Pistons

[LordAthey]

JE PISTONS # 208478..... so i take my one piston to the machine shop cause the wrist pin is all messed up. He tells me that there is a good chance that the piston will break when he pushes it out no big deal. So he breaks it and orders me a new one (the link above). The problem lies here this is a different dish. The pistons out of the car were stock JE pistons (they were bored .20 and had the stock dish. They look exactly like a stock piston, just JE). The only reason why he couldn't ordered me one like my old pistons is that they don't make them anymore. So now i have 3 stock looking pistons to one looking like that with and inverted dome. Will this work if i put them back in the car? If you need a pic let me know. There's a pic on the website and I'm sure most of you know what a stock piston looks like ha ha.

 

[mitsuturbo]

Order 3 more pistons. There's no GOOD reason to run ONE different piston, and there are all sorts of good reasons NOT to.

don't ever buy JE again (just my opinion, as i have never liked JEs much)

 

[524of1000]

^+1 I wouldn't risk it.

 

[Terry Posten]

I agree to a point with the above statement.

I agree not to mix and match.

But as far as JE, they make good pistons. So do Aries, CP, Manley, Wiseco, etc...

The biggest factor in longevity is how they are assembled and the machine work to the block.

All pistons will fail if tolerances are too loose or too tight, or if the rings are not gaped and fitted properly. Or if you run it lean. etc...

If you are asking me, I would think twice about using a machine shop that actually would let you use a mismatched set of slugs.

I would recommend Class One Inc out of Freeport, IL or AutoRon's out of Davenport, IA.

Class One is the builder for Reichen's Evo (enough said) and AutoRon's are second to none for drag motors and circle track cars. I have used them both from everything from heads, blocks, full builds, and flywheel work.

Good luck.

 

[mitsuturbo]

My bitch with JE pistons is the grooved area of the piston. So called "anti detonation" grooves.
I don't care for the design, and as far as i have seen, it does more harm than good if something goes awry. I've taken supposedly well tuned engines apart that had bent valves or a bad bearing, and seen some pretty strange looking things around the intake valve reliefs and those grooves. It almost seems like it harbors detonation in that area. Ive never seen this with Ross pistons... even those that ran FAR too lean and with too much boost. They may have had the black death, but didn't look detonated all to hell on the crowns.
I've run JEs because they were cheap, and they did OK. I never had a piston related failure. I have just seen a few that didn't look so hot after being used for a while.

 

[Terry Posten]

I run JE and do not have any issues. I can run 17psi from a PTE6152R/BC280 on 93 pump without any detonation. My car used to have Wiseco and they rattled and knocked like crazy.

But it was not Wiseco's issue, it was the build of that setup.

Properly setup, ANY piston made for forced induction will peform well and last a long time. IF you take care of your setup.

 

[cheekychimp]

Terry,

I also sent Class One an email and never even got a reply back. I know these shops are always getting dumb emails from 15 year old kids who want to be the next Shep and so on but I think you know me well enough to know i don't drop those kind of emails. I was surprised because Chris recommended them too. It's kind of off topic I guess but in the same way that people say they wouldn't use an engine shop that would allow you to use mismatched slugs, I feel wary about dropping several thousand dollars on an engine build when the guys can't even be bothered to send me an email. It happened with TRE, it happened with Shearer. They make great products but the don't seem to be great on PR or customer relations.

That or my SPAM filter needs retraining again!!!

 

[LordAthey]

Well thanks guys this just puts me in a spot. Looks like waiting some more.

 

[ApexHunter]

I gotta stick up for JE here.....

I had the opportunity to tour the facility semi-recently and they really have an incredible operation there. I made a thread which can be viewed here.

They have been making pistons for something like 60 years and supply to many successful high level racing teams, many of which using forced induction, as well as being NASCAR's spec piston. The r&d and engineering that goes down there is insane, they have pioneered some really cool processes for design and testing. I always thought JE was just another big name with a lot of hype. They have been around a long time for good reason though, it definitely is not one of those situations where they have just let their name carry them this far. As far as i can tell they still lead the pack.

I can't speak on what mitsuturbo has experienced, but it definitely sounds like something to call JE about. I'm having a tough time believing that JE would design let alone sell a piston that had a design that encourages detonation.