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Could flattened corner seals cause apex seal to chip?

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Old Apr 18, 2005 | 01:25 AM
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From: My 350Z Roadster kicks my RX7's butt
Angry Could flattened corner seals cause apex seal to chip?

Ok, first off this isn't a bashing thread. I just need info from the builders. I have all six corner seals as flat or sunken in lower then the rotor. I have not been able to pull any out yet. I don't have a strong enough magnet. I'm not shure if the spring collapsed or if there is even springs in there.

So the question is: If all six collapse, can this cause a wobble and clip the corner of the apex seal cause all the rest of the damage. Could the second peice of the two peice apex seal have fallen because of the flat corner seals and then taking out all three apex seals from the aftermath?









1500 miles, first redline of break in, 10lbs of boost, street port, stock map, etc.
Driven another 500 miles after 0-0-0 front reading the next morning.
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Old Apr 18, 2005 | 02:25 AM
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Nope, you've got it backwards. When the engine is compresed together by the tension bolts, the side adn corner seals (and oil seals) sit almost flush with the rotor surface. We're talking just a catch of a fingernail above the rotor surface...thousandths of an inch. Normally when you take a motor apart, things move freely and the seals are pushed back out 1/8" or so by the springs, even though this isn't how they sit when installed in the engine once tensioned.

So anyway, the apex seals broke, and the pieces flew around, wedging between rotor and housing, and pushing the rotor faces inward onto the remainder of the seals. Including cornerseals. So, they're now locked in place...and because of that, they didn't expand outwards when you tore the engine apart. It's common to see this on blown apex motors, if a chunk of seal happened to land on the side edge of the rotor, it pushes the rotor material in onto the side and cornerseals and locks them in their compressed position.

Even if you could mill the rotor and save the apex slots, you can't fix corner and sideseal slots. That rotor doesnt look like it could have been saved regardless though.
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Old Apr 18, 2005 | 02:27 AM
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BTW, that's a fair amount of carbon buildup for 1500 miles. Might want to look into running a better oil and/or gasoline. Carbon deposits are a product of either/both.
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Old Apr 18, 2005 | 10:13 AM
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From: My 350Z Roadster kicks my RX7's butt
I can't explain the amount of carbon that looks like over 100k mi when it's only been 2k mi. 5w-20 & mmo during first 100mi then 10w-30 during the rest. Super unleaded was used. The only thing I can think of is the colder plugs 8's/10's but I was told I should have ran 10/10's with my street port ...even only running 10lbs.
Below is a pic of the rear rotor. Youu can notice how much the corner seals stick out ...

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