What do people think of these rings...are they worth the money, is it ok for street/strip car. are they hard on the walls...

 

I guess you mean hellfires, using them in my 383. Will have it torn down after Christmas will be able to give you more details.

John

 

I had them in my motor. I didn't have a chance to use the spray with them (which I'm told they are excellent for 200+ hp nitrous plans). But, I can tell you that they create a lot more friction in the bores than standard rings for SRP/JE pistons. In talking to Thunder Racing, they feel that they cost you about 10-12rwhp over standard rings, so make sure you have your combo planned out and then decide if the power lost is worth the extra strength in the rings.

 

How would the rings cost me power..

 

Approximately 85% of the friction in the rotating assembly is found in the ring pack when all the bearings are being bathed in oil (ie. when the engine is running). This is why you often see people running low tension oil rings and the like; for the purpose of reducing friction within the motor and pick up a few HP. You can appreciate this if you've ever turned over an assembled short block w/ std rings using a bolt and socket in the end of the crank, you can feel the friction of the pistons riding up and down in the bores. With the hellfire rings, there is a GREAT deal more friction due to the nature of the rings; higher tension and stiffer seal to the bores as well as less deflection to maintain proper ring seal under high cylinder pressures. The motor is just tighter in general. It's not a problem if you need it that way for large amounts of nitrous, but if you don't, why leave free HP on the table?

 

Ive been using childs and alberts tool steel top rings in my race car for years. The ones i use are .043 and back cut so power loss from the ring pack is minimal. They do destroy cylinder walls quicker than regular ones. you will need to use a rougher cylinder wall finish or they will never seat. They do take a ton of heat without a problem.(real big nitrous loads or 40lbs of non intercooled boost)
I have the plasma molys in the 442 top ring is .300 down and I run 16+lbs of boost with no issues.