breaking in a ported motor
 

does anybody have information on breaking in a rebuilt ported motor? will the rotors actually lock if you floor the petal without breaking it in? how many miles considered to be broken in? 500 mi? 1000 mi? 3000 mi?

first start up.. run for 10-15 min.. op temp... shut down.. change oil..

drive 500 miles... change oil.. keep it under 3.5k.. no boost.

750 miles change oil... drive up to 6k... light boost.. maybe 2-6psi

1000 miles change oil.. drive like normal... ;)

i guess just keep the motor clean and lubercated....:)

the bearings are your biggest concern, that and achieving optimal break-in on your apex seal/rotor housing surface

if you start loading the motor prematurely (during "breakin period") you will probably wear your bearings or limit the degree to which your apex seals will "mate" to your rotor housings

it's in your best interest to monitor your compression throughout the break in period to see when you are getting the highest numbers, add about 500miles to that and you're good to go

for example, the new rotary aviation seals that some of us are running do not achieve optimal compression until about 5000miles...

Exactomundo!!!:D

whats the deal with running these aviation seals? What advantages do they offer and what can you look at paying for them?

thanks guys!!....i'm sure this will help me along the way with break-in....

i say just change oil at 500/3000

oh yeah and DON'T use syn

and same thing taht was said about boost.

alot of ppl recommend not doing long highway drives at a constant rpm

this is b/c the leading/falling sides of the apexs need broken in.

If you are using a ported motor, it seems that everyone says to use an aftermarket ECU, but you cannot tune it until its broken? right? So is mainly that just keeping it out of boost circumvents this problem momentarily?

thanks for mentioning oil....what type of oil (weight) shall i use for break-in....and once broken in what is a good motor oil to stick with?? some people use different oil weights for winter and summer.....is that good...what are the specs of the oil?

aftermarket ECU good?? i was just thinking of getting a good air/fuel controller...what do u guys think about air/fuel controllers?

From what I've learned, you're kinda better off getting an Apex'i PFC or some other stand alone unit and having it tuned, in the long run I think you will be better off as the stock ECU is somewhat limited, and since a PFC with a commander is like $1250 if you look around, you don't save that much $ by just going with an A/F controller at the moment. You do have a boost controller, right? I don't mean to doubt you, but I just don't want anyone blowing their motors because of boost creep just after a rebuild. When it is first tuned, by a reputable rotary shop, I'm sure they can set it up for the break in period to run safe and healthy for a new ported motor. This isn't the cheapest way to go, but rebuilding your motor again wouldn't be very cost effective, either. Just my suggestions, good luck with your new motor.

Bearings are what your looking to break in more than anything. Your OIL PRESSURE is what you have to watch during break in. Lots of people talk about oil pressure gauges doing jack shit. It'll tell you alot about what your engine is doing. I've got over 1000 miles on my "new" engine. Guess what? It's NOT BROKEN IN. How do I know? Because my oil pressure hasn't dropped. When I casually accelerate, my oil pressure goes beyond the 8.0 kilos stock. With my stock(and engine's number 2, 3, 4, 5...lol) engine's, my oil pressure would ge to a max of 8.0 when FULLY BROKEN IN. Until then, the bearings are still wearing off that silver/white coating on the inside.

And for what it's worth...I run full synthetic.

Wow, never heard that one before. But, I have just a bit over 2k miles on my new rebuild and will keep an eye out for this. Interesting........not sure if it's a fact, but interesting.

When I first started up my 1st and 6th engine(reused bearings on numbers 2 thru 5) my oil pressure shot up to 10 kilos(that's 145 psi~) It eventually evened out to about 6 after 5 minutes, then finally to 4 after 30 minutes of idling time.

When I would go past 3000 rpms, my oil pressure would climb to about 9 kilos(130 psi~) so I would keep it under 3000. After I passed the 800th KM mark, when I would go past 3000 rpms, my oil pressure would stay at 8 kilos, but when I would take her past 5000 rpms, the oil pressure would get past the 9 kilo mark again. So I figured I'd keep her below 5000 rpms until I got to the 1500 km mark. Once I reached that, I could go to 5000 rpms and my oil pressure went to 8 kilos instead of the previous 9 kilos.

My basic assumption is that the bearings are wearing down more(i.e. breaking in) and have less space between bearings and the e-shaft which would cause a drop in oil pressure.

With my first motor, I didn't really "break in" until almost the 3000 km mark. I know that on motors 2 thru 5, my PEAK oil pressure never surpassed 8.0 kilos(right around 116 psi~)

you have just motivated me to go ahead and buy a good aftermarket oil pressure gauge

the stocker just isn't cutting it, new sender and all..

Many people claim that for break in you don't use synthetic oil because there is minimal to no friction on the apex seals therefore it doesn't break in correctly.

apex seals are not oiled...

they are lubricated by either premix or OMP

your bearings are the main concern

I am currently braking in my new motor (all new other than rotors) which has a street port. I will only use 10W-30 non synthetic oil

1st change of oil 1,000 kms
2nd change of oil 2,000 kms
3rd change of oil 5,000 kms
up to 3,500 revs / no boost

synthetic is horrible for a breakin

rick engman of downing atlanta told me to run vavoline 20w50

as that's what he runs in all of his four rotors...

Hey guys on the matter of oil. Eny one here used or know of eny that have tried Motul 15W50 2T race oil?

Ive been using it. Was recomended by some rotor guys in australia.

JT

oil pressure gauge huh....intresting...i'll have to look into getting one....thanks for the tip..

I've always been told to use Valvoline non syn for break in, for piston motors too. I think Val is one of the thinest oils out there.

And NO BOOST!

My friend just got a 2.3l motor built for his WRX. The assmebler heat cycled it twice and told him he could run 8-9psi!!!!!!!!!! With no miles on the motor!!!
:eek:

well crap. I guess I'll remember that for my next rebuild/oil change.