How tight are piston rings supposed to be in the grooves? im not talking about end gap... took my b&s 18.5hp apart, top ring was stuck in. finally got it off. Go to put it back in and it's extremely tight, have to peck it in. I was wondering if this was normal.

One more thing.. I cleaned the groove, there is no gunk or build up on the piston

hmm... it should be ok as long as it will seat in the wall.. i wouldn't worry too much about it... after it runs for a few seconds it should seat back in the groove... did you use carb cleaner on the ring seat? i find that helps... try adding a bit of lube and see if that will free it up... once it's in the block you should be fine as long as it's not really jammed... if you push the ring together does it come back out? if it does you should be fine

i did use carb cleaner to clean it. grooves are nice and shiny.. ring does not pop back out once it is in. appreciate the response

hmm... thats strange? will it work it's way out if you tap the top of the piston? as long as it will move out once you start up the engine i wouldn't worry about it.... is it a new ring?

I'm pretty sure it has to float freely in the groove. Could it be that the piston top is damaged and has the groove tight in one spot? Maybe something got on top of it at one time or another? Dropped or bumped around on the outer edge?

If it can't float in and out there's not much chance of it maintaining tension while operating.

i think as long as it's in contact with the wall it should free itself up after it starts... plus there is much more force moving it around so it will wear out the tight spot within a few seconds of running i think as long as it's not retardedly tight and will not fit in the grove without being pressed in or beaten in or something.... also if you take the ring out and it's warped (the ends don't show at the same height) that could be your problem

appreciate the help guys... it fits pretty tight, but I can put it in by hand. It doesnt have any "spring" action to it. Its a new spring, so I dont think It would be warped. The head hasn't been damaged at all. It doesn't seem to be tight in only one place, it about the same all the way around.. It's tight enough that if I put in the back edge of the ring in the groove, I can pick up the piston with it(hope that makes sense). I really hate to ruin the cylinder wall, so I hope I can get this worked out before I put it back together.. Once again, I really appreciate all of your help.

you can clean out the ring land with a flat file . are you talking about the oil ring or one of the compression rings ?

That's too tight. I'd let my local small engine guy have a look before I chanced any damage to the cylinder.

I found some small emery boards and filed out the grooves, they fit alot better now, you think this will work?

yeah that should be fine... no worries now

I hope thats the end of my worries,, at least on the piston anyway.. Once again thanks for everyones help

be careul when you put the pan back on it make sure it goes down all the way before you tighten up the bolts , ( dont mean to change the flavor of the thread ) they can do and will crack . ..

To "expand" on the other posts, make sure the ring moves freely BECAUSE when it gets hot in the engine it will/needs to EXPAND. Thus the need for tolerances. Don't know how critical it is (.002"-.004"), but I would want my rings to have some room to grow.
Just my self taught engine 2 cents worth. Continue mowing or whatever it was you were doing.......................

Maytag:thumbsup:

What is the engine model number? What is the part # on your rings? I guess you see where I am going with this. :)