Anyone Used Mahle Pistons & rings

[snypr]

Wondering if anyone has used Mahle pistons and rings when rebuilding the top end as their evolution 117" pistons are offered with two compression deck heights of 1.083" and 1.093" as compared to S&S piston's which is 1.050". Thus, by using their race pistons one could achieve higher compression without the expense of machining .040 t0 .050 off of the cylinders to zero deck the motor. Not to mention they are $125 a set cheaper than S&S and less any machine shop costs. If I am missing something here let me know or share your experiences if you have used them in the past.

 

[alhall88]

I am not familiar with those pistons, however I'm confused why you think buying a new set of pistons is cheaper than having the cylinders cut. It cost me $120 to have the cylinders cut. Once you break the torque on the head you should remove the cylinders anyway to replace the bottom gaskets so there off anyway.

 

[snypr]

I am not familiar with those pistons, however I'm confused why you think buying a new set of pistons is cheaper than having the cylinders cut. It cost me $120 to have the cylinders cut. Once you break the torque on the head you should remove the cylinders anyway to replace the bottom gaskets so there off anyway.

I have to replace my pistons due to a broken valve guide. So I was refering to if and when piston replacement is necessary that the Mahle pistons would save the machine cost plus the $100 plus diffence of the piston cost. Mahle pistons are also about 2/3's the weight of a S&S piston. It appears that utilizing the Mahle's would add in money in your pocket and extra HP under the tank.

 

[MARV]

Harley Davidson Pistons Twin Cam 4.375 stk 4.125 Bore:eBay Motors (item 220265203969 end time Dec-27-09 07:16:07 PST)

 

[sh8kr]

If you need to replace your pistons then you will need to remove and hone the Cylinders. I use Mahle Pistons and Rings in 1 of my motors and they perform well. The best thing about a Mahle piston set is the fit, If you are going to say 4.125" then that is your bore Diameter, unlike other piston mfg. where you have to measure the pistons to get the correct fit. You will however need to file the rings to fit you bore and the ring set comes with a guige to give you the proper ring gap based on what you are doing with the motor. The pistons are coated with moly graphite to aid in reduced friction.

 

[john sachs]

Like sh8kr,I use Mahle pistons,which I feel are 1 of the best piston sets available.:up:
You need to be sure that the piston kit is compatible with the S&S rod length,and engine.
Ultima uses them in most of their engines.
John

 

[snypr]

Sh8ker, John,

Thanks for your input. I talked to a tech at Mahle but he didn't seem too swift. As they are selling out old stock and have 4.125" Pistons for HD 117" application with 1.083" C/H. The only thing I could get out of the guy is that he said it would work in any V-Twin with a 4.125 bore and upto a 4.375 stroke. I am trying to get the wrist pin size to see whethor or not it is a .792 or a .927. Also, as Marv posted.....the S&S 124" set of pistons for HD application as well. I emailed the company selling and they couldn't tell me it they would work in my motor or not, only that they were for HD twin cam application. I was just looking to save about $200 with either of these piston sets but if I can't get the correct tech specs I will probably have to pass and spend the jack on a new set from S&S. :bang: The other reason I was looking at the Mahle was to gain compression with their .033 additional piston height in combindation with a thin cometic steel gasket.

 

[snypr]

I finally talked to somone that was knowledgable at Mahle in Tennessee. The pistons will work so I offered them a $100 shipping included and they accepted my offer. They have numerous sets of overstock pistons that they are selling on ebay. Mahle representitive said all of their 4.125 X 4.375 pistons are clearanced for both EVO and TC engines. He also stated that S&S pistons are done this way as well. So once they arrive I am going to measure the deck to determine what size Cometic gasket to use on the base and head that will give me as close to zero deck as possible with out maching the cylinders hopefully since they pistons have .033 more compression height than the S&S Pistons.

 

[mcgroom]

I finally talked to somone that was knowledgable at Mahle in Tennessee. The pistons will work so I offered them a $100 shipping included and they accepted my offer. They have numerous sets of overstock pistons that they are selling on ebay. Mahle representitive said all of their 4.125 X 4.375 pistons are clearanced for both EVO and TC engines. He also stated that S&S pistons are done this way as well. So once they arrive I am going to measure the deck to determine what size Cometic gasket to use on the base and head that will give me as close to zero deck as possible with out maching the cylinders hopefully since they pistons have .033 more compression height than the S&S Pistons.

Let me know once you figure out which Cometic Gaskets you are going to go with and I will see if we can help you out with price. :2thumbs:

 

[Hillsidecycle.com]

Agree that the Mahle units are very good.
Another point of interest, is that you do not need to trim the cylinder bases, on these, as when bringing the cylinder heads up to the level to get these engines really running well, a spin-drop, on the face of the cylinder head gasket surface, actually can kill 2 birds with 1 stone.
Establish the correct squish, and finalize the dedicated compression ratio, for a given build.
Works very well.
Scott

 

[vej]

zero deck

I am not familiar with those pistons, however I'm confused why you think buying a new set of pistons is cheaper than having the cylinders cut. It cost me $120 to have the cylinders cut. Once you break the torque on the head you should remove the cylinders anyway to replace the bottom gaskets so there off anyway.

If I were to take my cylinders off and take them to a machine shop, what do I tell them to have them machined to zero deck? Wouldn't they have to have the entire engine to take top end measurements?

Just asking because it's something that I'm interested in doing at a later time. Also, If I zero deck it, do you notice a significant difference on an otherwise stock bike?

Thanks

 

[wyatt580]

are these really as good as the s and s ?????

 

[sh8kr]

Wyatt, yes they are as good and In my opinion better because of the consistancy in bore dia. If you purchase any other piston you will need to have the Pistons before the cylinder can be bored.Also the coating is standard on Mahle but you would have to pay to have this done on other pistons. Less friction = less heat and more free HP.I also believe that if 2 of the top Vtwin engine builders on the East Coast support them on an open forum there may be some good reasons for this.

 

[MARV]

I finally talked to somone that was knowledgable at Mahle in Tennessee. The pistons will work so I offered them a $100 shipping included and they accepted my offer. They have numerous sets of overstock pistons that they are selling on ebay. Mahle representitive said all of their 4.125 X 4.375 pistons are clearanced for both EVO and TC engines. He also stated that S&S pistons are done this way as well. So once they arrive I am going to measure the deck to determine what size Cometic gasket to use on the base and head that will give me as close to zero deck as possible with out maching the cylinders hopefully since they pistons have .033 more compression height than the S&S Pistons.

that was the same link posted above?

so 90 bucks plus 10 shipping?

rings and pins?

 

[snypr]

Marv,

Yes on the $100. Go to ebay stores, Mahle Motorsports has a store. They were listed for $240 or best offer. I offered a $100 and they accepted it. They still have a couple sets left. They come complete (pistons, pins, clips and rings). The best thing about it was they come with a set of 8 rings that are oversize (like their V-8 line), so you have basically 3 extra sets of rings for later.

After putting back together, there was a night and day difference how my bike runs and performs with these pistons, decking with gaskets and the .608 cam.