Christoph A. Widmer writes:
> All I did yesterday was cleaning - all day long! First the transmission,
> engine and engine compartment, than the garage and in the end my clothes!
I did the same thing on my TR6, but it was a matter of cleaning
several weeks! I still haven't got all the dirt off my fingers. But
most of it is coming of on my keyboard. If you have trouble reading
through the smudges on your screen, now you know why... :-)
> the engine in its original color. I know that some people use gasket sealers.
> What are they? Where do you use them? Which brand is the best? Do you need
> different sealers for different gasket materials?
A mechanic friend of mine gave me excellent advice on gasket sealers.
He said that the aviation gasket sealer (by permatex, in a small
plastic container with a brush) was the best, BUT it is very difficult
to get off. So what I did on the TR6 was use the aviation gasket
sealer on the side of the gasket that goes onto the removable part.
On the block side, I used blue silicon by permatex. This way you can
remove the part later, and the gasket will (sometimes) stay intact!
These sealers run about $4 each, but they go a long way. To give you
an example, let's seal the oil pan. Place the gasket down so that the
mating surface is facing the oil pan. Paint on the aviation sealer,
and wait for it to get tacky (about 2 minutes). Use only enough to
coat the gasket. Too much of a good thing, is not a good thing.
Place the gasket on the oil pan and then paint the gasket side that
mates on the block with a thin layer of blue silicon. Make SURE that
when you tighten down the bolts on any cover, that you slowly tighten
them from the center out, and that all the bolts are torqued the same.
You really want to make sure that you tighten from the center out so
that the gasket will seat properly like this:
<---- Tighten ---->
+----+----+----+----+----+----+
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+ +
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+----+----+----+----+----+----+
<---- Tighten ---->
I don't tighten the bolts down all the way the first time either.
Make the cover come down (or up if you're upsidedown) to the block
evenly. This will help seat the gasket. The biggest problems with
gaskets leaking (IMO) are: people don't clean the surfaces enough, the
bolts are unevenly torqued, and the gasket didn't seat properly.
My TR6 engine only leaked in one place after the rebuild. And that
was on the oil filter. A little twist of the wrench, and PRESTO no
drips! (well, no drips for now.... :-)
---
"Now what, I say what's the big idea bashin me on the noggin with a
rolling pin? Clunk enough people and we'll have a nation of lump heads!"
-- Foghorn Leghorn [Mel Blank]
Scott Paisley paisley@cme.nist.gov ..!uunet!cme-durer!paisley
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