What would be the best overall ring sizes for a high perf small block chevy. I have been having problems with burning oil and am gettin sick of it so i'm gonna put new pistos in and overbore. I was wondering what would be the best size rings to use.

 

Depends on the block... what are you using? 305? 350? 400? they all have much different bore sizes.

 

you ought to say what you intended application is, other than "preformance". with out more to go on i'd say look for 1/16" rings, maybe a dykes style ring, zero gap 2nd ring, low tension oil ring. basically the thickness and least tension will yeild the most preformance. naturally you need to match the rings to the piston.

 

You have to use the sized rings that the piston takes. Most are 5/64" top, 5/64" second and 3/16" oil rings. Thinner rings are for pistons designed for higher RPMs (so the rings don't "float" due to their own inertia at high RPMs). Ditto dykes rings and other specialty stuff. Zero gap rings and such I don't put much stock in, but that's just my personal opinion. Stick with standard style rings on a street driven engine. They work well and last a long long time.

The bore of the ring has to match the bore of the piston and bore of the block. That would be Std bore, 30-over, 40-over, whatever.

The only spec you can play with on your own is ring end gap. That you want to go with the PISTON MANUFACTURER'S RECOMMENDATION on. It varies by piston and by application (nitrous and blower applications require more end gap) And tighter doesn't always mean better.

My current blown 383 uses KB hypereutectics and uses comparatily huge .032" top ring gap. Nontheless, it burns ZERO oil and no blowby from the breather.

Having fresh rings, pistons and perfectly machined bores is the key to good ring seal.