Top end rebuild
 

What have you guys been going with? I see a new S3 kit with LONG LASTING rings.

It has been 3 years and about 250ish hours. I can feel a little is missing off the bottom. I reckon it is time.

I did the s3 kit, it wasn't a bad deal and seemed quality!

I think you'll be surprised how much you've lost over that time. Check the bore well. As the rings and piston wear you get more slap/rocking which then increases the load on the nikasil. Stock pistons are S3/rebadged cast vertex, I've always replaced with forged Wossners, but more to do with price than anything else. No issues with the stock gear.

Your best bet is to order a complete top-end kit from North Tahoe Motorsports.

Their kits include a Woosner piston kit, all gaskets and a top-end bearing. Doesn't get any easier. Call them if their Ebay store doesn't list what you need. Dealt with these guys before and they are first-rate.

Here's an example of a listing:

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/TOP-END-GASKE...item1c388c5aa9

I second that. Bob Piper is very straight-up and a great help, and he has stuff in stock.

We've got the Wossners in stock as well, with all the requisite gaskets ...

Mine is all stripped cleaned and polished ready for rebuilding! I have the day off work tomorrow, I thought I would use my last day of holiday constructively. I have polished the head and exhaust port, I'm using a Wossner piston with a top end gasket set from the Motocross Center. Just waiting on the small end bearing, the postman has been today and nothing!!!! If it doesn't arrive in the morning then I suppose it will be a wasted day of beer, polishing bits and more beer!

Still not sure about the base gaskets though. 2 gaskets and a plastic one!!! whats that all about? How do they go?

Plastic
 

You have a plastic base gasket? Never seen one . I'd think maybe to be sandwiched between 2 papers??????? How thick is it?

That is weird I've never seen one either. Can you take a pic of it?

I got the same thing in a gasket kit I bought from Motocross Center too.

The whole stack was thinner than the stock stack, but I didn't have anything else, so I bolted it up anyways. I wrote down the thickness of the stock base gaskets and the thickness of the new stack, but I don't have the numbers at hand.

I put the plastic one between the two papers and it worked out fine - no leaks.

With the thinner stack I had to fatten up the jetting a little - went from a 40 to a 42 PJ, and from clip position 2 to 3 on JD blue needle.