I'm curious about what the failure mode of apex seals is. For example, is it a Forced Rupture or a Repetitve Stress Fracture?

I'm hypothesizing a Repetitive Stress Fracture, possibly caused by excess RPMs applied to a seal that is old and worn thin. Plus, any worn clearances and manufacturing intolerance could allow excessive excursions of the seals. Thus, violent vibration modes could be setup in a very non-linear way that would lead to the fracture.

Since I haven't blown one of my own rotaries (he he heh) I have to refer to the empirical experts who have. Does a broken apex seal look like a Forced Rupture or a Repetitive Stress Fracture?

Each outcome might lead to a Materials Solution that would be good for one and bad for the other.

Oh God, Thank You!!

I am not the only one!!!

I though I was getting old, and didn't understand "kids" these days..
Yes, that "XD" has bothered the shit out of me since day one.

Must be gettin' old........Im only 31,but I have no idea what your talking about!

I've seen idiots use XD on another forum and it bothered me to no end. It just started, suddenly, out of the blue a few years ago. It was creepy. It's like they all sent private messages to each other to start using some new fake ascii emoticon, and I didn't get the memo.

It obviously got its start somewhere else, on a big forum like OT or TFL, and the social misfits that they are adopted it quickly. I honestly doubt the sci fi/online comic forum, where I first encountered it, was the actual source.

I rarely check that forum out these days since I can't talk cars with them. If you're not mechanically inclined, or can't understand the basics, I'm just not interested in what you have to say. :p:

Wow Steve, I thought you were older than me. I'm actually a tad older than you. I thought you were like 35 to 38 because you've always seemed so, well, mature.

Eh......Ive been a grumpy old guy my whole life.....heh,heh.
Guess maybe its because Im a touch anti-social and left brained,I tend to be more serious and practical, v/s my friends that preffer to party and drink their lives away.......

Oh I'm quite anti-social. This forum is about as social as I get.

Jeff, (thread hijack in progress)
the smiley :-) had a hallmark anniversary within the last month of two.
It's origin has been documented down to the day and time he used it. I heard it on public radio, go figure. Now the smilies have exploded to include not only the infamous, XD. but also ^.^ O.o o.O O.O 8^) T.T :X :-D :-p 8-) :o) :-)-8-< X_X 6.6 (*_*) (8-0 <<<<Mr. Bill, I'll stop there. I think it due not only to forums on the internet but mostly for a need to express emotions in text messaging.....which is a subculture into itself which i'm not part of.

About heat transferance:
I was in the Weiand foundry years ago and one of the old timers in the plant looked at me (young auditor in a suit) and told me to stick my finger into the molten aluminum going into a high-rise intake manifold mold. After seeing him do it, I gave it a try. I did it as fast as I could, my finger when in about a inch, it was hotter than Hell, but I didn't get burned. To this day I still can't explain why I didn't lose my fingure. O.O

The "XD" is nothing more than the "eyes closed while giving a big grin or laugh". Like the South Park bit mentioned before. Half the reason why I don't even bother dealing with " 'Net talkers". Apparently, it's cool to shorten your speech as short as possible while still making it sound legit. The only problem is that for those of us that require a legit sentence to figure out what the hell you're talking about, we're wracking our brains to figure out if you were dropped on your head when you were a kid or thrown across the room.


And, back on subject, I have remember reading about keeping the carbon off of the apex seals, however, I, too, am curious as to what they look like when nearing their "death point". I'm thinking that they just wear down to where they're thin enough to be cracked and then go from there. I just hope that doesn't happen to me anytime soon.

And, the only thing I've heard about why the Renesis creates more power was because of the intake and exhaust. I remember seeing that on this gigantic poster of the RX-8 at the Mazda dealership's parts department. Plus, it does help that 20+ years later helps with research and technological advancement.