assembly lube

I'm assembling a big block for race only application.Am mainly interested in piston/cylinder/ ring assembly lube.What have you used in this specific area of assembly when the engine won't be run immediately. It will sit for a while before firing up, as I haven't put the trans together yet. Thanks, Bill

Yo Bill ... last one I did was with a straight 30 weight oil with high zinc ....,

Kendall I believe...

STP . My favorite

Ya that was probably 30 years ago. Lol 😂
Kendal oil changed names at least twice since then. Brad Penn and now Penn Grade. Still great oil.

nothing but wd 40 here. never failed

That Puttsylvania oil can’t be beat !

I still have HALF A CASE of oil that has followed me around the last THIRTY? years ......

Me thimks It came from my grandpa !

Scheafer 20w-50 racing oil. It looks kinda greenish. That is some sticky stuff.

Brian

You guys put some pretty heavy stuff on the rings(except the WD40 guy) I use Castle brand lube called Thrust on all my ring/piston assembly jobs. It's a little thicker than WD40 so it should hang in there longer until you fire it up.
Gus

Lots of ideas here.I'm sure they all work well. My main concern is what will remain effective if I store it for a while before I fire it up. Thanks, Bill

I use 5W20Wt on all the bearing ,pistons and rings, cylinders walls get lube off of the residual oil on the rings and piston skirts and I wipe the cylinder walls several times to get the excess oil off of the cylinder walls with a clean white rag to get them as clean as possible after thoroughly cleaning them before assembling the short block. No assembly lube for me, the motor runs on oil, correct
I use the cam lube call for by the cam maker on the lobes if it is flat tappet type cam and not a roller cam and lifter
you can not keep the motor to clean while prepping it and assembling it.
I do prime the motors and rotate them over on the engine stand with the spark plugs out and again before starting them in the car or on the engine dyno with the starter with the plugs out

I have been told by guys who build a lot of serious engines not to make the rings and lands sloppy wet as the oil creates issues, coking, etc on start up. In the old days, guys used to dunk the piston in a bucket of oil before installing it. Not good.

I use motor oil on the cylinder walls, rings, skirts, etc. Not dripping wet, just lubed. Bearings, cams, rocker gear, etc. gets GM EOS. I have some of the good old high zinc stuff that has followed me around over the years.

Pre-lube just before starting is also done.

Total Seal recomends using a powder they sell on rings, seats the rings faster, I used it and appears it works ok.

I've never had a ring seal problem even when I use to dip the complete piston in oil and never wipe the cylinder walls down to remove the excessive oil
I have also tried installing the rings and piston dry using the old Total Seal recommendation on their zero gap rings back in the mid 1970, only once though

A few drops of oil in the ring grooves, wipe some oil on the skirts. WD40 on the cylinder wall after they have been thoroughly cleaned with ATF.
Doug

How about the famous Lubriplate ? I have two cans of that that I inherited

But use it sparingly

NOT like some old here that use and aBuSe smilies !

Nothing on the rings. Ever.

Wipe the bores with a white lint free cloth and Marvels Mystery oil, ATF or even WD-40 until the cloth comes out clean. Then put NOTHING on the cylinder walls unless you are using Total Seal’s powder or paste or whatever it is.

Then you use a QUALITY assembly lube and just put a light coating on the skirts. Real light. It should just cover the skirts and that’s it.

As you assemble the short block, you will notice that the lube on the skirts will migrate all around the bores, the rings will be LIGHTLY lubricated by that and there isn’t a bunch of oil loaded behind the rings. The engine will fire quickly, won’t smoke and the rings will be 99% seated before the engine runs 5 seconds.

You can see this on the dyno. Instead of the first 10-12 pulls showing big power gains as the rings come in, the power will be relatively stable as you begin your dyno work.

I use Torco assembly lube for everything. I never use oil. There is a separate cam lube and engine assembly lube. I don’t like assembly lubes that look like grease or pastes except for flat tappets.

STP on bearings. Oil on everything else

If you don't run your engine right after assembly, it turns yellow and hardens. So much for lubrication there. I haven't used lubricate in years...

LUBRIPLATE ? turns yellow and hardens ??

Rings go on the pistons dry. But I do make the face of them wet while doing the same to the skirt just before dropping it in the hole. I just don't want anything to be dry as a popcorn fart while assembling, rotating or on start up.

The OP was specifically asking about what would be OK sitting around for potentially an extended period of time without being started. Are people saying what they have suggested will last months/years on an engine in storage?

Or if not, what would have the best chance to last a long time just sitting in storage?

I had a freshly overhauled engine lock up 10 or 15 years ago. It had sat for maybe a year (had been stored in the office of the shop). Its hard to remember exactly how long it sat around. I would recommend turning it over from time to time. Maybe every 3 months. If you can turn it monthly so much the better.

Fresh hone on the cylinders is different than the polished surface after the engine is broken in. If I recall the rings had slightly (very slightly) rusted to the cylinders

Exit1965, you are correct in stating that the engine may sit in storage 3-6 months after assembly before being fired up.All of the suggested ideas would probably be effective for engines fired up soon after assembly, but I would like to protect the fresh cylinder walls while it sits. Funding due to retirement and a couple surgeries a while back have slowed the progress of this total car build. I still have to build the trans before I can can fire up the motor. I've built many engines before but most were fired very shortly after the build. Just looking to cover my bases. You all know how much time and MONEY you can tie up in a race motor. Thanks again, Bill

Maybe I'm old, but I've used Lubriplate for fifty years, and I don't spare it. After inititial fire up I change oil pretty much right away. It's always worked well for me.

Purely for protection while stored? JB80. And most important, stored in a location that is climate controlled.

Since the early 80's