[Steve R]

Anthony,
I remember meeting you at one of the Spring Flings. You have an interesting photo gallery. Are all those cool parts yours?
Back to the subject, I'm not sure the coating would have helped my friend. The detonation seems to have started where the head of the piston meets the top ring.
Today we more or less confirmed the prevailing theory of detonation. As I cleaned the combustion chamber that bore the brunt of the failure, I found erosion along where the head gasket seals the combustion chamber.... Just above the area on the piston that was effected.
We removed the valves, cleaned them, then did a dye check for contact with the seats. They survived just fine. I will try to get a picture of the head damage. Luckily, it is minor.
Steve