Hi Michael,
I'd be willing to bet these are Mahle (sp?) pistons. They are the most
common 87mm's and sell in that price range. I haven't personally used
them, but know a few who have and say they are just fine.
I did recently look over & discuss a Mahle set that BP Northwest had on
display at a Brit car show. Plus I happen to have a set of AE Hepolite
Powermax 87mm in the garage awaiting my engine rebuild. (Your 40 yr. old
OEM are probably AE... hard to find, roughly 50% more expensive &
reportedly a bear to get the rings to bed in, but supposedly
bullet-proof after that) I would say the Mahle quality looks very
comparable and I would certainly consider them next time around.
IMHO oversizing is at the basis of any rebuild if your goal is to put
together a stronger, upgraded engine.
Plus, if you are having to replace those bits & pieces anyway, why not
go up a notch or two? The only downside I can think of is that the next
time a rebuild is needed, will there be an oversize 87mm piston & rings
available? It may require a complete piston/liner replacement again. Of
course, if it lasts another 40 years, we'll all probably just be DPO's
that someone else is swearing at, and cars will probably be running on
some sort of cold fusion reactor anyway.
Here's something else I heard recently: 87 mm is equivalent to a .060"
oversize 86mm piston. Or, it would be had there been such a thing. TR's
largest oversize was .040", I think.
The only reason I bring that up is because there are 87.5 mm kits out
there. Heck, I've even seen 89mm, but I guess those get pretty expensive
because the liners are pretty thin by then and require some pretty close
attention to make them strong enough.
Just how fast does Beau want to go?
Good luck with your decision!
Alan Myers
San Jose, Calif.
'62 TR4 CT17602L
Michael Marr wrote:
>
> I noticed in Moss' latest sale flyer that they have an 87 mm piston and
> liner kit on sale for $399.95.
<snip>
>
> Michael Marr
> Whitewater Lake, WI
> 1960 TR3A, wreathed in blue smoke...
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