Head Gasket and Gasket Goo?

[JohnE]

Some time ago , i read a post on a head gasket problem someone was having with a series.
During one of the replies, someone came on and told how they put a head back on with gasket goo as well as the new head gasket. Due to the head being slightly warped/corroded or something similar.
I have done a few searches and can't quite find it, let alone remember when it was. And without poiting the finger, i think it could have been jd who suggested it, but can't be sure.
Now this isn't a landrover problem or trying to shortcut to quiggers problem.
My Mf 35 ( 3 cylinder perkins) blew a head gasket, i pulled it down got a top kit , cleaned it up and put it all back together. The head seemed flat when i checked it. After putting it all back together, then I started it it was bubbling slightly,from the space where the head meets the block.( diesel had leaked onto the side of the motor after i bled the injectors) from the injector side of the head, I suspect it may have a bit of clearance. So I have half pulled it down again, to put some goo on it.

Now my question after all this , is which gasket goo, the old faithful red goo, we all used to carry in our tool boxes. Our will permatex aviation non hardening no3 gasket goo do the same job ( I am a fan of this stuff works wonders for all sorts of leaks)

thanks in advance


john

[incisor]

hylomar blue spray is made to do the job.

great stuff..... if you follow directions implicitly.

[JDNSW]

Some time ago , i read a post on a head gasket problem someone was having with a series.
During one of the replies, someone came on and told how they put a head back on with gasket goo as well as the new head gasket. Due to the head being slightly warped/corroded or something similar.
I have done a few searches and can't quite find it, let alone remember when it was. And without poiting the finger, i think it could have been jd who suggested it, but can't be sure.
Now this isn't a landrover problem or trying to shortcut to quiggers problem.
My Mf 35 ( 3 cylinder perkins) blew a head gasket, i pulled it down got a top kit , cleaned it up and put it all back together. The head seemed flat when i checked it. After putting it all back together, then I started it it was bubbling slightly,from the space where the head meets the block.( diesel had leaked onto the side of the motor after i bled the injectors) from the injector side of the head, I suspect it may have a bit of clearance. So I have half pulled it down again, to put some goo on it.

Now my question after all this , is which gasket goo, the old faithful red goo, we all used to carry in our tool boxes. Our will permatex aviation non hardening no3 gasket goo do the same job ( I am a fan of this stuff works wonders for all sorts of leaks)

thanks in advance


john

Wasn't me, and I would never use gasket goo on a head gasket, especially on a diesel. However, to answer your question about Permatex No3, if its the stuff I think it will, it will do the same as gasket goo.

Non hardening sealants such as gasket goo are really designed for joints where there is likely to be some movement, but can be used for joints that don't fit, particularly if you want to be able to get the joint apart without a lot of problems - but not where there is significant pressure, which is the case with a head gasket. (although some people have got away with it - depends on how big the gap is)

Is it possible that the poor fit was caused by contamination, such as a chip of carbon? That will do it. The other thing that may cause problems is not tightening in the correct sequence and to the right tension, and some engines need this to be done in stages. Another possible problem is that the studs in the block have pulled highs into the top surface of the block and you are tightening on these.
Also watch for binding threads that may result in uneven tension.

John

[JohnE]

thnks for that,
i have heard of hylomar,
the manual says to use some sort of gasket goo type stuff.
It could be a bit of carbon, the bloody head weighs a ton and when i put it back on it didn't quite slide down square. the tightening sequence was done the right way.
I'll know when I take it off again if a bit of gunk got into it.

thanks again.

john

[Quiggers]

G'day John, department of de gunking here!

I actually bought a tube of good old gasket goo just recently - for obvious reasons!

Had to make a tappet cover gasket from scratch, using gasket cork, and I glued it in with GG, and no leaks but, as a result of you help, this area is now low pressure, not high like it was...........

Trust you'll get the tractor right.

If you need a hand, give us a yell.

