Wa_ndro, you mean
inside the min. specs., right? It was .33mm at 40 hrs. and now with new rings it's at .4 mm. It sounds to me like the end gaps were not exactly right from the start on both or at least the top was excessive, if the top was so large and the bottom so tight.
Regardless, if she's running good, she is good. In my field there is a saying..."if it measures good and sounds bad it is bad, if it measures bad and sounds good it is good". I am always curious as to why things are as they are and I like to know as much as I can.
Jakobi, I really respect your opinions and thoughts....It does make sense to me the top ring could wear faster, I have a couple guys who would know right off if this is common and I'll ask them about it.
I agree stuff should be changed. I've just never wore a dirt bike out to where I thought I needed to do anything. Hell, my XR 250 went 15 years with nothing but oil changes....I never even adjusted the valves. Thought about it a couple times, then decided to ride instead.
Dang it, it just occurred to me.....I have seldom if ever replaced engine parts over the life of my bikes over the last 50 years I've been riding. I've not had but one catastrophic engine failure and that was on a "built to the gills" '97 CR250 R, She was bad ass. and finally spit a crank bearing after following my wife around on her Honda CRF150F for 25 miles through tight woods in 100 degree heat. She was a beast and deserved the rebuild she got. She was tricked out with every thing you can imagine. The porting, the crazy head, the cut slide, the stupid made no sense jetting.....
She did not die from neglect, she died because her heart (crank bearings had finally had it) gave out BUT she required no more money or work to bring her back to that tight 18 year old girl that she used to be.
It can be argued her rings were worn and she was a little tired but had I done a top end I would have had to do it again when she spit the bearing. Since I had her for several years what if I had done a top end twice? I would have wasted money since the rings/piston made it past the crank bearings.
So, in my long winded way............who has had engine failures from neglect and who has had engine failures even with periodic rebuilds.
My guess is that there are little differences in catastrophic failures between the groups. If enough oil is used...hahahahh.
Remember, I do NOT race, I just ride race bikes
Ed
Always a delicate topic, but it really comes down to personal preference. You use more oil, and change parts less often. Others run leaner ratios and change things periodically. At between 40-50:1 I still have enough oil floating around to see things are well lubricated so I'm happy with that. At 100hrs I have evidence of blow by, larger ring ends gaps, and usually with a stock cast piston some signs of wear on the skirt. Perhaps this wouldn't happen with higher volumes of oil? Maybe it would?
