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Apex side seal damaged center iron, what should I do now?
Hi guys,
So I finally got around to tearing apart my 13B-REW after the whole ordeal with coolant getting into the combustion chambers. So the issue was actually a apex side seal popped out and got jammed between the center iron and front housing
This unfortunately could have not come at a worse time, I'm really low on money after getting my labrum surgery two weeks ago
I really want to stick with a rotary and not do a swap; I know the mistake was on my part and not the engine or the car or that "rotaries are not reliable"
What steps should I take with my rebuild now, I have attached photos of the damage.
Is there anything I should look out for or test with my rebuild?
Also if you have a center iron in great condition please let me know!
The good news is you found the problem. There's nothing worse than tearing into a motor and not being able to find what's wrong.
It's hard to tell in the pictures if it did any significant damage to the iron or rotor housing where it was pinched. I would say if it's not enough to catch a fingernail with you will be OK.
If you were running stock apex seals, you should just need to buy another one and there ya go. If it was aftermarket that can be tricky, some of the vendors only sell them as a set of 6. But, it would be worth talking with the vendor regardless, maybe call up on the phone and explain what happened.
Lots of apex seals come in 2 separate pieces, I ran into a similar issue a LONG time ago (one of the first engines I built) where it wedged in there and I couldn't even spin the motor after assembly. Had to take it all apart and re-put it together, but at least I caught it early in the process.
That said, I always glue the corner piece of the apex seal on to the main piece. Get some Super Glue Gel and a nice, flat surface. Make sure both apex seals are VERY clean, clean with brake cleaner or the like so they have no grease or oil. Put a bead of super glue on the end of the large piece, lay it on the flat surface, and push the small piece into it, make sure it's lined up and oriented right. Hold it for 10-20 seconds for the glue to do its initial bind. Push the whole thing sideways and get the apex seal off the flat surface so it doesn't glue itself to the table and set aside to let dry.
Once it's fully cured, get an Xacto knife and carefully trim off any glue that squeezed out.
Yes, you can just push the apex seal corner piece in during assembly, but I find that it's worth spending a little time to glue them together. Not only can it prevent the corner getting pinched it can also prevent the corner piece from coming loose and dropping into a water passage somewhere - ask me how I know that one .
Anyhow, hopefully you can get away with a new water seal and new apex seal and be back in business. Sucky thing is you have to clean up stuff again.
Correct me if I'm seeing wrong but the iron plate looks cracked where the corner piece got wedged. If that's the case it needs to be replaced. I always glue the seals together and have a second set of eye to look and make sure everything is in place when stacking the motor. Luckily you found it. I've seen other cases where people built their own motor and the corner just slightly popped up and then got caught as the plate was placed down. Motor ran but was down on compression. Customer couldn't figure out why. When I tore it down it was very obvious. I've seen some so called experts build motors this way and nicked every single apex seal corner because they popped up.
Correct me if I'm seeing wrong but the iron plate looks cracked where the corner piece got wedged. If that's the case it needs to be replaced. I always glue the seals together and have a second set of eye to look and make sure everything is in place when stacking the motor. Luckily you found it. I've seen other cases where people built their own motor and the corner just slightly popped up and then got caught as the plate was placed down. Motor ran but was down on compression. Customer couldn't figure out why. When I tore it down it was very obvious. I've seen some so called experts build motors this way and nicked every single apex seal corner because they popped up.
I think that will be OK. If there are any burrs or something knock it down with some sandpaper. If there's a little bit of a divot or pit that you are worried that the coolant seal may not touch put a SKIM COAT of RTV in that area to fill that pit.
09-13-17, 01:26 AM
Apex side seal damaged center iron, what should I do now?
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