The pistons seem to still be in good shape and I am replacing the rings. I measured the cylinders and pistons to make sure everything was still in specs defined in the service manual. The cylinder walls are nearly smooth. I needed to deglaze the cylinders and create a cross-hatch pattern to allow the new rings to seal correctly. This is done by honing the cylinders.
To hone the cylinder I used a 3.5 inch Flex-Hone cylinder hone and Flex-Hone honing oil.
There are several different hones out there, the Flex-Hone is a ball hone. It cost a little more than some of the others, but it was easy to use and got the job done. There are plenty of YouTube videos out there on using the different types of hones. Here is a quick video on using the Flex-Hone to hone a cylinder:
In the video they use motor oil to lubricate the cylinder wall, I used the Flex-Hone honing oil. Based on all I have read and seen, either one works.
I have a very old Craftsman work table which was my dad’s. It has a lot of years on it (probably over 30 years old now), and I use it for all kinds of stuff. It was perfect for holding the cylinder in place. Clamped the cylinder into the work table and it held it securely at just the right angle.
Cleaned and then coated the cylinder walls and the Flex-Hone with honing oil. Started the drill with the hone outside the cylinder. Ran the Flex-Hone through the cylinder moving it up and down the surface of the cylinder for about 10-15 seconds, reversed the direction of the drill and repeated the process. I did this outside the garage cause it does sling a bit of the honing oil around. This process does not remove any material from the cylinders, it just knocks down the glaze and creates the cross-hatching which will allow the new rings to seal and seat correctly.
After honing each cylinder I cleaned the honing oil off the cylinder walls. Made sure I could run a clean rag around the cylinder wall and it come out clean. The Flex-Hone created a nice cross-hatch pattern on each cylinder.
The rear cylinder after honing:
The front cylinder after honing:
Coated the walls of both cylinders with WD-40 and covered them until I am ready to install them.
