putting my engine back together, slowly.
I have the front rotor in but am having a hard time getting the apex seal springs in.
using the RWS seals and springs.


another question, the triangular corner parts go on the open side of the rotor, right? towards the back of the car? the video showed it this way in one part but was confusing in another

 

yeah keep the corner piece the same way is was when you disassembled the engine, if using used housings there should be a groove where the corner piece has travelled. and about the springs, assemble the front side of the rotor, put the apex seals in the rotor without the corner piece and drop the rotor into the housing. then get needle nose pliers and slide the short spring in first, then slide in the long spring, which will push the short spring down in it's seat. you'll hear it click once it's seated. with both springs in now you can slide the corner piece into the rotor and then put the int. housing on. when putting the housing on, make sure the corner pieces are still in place before sealing it up.

 

When you install the apex seals, install it together triangular piece and the apex seal. Lay it on a flat surface surface and use some sort of instant glue such as Krazy Glue (what I used) on the triangular piece *only*. This is to hold it in place and easier to install.
Don't worry about the glue, it disintegrates once the engine heats up.
Install it in the rotor and carefully slide it on the e-shaft.
You should cover the colant passages with a rag in case the triangular piece pops off . If that damn piece falls off and goes into the coolant passage it'll drop all the way down and you'll have to disassemble it again to get to it.
Anyway, with the rotor and the apex seal in the housing, install the small spring first then the longer one. Remember, the apex side (the curved side) faces the housing. When you install the long piece, use an old spring or use the flat side of a screw driver to push it in. It'll "click" when installed. Do the same for others. Squirt some oil ino the apex seal and wet the housing with oil . When you install the middle housing, you know you need to lift up the e-shaft to "wiggle" the middle plate into place. Before you install the middle plate, make SURE the O-rings are in the right place and not twisted or out of it's groove. If the O-ring is out of the groove and you drop the middle plate it'll cut the O-ring and your install will be delayed until you get a new one. I highly suggest you use Hylomar on all the O-rings.
On the tension bolts, you must torque it in sequence. Use must use a torque wrench. The FSM has all the torque numbers for all engine bolts. Follow it so you don't over torque or under torque any bolts.

 

On the front end plate I put hylomar in both grooves, but the stupid water seal didn't want to stay in place. I hope to god I got it to stay long enough to get the rotor housing on and it didn't pop out
It appears to be OK but it's tough to say. I hate this part.

 

I also hate hylomar

 

The key to Hylomar is to let it sit there for a few minutes.  The Hylomar gets tacky when exposed to air.  It should get tacky enough to keep the seals in place even upside-down.  If it doesn't stick, use more Hylomar.


-Ted

 

I HATE that crap. It's everywhere now too

 

I found using an old spring to push the new springs down into place worked very well, just listen for that CLICK!

 

When I rebuilt my engine with RWS seals, I would install the corner seals first, then the side seals, then sit the rotor on end and install the apex seal springs, then the apex seals with a bunch of grease to hold them in. Once I had one apex seal assembled, I rotated the rotor 120 degrees to get the next open slot upright. Once I had the seals in the slots with a bunch of greas over them, they stayed in place as the rotor was turned.

The corner pieces of the apex seals were sometimes difficult to keep in place but when the rotor was placed in the housing during engine assembly, any corner pieces that might have popped astray were put back in place. The springs stayed put during the whole process and I didn't use glue, hylomar, rubber bands, etc. All I found myself wanting to use was some grease.

The engine fired right up upon first cranking. Having a bunch of MMO and grease all over the seals probably created enough temporary compression to get the engine started.

 

thanks guys, got them in.
Still concerned about the coolant seals, the hylomar doesn't hold them very well, so I'm VERY concerned that they could have popped out just as I slid the housings together. The last thing I want to do is tear this thing out again because of these stupid seals

 

I actually did pinch one of my coolant seals the first time I assembled my rebuild, but taking it apart again was very easy compared to the first time. Putting the next seals in was also much easier the second time. But seeing white smoke in your rebuilt's exhaust after you start it the first time is not fun.