recommended to have machine shop complete this step.
The final step to preparing the pistons and rods for installation in the
block is installing the rings. This engine has three rings on each piston,
and their gap must be evenly staggered apart for a better seal at engine
breakin. Herman placed each of the rings in the cylinder he planned to
use it in and measured the ring end gap using a feeler gauge. This gap
between the ends of each ring was compared to the specifications in the
shop manual and checked out, but if they hadn’t matched, the rings
would have been wrong for the engine or the boring or honing would
have been incorrectly completed.
Rubber caps are placed over the ends of the rod before the piston is