Cheers, GQ

[JohnE]

thanks graham
I am glad your problem seems sorted, I forgot to give you that bottle of sealer as well, for that possible moisture problem. I'll drop it off next week.
Yea the bloody head on the mf weighs as much as an engine, now i know why there are two lifting brackets on it. There was no water leaking so i guess Jd was right, well I'll know later when i take it off again, a little piece of crud might have fallen onto the gasket.


john

[RRV80]

I wouldnt use hymolar, as i have had to do head jobs twice so many times its not funny becaue of this stuff, some gaskets are not really compatible with the stuff, and the hymolar eats it! Also a good practice to follow, dont put coolant/inhibitor in straight away, it also can work wonders with the job at hand, and not the wonders you want. If it is a metal gasket, (being a diesel i assume it is) i wouldnt use anything at all, infact i wouldnt use anything on any headgasket, if the head is warped enough to casue a problem, it needs a service/skim.

[incisor]

hylomar blue spray is specifically for metal to metal surfaces, gasketed or not, but you need to follow the directions exactly...

it was devolped by rolls royce for just that purpose :P

there a heap of different variants of hylomar.

http://www.hylomar.com/universal_blue_2.shtml

[RRV80]

hmm maybe its me then haha, well at least i thought i was following them exactly, it is a particular 69 rolls (well actually a bentley but the same thing) that is having troubles funnily enough, as well as various barina's and vectra's (the opel/vauxhall ones), We just choose not to use the stuff anymore.

[Michael2]

I think it was me!

I used Stag Paste on a used head gasket on a 3 litre Nissan Diesel. Nothing was wrong with the head, I just couldn't get a new gasket at the time. It worked fine.

If I recall correctly, one of the guys in remote NT had some problem that generated the discussion.

[incisor]

stag is great.

gotten me out of trouble before today... there is a series 1 on bribie i repaired the head years ago with bog and stag on the head gasket to get a guy out of a jam, is still going today... and it has to be at least 15 years ago if not more...

[JohnE]

Aha
have finally found the culprit, Mr Incisor it was you that must have mentioned it in a post some time ago, almost similar times frame ( 15 years) and a series repair that is still untouched from when you first bogged it up. Many thanks i should have asked you in the first place.

Now i remember the correct name Stag Jointing Past, not gasket goo.See what the modern times have done to us made us forget the simple things we used to use.
Anyway its too late now, i bought a tin of hylomar yesterday, quite reasonably priced too from supercheeeeep. and the instructions are easy to follow.

I also did a hylomar web search, seeing what the stuff was developed for and its applications, it is the stuff to use. Nearly all the private stuff i looked at recommended it.

I guess the reason people say it is no good is because they put a glycol based coolants in straight after using it on the gasket.
After all that is what instructions are for.

john

[Bigbjorn]

Another possible problem is that the studs in the block have pulled highs into the top surface of the block and you are tightening on these.
Also watch for binding threads that may result in uneven tension.

John

One tends to forget that there are home mechanics and self-taught persons doing these jobs, who are not familiar with the normal practices of the fitter's trade. Always pull the studs from the block, kiss the top of the stud holes with a countersink just enough to remove any hilling on the mating surface, always run a tap or die or die nut over the stud threads and the threaded holes. CLEAN AWAY ANY SWARF! Check your workshop manual for instructions as to whether the assembling should be done clean and dry, with anti-seize, or with a thread sealant.

[JohnE]

Aside from the goo suggestions, it is easy to re-remember(is that a word) things you have come across in past experiences. Things you put in the memory bank at the time, then forget when you need it later.
Having said all that, i have had experience with both problems that Jd and brian describe, in, of all things, a pajero block, and a peugot engine
thinking back on to the tractor, i am wondering ,did I, retracing my steps I did, ( sad isn't it I am having a conversation with myself for all to see)
The probelm was with the partial corrosion of the water galleries,on the head to block, hardley worth my while to take the bugger into the automotive guys to get the block done, as the block is half the tractor. Anyway thats all sorted out now.
Many thanks again.
Now to try and work out why the abs won't play intermittently.

Cars and all things automotive are definately tools of the devil!


john