Can I use a used piston in my 55 chrysler rebuild?

tater76

Senior Chief Petty Officer
Joined
May 7, 2010
Messages
712
Hi folks, so I have my 55 Chrysler torn down to the bare block ready for some cleaning and fresh gaskets. My question is..... The upper piston was melted a bit last year from a lean carb, yet it retained 120psi all summer with massive damage. I pulled the powerhead to replace the upper bearing that had gone bad, and found the upper piston to be worse than I thought. So... I bought a parts motor, it has one good low hour piston in it (see where I am going with this).. does anyone see any issues with plugging the used piston into the bad pistons place? The bad piston had a stuck top ring, and massive melting (I will post pics later), and anyone know torque specs for the rod bolts? Its a 1973 Chrysler Model 555HF.
 

Justinde

Chief Petty Officer
Joined
Dec 11, 2010
Messages
431
Re: Can I use a used piston in my 55 chrysler rebuild?

Hey Tater

Remembering back years, I thought you could get pistons/conrods etc dye tested for hairline cracks etc. I would imagine if you had your piston tested, and measured etc, then it's a no brainer- install it, but at what cost? Can you get a new one anyways? Torque specs dunno......Does the bad piston and ring damage effect the bore? If you need to bore/hone, then a standard piston will be obviously too small ( by about 20thou)...
 

jerryjerry05

Supreme Mariner
Joined
May 7, 2008
Messages
17,923
Re: Can I use a used piston in my 55 chrysler rebuild?

Chrysler/Force used a LOT of parts that fit other motors.
Like the 85 and 125 and 50 hp motors.Most of the pistons and other parts will fit.
Good luck,fill out the profile.J
 

Frank Acampora

Supreme Mariner
Joined
Jan 19, 2007
Messages
12,004
Re: Can I use a used piston in my 55 chrysler rebuild?

As long as the cylinder shows no damage or scoring and the piston is in good condition, you can certainly install the used piston. Just lightly hone the cylinder first for better ring seating.

That 55 was different than most other Chrysler engines in bore only, which was 3.187. Crank was 2.80 stroke and con-rods were the same from 20 on up to 150 HP.

Rod bolts are torqued to 180-185 INCH pounds. If you don't have one, buy a torque wrench. This specification is the most critical in the engine and failure to torque to full value can result in rod failure.

Head bolts are 3/8 inch and take a higher torque that the 5/16 head bolts on the bigger three and four cylinder engines.
 
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