The reason for the wide ring gap is cylinder wear, and it won't be equal from top to bottom. The major amount of cylinder wear happens in the top 1 1/2" or so of piston travel, resulting in constant flexing of the rings trying to maintain contact with the cylinder walls. Even if you hone and re-ring the cylinders, the new rings will lose their tension in a very short time due to excessive flexing. If the cylinder taper exceeds .005", do not attempt to re-ring the engine- - - -rebore it and install oversized pistons and rings. There is a very simple way to measure cylinder taper using an old ring and a feeler gauge, if you're interested in finding out how much taper your cylinders have.
Jerry
