romandian

what do you think?

















its no. 3 plug as it came out after 1000 miles or so.

inspector12

I'm at work so I can't see the pictures, but you might start by mentioning what fuel your on, and a few setup details.

romandian

its on pump gas and 15 psi @ 6000 rpm. tr6 plugs.

inspector12

Nothing to read on those plugs bud. To read a plug you need to install a new plug and make a pull, then pull it and inspect it. Those are plugs you were just driving around on. Doesn't really tell you anything useful other than they weren't burnt or cracked porcelain.

romandian

well, i was surprised when i saw them. i have never seen a completely clean and white porcelain on a plug before. it has seen anything from 10.8 to 11.8 in mixture. im still tweaking the tune. on the pass i did before pulling them i saw 11.3 @ 5000 rpm and after they went back in i saw 11.2 @ 6000 rpm. also i have never seen a "tiger pattern" on an electode like this. where does that come from?

im using shell 100 octane (ron) gas. on their site they mention additives that lube the rings and clean the engine. did they clean the plugs to like new colour?

the particles/debris in the picture must come from the chamber. i pulled them carefully and the threads were clean. so i wonder if thats due to the cleaning action and what it does to the engine, which btw runs just fine. (everything stock, novi 1500.)

inspector12

Yeah anything that looks like that is just additives or carbon. The Ring your looking for on the porcelain isn't always visible. I was surprised how clean parts of it was and figured it wasn't regular 93 pump gas like you mentioned earlier or you had some kind of additives in it. Again though, none of that means anything when talking about the tune up. it will have multiple timing marks and no dedicated fuel ring on the porcelain, and the color will not be accurate because of the different AFR's and idle conditions etc... All you can say with those is that they don't look bad lol!

robert miller

Only true way to read a plug.. Man the white in the porcelain is really white.

romandian

i talked to a shell tech and he said thats exactly what v-power would do, clean the plugs. its supposedly the same stuff they use in formula 1.

BLOWNBLUEZ06@RKT Performance

The porcelain is white because you're running a projected-tip plug that's too hot for your setup. I recommend switching to a non projected BR7EF NGK part# 3346. Gap them a little tighter at or around .030". Like others already mentioned, it's best to install the plug, start the car, make an immediate pull, shut it down and pull over to the side of the road and put a different plug back in the hole and take the plug home to read it. If you're running methanol, it'll also clean the plugs and remove the fuel ring, forcing you to learn a different way of reading plugs.
Reading your plug based on all the information you've provided and considering it's too hot of a plug, I would back the timing down, lean the car out some and then slowly bring the timing back. As you lean it out, the max timing should be lower than it was when it was richer. I've run even high boosted cars as lean as 12.5:1 because that's what the plug reflected should be done and the car responded by going faster than it had ever gone before.



Bret

romandian

for comparison: old ngk ptr5c-13 (0.050") and new (colder) ngk tr6 (came with 0.040" gap, now 0.035"), same tune:

foto upload

the "old" plugs came with the car as i bought it and have seen some v-power and boost, but not much. engine runs very well, btw.

BLOWNBLUEZ06@RKT Performance

That old plug is a train wreck waiting to happen with that narrow tip. That style tip and boost/nitrous have no business being together in the same engine in my professional opinion. Notice the black specs on what I consider a colder electrode? That's what results from unstable combustion, also known as detonation. That kind of situation, however slight it may be, will take its toll on your motor, usually starting with eating away at ring tension.
The oil or heavy soot on the base of the plug that isn't getting burned off

Run whatever you choose, but I recommend at least a NGK 3346 or equivalent non-projected #7 with 14mm thread, tapered seat and .708 reach.

romandian

thanks for the comments. you got me confused, however. the tr6 are colder than the old plugs, right? (thats what came with the kit.)

BLOWNBLUEZ06@RKT Performance

Yes, they're colder than a stock 55 plug. Colder by a 1/2 step.

Bret

HardcoreABN

I would say the plug is waay too hot for that set up. Looks like the ground strap blistered from the heat. Like BlownBlue said, I would go to a BR7EF and make a pull and check them again. You could also cut the threads off so you can get a really good look at the fuel ring.

romandian

i will include the plugs in my next order from summit. why dont they come up on ngks site?

hardcore, the porcelain is absolutely clean.

HardcoreABN

even where the insulator (ceramic) touches the metal casing way down inside of the plug?

romandian

yes, clean all the way as the rep said it would be. (thats what i was trying to show in the pics.)

oh, and would i have to run more timing with the br7fe plugs, as they have a shorter reach?

HardcoreABN

Having a shorter reach isn't so much a timing issue, it is more to prevent the spark from getting blown out.

I would ditch those TR6s. Even with a 500+ whp NA car I didn't need TR6s. TR55 copper was spot on.

Also, Iridium plugs are horrible for performance. Iridium isn't nearly as conductive as copper. The reason OEMs use Iridium is because it is so hard it last a long *** time.

HardcoreABN

Honestly, I would switch fuels. I don't like not being able to see a fuel ring.

romandian

i thought the tr6 were copper also. the shell v-power 100 is the only 100 octane fuel around. i even pay a 30 cent premium over 95 regular that is around $1.45 now.