As automotive technology and engineering practices have improved over the years, the design and shapes of the piston rings being used have also improved to perform more efficiently within the laws of physics. As most horsepower hunters are aware, parasitic loss is an output killer, and one area where this is painfully obvious is in the piston and ring market.

A large number of enthusiasts with classic cars or stock-restricted drag race and circle track class builds have been unable to take advantage of the newer and thinner piston ring technology, now available due to the large ring grooves of their factory pistons. Keith Jones, of Total Seal, created the video above to explain how the company’s Advantage Ring kit works.

The kits are designed for use with pistons that are required to have a ring groove combination of 5/64, 5/64, and 3/16-inch or 1/16, 1/16, and 3/16-inch width. With the use of specially designed rings and spacers, the Advantage kit allows these enthusiasts and racers to now take advantage of the narrower, lighter weight, and low drag rings that professionals have been using for some time to reduce the rotating friction and drag in the cylinders, and since it is thinner it also follows bore distortion better for a tighter seal.

For example, the kits have the option of including a .016-inch spacer, .030-inch spacer, or .046-inch spacer, there’s almost an endless combination of sizes, depending on the thickness of the ring you wanted to use and your ring groove depth.