Did I just ruin my engine?

[Sonreir]

The reason not to reuse old rings has to do with the seating and wear. Yes, you can check the gap to make sure they're still in spec, but the patterns in which the rings wear will match the patterns in which the cylinder walls wear. They're like a microscopic puzzle that fits together in a very specific manner.

If you hone the cylinders and reuse the old rings you may end up with a mis-match in high and low points on the ring that will affect your compression. Probably not enough to put it out of spec, but any loss in compression is going to result in a loss of power. The same thing holds true for if you remove the pistons and put them back in using the old rings. It's highly unlikely that you will get all three rings aligned to their "old" location and so the high and low wear points no longer match up.

Additionally, using old rings will create new (accelerated) wear patterns that will cause them to go of spec sooner. I'm not saying your bike won't run, I'm just saying your bike won't run as well as it could. New rings are what, $40 + shipping for a set? Seems like a small price to pay to do something right.

 

[robmurray12]

Thanks for all the input guys.

I'm gonna go with sonreir on this one. My budget is tight but $20 for a harbor freight hone (hope that doesn't scare anyone, btw anybody have experince w/ their hones?) and I've found two sets of rings for $60 isn't too bad. I just don't have the money for a rebore, new pistons, new rings, valve work, etc. Budget engine build, I think a light hone and rings will freshen the engine up for a few thousand miles and then I can do a full engine build later. I mean these projects are never done right...

 

[surffly]

Ummm i seem to think that the honda spec is 170psi.....so with the bores/pistons that worn she will NOT run right, the motor will have a hard time with the CV carbs....

since you pulled everything out before diagnosing things its gunna be a bit harder now.
if i were you i would put the piston, jugs and head back together and run a leak down test to make sure that the valves are seating right. im willing to bet that if the bores are that worn that the valves are too.

i just went through this all with my 350...i feel your pain