Intake manifold gasket sealant

[peters3103]

Hi chaps,
After having cleaned my 3.8 intake manifold and cylinder head I’m unsure about what sort of sealant, if any, I should use on the gaskets. Also between carbs and air intake trumpet. Obviously I have new gaskets. I note there is VERY light pitting on the manifold around the water passages. I’ve used gasket stripper to remove all the old gasket material without harsh scraping and cleaned the surfaces with fine emery paper.

Cheers,
Pete

[PeterCrespin]

Blue Hylomar near fuel, just plain paper at trumpet flange.

[peters3103]

Thanks Pete, would you suggest the aerosol version - applying a light coating to both sides of the gaskets?

Cheers,
Pete

[abowie]

Spray hylomar is certainly easier to use.

In the past we have used a variety of things including nothing, Loctite 515 and blue RTV silicone to dress the manifold gaskets. We've not had problems with a leak at the inlet manifolds and that's got to be 20 cars since I started working with the boys around 10 years ago. The little pressed aluminium gaskets have a sealant coating on them from the factory.

There was a thread on this last year and Peter C wasn't keen on RTV with fuel. My view was that I wanted to ensure a seal on the water channels in the circuit and that like yours some of the parts do get pitted with corrosion. I didn't want water under pressure finding its way into the fuel/air inlet path. So I wanted something that would fill holes and set solid. I wasn't that concerned about fuel exposure in the inlet manifolds although time may prove me wrong.

[peters3103]

BTW these are the type of intake gaskets I’ve been supplied. Same/similar material as the exhaust manifold gaskets. The gasket that was fitted was a one-piece thick paper type whereas these are three separate ones.

[abowie]

They're the correct gaskets and probably good quality.

As they're thick and compressible they should cope with any pitting etc from corrosion. Spray them with Hylomar and Bob's your hairy Auntie.

[peters3103]

Thanks Andrew, you know my Auntie that well?

[cactusman]

Another vote for blue hylomar

[abowie]

Thanks Andrew, you know my Auntie that well?

Well she does stand out in a crowd...

[peters3103]

She’s almost unrecognisable since shaving off her beard!
Hylomar aerosol now in stock - $38 ouch!

[PeterCrespin]

Hylomar aerosol now in stock - $38 ouch!

Double ouch when you consider the amount of spray that misses the gasket... Homo Sapiens evolved to have two index fingers:- one for spreading Hylomar, the other for Red Hermetite.

[peters3103]

Just thinking Pete, given I’ve got three seperate gaskets to spray, I can overlap them and the Hylomar that goes through the holes hits the one behind. Bloody genius!

[PeterCrespin]

Very clever. But to qualify as genius you have to persuade your wife you need six more as spares so you save even more overspray from being wasted. Your wife will understand if she’s anything like mine. She falls for the old “The more you spend the more you save” line every time!

[peters3103]

My wife’s into “the more you spend the more you save” Pete, just not on E Type Jaguars and BSA Spitfire Scramblers.