So I bought JE pistons and Eagle rods on eBay for $450. I was pretty damn excited. I used "buy it now" late last night, so I guess I didn't notice what appears to be a huge scratch going down the left most rod shown. I emailed the seller about it. How bad does this look? Will anything be affected by it? Should I forget about them? The right-most rod looks stained as well.

 

i dont think a stained rod or a little scratch on the outside of the rod will hurt you any as long as everything gets balanced correctly. Remember the weakest link on those rods are the rod bolts

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by TurBoTeG &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">i dont think a stained rod or a little scratch on the outside of the rod will hurt you any as long as everything gets balanced correctly. Remember the weakest link on those rods are the rod bolts</TD></TR></TABLE>

I was worrying about that as well but I think if they're torqued right, at around 350whp I should be fine...

 

my thoughts exactly.... Good luck

 

scratches on rods can weaken a rod and cause stress fractures... shot peen them before installing them

 

This is the email I got from him:

"These are used pistons. They do have some dirt on them. There is absolutely nothing wrong with them. I wouldnt want your motor to blow as much as I dont want my motor to blow. When I tell you there is around 1000 miles on these Im not bullshittin you. The marks that the machine shop put on the rods are still on them. That may be waht you see on them. But in no way am I lookin to screw you....Thanks"

 

Personally, I dont trust ebay for certain parts. And that is a part i would never buy off of ebay. Used stuff is not my cup of tea. I would probably only buy used rods and pistons if someone i knew took a look at them or myself before purchasing, Or if they werw a person on HT with people to vouch!!!Thats my .02. Good Luck i hope it all works out man

 

Thanks man. If I do buy them, I'm picking them up. He's about an hour and a half away. Should I see how deep the scratch is? It's a little weird how he took them out after 1,000 miles. Just emailed and asked him why.

 

.<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by dasher &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">scratches on rods can weaken a rod and cause stress fractures... shot peen them before installing them </TD></TR></TABLE>

Shotpeening is not going to do much for a forged rod, and it's not the way to fix this. You'll want to polish the scratch out and re-balance everything since that one will weigh less than the others

 

So in the end, this isn't even worth it, is it?

 

honestly man i would save and buy all new stuff. You will probably feel muych safer

 

I wouldn't worry about the rods if they are scratched or stain. However, if the rods have gouges or they are chipped, then your rods are out of balance and they are weakened as a result.

Just a thought, never buy on Ebay. I heard too many horror stories

 

I've been a member of eBay for years and never had problems. Actually, the only time I've gotten screwed over the internet was on Honda-Tech Of course i've had great experiences here too. Scammers are everywhere, unfortunately. I don't know if I trust this guy, but I'm glad i'm going to check them out before purchasing.

He said they were removed at 1,000 miles because he blew his tranny, and at the same time his friend that works at a junk yard had a GSR motor, so he just went with that becuase he didn't want LSVTEC. Sounds reasonable, if it's true.

EDIT: Just got another email after asking for more pics, this is what he said:

"Its just a paint marking from a paint marker that was used to mark the rod....nothing more"

Why would a rod need to be marked? Is it something I don't know about?


Modified by Boost Creep at 3:42 PM 10/27/2003

 

Looks like a paint mark or maybe a logo to me. Go for it. I doubt you have anything to worry about. Besides, you used "Buy it Now", and it made the auction unavailable to anyone else. If you renig, he loses a sale from you, and any potential sales he would have had. You have a legal responsibility to buy them now.

 

They might be paintmarks used to determine which pistons/rods needed material taken off them for balancing. Id ask for more close up pics though

 

you worry to much. if they make your motor blow up, then blow up his house...problum solved.

 

well i say go for it, thank god the misinformation bandwagon of honda tech rumors hasnt been brought up about everyone having rod bolt problems which is alot rarer then the the members of this site think.

 

If he lives an hour and a half away, Go look at them in person. NO picture could EVER compare to looking at it in person. That way, if he is lying about the paint mark, then you can just drive away, due to falsified(sp?) information. Yeah you waste 3 hours of driving but thats better than a blown motor right?

 

Dont pay, who cares u will have a review!! I got screwed out of $800 e-bay didn't do **** for me!! Fu*k e-bay, I stear away from those scamers, they will not cover your losses even though they say they will. Is a long story and I don't want to get into it, don't pay and don't buy anything from e-bay.

 

i would do it,let me know if you want out,ill buy them.

they may have been matched to the block,then put on rods,so they would have to be marked to put the right cylinder,i dunno.

 

Thanks for the input guys

 

you buy used parts you always take the gamble on what you are going to buy..