Ford Power Stroke Nation banner

coated pistons & bearings

5K views 15 replies 9 participants last post by  SIR-STROKEALOT 
#1 ·
Are coated pistons and bearings worth the extra cost? Im currently in the process of an engine build and was wondering if I should pay the extra for it or if itd just be a waste of my money.
 
#3 ·
Every engine that I have put together for the last 20 years has been coated.

Here is my rundown on the pros of coating.

1. Engine bearings. Provides superior cold crank/ oil starvation portection.

2. Piston skirt coatings. Also provides superior luberication.

3. Piston ceramic top coatings. This to me is where it really begins to pay off, as this coating helps to retain the fuel burn in the cylinder. This coating also helps to keep heat from being transfered through the piston top into the oil.

4. Coating the cylinder head surfaces. Once again it contains the heat in the area is was meant to burn and retards heat from being transfered through the head into the cooling system. I also coat the backs of the exhaust vavle up to the area where it will work in the valve guide and the exhaust runner area.

5. Now comes the strange part. Coating the crankshaft won't really do any good on the 7.3, because we don't turn it high enough, but after 5000 rpm, I use to see 5 to 8 horsepower by coating the crankshaft non bearing surfaces with a super slick coating. Trouble is that it doesn't do anything below those RPM numbers.

6. Coating the intake runners on the inside. If you want to really your air charge to flow, coat the inside of the intake runners. Playing with a rice rocket intake, we were able to flow bench a gaing of nearly 5% in flow.

7. Coating the outside of the headers is pretty well proven to help contain heat and make the headers stay looking better. Don't be sucked in by the one who tells you that they can coat in inside of the header and make it last. One, they can't properly prepare and clean the inside so that the coating will stick.

Last but not least, this is not really a do it yourself project. I wander through Polymer Dynamics here in Houston two or three times a week, and I can tell you that they go to far greater extents of cleaning and preperation than you will ever think of.

This is another let the experts do it.

JonFord
 
#4 ·
Ive never gotten her on a dyno hopefully within the next month I will.

I was planning on ordering the pistons and bearings from swamps already coated. Does the coating on the bearings help increase the life of them all that much.
 
#14 ·
any pictures of the top?
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top