I have to rebuild my engine and am considering ceramic apex seals. I know there are 2mm and 3mm versions as well as multi-piece (more expensive) and single piece seals. How long do the seals last and how do they wear? I was told that new rotor housings will be needed. I'm also aware that perfect tuning is required because a knock can shatter the seals and destroy not only my motor but the turbo as well. Who is the top distributor for these ceramic seals?

 

Ianetti and Pineappleracing are the only two that i can dig up off the top of my head. Ianetti are two peice seals ( i think) while pineapple uses single peice, not so sure. I thought these seals were supposed to be more resistant to detonation? Oh, i read somewhere that mazdacomp was the only place you could buy the Ianettis from anymore.

 

you can get both one and two piece ianetti. I have two's Max Cooper is installing one's.

The benefit is supposedly they DON'T wear the housing and will last forever. The downside is if you do blow a seal, the shards can destroy everything.

 

Save your money. They're barely more resistant to detonation than standard seals, and it's highly unlikely that your engine will live long enough to take advantage of the "no wear" properties. Standard seals will handle as much boost as you're likely to run, and the money you save will go a long way towards paying for the next rebuild, if the worst happens.

 

So I guess the next question is which standard seals are the best? I've heard of the aviation seals, Hurley seals, and some that had been cryogenically frozen to improve durability. Any others?

 

Atkins rotory makes a great apex seal.

 

stock!

 

just get some Mazda seals

STEPHEN

 

^^^

 

I have some for sale. Look in the parts for sale section.

 

artguy has some ceramics on his old setup.

 

I saw that Mazdacomp makes some from nodular steel as opposed to flake steel. Supposed to be alot stronger according to them.

 

Stronger in what sense? Because to my *limited* understanding, there are 2 factors that are important when talking about the strength of these seals...

If you mean that they're made of a more durable material so when they do break they won't fragment into peices that can destroy your engine and turbos, that's obviously really good.

But if they're so strong in the sense that they won't break, that's bad, because as I understand, seals are designed to break to save your internals from extensive damage. I remember reading in the other thread about the aviation seals being unbreakable that they cause much more wear on your rotor housings, to the point that they can become unreusable...