Destroyed piston

[Gearhead056]

Bought this 1/8 cen buggy and motor wouldnt turn. Took it apart and pulled this destroyed piston out of it. Reamed the block pretty good. Think it's worth repairing, or would it be cheaper to just toss it and buy a new one?

 

[DXtreme1]

I would recommend buying a whole new motor. The 1/8 scale buggy platform opens up a plethora of possibilities for any budget. Man the previous owner really did a number on that engine. Must have leaned it out until it grenaded.

 

[olds97_lss]

I would recommend buying a whole new motor. The 1/8 scale buggy platform opens up a plethora of possibilities for any budget. Man the previous owner really did a number on that engine. Must have leaned it out until it grenaded.

Or he wrapped it out without a load on it. Either way, I wouldn't bother trying to fix it either. There are a ton of engines out there that will throw a 1/8th buggy around without much issue.

Personally, I'd avoid the dynamite ones with a spin/pull start, if you want to use the pull-start. They tend to break a lot.

I ran an LRP28 in my buggy when I had it. Way too much engine for a buggy, but it was fun anyway as a basher. Would have been useless on a track with the torque it had. There's an LRP21 that would probably work nice.

These are dynamite's that don't have spin start. Cheap, pretty reliable. Should get at least 6+ gallons of life out of them.
21: https://www.rcplanet.com/dynamite-21-rtr-engine-with-ps-dyne0570_p/dyne0570.htm
28: https://www.rcplanet.com/dynamite-28-rtr-engine-with-ps-dyne0571_p/dyne0571.htm

The 21 would probably get the job done, especially if your on a track. The 28 would have more torque for off road stuff.

Looks like LRP came out with a 28 spec 4. I had the spec 3 in mine:
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXGPZB&P=0

 

[Gearhead056]

Or he wrapped it out without a load on it. Either way, I wouldn't bother trying to fix it either. There are a ton of engines out there that will throw a 1/8th buggy around without much issue.

Personally, I'd avoid the dynamite ones with a spin/pull start, if you want to use the pull-start. They tend to break a lot.

I ran an LRP28 in my buggy when I had it. Way too much engine for a buggy, but it was fun anyway as a basher. Would have been useless on a track with the torque it had. There's an LRP21 that would probably work nice.

These are dynamite's that don't have spin start. Cheap, pretty reliable. Should get at least 6+ gallons of life out of them.
21: https://www.rcplanet.com/dynamite-21-rtr-engine-with-ps-dyne0570_p/dyne0570.htm
28: https://www.rcplanet.com/dynamite-28-rtr-engine-with-ps-dyne0571_p/dyne0571.htm

The 21 would probably get the job done, especially if your on a track. The 28 would have more torque for off road stuff.

Looks like LRP came out with a 28 spec 4. I had the spec 3 in mine:
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXGPZB&P=0

Thanks fir all the advice! Ill probably end up putting a dynamite .21 on it just to mess around with at the track and bash abit

 

[DXtreme1]

Thanks fir all the advice! Ill probably end up putting a dynamite .21 on it just to mess around with at the track and bash abit

The Dynamite may be the way to go for the price point it will at least give you some time to figure out if you will end up keeping the Cen Buggy and upgrade the motor and some choice parts or move up to something like a TLR 8ight 4.0 or something similar. Just happen to mention the TLR since this will be my next RC build after I'm done with the 2 TMaxx builds. Just not sure yet if it will be the buggy version or the truggy.

 

[Certified Mike]

I don't know just how bad everything it torn up in your engine. Just as a thought, throwing a rod in and learning how to fix an engine is good experience. Just keep the budget in mind. There are certainly cheap alternatives out there!

 

[olds97_lss]

I don't know just how bad everything it torn up in your engine. Just as a thought, throwing a rod in and learning how to fix an engine is good experience. Just keep the budget in mind. There are certainly cheap alternatives out there!

I'm all for learning, but I wouldn't usually suggest it as a "first nitro" experience. Unless he had someone there to help.

Perhaps get the cheap engine, break it in and run it, then maybe revisit the old engine. Then at least you know what the goal is.

 

[Certified Mike]

I agree. I guess with the knowledge enough to have pulled apart the engine for diagnosis in the first place, I didn't get that 'first nitro' feel. I get ahead of myself sometimes... I was a VERY fast learner with 1:1 as a kid having replaced my first engine by myself at age 13. I don't find nitro engines particularly intimidating to work on, or fix But I totally get why it could be.