which head gaskets best?

[richardv6]

i have been having a noise that sounds like knock but cant ppt it.i removed intake and seen what looks like black combustion around bottom of ports of intake gasket (lower side).was not sure if it was intake leak or head gaskets leaking tords the intake gasket.so i removed heads and appeared ok.i had cometic gaskets and felpro blue intake gasket on it.so wondered if i should put another set of cometic gaskets or go with rjc setup.also do they make a thicker intake gasket for these anymore.also i have arp head bolts.

 

[dsapper]

go with this, never blow another one

http://www.gbodyparts.com/product_info.php?products_id=413&osCsid=aaf4f922337b836a10b893c955a8ec34

Scott Atk did mine on the board here. As bulletproof as I'm aware you can get

 

[Phoneguy]

Here is how well Cometics seal...

 

[bison]

They all seal about the same. Some are more detonation tolerant than others. Lack of detonation/pre-ignition will be the biggest determining factor in how well they seal.

 

[Phoneguy]

They all seal about the same. Some are more detonation tolerant than others. Lack of detonation/pre-ignition will be the biggest determining factor in how well they seal.

Agreed...I obviously had a malfunction(boost controller)..My point was that the Cometics did not blow.

Bryan

 

[richardv6]

wow, that was bad.

 

[turbo nasty]

Are you using studs?

If so very common problem is that the shoulder on the mid length studs are NOT recessed below the bolt hole far enough so when you tighten down the nut you are tightening on the shoulder and not the head.

Screw all the studs in, run the washer and nuts down on all just finger tight you wioll see the mid lengths have a bit more threads sticking up vs the rest.

Then remove the nuts and look at where the shoulder is on those its just a little bit in the hole and it will be straight forward that it isnt going to load the head with compression/clamping force in those areas.

I contacted ARP and they didnt seemed to really care that this issue exsisted.

Fix is to add one washer to the mid length (total of 4 washers).

3 friends cars either blew headgaskets or kept having the overflow coolant reservoir blow over/get too high under boost and all had the same problem. Of course they had to replace the HG's and they added washers and all good with no other changes.

When I built my latest mill I looked at mine and they were the same way. I ordered extra ARP washers from jegs.

May not be the problem but worth taking a look at.

 

[TurboBuRick]

There's some valuable information. I will be checking from now on. Thanks for the info TN.

RL

 

[Jerryl]

........... I contacted ARP and they didnt seemed to really care that this issue exsisted.
When I built my latest mill I looked at mine and they were the same way. I ordered extra ARP washers from jegs. . . . . . .

At least their quality is consistent.
Thanks for sharing.

 

[turbofabricator]

I like the stock (9441-pt Fel-Pro) for 10.50's and slower. I then use Cometics. I agree with the above about the ARP stud issue. Buy a few extra hardened washers when ordering ARP head studs. It's all the small details that make or break a build.

 

[bison]

The arp problem has been that way for a while. I just double washered and never thought much about it

 

[richardv6]

i was using the arp bolts.i ordered the (bulletproof) gaskets .i will try those, only thing they are only .035 thick. any tips from anyone on installing.i dont want any coolant leaks.

 

[mgmshar]

Before I changed my head gaskets, I read a lot of posts about ARP studs and never heard about the issue with the medium length ones...

Is there a way to tell if my nuts are clamping on the head or on the stud shoulder without removing them? Maybe I can count the number of threads sticking up through the nut?

Thanks,

Mike
Sent from my HTC Droid Incredible using Turbo Buick

 

[turbo nasty]

Is there a way to tell if my nuts are clamping on the head or on the stud shoulder without removing them? Maybe I can count the number of threads sticking up through the nut?

Start another thread

 

[richardv6]

just a thought while i had heads off.if i use the bullet proof gasket setup from rjc.shoulod i oring heads or think it would hurt gasket or a waste of money.

 

[turbo nasty]

How fast are you wanting to run. IMO if you are high tens then 9441pt and be done easy and you have a fuse. The heads do distort and should be checked for flatness IMO as well before reinstall.

 

[bison]

just a thought while i had heads off.if i use the bullet proof gasket setup from rjc.shoulod i oring heads or think it would hurt gasket or a waste of money.

It's not needed

 

[Bobs rare 6]

I did not have good luck with rjc shims. Went with thicker cometics and have been great for several years at 27# boost!

 

[Grumpy]

i ordered the (bulletproof) gaskets .

They take a beating without blowing.. BUT think about that.. IF a head gasket doesn't blow what else can happen ?? Here are the results.. A low mile 27k motor. Better have a handle on the tune or you will be picking up pieces.