Hey guys, I picked up another LT1 (95 "327" block) from a friend of mine and I have a question. I guess the owner who had it before the guy I bought it from was a big fan of the nitrous. When I pulled the motor apart the number 8 piston had a lovely chunk missing from it due to a lean spray condition. Luckily the rest of the bottom end is in pristine condition. There's barely any wear on ANY of the main, cam and rod bearings. So that leaves me with boring and honing the block for new pistons. What would you guys recommend for a decent piston? The car is going to be a daily driver so it doesn't have to be ridiculous. I MIGHT and I mean MIGHT want to put a turbo with low boost on it in the future. So there you have it. What do you guys have in mind?

 

Pick your favorite SBC brand. FWIW, I'd punch it out the minimum needed like .005-.010, then order pistons. Punching it out to .030 from the start is a waste

 

id have to agree with pocket with boring it I went .020 only as needed (water damage) if needed I do have the stock pistons in good shape if u can just hone the block id just give u if that's the best for u let me know

 

I'm going to drop the block off to a reputable machine shop here in town to have the block checked out. If I'm get lucky and they can just clean it up with a hone I'll definitely hit you up for those pistons.

 

Well it looks like it did need a pretty heavy boring out. The scratches and water damage went deeper than the visible eye could pick up. So it did end up getting bored 30 over. From the research I've done most LT1 style pistons are "lighter" than standard sbc pistons. I've honestly never purchased pistons on their own before. Do they sell piston/ring combos? Any recommendations?

 

Yes they sell piston/ring kits. If you are looking for an OE style piston Summit has a set for less than a hundred bucks but I don't know for sure if the rings come with them. LT1 uses metric rings, gen 1 SBC uses standard rings.

Check out northernautoparts.com They have good prices too.

 

I would use a speedpro 2256 piston in there

 

Would those be the L2256F30 pistons? What rings would you recommend?

 

Yes they wo u ld be the ones....
As far as rings, that will depend on the use.. i use low tension rings

 

Ok how do you think those piston would work in a low boost application? The idea of a GT45 keeps itching at me. What style rings would work with that? I apologize for all of the questions but the boost realm is very new to me.

 

If planning on boost, stay away from the light/budget forgings, such as TRW or Speed-Pro. Boosted cars can get into detonation very easily & you want a little margin of safety.

While more expensive, I prefer the SRP pistons for up to about 700hp, above this I generally step up to the JE's.

Wiseco also makes a decent medium cost piston if you are not planning anything crazy. Just keep in mind any boosted application with a poor tune can break just about any piston (or other internal part) for that matter.