You Tube Clip on the 300 Ford 6 cyl, it's there if u want to watch it, they started with a 300 cubic in Industrial 6 and they got 338 Lb Feet of torque out of it,270HP,with no turbo, i thought that was outstanding !!! It started out at 88 hp. The cylinder walls were perfect so they didn't have to bore it.

 

[old]

I don't do many if any you tube stuff. That 600 should have said 300 by the way. I have a 1965 Ford 1 ton with a 300 six in it with 88,898 miles on it as in under 100K miles

 

[BarnyardEngineering]

A 600 cubic inch straight 6 would be quite a machine, I'd think. Just the sound it would make...

 

[fastfarmall]

Oh i assumed that's what u meant, but if u seen this you tube clip you would be impressed !

 

[SDE]

I put rings in my 400. I don't work it hard or long. Everything has been fine for the last 15 years that I have had it in use. Back then, a co-worker said to me, Oil is cheap. Meaning for as much as it will cost to fix the problem, you can buy a lot of oil.
The more the rings wear, the more wear that there will be in the cylinder. So replacing the rings will only be fixing half of the problem. By renting the ridge reamer from a parts store and removing the ridge at the top of the cylinder, you can get a considerable improvement, without spending a lot of money.
It's your tractor and so it is your call. Do what you are comfortable with. Just know that going half way, will not give a perfect tractor engine.

 

[thdrduck]

My gut tells me to just dump it and try to get my money back. Not knowing what the rest if it is like and the fact it does need rear tires, it could really turn into a money pit. It does have a Woods mower (that needs work also) and that's what I wanted it for, a spare mower.
No hurries so maybe I'll squirt some ATF in the plug holes, turn it over and let it set for a bit in hopes (really stretching here) that the rings are "stuck". That will give me time to hash it all over but I'm pretty sure someone will need to do an overhaul if tiny tractor is ever going to work again.

 

[Brownie450]

You say there's a lot of valve clatter.
I'd set the valve lash & then start it up again
to see how things are. Valves out of adjustment
by a lot can show up as blow by.
Jim

 

[Ken Hansen]

(quoted from post at 12:03:42 04/08/21) My gut tells me to just dump it and try to get my money back. Not knowing what the rest if it is like and the fact it does need rear tires, it could really turn into a money pit. It does have a Woods mower (that needs work also) and that's what I wanted it for, a spare mower.
No hurries so maybe I'll squirt some ATF in the plug holes, turn it over and let it set for a bit in hopes (really stretching here) that the rings are "stuck". That will give me time to hash it all over but I'm pretty sure someone will need to do an overhaul if tiny tractor is ever going to work again.

Where is this Cub hiding? Wish it was in Central NY I'd be tempted to consider buying it, not that I really need more projects but...

 

[thdrduck]

It would be a bit of a haul for you Ken, it's resting comfortably in a garage in West Central Wisconsin. I'm starting to feel a bit stupid so I think I'm going to tear into it. What the hell, it's only money.

 

[Janicholson]

Re ring a .005 taper bore anything more. Jim

 

[Tom Massachusetts]

(reply to post at 23:36:06 04/07/21)

ne of my first cars was a 50 Chev. The PO had put in new rings and no bore. Smoked like a chimney. An old timer told me to dump in Bon Ami cleanser while running it hard. Did it, had nothing to lose. Ran it for a year after and no smoke. Did use some oil but no noticeable smoke. A friend did blow a rod on the highway. The old Babbitt pounders could not take the high speeds when they got that old. This was 1962 and it had almost 100K on it.

 

[thdrduck]

I know if you put in new rings and don't run a hone down the bores you will never get the rings to "seat" and she will burn oil. I suspect that pouring cleanser down her throat and running it was sort of like honing the bores on the fly. Would never have thought of doing that (and probably won't) because it makes me cringe just to think of it.

 

[Ken Hansen]

Well just for fun do a search on this:

7F5225 Break-in Powder

Yes! Cat actually had a part number for Bon Ami back in the day!

 

[Bob 7337]

Do what you want. Little blowby not going to hurt a thing. Of it was me if it didnt smoke much out stack and dont foul plugs
just leave it alone. Maybe adjusy valves and be done. If you tear into it and do everything correct way you will spend to much
on it for what it is worth