Hey all,

I am about to change my head gasket for the 3rd time again. I have been advised to smear a light coat of grease on both sides of the gasket before fitting. I have also read about products such as copper coat, permatex etc. I will be using the BK450/TAM1521 gasket from Minispares UK and a new set of high tensile studs and nuts.

Does we think I should use a sealant or lubricant of some type or just clean down the surfaces and retourque with the good new head studs installed.

Cheers, Richard.

well i don`t use any sealant & havn`t had a head gasket problem with the BK450 type gaskets "ever"

but Robbo (my good friend & navigator & old apprentice) uses hylomar on all his, & also hasn`t had any problems

so,,,there you go,,, one who doesn`t & one who does, use sealant & both with no problems

go figure

However,,, in saying all that, we both do make sure the threads don`t bottom out, we both make sure that the surfaces are flat,,, we both make sure that all the stud holes are countersunk,,, & we both make sure that it`s all correctly torqued & then re-torqued once it`s all been run up to temp & let cooled again

& obviously we both make sure the ign timing isn`t over advancing , which would cause Pinking/detonation which (in-turn) can cause premature headgasket failure

just remember--> there really is more to a headgasket problem than just the headgasket

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No offence intended here but--> anyone writing a book about minis 30 years ago may not have experienced such worn or stuffed-with components as we are finding these days.

You should put your heart & soul into everything you do.

Thanks for the info on that... well I have made the right head gasket choice then

Can you explain about the threads not bottoming out bit? u mean the studs into the block or just the nuts onto the studs?

I was going to install the new stud kit just nipped up tight in the block with some 262 locktite, is this ok or bad?

Thanks Again!
Richard.

That's the stuff I used, the aerosol can makes it so easy to apply nice and evenly.

Is this the stuff....

http://www.supercheapauto.com.au/online ... escription

BK450 gaskets are already coated with sticky stuff when new, why bother adding something else.
I used to put a bead of Loctite 315 around the edge of the old copper 1275 gaskets, it was the only way to stop the green coolant from dribbling down the front of the block. Later gaskets were better..

ACL Monotorque smallbore gaskets already have a blue sealant bead around the edge, I use nothing on those either.

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DrMini- 1970 wasaMatic 1360, Mk1S crank, 86.6HP (ATW) =~125 @ crank, 45 Dellorto (38 chokes), RE282 sprint cam, 1.5 rockers, 11.0:1 C/R.

Have you looked at the head surface for staightness and the block?
If your having issues could be a place to look.
Also I used an old bk 450 hg on a build and it didn't seal because I left it out for months before using. Like the doc said they have some coating on them.

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Now with 2 extra ports!

I'll get this all checked when I pull the head off, for sure!

Hey Robbo has used the same BK450 head gasket over & over (5x times) & no dramas

he kept playing with head port & chamber designs & sizes & swapping valves & so-on, & figured if there`s nothing wrong with the head gasket then why not use it again

all he did was clean everything nice & then spray hylomar onto the gasket & whacked it on,,, nipped it down an extra little tad each time he did it tho, just to add a little more squish into the equation

all good still

& my good friend Peter Tighe (yes one of Ivan Tighes sons) also did this with his Spridget engine after hearing about what Robbo does,,, & again no problems so far , years later still no problems

so,,, it just goes to show that some mothers do have em hey ?

_________________
No offence intended here but--> anyone writing a book about minis 30 years ago may not have experienced such worn or stuffed-with components as we are finding these days.

You should put your heart & soul into everything you do.